Redbird Recap: 2024 Week 2 | Cardinals 41- Rams 10
Like sinking down into your old worn out recliner, the Arizona Cardinals returned to a place of comfort for Week 2- State Farm Stadium. Kyler Murray looked at ease, reading the field on his dropbacks and going through his progressions behind an Offensive line that built upon the previous week’s performance. Even last week’s weak link in the trenches, Kelvin Beachum ended up with the highest pass blocking grade on the team with a bit of tight end help (PFF). When things did break down and Kyler did have to scramble or run, he did so with confidence, and was able to avoid pursuit with regularity against a still high quality Rams defensive line without losing his footing. And while many of his big pass plays did come off the scrambling playmaking ability he is known for, his comfort playing within the system has grown as well. His first TD to Marvin Harrison Jr. for example came from trusting the play call and letting it develop as a perfect counter to the quarters split coverage being played to that side of the field (Cover 6).
12 and 13 personnel remain the Cardinals bread and butter, but this week Offensive Coordinator Drew Petzing had his guys ready to win not only on the run and with the quick passing game, but also prepared to beat the Rams Cover 3/Cover 6 scheme on deep and intermediate routes out of those same formations. He seemed to have an answer for most of the Ram’s defensive play calls, and this week’s audibles generally led to success instead of simply running into the teeth of the defenders.
The run game for the Cardinals is a varied scheme that uses the whole breadth of the line of scrimmage, never letting itself be limited whether it be to power, zone, counter or any other concept. While they do tend to have the most success running to the traditional right side, they supplement that with plenty of inside running and pin and pull to the left. It can be hard for a defensive line to adjust to any given run when they can’t be sure which of the 5 offensive lineman and as many as 3 tight ends they face is going to be pulling, and when they prepare for what seems to be an obvious run play, it somehow morphs into a pass, and not necessarily just a screen.
The emphasis on balance in this scheme was particularly on display last Sunday with 266 air yards, 231 on the ground, and explosive plays coming from both. This is what the Petzing run Cardinals offense should look like, with James Conner, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Trey Mcbride leading, and getting solid and timely contributions from the other backs and receivers (Of note: Dortch, while being used mainly as a decoy had over 4 yards of average separation this week). Kyler’s composure and ability to see the field was a stark increase from his Week 1 performance. Where he only had 3 pass attempts of over 10 yards last week, here in Week 2 he took 9 shots downfield, completing 7 of them. He demonstrated full command of the offense, with throws in rhythm, on designed roll outs, and on his masterful escapes. When he decided to pull things down and run this week it was with intention and commitment. He has thankfully started to slide at the end of his runs, because we need him behind center and he has sometimes played it a bit dangerous in his career. If he can play with this level of decision making and comfort each week, there is no reason for him not to be in the MVP conversation at the end of 2024.
Defensively, the Redbirds abused a damaged and depleted Rams Offensive line. While not all of the Cardinals defensive success can be pinned on the issues the Rams are having with finding bodies to block up front, I won’t argue that it didn’t play a huge role in allowing them to get the Birdgang pass rush operating smoothly and finding opportunities to get to Stafford in the backfield. The biggest beneficiary was the undersized high motor efforts of outside linebacker Dennis Gardeck who ended his night with 3 sacks 4 TFL’s and a forced fumble. His first sack came from pure speed rush from the 9 tech, and he used that to set up a quick first step to the outside to force a reaction giving him a free path inside later on. Some of this was against the poor backups the Rams have patched their line with admittedly, but he maneuvered past higher quality O-lineman throughout the night as well in this outstanding performance.
Gardeck the Barbarian wasn’t the only one feeding in the backfield that night either, Zaven Collins showed his growth, again managing a sack- with no yellow flags flying in to snatch this one away from him, and inside linebacker Krys Barnes managed one as well. More importantly, these players and others were getting to the run quickly. There were a number of tackles for a loss this week, a total of 12, and most other runs were stopped at the line or shortly after. While the Redbirds had looked like merely an average NFL run defense the week before against the Bills, this week they looked like they may be able to ascend the ranks further still, stifling the Rams for a mere 53 rushing yards in this one. If the Cardinals front end defense can keep this momentum going against better offensive lines, they will be doing enough to keep their high powered offense on the field.
And on the backend you have adaptation- last year’s quarters heavy Fangio defense with some modifications is still the bones of the scheme- but the Redbirds are spending surprisingly little time in quarters- using it on only about 19% of their plays, and using less of the Cover 6 and other split coverages we are used to seeing out of this and similar defensive systems. We are instead seeing a transition from the disguised coverage the Cardinals give at the snap into a lot of Cover 3 (on 42% of defensive snaps) and some inverted coverages. It’s nice to see this adaptation of Jonathan Gannon to the short passing counters that NFL defenses have begun to use against the Fangio coaching tree. While I still find myself frustrated at times with the off coverage and holes in the zone underneath- he has changed up his system so that those holes don’t appear on every down.The Redbirds operate with a bit more man coverage on third down and in other crucial moments, holding opponents to an impressive 25% conversion rate on third down so far in 2024, which puts them in a three way tie for 3rd among NFL defenses.
The floor for this Cardinals defense has been raised. While they may still be missing or developing the high end talent they need to be a truly dominant force, they have proven they can do enough to keep the time of possession close against one of the better teams in the NFL in the Buffalo Bills. And if their offense can operate the way they did in the first half of that Bills game, and this week against the Rams, the defense doesn’t have to do much more than that to keep them in it for a win
Week 2 Good Eggs:
#1 QB Kyler Murray- A nearly perfect performance. Kyler was operating the offense with timing and rhythm, his vision and progression reads were clean, and when he did need to get on the move for a run or pass, he did so cleanly and effortlessly. There were so many little things he did well this week, his Play action fakes and the way he held the ball to his hip, looking off defenders before a pass, his mistakes were few. We witnessed greatness in this one. 17/21 passing- 266 Yards- 3 TD
Offensive Coordinator Drew Petzing.- While it would have made sense to put MHJ here, it was Drew and his staff who had him and Kyler ready and steady to perform this week. Every Ram’s defensive move had a counter in this one, and a week of full speed practice had Marvin Harrison Jr. comfortable in his routes and decision making. It also looks like Kyler is starting to trust the play call to help him deliver the ball on time, on the drop, to the right guy. After looking so out of sorts after the Bill’s adjustments on defense last week, I feel like I have to praise Drew Petzing here for righting the ship.
Honorable mention- #6 James Conner- Another week, another Honorable Mention for this Good Egg. 21 carries for 122 yards for our workhorse back behind an O-line that is operating with excellence. A fumble near the goal line came late in garbage time, but was simply a good solid hit by the defense against good technique by Conner. He too had a touchdown in this one, but while he is doing the grunt work and carrying the load that makes this offense go, it is Kyler and MHJ that got the explosives in this one.
Honorable mention- #45 Dennis Gardeck and the Cardinals Defense- While we must take into account the state of the Rams injury wise- the majority of the Cardinals defense played an incredible game. Gardeck gets the highlight here, because he converted his great first step quickness and high motor into tangible statistics. JG and Nick Rallis deserve praise here as well, they had their guys ready to go and Budda and Gardeck in particular always seemed to know what the Rams had coming. It is all too easy to find players and people to praise in a good win like this where almost the whole team was executing well.
Week 2 Bad Eggs:
#7 LB Kyzir White- Kyzir remains on this list. Something is just a bit rotten here this year and White is far too often out of position, misreading the run or pass, or waiting too long to hit his gap. He was a bit better this week than last, but in a week with so many strong performances elsewhere, his mistakes stand out.
#23 Sean Murphy-Bunting- Caught out of place at times in coverage this week, Sean Murphy Bunting continues to have some issues with getting a proper wrap tackle on running backs in particular, but on receivers as well. This can lead to extra yards. While he and the rest of the defensive backs were able to do enough to limit the Rams to only 10 points and overall I was not displeased with the effort and execution, I do want to see improvement here going forward if Murphy Bunting wants to remain CB1.
Dishonorable mention- #34 Jalen Thompson- JT has had a few struggles in coverage this year, starting in preseason and I am seeing it transfer over to regular season games, I expect him to work this out as he adjusts to the changes JG has made on defense.
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