Another season nears its conclusion without a postseason spot for the Cardinals, yet something feels much different this time around. There is much more hope for the future surrounding this team as opposed to the others who failed to reach the playoffs.
Leading the Cardinals in Week 17 will be Offensive Rookie of the Year candidate Kyler Murray (if his hamstring holds up) and Defensive Player of the Year candidate Chandler Jones.
If the large sum of cap space and draft capital are used correctly this offseason, the Cardinals may very well be in the playoff conversation in 2020. But that’s a conversation for another day. In the meantime, the Cards have one more game to close out a frustrating, yet promising 2019 campaign.
Time for our Week 17 preview between the Cardinals and the Los Angeles Rams. Read on. . .
The NFL’s best defensive player may reside in the desert:
Chandler Jones has flown under the radar since coming into the league. His league-leading sack totals since 2016 don’t seem to be talked about enough. Many are quick to point out the smaller market Cardinals as the fault. While this certainly doesn’t help, Jones played on the NFL’s premium market New England Patriots before being traded to Arizona. His sack numbers never really seemed to get noticed during his time in New England either.
Following his four-sack performance against the Seattle Seahawks, Chandler Jones is becoming more and more of a household name. Local and national media have erupted with Defensive Player of the Year talks surrounding Jones. This mostly stems from the possibility of breaking Michael Strahan’s single-season sack record. Jones needs four sacks to break the record.
So how does that tie into the Los Angeles Rams? Well, four sacks in back-to-back games would be quite the task. While the Rams have had their fair share of issues in pass protection, the great Andrew Whitworth still blocks Jared Goff’s blindside.
Whitworth didn’t practice Wednesday and Thursday but was a full participant on Friday and has no game designation on the final injury report, meaning he’s set to play. Perhaps the Cardinals move Jones around a bit on certain blitzes. Vance Joseph may need to get creative in order for Jones to break the single-season sack record.
The bad news, in this case, is the Rams’ quick passing attack has held Jones to only 0.5 sacks in their last three meetings. While the Cardinals secondary has improved significantly over the past few weeks, their last matchup against the Rams isn’t very encouraging.
If Chandler Jones wins the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award, it will be a monumental feat for both him and the Cardinals organization.
Kyler Murray questionable in season finale
Kyler Murray practiced on a limited basis all week. He suffered a hamstring injury against the Seattle Seahawks and didn’t re-enter the game.
The bottom line is if Murray isn’t fully ready to play, he won’t. The team won’t take any chances with their future for a game that has zero playoff implications. However, if he’s good to go, the team would love to let Murray get another crack at the Rams after what was likely his worst performance of the season against them in week 13.
Murray needs 103 passing yards to become the second rookie in NFL history to have 3500 passing yards and 500 rushing yards. He would join only five other players total who accomplished that feat. While the Cardinals aren’t chasing the playoffs in this matchup with Los Angeles, there are certainly some very important milestones for the team and their confidence moving forward.
For Murray, achieving this stat would do wonders for his chances at winning the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year. He is in tight competition with Josh Jacobs of the Oakland Raiders, who are both more than deserving of the award.
If Kyler Murray can’t go, Cardinals fans worldwide will be happy to know his injury won’t be risked after an incredible rookie season. If he can go, then the world gets another game of Kyler Murray.
Cardinals face a depleted Rams secondary
Jalen Ramsey was ruled out of Sunday’s game surprisingly early in the week with a knee injury. Cornerback Troy Hill is listed as doubtful, so the Rams figure to be in rough shape in terms of the secondary.
Whether or not Kyler Murray plays, the Cardinals will certainly enjoy not having to deal with Ramsey on each passing down. He’s turned the Rams secondary around since his arrival and provided a spark for the team.
In the previous meeting with the Rams, the secondary suffocated Kliff Kingsbury and Kyler Murray’s passing attack. On paper, Murray only suffered one interception that was returned for a touchdown. On the field, however, there were multiple near-interceptions — one that was negated by a penalty and another that was dropped. The Cardinals’ passing attack has a much better chance to get in a rhythm with the absence of Jalen Ramsey.
Final Thoughts
This season has certainly been up-and-down for the Cardinals and their fans. There was the frustrating start to the season in which Kliff Kingsbury’s red-zone playcalling and conservative approach limited the team’s potential. Things then began to click and the Cardinals went on a three-game winning streak. Following the win over the Giants, the Cards were unable to win another game until December, highlighted by a pair of painful losses to the No. 1 seed 49ers. The past two weeks have given fans a Cardinals team playing much closer to their potential.
2020 will be one of the more anticipated seasons for the Cards if Steve Keim and Michael Bidwill use their offseason resources effectively. Sophomore quarterbacks have often taken huge leaps in their game, and Kyler Murray will be primed to do just that. Kliff Kingsbury’s evolution of the Cardinals offense throughout this season has proven he can be a great offensive mind in the NFL.
There are pieces on the roster that are very promising for the future. Patrick Peterson’s recent play has reverted back to the level of play everyone is used to seeing. Chandler Jones is potentially the NFL’s best defensive player. Jordan Hicks and Budda Baker are impact players on defense. Kenyan Drake and Christian Kirk are great pieces to move forward with. Also, the offensive line is far improved over last year. That is really an underrated development of this season.
And what of Larry Fitzgerald? The general vibe seems to be that Fitz will return for another season. Reporters and players on both the Cardinals and opposing teams have been outspoken on Fitz having fun with this core of players. He has to be encouraged by playing with Kyler Murray. If his body is still in good shape, I think it’s likely he returns. If not, however, Fitzgerald has been the best player the Cardinals have ever had, and he will be forever missed.
Thank you to everyone who tuned into the game previews every week and supported the site. There will be tons of offseason content with all the free agency, draft, and trade rumors surrounding the Cardinals. Here’s to a great 2020 season.
You can reach me @alexsutton27 on Twitter.
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