Balzer: Cardinals' performance was forgettable, but enough with the knee-jerk reactions

In the past few days, those who have read me here at gophnx.com have learned how I feel about lazy narratives.

Well, here’s a new one for you: collective amnesia.

This is an affliction that seems contagious and somewhat limited to football. It strikes those that sound off about an upcoming game and then apparently forget what they said when the game is over.

Football is ripe for it because of the empty days leading up to a game, which is then followed by the emotional and visceral reaction that occurs as the game is being played and then when it’s over.

It goes like this, especially as it relates to what was witnessed at State Farm Stadium Sunday afternoon: “This is a bad spot for the Cardinals. Defending Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs could be ugly with a depleted cornerback group in addition to likely not having defensive end J.J. Watt. The offense doesn’t have wide receivers DeAndre Hopkins and Rondale Moore, tight end Zach Ertz isn’t 100 percent and left guard is in limbo.”

So, what happens? Every fan’s worst nightmare comes true in a 44-21 stomping yet many wonder if the Cardinals will even win a game this season.

The result can’t be sugar-coated, especially with a defense that allowed 488 yards, 33 first downs and 7.4 yards per play. Four of the first downs were the result of Cardinals penalties. The inconsistent offense totaled 282 yards (4.5 per play) and had 18 first downs.

After three quarters when the Chiefs led 37-7, they had outgained the Cardinals 404-185 and Mahomes had five touchdown passes. Meanwhile, Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray had a pedestrian 78.5 passer rating, which looked more presentable after the game at 99.3 because of two meaningless fourth-quarter touchdown passes.

If someone had said before the game that Mahomes would do what he did, would it have been dismissed as ridiculous? Of course not. Mahomes is one of six players in history with at least six games of five or more touchdown passes. The others are Drew Brees, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger and Dan Marino.

He became the first quarterback in history to have three or more touchdown passes in five consecutive season openers and he has 18 in those five games, all Kansas City victories. The Chiefs became the sixth team in history to win eight straight season openers.

Kansas City and Mahomes have advanced to four consecutive AFC championship games and are the gold standard in the NFL until proven otherwise.

As Cardinals running back Darrel Williams, who played in Kansas City the past four seasons, told PHNX Sports after the game about the combination of Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid, “You got two of the best of the best at what they do.”

Linebacker Markus Golden also put things in perspective by saying, “They’ve been playing at a high level year after year so they are a great team and they prove it every year,” while then acknowledging, “but that don’t mean we got to come out and let them beat us like that.”

Both teams were perfect in the red zone, but the Chiefs advanced six times to Arizona’s three. Mahomes had touchdown passes of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 9 yards, and rookie running back Isiah Pacheco scored on a 3-yard run.

It’s also no consolation for disgruntled fans, but the Cardinals aren’t alone as Week 1 comes to a close with Denver in Seattle on Monday night. If the Russell Wilson-led Broncos can win, all four NFC West teams will be 0-1, including the defending champion Rams who were as dreadful as the Cardinals in a 31-10 loss last to Buffalo Thursday night.

The 49ers found a way to lose to the Bears on a bad-weather day in Chicago. Elsewhere, the Packers managed one touchdown in a 23-7 loss to Minnesota as Kirk Cousins out-dueled Aaron Rodgers with the latter throwing for 195 yards with a passer rating of 67.6 and was sacked four times.

Cincinnati, the AFC representative in the Super Bowl, lost at home to the Steelers. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow passed 53 times, was intercepted four times and had a passer rating of 61.7. They tied the game with four seconds remaining, but the extra point was blocked. In overtime, kicker Evan McPherson missed a 29-yard field-goal attempt.

The Giants won on the road at Tennessee, the team with the No. 1 seed entering the playoffs last season.

Sunday night, the Cowboys took a 3-0 lead over the Bucs and didn’t score again in a 19-3 loss. Quarterback Dak Prescott, who is expected to miss several weeks with an injury to a joint above his thumb, threw for 134 yard with a passer rating of 47.2.

Meanwhile, back at the Farm (State Farm that is), Murray was asked about bouncing back from adversity. As bad as Sunday was, he seemed more professional and open than in previous years when he talked to the media after tough losses.

It was timely, considering that Kliff Kingsbury was asked about Murray on Friday.

“It’s part of his growth,” the Cardinals coach said. “I think we’ve all talked about it. He never really faced failure like he faced here. First year, going 5-and-11 (actually 5-10-1), and then 8-and-8 and have some tough games down the stretch last year.

“All those things are really a first for his athletic career. And so you get thicker skin through that. You become more mentally tough through that because the only way you really succeed is through adversity at some point. And I think he’s been through that and we’re all hopeful that he’s learned from it and can be better moving forward.”

Murray confirmed this line of thinking.

“You can either start sulking about it, or you can look it in the mirror for what it is,” he said. “Attack it. Because it is what it is; it’s a long season. We got punched in the mouth. How do you respond? Simple.”

We’ll see soon enough with the Raiders on the road next and the Rams at home the week after that. The season may be long, but it flies by quickly.

Or as Ertz said, “It’s a long season, but at the same time we have to improve rapidly.”

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