Cardinals finally able to enjoy comforts of home
The thudding bass and the loud cheers on Sunday didn’t rattle the wall that separates the Cardinals' locker room from the press-conference room on the ground floor of State Farm Stadium.
It is made of concrete block, after all.
But the noises from the locker room could be heard,
and it wasn’t hard to guess what prompted them. Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury had given his players a “victory Monday” – a day off – after their 38-24 victory over the Browns.
“We’ve been waiting a while, six weeks, to get to say that,” Kingsbury said.
A few years ago, victory Mondays were commonplace for the Cardinals, especially after home games. But over the past two years, coinciding with the change in the stadium’s name, the Cardinals have been as hard to watch at home as those commercials featuring Aaron Rodgers and his “agent.”
Both left viewers anxious to watch something, anything, else.
The Cardinals went 1-7 at home a year ago. Entering Sunday’s game, they were 1-5-1 there this season.
On Sunday, the Cardinals doubled their win total at home this year because they were at least twice as good as they’ve been in most games this season.
They took an early lead and kept it. They responded positively in clutch situations. Patrick Peterson played the part of shutdown corner again. They scored 10 points in the fourth quarter, mostly by running the ball straight at the Browns.
On offense, they used every ingredient at their disposal, including some that had been on the shelf for months and others that were added after midseason.
“Man, you have no idea,” receiver Larry Fitzgerald said when asked how desperate the Cardinals were for a victory. “It was like going to a funeral every day.”
There are several paragraphs of fine print that could be attached to Sunday’s victory. The Browns aren’t very good, especially on defense. They didn’t look especially motivated. Their offense has underachieved all year. And the Cardinals still haven’t beaten a good team this season. Go ahead, be that guy who points all that out at your work’s potluck this week.
But imagine how we all would have filleted the Cardinals had they lost to the Browns.
Sunday’s victory was important for a lot of reasons. It gives the Cardinals (49-1) at least one more victory this season than last year. It doubled the number of times they won at home last season. It broke a six-game losing streak. And with road games against the Seahawks and Rams left on the schedule, it was their last legitimate shot at a victory this season.
The Cardinals gave their fans a few morsels of hope of Sunday. Kingsbury won the matchup with the guy he replaced, Steve Wilks, now the Browns' defensive coordinator. The Cardinals avoided winning just one home game in consecutive years for the first time since 1957-58. Quarterback Kyler Murray bounced back from two of his worst games to have one of his best.
And Kingsbury showed, again, that he can not only call plays, but he also might know what he’s doing when it comes to player development.
All five Cardinals touchdowns were scored by players who weren’t with the Cardinals when the season started. Running back Kenyan Drake, who scored four times, arrived via trade in October. Tight end Dan Arnold, who scored the other touchdown, was claimed off waivers from New Orleans 10 days ago.
Arnold made a handful of eye-popping catches on the scout team a week ago, so Kingsbury found a way to use him Sunday.
With 31 seconds left in the first half, the Cardinals had the ball at the Cleveland 6-yard line. Arnold split to the right, with running back David Johnson lined up on his inside shoulder.
Arnold wasn’t the first read – Murray wouldn’t say who was – but he was the last one Murray needed. He lofted the ball to the deep corner, and Arnold, who is 6-feet-6-inches, jumped and caught it.
It was his third catch this season – the other two came against the Cardinals in October.
“It’s something that I’ve wanted to show that I can do in the NFL for a couple of years now,” Arnold said. “To have the opportunity to do it means the world to me.”
It was one play, granted. But it was reminiscent of former coach Bruce Arians's ability, and willingness, to give a new player a significant role on game day.
That makes the general manager look good, and Steve Keim could use help in that department after the past two years.
From the first possession, it was obvious Kingsbury was on top of his game as a playcaller. Almost every time he dialed something up, it connected. From end arounds with receiver Christian Kirk, to designed runs for Murray, to Murray running the option, to using receiver Damiere Byrd, who didn’t even play in November.
Kingsbury’s comedic timing was on point after the game when he was asked if his playcalling was more “in sync” than in recent weeks.
“I always like my playcalling,” he said with a straight face.
Kingsbury doesn’t joke around much in press conferences, and this season hasn’t provided him much opportunity.
The mood was bright on the other side of the wall, too, as players dressed and prepared to leave to enjoy a Sunday evening for a change.
“We knew we had to get this last one at home and just leave the fans with just a sweet taste in their mouths,” Kirk said.
Well, maybe not sweet. But certainly a little less bitter.