The Arizona Cardinals finished preseason play Friday with a high-scoring 42-38 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
New head coach Mike LaFleur couldn't pull off the win against his big brother Matt on the road, leaving Arizona at 1-3 in preseason games -- a total that's one higher than most thanks to their increased reps in the Hall of Fame Game against the Carolina Panthers.
Cardinals offense off to great start in Mike LaFleur era
Though Arizona ultimately lost that Hall of Fame Game 33-30, the process sparked hope in Cardinals fans enduring this rebuild. The offense clicked under LaFleur, and you could even see a glimpse of Carson Beck as the potential long-term answer at quarterback. He finished with 188 passing yards and one touchdown, completing 15 of 19 passes.
Even Kedon Slovis filled in nicely in his place during that game. That's been a theme for LaFleur's Cardinals throughout this high-scoring preseason. You can see the start of a foundation that's being built where systems are more or less "quarterback proof."
Sean McVay's Los Angeles Rams are the prime example. Yes, Matthew Stafford happens to be elite, but that offense will fortunately be just fine following his retirement because of the system in place.
Arizona has a long way to go before becoming like its NFC West rival, though it's certainly something to strive for with this new LaFleur era.
He's already looking to be a good fit in terms of utilizing his creativity and schemes to get the most out of these offensive weapons. You have Michael Wilson coming off a 1,000-yard season, Trey McBride ranked a 99 in Madden this year, Marvin Harrison Jr. still looking like the WR1 in camp, and a revamped running back room with offseason additions Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier.
There are still some glaring holes in the offensive line that need to be addressed, but this up-and-coming roster is a quarterback away from being an electric offense.
Cardinals must see what they have in Carson Beck
There are plenty of intriguing options already emerging in a 2027 class headlined by Arch Manning, where the Cardinals are fortunately projected to have another top five selection. But in the meantime, they might as well see what they have in Beck.
An untimely rib injury cut his preseason action short, but he was already showing enough flashes to justify Arizona's third-round draft investment.
Plenty of question marks remain, and expectations should admittedly be tempered. A 23-year-old rookie who fell to the third round at the most important position is already telling about his odds of being a starter at any point in his career, let alone a long-term answer for a Cardinals team with aspirations of becoming an elite offense.
That said, they might as well at least see if he's that missing piece midseason. Jacoby Brissett isn't going to be able to keep this team's playoff chances alive in the NFC West. The schedule is particularly demanding to begin the season, easing up at the end by the time Arizona is likely already out of contention.
That's yet another reason to switch over to Beck at some point this season, giving themselves a win-win scenario going forward. If he's that franchise-altering steal in the third round, great. If not, Arizona is in a perfectly calculated position to draft that long-term answer once and for all.
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