The Arizona Cardinals had a historically bad offense in 2018, leading to a 3-13 year and a complete makeover. Kliff Kingsbury was hired. Kyler Murray was drafted along with three receivers. They added offensive linemen and a pair of tight ends.
Let’s look at the progress they have made over the last season.
Overall offense
In 2018, the Cardinals averaged a league-low 241.6 yards per game and a league-worst 14.1 points per game.
In 2019, they are 20th in the league in yards, averaging 343.9, so more than 100 yards more per game.
They now average 22.5 points per game, which is 16th in the league. They have scored 25 or more points seven times this season and in six of their last seven games. They had one such game in 2018, and even in that game the defense scored one of the touchdowns.
Downs
In 2018, the Cardinals had the fewest first downs in the league with 239. They were last in third-down conversions, picking up first downs only 29.2% of the time. They were also last in fourth-down conversions at 37.5%.
In 2019, they have 215 first downs in 11 games and are 13th in the league in that category.
On third downs, they are 21st, converting 36.4% of the time. They are tied for second in the league with their fourth-down conversion rate at 72.7%.
Passing offense
The Cardinals had the league’s worst passing offense in 2018, averaging 157.7 yards per game. Their completion percentage of 57.2 was the third-worst. They had the lowest yards per attempt average at 5.8. Their 15 touchdown passes were the second-fewest. They had the fifth-most interceptions with 18. The 52 sacks they gave up were the fourth-most. Their 69.0 passer rating was the second-lowest in the league.
Things have gotten much better.
The Cardinals are 19th in passing yards, averaging 226.2 per game. They are 14th in completion percentage at 64.6%. Their yards per attempt average of 6.9 is 21st. Their 14 touchdown passes are 21st in the league. Their five interceptions are the third-fewest in the league. They are 15th in passer rating at 91.2.
Rushing offense
2018 was disastrous. They were dead last in yards per game at 83.9. They were last in yards per rush at 3.8. Their nine touchdown runs were the second-lowest total in the league.
Things are drastically better in 2019.
Averaging 117.7 rushing yards per game, they are 14th in the league. Their rushing average of 5.0 yards per attempt is tied for the second-best average. They have 10 touchdown runs in 11 games, which surpasses their 2018 total. They are tied for 11th place in the league.
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