The Arizona Cardinals kept up with a talented Baltimore Ravens team but couldn’t come back like they did against the Detroit Lions in Week 1. The Ravens picked up a 23-17 win over the Cardinals, dropping them to 0-1-1.
There was a lot to take away from the game.
Kyler Murray was very good
Murray didn’t disappoint in his second NFL start. He completed 25-of-40 passes for 349 yards. He did not turn the ball over but did not throw a touchdown pass. He was poised. He made plays down the field. He led a fourth-quarter touchdown drive to get the Cardinals within a field goal. He just couldn’t do it all.
He became only the second NFL rookie quarterback ever to throw for at least 300 yards in each of his first two games. Cam Newton (2011) is the other.
Lamar Jackson was even better
As good as Murray was, Jackson had was the best game of his young NFL career. He threw for 272 passing yards and two touchdowns. He did not turn the ball over. He also rushed for 120 yards, a career high. The Cardinals just couldn’t stop him from making plays.
Covering TEs still an issue
After giving up over 100 yards and a touchdown to T.J. Hockensen last week against the Lions, the Cardinals struggled to cover Baltimore’s tight ends. Mark Andrews had eight receptions for 112 yards and a touchdown. Hayden Hurst also had a touchdown reception. The Cardinals will face another very good tight end next week: Greg Olsen of the Carolina Panthers.
Larry Fitzgerald and Christian Kirk were big
Fitzgerald had two more catches go for at least 40 yards after two in the season opener. He finished with five catches for 104 yards against the Ravens, giving him two games in a row to start the year with at least 100 yards, something he’d never done before. Kirk, meanwhile, had six catches for 114 yards.
The running game was nonexistent
David Johnson rushed for only 14 yards on seven carries. He left the game with a wrist injury but returned. However, the Cardinals only ran the ball 11 times in the entire game, including three runs by Murray.
Red zone woes
The Cardinals got the ball inside the Baltimore 5-yard line four times. They kicked field goals on three of them. Those failures in the red zone kept Arizona from being in control of a game most felt they wouldn’t have a chance in.
Third-down problems on offense and defense
The Cardinals were bad on third down both on offense and defense. On offense, they converted on only 2-of-11 attempts. Defensively, they allowed the Ravens to convert on half of their third downs (7-of-14). If there is one stat that led to the loss, it was this one.
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