Cardinals hoping to exploit Chiefs defense
It doesn’t look good on paper. The Arizona Cardinals are traveling to Arrowhead Stadium this Sunday, where they’ll take on the AFC-leading Chiefs. They’ve been held down by most opposing defenses, so it makes sense if they’re tempering their optimism.
But there is one stat line that the Cardinals may find encouraging: The Chiefs’ defense is allowing 427.4 yards per game, the second-highest in the league.
Of course, that’s not a major problem when Patrick Mahomes and the offense are putting up a league-leading 36.3 points per game. The Cardinals are aware of this chink in the defense, but they’ve been careful not to put too much stock in it.
“I think a lot of those numbers are a little bit deceiving because they’re up by 30 in half their games,” quarterback Josh Rosen said, on the yardage that Chiefs’ defense is allowing. “A lot of times they’re just playing back. They let the offense do what they want to do, try to bend not break, hold them to field goals.
“I think they’re like 32nd in pass defense, but I don’t think you should read into that at all. They’re a very good football team with a very good defense. A lot of that is just because their offense is scoring so many points.”
Rosen seemed to voice the consensus in the locker room: maybe, sometimes numbers do lie. Or at least in this case, the numbers are overshadowed — both by points per game and by record.
The 8-1 Chiefs have lost only to the Patriots, a three-point loss in Week 6.
Like Rosen noted, they are indeed last in pass defense, having allowed 2,724 passing yards. The quarterback said there are parts of the defense he hopes to exploit, he just won’t share what.
“Yeah, always. Every week, there’s always something, but I can’t tell you guys. They’re there,” Rosen said, smirking in the direction of the cameras at the press conference.
Even if the passing yards allowed are notable, coach Steve Wilks also wants to get running back David Johnson further involved. That’s been a theme of the season, but Wilks thinks with the added time from the bye week, offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich is getting closer.
Still, Wilks is also careful not to get too excited about what Kansas City is allowing on paper.
“I think their defense is pretty good. I know the numbers don’t show it,” Wilks said. “The great thing about what they have, they have a very explosive offense, as we just talked about, to be able to compensate and score points.
“So, we feel like there’s an opportunity in the run game. Hopefully, we can run the football against these guys, and hopefully, there’s going to be an opportunity in the pass game as well.”
If the numbers around the Chiefs are deceiving, the Cardinals will need to hope their numbers are misleading, too.
Arizona is averaging 233.2 yards per game, good for last in the league and nearly 200 yards less than the Chiefs are allowing anyway. To keep up with the Chiefs, the Cardinals will need to strike early and often, which they’re struggled to do.
“We can’t take the backseat on the offensive side of the ball,” Wilks said. “We have to be aggressive and try to score as well.”
It’s a huge road test for the 2-6 Cardinals, who are hoping a midseason coaching change and a bye after a rare win can help turn the tide.
Plus, their opponent is powerful, but not perfect. At least, not according to someone who sees them every day: Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.
“We have so much room to improve, it’s ridiculous,” Reid said.
Reid’s assessment comes off as a little ridiculous considering what the Chiefs are achieving this year. If they’re underperforming, the Cardinals are going to be shellshocked.
Even Reid points out that while his defense may give up a lot of yards, it gets stops when it needs.
“The one thing I’ll tell you is that at opportune times, our defense has done a heck of a job of bearing down,” Reid said Wednesday in a conference call. “My defense, at opportune times, has stepped up, and that’s important. You see this league-wide. These offenses are spreading everybody out. There’s a lot of ground to cover, and you’ve got to just stay persistent with it and keep battling.”
The Chiefs have won by double-digits five times this season, giving the defense time to breathe.
“I don’t think any team eases up,” safety Tre Boston said, when asked if a defense is able to relax behind an explosive offense. “(Maybe) once your team has scored 40 points, but not often in the league is your team going to score that.”
The Cardinals aren’t on the cusp of scoring 40 — they’ve only scored more than 20 once this season. They’re hoping to increase their yardage regardless of who they face. And they know the stat sheet for the Chiefs’ defense could just be a tease.
“It does change the dynamics when your offense is putting up points,” right guard Justin Pugh said.
“But at the end of the day, they’re 8-1. I don’t care how many yards they let up. They’re winning ball games. You can’t argue with results, and they have those.”
Injury report
The Cardinals got a much needed
boost of energy Wednesday, as safety Tre Boston returned to practice. Boston (ribs/ shoulder) was still limited, but felt he’s taking the right steps to be ready for Sunday.
“I feel good. I had a great practice today,” Boston said.
Wide receivers Chad Williams and Larry Fitzgerald both did not practice Wednesday. Williams has an ankle injury, but Fitzgerald’s was not injury related.
Linemen on both sides of the ball are still working through some lingering injuries.
OL Mike Iupati (back), OL Justin Pugh (hand), OL Jeremy Vujnovich (hamstring), DT Corey Peters (ankle) and DT Robert Nkemdiche (calf ) were all limited.
TE Jermaine Gresham (back) was also limited.
Bird’s-eye view
Sunday’s game was flexed from FOX to CBS. The 11 a.m. Arizona time kickoff didn’t change, but the broadcast booth did. Former Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians is now on the call for the game, the first time he’ll see the Cardinals in person as a broadcaster.