The Arizona Cardinals were unable to continue their winning streak. They were no match for the New Orleans Saints and lost 31-9. They fall to 3-4-1 on the season while the Saints improve to 7-1.
What did we learn in the loss?
The running game was stuffed
The Cardinals had been finding offensive success by running the ball. They were completely unable to do anything in the running game against the Saints. They mustered only 40 total rushing yards. 19 came in one rush from Christian Kirk. Chase Edmonds only gained eight yards on seven attempts.
They got no pressure on Drew Brees
After blowing up the New York Giants with eight sacks of quarterback Daniel Jones, the Cardinals defense was unable to disrupt Brees. They had zero sacks.
More injuries
The Cardinals entered the game without David Johnson, who is also expected to miss their Thursday game this week. Outside linebacker Cassius Marsh left the game with a concussion, which will put his availability in doubt for Thursday. Running back Chase Edmonds left the game in the second half with a hamstring injury. They were left with only Zach Zenner active and healthy at the position.
Red zone, third-down issues arise
The Cardinals were only 2-of-12 on third down. They failed to score a touchdown on both of their red zone trips. Those were issues that had gone away. They returned.
Defense doesn’t stop anyone
There was no real success defensively. Drew Brees passed for 376 yards and three touchdown. He completed 34-of-43 passes. Latavius Murray rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown on 21 attempts. He also caught nine passes for 55 yards and a touchdown. The Saints didn’t miss a beat without starting running back Alvin Kamara. Receiver Michael Thomas had 11 catches for 112 and a touchdown.
In all, they allowed 510 total yards, the let the Saints convert on 7-of-12 on third down, and were dominated in time of possession. The Saints were on offense for more than 37 minutes of the game.
Surprising production from Charles Clay
Sparingly used as an offensive weapon, Clay produced three big plays. He had three catches for 88 yards, leading the team in receiving yards.
Kirk big in his return
We were able to see what the Cardinals had been missing in the three games receiver Christian Kirk was out. He caught eight passes for 79 yards and also had a 19-yard run.
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