On Sunday, the previous two weeks’ worth of offensive concerns were finally too much to overcome. The Arizona Cardinals lost a game they had every opportunity to win in Santa Clara, falling 16-15 to the San Francisco 49ers.

For the third game in a row, Arizona’s offense struggled to move the football. For the third game in a row, a first down that would have iced the contest proved too difficult a challenge for the Cardinals‘ playmakers.

It came down to much more than just one play, of course, but Arizona had been playing with fire in both of their previous wins. Facing a 49ers team with a higher-tier coaching staff and personnel was the first semi-real test, and the Cardinals did not pass.

The questions about Arizona’s offensive scheme persist, but Sunday’s loss was about more than the theoretical aspect of football. The plays were there, but they simply weren’t made.

Cardinals’ Mistakes Catch Up to Them

The Cardinals’ offense is simply a tough product to watch, and the 2025 season has only spanned three games. The issue isn’t rust, or a lack of familiarity, it’s a scheme that offers little margin for error combined with a lack of execution.

The Cardinals only managed one touchdown drive on the day and picked up just 260 total yards of offense — 33 fewer than week two.

Arizona’s run game again couldn’t get into a rhythm, rushing for only 3.8 yards per carry. If not for a 29-yard scamper by Trey Benson, the Cardinals’ ground attack might have had an even uglier line.

Of course, part of that was due to the loss of star RB James Conner, who exited with an ugly-looking leg injury, but Arizona was unable to get into a rhythm on the ground (and through the air) for the third week in a row.

But while many may look to point fingers at play-calling (and understandably so), the fact is Arizona’s offense had a difficult time making the plays that were there to be made.

On 3rd & 9, with a chance to ice the game with a first down, Kyler Murray made an accurate throw to Zay Jones, who could not secure the catch. The play was there and the throw was beyond the sticks, but instead of a game-sealing catch, Arizona handed the ball back to Mac Jones and the San Francisco offense.

It’s not fair to pin the entire contest on Jones, necessarily, but those are plays that have to be made. It wasn’t the only mistake, either. Marvin Harrison Jr. dropped a wide-open deep pass, Emari Demercado dropped what might have been a touchdown, Murray made poor plays, Chad Ryland missed a field goal and the offensive line couldn’t clear much space for the Cardinals’ RBs.

The difficult truth is those types of mistakes are going to happen — to any NFL team. No team or quarterback can play a perfectly mistake-free game. But when there is zero room to make mistakes, those issues stand out in front of a disappointed fanbase.

Arizona did not turn the ball over and committed just five penalties for 30 yards. Not one scoring play or chunk play was called back by a flag. The defense held Christian McCaffrey to 52 yards on the ground, and the Cardinals dominated time of possession by nearly 10 minutes — it still wasn’t enough.

Arizona’s brand of high-wire football might have been enough to take down the Panthers and Saints, but that won’t often get the job done against Kyle Shanahan (or, likely, against Mike McDonald and the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday). The Cardinals don’t appear to be willing to make schematic changes, so near-perfect execution will be the only way to scrape out more ugly wins.

The issues that have been present for the first two weeks aren’t going away, and Sunday’s result is what can be expected when facing more fundamentally sound football teams — backup QB or not.

Cardinals’ Defense Is Their Strength

Sunday’s main positive takeaway was a big one. As poor as the offense played, Arizona’s defense looks every bit a legitimate threat. Nick Rallis’ unit nearly singlehandedly allowed the Cardinals to secure a win, and could be a serious weapon if the offense is able to figure out a way to put up more consistent points.

OLB Josh Sweat was a constant threat to Jones, LB Mack Wilson flew all over the field, and S Dadrion Taylor-Demerson came away with his first interception of the season. DL Calais Campbell got a pressure and a holding penalty in the end zone that gave Arizona a safety, a two-point lead and a chance to ice the contest.

Even a banged-up secondary, down both Garrett Williams and Will Johnson looked, at the very least, solid.

Don’t let the lack of a third-straight final-drive stand fool you — Arizona’s defense is their strength, and it’s not close. Allowing 13 (or 16) points should be enough to win a game, even if the offense isn’t lighting up the box score.