It is time once again to go behind enemy lines and get the inside information on the Pittsburgh Steelers opponent for the week. This time around it’s the Arizona Cardinals so we sat down with our friends over at Cards Wire to get the inside scoop on Arizona and their rookie quarterback.
1-What is your assessment of Kyler Murray so far this season?
Aside from struggles in the first half of Week 1 and then last week against the Rams, he has been great. He protects the ball better than almost every quarterback in the league. He has made plays with his legs and his arm. He has not been the reason the Cardinals have lost so much. He already looks like a franchise quarterback.
2-What went wrong the Cardinals defense this year?
It can almost all be pinned on the defense. The offense has made huge strides, although it still needs to get better on third down and in the red zone.
Defensively, it started with Patrick Peterson’s suspension. Then Darius Philon, an important defensive line addition in free agent, got arrested and was released. Safety D.J. Swearinger was washed up suddenly after playing at a near Pro Bowl level in Washington. Cornerback Robert Alford broke his leg.
They have had to play rookies and then the defense has just been bad. Chandler Jones is doing his thing but Terrell Suggs has been mostly invisible for weeks. They can’t cover tight ends. They give up piles and piles of yards in the air. They can’t stop anyone on third down.
Between injuries, underperformance and a scheme that doesn’t seem to put players in position to make plays, it has been awful.
Perspective: Opposing quarterbacks have a 113.2 passer rating against the Cardinals. The highest passer rating in league history is Aaron Rodgers, who is at 103 for his career. Essentially, the Cardinals are making every quarterback look like a Hall of Famer.
3-Who is a Cardinal who isn’t getting enough good press in a bad season?
Honestly, the offensive line has been solid. There are high sack numbers but most have been because of Kyler Murray taking too long. Justin Pugh, A.Q. Shipley and J.R. Sweezy have played very well on the interior.
Chandler Jones, though, doesn’t ever get enough press. He now has 13 sacks and has reached that number for the third straight year. Only Reggie White did it more years in a row with four consecutive seasons. And Jones is doing it without any help.
4-What do the Cardinals have to do to beat the Steelers?
One, they have to take care of the football. The Steelers defense is good but the Cardinals offense, aside from last week, has been productive, scoring at least 25 points in six of the last eight games. So they can get points on the board if they protect the football.
The other thing is they can’t let Duck Hodges do what everyone except Daniel Jones has done — torch them through the air. They harassed Jones and sacked him eight times. If the Cardinals limit the passing game, they have a chance.
5-Will Arizona pull off the upset this week?
I personally don’t think so, but I think it will be close. I began the week believing the Steelers would win by double digits. The way Kyler Murray and the team appear to have responded, though, makes me believe they will give Pittsburgh trouble. However, Arizona’s defense is just too bad, so Pittsburgh will get a 27-26 win, probably on a game-winning field goal.
