The Arizona Cardinals are at the point of the season where they need wins. Huge stats and highlight reels are nice, but victories are sorely needed. Today’s game against the Dallas Cowboys comes at a time when Arizona will either have a decent year or be picking in the Top-5 once again in April’s NFL Draft.
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The game might be the final for DE Josh Sweat and S Budda Baker, both of whom have been speculated as trade bait ahead of the November 10 NFL
trade deadline.
In this game, Arizona used their backup QB, backup RB, backup RT, their WR3, and their kick returner as another receiver. The injury list this upcoming week isn’t going to be pretty.
At the final gun, the Cardinals won 33-30 in overtime. The Cardinals have beaten Dallas now five times in a row.
So, who played well for the Cardinals? Who didn’t?
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BEAKS
Defensive stops – Dallas went for it on fourth-and-one from their own 32-yard line in the first quarter. Trot out the punter, right? The Cowboys, basking in their own glory while playing a two-win team, went for it. LB Mack Wilson read the running play by RB Javonte Williams and stuffed him for a two-yard loss.
LB Zaven Collins came off the edge for the sack on QB Dak Prescott, which forced Dallas to punt. L.J. Collier’s timely sack forced a Dallas punt late in the fourth quarter. Making the Cowboys have a three-and-out on their only possession in overtime was a huge series of downs. Josh Sweat had a decent second half, including a sack late that forced the Cowboys to think field goal instead of seven. S Andrew Wingard was very active and had several key stops and finished with seven total tackles.
WR Michael Wilson – Holy smokes. Where was Wilson in the first half? He destroyed the Dallas secondary in the final two quarters. His 17-yard jet sweep in the extra period was the catalyst to get into field goal range. On the final drive before the regular time ran out, he snagged a 21-yard pass and then the game-tying touchdown, with both feet dragging. Quiet first half, but finished with 15 targets, 8 receptions for 111 yards, and one TD.
LB Jack Gibbens – Seems like every week Gibbens is leading the Cardinals in total tackles. Against Dallas, that trend continued with 11 tackles. He reads the run very quickly, then makes up his mind and finds the correct gap.
RB Tyler Allgeier – When Allgeier is told he is the lead back and isn’t going out of the game, he balls out. Both Jeremiyah Love and Bam Knight sustained injuries in the first half, so it became the Allgeier Show. He had very few carries and yards in the first half, but made up for it after the half. Exploded for runs of 63 yards and 52 yards and was the difference in the game. Finished with 11 carries for 147 yards, a 13.4 yards-per-carry average, and scored two TDs. All in pretty much two quarters. This week’s “NFC Offensive Player of the Week.”
QB Gardner Minshew – Here on ROTB, we ran an article and suggested that perhaps it was time to see what the other quarterbacks on the roster had to offer. After all, QB Jacoby Brissett has a 3-15 record as Arizona’s starting quarterback, so it can’t be any worse. So, you are the backup quarterback and come into the game in the third quarter. What do you do? Well, for one, you use all of the playmakers. That is what Minshew did with Allgeier, Wilson, and, of course, McBride. He didn’t spend a lot of time looking for other receivers and focused on the speedier Wilson and the sure-handedness of McBride.
Lo and behold, the offense not only moved, but it also scored actual points. No, really, like touchdowns. What a sparkplug. Arizona scored 20 points in the final stanza, and moved the ball down into field goal range in the overtime period to get into field goal range all on Minshew’s arm and accuracy. In the end, the Cardinals not only had a win, but also totaled 467 yards in total offense. Minshew went 17 for 23 for 188 yards with three TD throws against zero picks or fumbles, was sacked just once, and had a 137.3 QB rating.
Second half adjustments – You have to admire a head coach who can identify what isn’t working and offer changes for the second half instead of just cashing it in or staying with the game plan that obviously isn’t working. QB Jacoby Brissett had one series in Quarter 3 before he was yanked. The offense just wasn’t moving, and when it did, it could not score. The defense also blitzed a safety or a linebacker more in the second half, which made Prescott have to throw the ball earlier than in the first two quarters. And the ball was being distributed more to the Cardinals’ playmakers, Wilson and McBride, on a more frequent basis. Josh Fryar came in for the injured Jayden Williams at right tackle and held his own. And the long ball was incorporated, which made the Dallas cornerbacks back off the line pre-snap and helped the short passing game.
DT L.J. Collier – Collier was immediately placed on the cow dung list when he pushed LT Tyler Guyton and got a 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalty. What happened was a pile of players was clustered from the previous play, which was a failed third down for Dallas. As players were getting up, Guyton shoved LB Gibbens, and Collier saw it. He then went over and body-slammed Guyton with both hands. Naturally, the referee only saw the second offender. Instead of setting up the punt return team, the Cowboys had a fresh set of downs. It was a knucklehead play. But Collier more than made up for it. With 3:58 remaining in the game, he batted a pass on a third-and-11. He sacked Prescott with 2:09 left in the game, and then halfway through the extra period, he was able to bat the pass down that became a Cowboys punt.
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GEEKS
First-quarter offense – QB Jacoby Brissett airmailed four passes in the opening quarter. RB Jeremiyah Love had minimal gains on the ground, then walked off with an injury. A beautiful nine-play drive was stuffed at the one-yard line on both third and fourth downs, with Arizona getting zero points. Then TE Elijah Higgins pops the ball up as Dallas LB Shemar James makes an interception and runs it all the way down to the Cardinals’ five-yard line. Two plays later, the Cowboys are up 7-0, but only because S Andrew Wingard doesn’t land on the fumble caused by the S Budda Baker hit on RB Javonte Williams. Only 22 rushing yards for Arizona, and the offense’s best pass catcher, McBride, had one catch for five yards. First-quarter possessions: punt, downs, INT.
Missed opportunities – The Bam Knight fumble came as the second quarter was winding down, as the offense was getting near field goal range after WR Simi Fehoko hauled in a 17-yard pass. Not scoring any points after the offense got to the one in Quarter 1. Cardinals got the ball on the Cowboys’ 30 after the failed fourth-down attempt and scored no points. The missed PAT would have won the game outright.
Missed tackles – Budda Baker, Jack Gibbens, Mack Wilson, Andrew Wingard, and Denzel Burke.
CB Denzel Burke – He missed the tackle on WR CeeDee Lamb that should have been a loss in the second quarter, but ended up converting a first down instead. On the Cowboys’ second touchdown, WR Ryan Flournoy was his man as Dallas was inside the five-yard line, yet Burke played off him instead of pressing tight with such a limited field. The catch was uncontested and increased the lead to 14-0. In the third quarter, he was guarding WR George Pickens and had batted a pass away earlier by turning around and locating the ball. But on this play, Burke never turned. The ball hit him in the back, which means that if he had turned his head and located the ball, that would have been an interception. Instead, it was called pass interference, and the ball was placed at Arizona’s two-yard line. Aren’t cornerbacks taught that when the receiver turns his head, you turn yours? Finished with four tackles.
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Bird Seed – Why isn’t the word “phonetically” spelled with an “f”?
DT Andrew Billings – He got his first sack while with the Cardinals early in the second quarter when he beat RG Tyler Booker. Two plays later, he teamed up with Darius Robinson to stop Williams after just a three-yard gain. Finished the game with a season-high five total tackles, one tackle for loss, plus the sack.
QB Jacoby Brissett – How many passes in the first half did Brissett send flying over somebody’s head? It was a trend, for certain. Then, few passes were thrown towards both McBride and Wilson. He was sacked four times and held the ball too long. During the time he was in the game, the Cardinals had 130 yards of total offense and just three points. The team finished with 467 yards of total offense and 33 points, so you do the math. Went 10 for 23 for 119 yards, zero touchdowns, one pick, and a 41.8 QB rating.
K Chad Ryland – The last time Ryland missed a PAT was two years ago, connecting on 58 straight. But yet, after Arizona tied the game at 30-all with just six seconds left in the game, he shanked it to the right. He connected on a 37-yarder in the second quarter, and then booted the game-winner, a 42 yard field goal.
TE Trey McBride – A favorite of Brissett, but came alive once Minshew began to sling it. Was all alone on his TD catch late in the fourth quarter. On the final drive had a key eight-yard pickup. Finished with 8 targets, 7 catches for 72 yards and one score.
