Cardinals show how to shrug off adversity
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – No Kyler Murray, no DeAndre Hopkins and no A.J. Green didn’t exactly look promising for the Cardinals here on at Levi’s Stadium.
With Murray (sprained left ankle) and Hopkins (hamstring) inactive and ruled out before the game, and Green still stuck on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, it basically meant no chance against the 49ers, right? And after losing three more players on offense in the first quarter alone, including running back Chase Edmonds and guard Justin Pugh, it meant absolutely no chance at all, didn’t it?
If we’ve learned anything about this Cardinals team in 2021, it’s that you don’t put anything past this group. They’ll only make you look bad, like they did the 49ers during a 31-17 rout despite playing without multiple injured players and three assistant coaches who went on the COVID-19 protocol list.
They are now 8-1 for just the second time since 1948 and they are 5-0 on the road, having won each of those games by 12 points or more. They also reclaimed the No.1 seed in the NFC from the Packers, who beat them a week ago but fell in Week 9 to the Chiefs.
And they did it with 35-yearold, journeyman quarterback Colt McCoy as their starter in place of Murray, a favorite to win NFL Most Valuable Player honors.
“It’s a group that looks adversity in the eye, stands tall and goes out there and responds,” left tackle D.J. Humphries said. “We got hit with a lot of adversity today and we didn’t bat an eyelash. We fought, and I think that’s becoming a part of our identity as a team, and that’s exciting to watch and be a part of.”
How did they do it despite missing so many pieces, dismantling a hard-nosed and well-coached 49ers team this
badly? Well, it came in waves, really.
Start with McCoy, who only threw four incompletions. He was 22 of 26 for 249 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers and he was only sacked twice for 8 yards. Coach Kliff Kingsbury dialed up a brilliant game plan with quick reads and short throws for McCoy and the offense to get a nice rhythm going early and build some confidence.
It only grew after that as Kingsbury and McCoy started taking some gambles and going for broke on multiple plays, like the 33-yard “Fifth Ward” pass play from Christian Kirk on a reverse to Antoine Wesley, and the 50-yard bomb from McCoy to Kirk, among others.
Kingsbury wasn’t about to dumb-down the playbook for McCoy and make it easy. Once the Cardinals got out to an early 17-0 lead, they decided to cut it loose and rub the 49ers’ noses in it. It’s because of how much he trusts his backup quarterback.
“Yeah, that’s how he prepares each and every day,” said Kingsbury, who was minus special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers, running backs coach James Saxon and assistant offensive line coach Brian Natkin. “Consummate professional, he knows where to go with the ball, he gets it out quick, gets it out quick, gets us into the right play and protected it all day, which we knew we needed to do.”
In addition to McCoy’s exploits, James Conner ran for 96
yards and two touchdowns and caught five passes for 77 yards and another score. His 11 touchdowns lead the league. The defense forced three turnovers, with linebacker Jordan Hicks recovering two fumbles that led to 10 points.
“Whoever comes in, guys don’t hesitate to make plays and cut it loose,” Kingsbury said. “It’s a fun group to be around.”
“To come in here with as many injuries as we had and play that well,” he continued, “I think all of us were really fired up.”
Markus Golden led a fivesack parade on Jimmy Garoppolo with three sacks of his own, and included a 6-yard drop by Chandler Jones, who moved ahead of the late Freddie Joe
Nunn as the Cardinals’ all-time sacks leader with 67.
“Our defense played great as a whole,” Jones said. “Markus, he had a hell of a game. But our team played great as a whole. Our secondary played great. Obviously, that’s how we had an opportunity to get to the quarterback.
“Getting Freddie Joe Nunn’s sack record, that’s a huge milestone, honestly. … I dedicate that sack to Freddie and his family. My condolences are to him, but hopefully we can keep this rolling and keep it going throughout the season. The spirits are high right now on this team.”
Those spirits will be soaring even higher if Murray is able to return, along with Hopkins and Green, for the Cardinals’ home game in Week 11 against the Carolina Panthers.
“We’ll see. We’ll see,” Kingsbury said. “I don’t want to make that prediction just yet.”
Arizona has already proved it can win without Kingsbury, who missed the team’s Week 6 victory at the Browns. The Cardinals have won games without Jones and starting center Rodney Hudson. Now they obliterated an NFC West rival without Murray, Hopkins, Green and a host of others.
It’s because everyone plays for each other, the Cardinals said, and the next man up always rises to the standard. That’s exactly how Conner put it when he was asked if he felt he needed to carry the load when Edmonds went down early in the game and never returned.
“Absolutely,” he said. “Going through the season so far, that’s what it’s been. It’s just been playing off of each other. To see him go down early, I knew they were going to be leaning on me heavy. This game was going to be an above-the-neck game, to be mentally ready, be in the right spots, put the ball in the right place and just play good football.”