On Sunday, the only thing standing between the Arizona Cardinals and their first playoff spot since 2015 was rival Los Angeles Rams. And not even a totally healthy team from the Los Angeles Rams – but one that was starting a former AAF quarterback behind the center. Instead of capitalizing on their chance, however, the Cardinals lost for the fifth time in seven games and ended a promising season that leaves the team with more questions than answers.
Sunday’s competition presented a scenario of victory and achievement for Rams and Cardinals, and each team entered with serious injuries. Arizona entered without receivers Larry Fitzgerald (groin) and Christian Kirk (COVID-19 list) in the lineup, and QB holder Kyler Murray was recovering from a leg injury he suffered at the end of last week’s loss to the 49ers. The Rams, for their part, did not start at QB Jared Goff, who broke his right thumb last week against the Seahawks. So LA turned to reserve defender John Wolford, who had never played in an NFL game before Sunday.
But the Cardinals’ QB advantage quickly disappeared. Murray left the game at the start of the first quarter, after injuring his ankle in the opening series of the game. Arizona then turned to Chris Streveler, who previously played in the Canadian Football League and helped the Winnipeg Blue Bombers lift the gray bowl in 2019. In a three-minute break, a game with implications in the playoffs was suddenly in the hands of two players who were not even in the NFL squad last year.
Wolford’s first pass of the day was an interception, establishing the only offensive touchdown in the entire game: a Streveler pass to attack Jonathan Ward, who gave the Cardinals a 7-0 lead.
After that, the game was for the defenders. Wolford had some success, completing 22 of 38 passes for 231 yards and a choice, adding six loads for 56 yards. But Streveler and the Cardinals attack looked almost stagnant, completing 11 of 16 passes for 105 yards, a touchdown and a game change, 84 yards, pick-six from the Rams corner Troy Hill. The turnover gave Los Angeles a 12-7 lead at halftime.
The Rams increased their lead to 11 at the start of the fourth period, after two field goals. And although Murray finally returned and led the Cardinals into the red zone, the drive stalled and Mike Nugent’s 37-yard field goal attempt was blocked. It was the fight that Kliff Kingsbury’s team put up with for the rest of the afternoon, and their aspirations for the playoff – which seemed very realistic a few weeks ago – were silently eliminated.
Coming into the season, Murray was the favorite candidate to be the best player in the league because of Arizona’s strength in his final three games of 2019. At the end of the 2020-21 season, however, the opposite can be said of the Cardinals. Now the issues surrounding the Kingsbury team – along with their management – are increasing.
Kingsbury’s merits as an NFL coach were questioned when he was hired in 2019, largely because of his track record as a Texas Tech coach. He had compiled a career record of 35-40, but was considered for his offensive acumen, boasting high-powered air strikes that at one point were commanded by names like Patrick Mahomes. Kingsbury’s first year suggested it was worth betting, largely because of Murray’s development. And during the first seven games of the season, when the Cardinals raced to a 5-2 start, that remained true. But the limitations of the Arizona attack were also apparent during that period. And after the farewell to Week 8 of the Cardinals, those limitations became inhibitory. Arizona had 3-6 in their final nine games to end the 8-8 season.
As if the Cardinals record was not suspicious enough, they won four victories against the humble NFC East and another victory against the Jets. Arizona’s victory in week 7 overtime against the Seahawks and their victory in week 10 against Bills were impressive, but the club’s level of play dropped significantly after that. The Cardinals entered Week 17 ranked 20th in the offensive DVOA metric of Football Outsiders and 10th in the defensive DVOA.
There is a case to be made to allow Kingsbury to continue to grow at work. Like The AthleticTed Nguyen recently noted that the 41-year-old instantly restored the Cardinals’ attack on competence in his first year. Because of the shortened off-season, he didn’t have time to enjoy this momentum as he normally would. And while his attack made the spectacular acquisition of DeAndre Hopkins’ superstar last spring, his unit lacks other notable game makers and the offensive line has not been consistent. However, these problems do not excuse Kingsbury’s gaffes, like the fact that he almost exclusively lines up Hopkins on the left side of his formations and depends a lot on Murray’s athletics. On Sunday, facing third and 18 on the 48-yard line in Los Angeles with five minutes remaining, Kingsbury dialed a speed option in which Murray limped immediately threw the ball behind Chase Edmonds, who was swallowed up behind the line by a defeat. Then, in a game that must win and lose by 11, Kingsbury kicked the ball away. These types of confusing game management errors have happened quite frequently this season.
“Part of that is going through this, learning to win,” Murray told reporters after Sunday’s defeat. “There are a few other reasons why I don’t want to break now. [Missing the playoffs] it’s a horrible feeling. ”
Regardless, Sunday’s clash – and this season – proved that the Cardinals are still a step behind their NFC West colleagues. Playing as a reserve defender in an unmissable game is something that only a few teams and coaches are prepared to respond to in the middle of the game. But based on the start of the Arizona season and the relative ease of his schedule in the second half, he probably shouldn’t have found himself in the scenario he found. This off-season presents a chance for the Cardinals to update their squad and continue to build their attack around Murray. But whether or not they should remain patient with Kingsbury is a fair question. Expectations for the club have increased. Kingsbury is one of the main reasons for this, but it is also why he will have to live up to them in the future.