Arizona Cardinals and JJ Watt show that heart matters

You’ve gotta have heart!

All you really need is heart.

When the odds are saying you’ll never win.

That’s when the grin should start. – From Damn Yankees

Without perhaps realizing it, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray epitomized the effort of the team and especially the defense when he talked about defensive end J.J. Watt Sunday after the 26-16 victory over the Carolina Panthers.

Watt, of course, was active Sunday after having a scare during the week when he had his heart shocked back into rhythm during atrial fibrillation. He didn’t practice Wednesday because of a calf injury that kept him from playing in Week 1. “Illness” was added on Thursday when he also didn’t practice and Friday he returned to the field and was listed as limited.

Murray said, “The defense had a hell of a game. A hell of a game. They had our backs all day.” He later added about Watt, “It’s a testament to the kind of guy he is, the heart he has, and the love for the game that he has.”

The heart he has. That about says it all.

Watt and defensive end Zach Allen almost singlehandedly made life miserable for Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield. The defense also limited running back Christian McCaffrey to 27 yards rushing on eight carries. Of his 81 yards on nine receptions, 34 came on one catch-and-run in a late fourth-quarter touchdown drive.

Aside from the six tackles (three solo/one for loss) and three tackles (one solo) that Allen and Watt had respectively, Allen had one sack, two quarterback hits and three passes defensed. He could be a possibility for NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Watt had two passes defensed, including one that was intercepted by linebacker Dennis Gardeck and returned 24 yards to the Carolina 5-yard line. Two plays later, Murray ran for a 4-yard score that gave the Cardinals a 20-10 lead with 10:26 to play in the fourth quarter.

On the next possession, Allen tipped a Mayfield pass on fourth-and-1 from the Carolina 31-yard line. Three plays later, wide receiver Marquise Brown made a sensational catch on third-and-2 from the 23-yard line for a touchdown that provided a 26-16 lead with 7:37 remaining in the game.

While the offense got off to another shaky start, totaling 60 yards on their first 17 plays and failing on four third-down opportunities, it started to come alive on a second-quarter possession that included 16- and 21-yard pass plays to Brown with the 16-yarder coming on third-and-3. It ended with a 38-yard Matt Prater field goal that cut the Panthers’ lead to 7-3.

Carolina extended the lead to 10-3 on a 54-yard field goal as time expired by Eddy Pineiro, and the Panthers began the second half with the ball.

However, on third-and-5 from their own 30, Allen sacked Mayfield for a 9-yard loss.

The Cardinals started the next possession on their own 11-yard line thanks to an unnecessary roughness penalty on rookie cornerback Christian Matthew during a punt.

That’s when the offense came alive after a first half that Murray described as “we were kinda sleepwalking out there. That’s what it felt like.”

Murray and Mayfield were equally ineffective in the first two quarters. Murray was 13-for-20 for 90 yards with a pick-6 and a passer rating of 54.2. Mayfield was 12-for-19 for 90 yards, an interception and a passer rating of 52.5.

Overall, the Cardinals ran 34 plays for 137 yards (4.0 average) and the Panthers 30-for-125 (4.2 average) in the first half.

However, on a nine-play, 89-yard third-quarter drive that tied the score at 10, Murray completed 4-of-5 passes for 48 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Zach Ertz on third-and-goal. In the drive, there was a 23-yard connection with Ertz and a 37-yard pass interference penalty on Panthers cornerback C.J. Henderson on a deep throw to Brown that moved the ball to the 6-yard line. Murray also converted a third-and-1 with a 2-yard run.

Later in the quarter, the Cardinals began a possession at the 22-yard line that appeared destined to lead to another touchdown. By the time it ended, right guard Will Hernandez was ejected after barely bumping an official when he came in to defend running back James Conner, who had been flung to the ground by Carolina linebacker Frankie Luvu.

Without the Hernandez penalty, the Cardinals would have had first down at the 3-yard line. Instead, the ball was moved back to the 18.

Still, it ended on a 39-yard Prater field goal with 11:22 left in the third quarter that gave the Cardinals a 13-10 lead, the first time they had led a game in regulation this season.

In the third quarter, the Cardinals gained 135 yards on 19 plays, while Carolina totaled only 12 yards on seven plays.

The Cardinals outgained the Panthers 201-95 in the second half and converted four of five third downs after being 2-for-9 at one point. Carolina was 1-for-5 on third down in each half. Murray completed 10-of-12 passes for 117 yards and the two touchdowns to raise his passer rating in the game to 96.7.

But those are all numbers. In an NFL week overwhelmed by what happened with Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, it was eye-opening to hear Watt talk emotionally about his situation. He wasn’t happy when he learned Sunday morning that news was about to leak about his procedure, so he tweeted it.

After the game, he said, “The only people that knew were people I should trust. Injuries, I don’t care. If you leak injuries, I don’t care. It’s football. This one, this one was very emotional for me. So it upset me.”

There was a moment when he was on the verge of tears, traced to the fact he is about to become father for the first time in a few weeks.

“For months we’ve been looking at ultrasounds of our baby boy, and they’re all extremely happy. And then Thursday we were looking at ultrasounds of my heart,” he said. “It was very tough. It’s been a week.”

He admitted to being “scared” prior to the procedure to get his heart back in rhythm and was asked if he thought about it during the game.

He said, “I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it. It’s just I’ve never dealt with anything like it. I’ve had obviously surgeries before, I’ve had injuries before, and I’ve never been nervous for any of it. I’ve never been scared of anesthesia, I’ve never been scared of surgery, I’ve never been scared of pain. But when, when they told me they were going to put me out and shock my heart, I was scared. But I’m glad, I’m glad it all worked out, I’m glad I had good people taking care of me. I’m glad I’m here today.”

The reaction to his tweet had some questioning how he could be cleared to play.

Watt explained, “I talked to cardiologists, electrophysiologists, from all over the country, and I was assured multiple times (by) multiple people there was nothing else you can do. You can go back and play like normal. It could happen again the next day, it could happen whenever again in 20 years.

“I didn’t know what else to do. I’ve been playing this game my whole life. They said I was fine. They said I was fine so once my heart was reset, they said you’re fine if you feel comfortable. I’d probably be more uncomfortable sitting on my couch at home. This is what I know. Right or wrong. Maybe that’s messed up, but if I was sitting at home watching the boys play knowing they said that I was perfectly fine to play I would have felt weird, so I just did what I know.”

Coach Kliff Kingsbury said, “That shows you what type of person and competitor and human being he is. He’s special. We were all obviously worried when he wasn’t around for a couple days. Getting the tests run and handling that. I think it was definitely inspiring for all of us. Played at a really high level. He just continues to amaze. The type of person and player he is.

He also said when told about the procedure, “I never heard of it. One of our tight ends coaches, Steve Heiden, had it happen a couple times. He kind of talked me through what the process was like and what goes on. Just a scary deal for everybody. But I’m glad it got figured out. He seems better than ever.”

At the end of the day, Watt was clearly glad it ended with a victory.

“The boys played a great game,” he said. “When we put it together, we can do great things. I’m thankful to be out there with them. I don’t want to take away from these guys and what they did.”

He couldn’t do that. It was all there for everyone to see with unusual amounts of heart and soul.

Don’t hesitate to comment or ask questions on Twitter @hbalzer721 or email me: howard@gophnx.com