He won’t have anything to do with what happens on the field Sunday against the Cowboys, but Kyler Murray looms large over the team and what might happen later in the season.
The quarterback took to TikTok this week with a message to the public and also posted workout photos on Instagram. The video on TikTok showed him squatting with a dumbbell, had music playing as well as senior conditioning coordinator Buddy Morris exhorting him.
The accompanying words said, “I tore my ACL 8 months ago (actually nine). This is the only major injury I’ve had. I’ve never missed the game like this. I’m itching to get back.
“You learn a lot about yourself in these types of moments. To those of you who ride with me, support me, speak up for me, I appreciate you more than you’ll ever know. I won’t let us down.
“Soon.”
So, when coach Jonathan Gannon spoke to the media Friday morning before the final practice of the week, a reporter noted it was getting close to the time when Murray will be eligible to begin practicing while on the reserve/physically unable to perform (PUP) list (the week of Oct. 2) and jokingly said he was sure Gannon was all over TikTok and Instagram, while then asking how Murray is trending.
To which Gannon said, “I get made fun of (because) I have like an iPhone 2. I’m not all over Tik Tok and Instagram, I really don’t … I don’t know what was said or whatever, but he’s doing well, and we know the timetable of when he can return to play, but that doesn’t mean that he’s going to return to play and open his window then. We’ll get him going when he’s physically and mentally ready to play and knowing that it’s going to take him some time and some weeks of practice to get comfortable with what he’s doing.
“I’m not in a hurry with that. I’d love to have him out there, he’s itching to be back, but we’ll take that one day at a time.”
When he returns to practice, there is a three-week practice period when he won’t count against the 53-man roster. He can be activated at any point, but a decision has to be made by the end of the 21-day period whether he is activated or remains on PUP for the remainder of the season.
Meanwhile, when told what Gannon said about his phone, Murray said, “I don’t even know what an iPhone 2 looks like,” while holding an iPhone 14.
Of course, iPhone’s aren’t the issue here, it’s when it will be when Murray gets on the field to begin working for the first time in the team’s new offense.
Said Gannon, “The plan is adaptable, depending on when he comes back, how he looks, what he does, how he feels. The greatest input with that will be him and then we’ll make the collective decision to put him out there.”
When Murray’s former Oklahoma teammate Hollywood Brown was asked this week how close he believes Murray is to playing, he said, “I haven’t been able to see him run because we’re practicing and he’s out there early, but whenever I do catch a glimpse of him, he’s moving good. So it’s been good to see. I can tell on the sideline he’s itching. He’s putting in his input what he sees out there, even in practice. I can tell he’s ready to get back.”
What’s also important is how the coaches will handle getting Joshua Dobbs and Clayton Tune prepared during the practice week, while also getting work for Murray.
“I think we’ve got a good plan with that,” Gannon said. “We do. We structure practice in a way that’s very competitive; that guys get the reps they need to improve their game while also covering other things for the opponent. But we have certain periods there that it’s not game-plan specific, too, so we can work on our game. I learned that from different coaches and I always thought that was good and we implemented that here.
“So our guys know, everybody on the active, everyone on the practice squad, reps are valuable as you get going through the year; development just can’t go away because you start playing games, so you just got to keep developing. I feel good about the plan when he does get back of making sure that Josh is ready to go and Clayton is ready to go and he’s getting his stuff, too, that he needs to start coming along.”
While many are understandably impatient, it’s important to remember that tight end Zach Ertz wasn’t activated from PUP until Aug. 15, about nine months after his ACL surgery, and he said this week that Monday was 10 months out from the surgery and that he’s now “back to himself, flying around.”
We’ll learn soon enough what “soon” actually means for Murray.
D-Line digging deep
With Carlos Watkins set for surgery on his injured biceps and declared out for Sunday’s game, he then joined L.J. Collier, who has already had biceps surgery, on the reserve/injured list Saturday.
The available linemen against Dallas include Jonathan Ledbetter and Kevin Strong Jr., who each played a too-high 74 percent of the snaps last week (when Watkins was injured after playing only 15 percent), along with the hoped-for return of Leki Fotu, who missed the Giants game with a shoulder injury, rookie Dante Stills and Ben Stille, who was elevated from the practice squad. Eric Banks was elevated last week and played 22 percent while Stills played 26 percent.
In addition to the Stille move, the Cardinals released Jacob Slade from the practice squad and signed Roy Lopez, a Phoenix-area native, to the practice squad. Lopez was born in Tempe and attended Mesquite High School in Gilbert before attending the University of Arizona.
He was a sixth-round pick of the Texans in 2021 and played 17 games with 14 starts last season. However, a hamstring injury landed him on reserve/injured after being waived/injured in the cutdown to 53 players and he was then waived with an injury settlement Sept. 4. Lopez’s father Roy Sr. is the head coach at Desert Ridge High School, which is in Mesa, but is part of the Gilbert school district.
Ledbetter said this week, “I definitely felt it near the end of the game there and felt it going into the second half and I think that was evident in the way we played. I felt a little messed up feeling fatigued, so I have to do a better job as an older leader, no matter how many plays I have to be out there, I have to be able to play to the best of my ability.”
“I was a little disappointed in myself. I got to be able to play those snaps and stay with good endurance so to play to the best of my ability and put good snaps good on tape.”
Ledbetter acknowledged that the beginning of the season is an adjustment because snaps are often scarce in preseason games. Ledbetter played 18 and 11 percent in the first two games and did not play in the finale. Strong played 27, 31 and 50 percent in the three games.
“It’s tough. It’s football,” Ledbetter said. “You just gotta adapt. We’re doing some extra stuff on the field, some extra stuff at practice to make sure if it ever happens again that we’re ready.”
And now the Dallas offense will be the challenge.
“They’re hot,” defensive line coach Derrick LeBlanc said. “They’re playing well. They do a lot of good things. They have a team that’s been together for quite a long time with a really experienced head coach. They check all the boxes, right? But we have to play on Sunday. I mean they’re all challenges and we just got to get better every week.”
LeBlanc is hopeful the questionable Fotu will be available, noting how much he’s improved since the offseason. He said, “The spring was good, the fall camp was good. I know he had a setback the last week or so, but his development has been through the roof. So we’re expecting some good things out of him.”
As for Stills, LeBlanc said, “Dante’s surprisingly doing really well for a young guy. He’s a rookie, so the guys give him a lot of crap, and they’re picking on him, but he does a good job; he’s a great learner. He’s got a good skillset, and he’s going to get the chance to show a little bit this week. He’ll play more.”
When it was suggested that Strong came to the team somewhat under the radar, LeBlanc took exception, saying, “I don’t know if he’s under the radar. The guy’s got five years of playing experience. He’s done a really good job at Tennessee. Now, they’ve got some guys that are draft picks and a little better or whatever, but the guy’s a solid football player. He’s been doing it since UTSA (Texas-San Antonio) days and I got a chance to see him, so no surprise to me.”
During one of Strong’s seasons there, LeBlanc was an assistant at North Texas. Signed as an unrestricted free agent in March, Strong has played 36 games and started two. He did play 16 games with one start for the Titans in 2022.
LeBlanc also praised the practice-squad linemen.
He said, “What’s good about our group is they’ve been with us since the spring. So those guys are more than ready, so if we ever need those guys to come up and play, all those guys are well prepared and ready to go.
“We don’t flinch. I try to do a good job of preparing all the guys from starters to practice-squad guys, so that when these things do occur, the next guy is ready to play.”
At
Coordinator Nick Rallis, with the input of the position coaches, has had personnel packages that have featured two linemen at times and sometimes none with as many as six linebackers on the field.
LeBlanc said, “We’re all for adaptability. We have to be able to adapt to scheme and game-plan (based on) whatever our opponents are doing. I think it’s great because it doesn’t put us in a box and (be) labeled as one type of defense. We can probably play them all and get ready for any opponent that we’re going up against, so I’m enjoying it.
“It’s a staff deal. We’ve got some really good coaches, young coaching staff, a lot of bright minds so we all come together during the week, put things together and it helps that he (Rallis) has played against some of these opponents in the first couple of games, so we have a little bit of background, but it’s a group effort.”
Asked if some unique looks are good, but let’s not have too many, LeBlanc laughed and said, “The game’s changing always. It keeps evolving and evolving. Maybe it’s the next thing, I don’t know, but we’re still going to be solid fundamentally, we’re going to be sound in our defensive calls and Nick’s got to make the right calls. I trust him; he’s gonna do a great job.
“(But yes), some of the stuff’s unique. It really is. Fortunately, for me, for a D-line coach, when you move from job to job, you just fall into whatever defensive scheme that the team has, so I’ve had the opportunity to coach in every front you can think of, so it’s been a really easy transition and I’ve been able to keep up and help him out with what he wants to get done on the field.”
LeBlanc does think the changing looks “puts a lot of stress on” the opposing offensive line. “You know how the NFL is, we use the term copycat league all the time. Everybody’s doing something similar for the most part. And when you force those guys to change, show them different looks, maybe that gives you an edge.”
LeBlanc had 20 seasons as a college coach before being with the Dolphins in 2022. So, he was asked about the transition to the NFL.
He said, “We always tell college kids that, you want to be a pro, you gotta act like a pro. Well, actually experiencing that now, these guys self-correct and learn the playbook and it’s immediate change. When we correct these guys, they fix it right now. That’s a pleasant difference from college to the NFL level.”
Dobbs does Dallas
The current Cardinals starting quarterback predicted there would be a jump from Week 1 to Week 2 and he was right, despite some fourth-quarter struggles against the Giants.
He is loose and open with the media, while entering his press conference Wednesday wearing a Florida Gators shirt thanks to their win over his Tennessee team last Saturday. That was the result of a bet with left tackle D.J. Humphries.
He laughed while taking the shirt off as he sat down and said, “It’ll probably upset him I didn’t wear it through the whole interview, but I’m sure he won’t watch the whole interview. As long as someone posts the video, I think we’ll be alright.”
He said everything was cool when asked Friday.
As for how he feels entering only the fifth start of his career and having been with Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, Detroit and Tennessee since being drafted in 2017, Dobbs said, “JG kind of hit on it today with the team, but it’s really just been my mentality. It’s just trusting the process. That’s the biggest thing, I think. We live in a world where a lot of people are so result oriented. They work for the result, and they don’t work to love the process. What I’ve learned throughout my career is I have just fallen in love with the process. The process of waking up each day being the best person I can be, the best quarterback I can be and coming into the facility preparing the best I can. Staying in the moment.
“Today’s Wednesday, (so) focusing on the first- and second-down game plan. When Thursday comes, focusing on the third-down game plan and pushing forward. Just really loving the process. I learned that if you trust in that process, you’ll be prepared for the opportunities that come your way. When we play quarterback, there’s only 32 of them in the world and that really puts things into perspective because there’s a lot of guys vying for those positions. To be one of 32, it’s a blessing. Obviously, I still have a lot of work to do and a lot of successes to come, but trusting in that process and staying in the moment has really gotten me to where I am today. That’s just been my mindset since I stepped in the league, and I’ll continue to have that mindset. I’ll be ready for every opportunity that the game of life and the game of football throws my way.”
With that, he acknowledged there have been dark moments when asked if he ever entertained thoughts of quitting.
“I would be lying if I said there weren’t,” he said. “There’s moments; I got injured in preseason my fifth year and not knowing how the roster was going to shake out in Pittsburgh that year. It was my first time getting injured in my life so just going through that process of uncertainty. We had COVID the year before, no preseason tape, then getting injured in the preseason, not getting a lot of tape. Just having really to just say like, ‘Hey, I’ve been in Pittsburgh for five years. I think it’s time to go out on a limb, go somewhere else and see what opportunities are out there.’
“I really think that decision has gotten me the opportunities from last year in Cleveland to down in Tennessee to even now here. Just trusting in myself, trusting in my process, and then trusting in who I am that no matter what the odds are or the circumstances may be, or the short end of the stick you may perceive to be had, if you have that ultimate confidence in yourself and you prepare as if it’s your last opportunity to do what you love, then you’ll be prepared every time you step on the field.”
The experience with the Browns got him acquainted with Israel Woolfork, who is now the Cardinals quarterbacks coach.
“Izzy’s been my guy, man,” Dobbs said. “He’s been awesome. The first guy I talked to when I knew I was coming to Arizona and diving into the playbook, figuring out what’s different, what’s the changes that have been added here. Then getting to Arizona, we’re always in the film room. Whether it’s talking ball or talking life; whatever it is he’s been just a great mentor, a great coach and great person to have in my life.
“Especially through all this transition, but also in preparation of getting ready for Sundays. I’ve been blessed, man. Izzy’s awesome. He’s my guy, and the relationship we have is great to be able to talk ball, get ready to play on Sundays and then obviously the emotions of just life off the field.”
With the challenge of facing the excellent Dallas defense, Dobb said without hesitation, “My sentiment to the offense is when we do execute, when we do what we’re coached to do, when we do what we talked about all week, we’re a really difficult offense to stop. So, let’s do that throughout the entire game and know what type of football we can play and how many points we can put on the board.”
Gannon said, “I feel good where Josh is as far as conceptually with the operation, and he understands that when (offensive coordinator) Drew (Petzing) calls a play what he’s trying to get done with that play-call. He’s very bright and that obviously helps with the communication in the huddle, and him with production going into it.”
As for being cognizant of not putting too much on his plate, Gannon concluded, “We’re going to do what we think we need to do to win the game, and everyone has to absorb that, but there is a give and take with how much you, as a coach, when you set up the game plan how much you want to do and how much can we handle and execute. That’s always a blend that goes on daily. Typically, the players give you the best feedback to that. He’s done a really good job with communicating with Drew and Iz about what he’s comfortable with, what he’s not, what he understands and what he doesn’t. All of our guys honestly have done a pretty good job with that.”
Remembering Pat
Gannon implemented a scout-team player of the week voted by the coaching staff this season, which includes wearing a No. 40 jersey in practice the next week.
Wide receiver Andre Baccellia wore a green jersey after Week 1 because the special jersey ordered hadn’t arrived yet. This week, it did and depicted on the black jersey within the number worn by Clayton Tune was a camouflage pattern in honor of former Cardinals safety Pat Tillman’s service. Tillman was also No. 40 with the Cardinals.
It was done with the full support of owner Michael Bidwill and general manager Monti Ossenfort.
Gannon said, “Pat Tillman, what he stands for, huge part of our organization. Monti and Michael talked about; I’ve always wanted to do something with (the scout team) because it’s such an important piece of preparation for all three phases. That’s what we decided to implement. So, they were excited about it. You’ll see that jersey bounce around here every week.
“Everyone knows about Pat. Our guys were excited about it. I thought it was kinda a cool thing.”
Tune told the team website it was also “cool to wear it and it’s the camo No. 40, and you get to wear it all week.”
A fine mess
The NFL is announcing all player fines this season, and they had an error involving the Cardinals in the list for Week 1. For each fine, the quarter and time left is revealed.
Four Cardinals players were fined for actions in the game against the Commanders and one for $10,941 was originally listed for wide receiver Rondale Moore on a play with 6:10 to play in the first quarter.
However, that particular play was the one where safety Jalen Thompson was penalized for lowering the head to make forcible contact only three plays after linebacker Kyzir White was flagged for the same violation. Moore wasn’t on the field for that play.
I reached out to the NFL asking whether the fine should have been to Thompson, who wears No. 34 and Moore No. 4. Sunday morning, a league executive responded and said I was correct and it was being rectified on the fine list. I tweeted that and shortly afterward heard from the executive who clarified that Thompson had not been fined, but Moore had been at a different time in that same quarter on a 31-yard pass play down the sideline. At the end of the play, Moore lowered his head normally as Commanders cornerback Emmanuel Forbes approached and there was minimal contact.
Moore told PHNX he was stunned by the fine and is appealing. He said, “I was just protecting myself. There was nothing that happened afterward, no flag and the play was over.” Told that any fine seemed out of line, especially one for more than $10,000, which is about 22 percent of his weekly salary, he said, “It’s insane,” while also adding he’s glad Thompson wasn’t fined.
For his part, Thompson told PHNX, “To me, I thought it was a clean hit. I came with my shoulder. The real thing was it happened right after Kyzir got that hit. I was kinda expecting it (a fine), but obviously happy I didn’t get one.”
A close review of the replay also showed Thompson turning his head to avoid hitting wide receiver Jahan Dotson with his helmet and he surely didn’t make forcible contact.
“One hundred percent,” Thompson added. “I came in all with my shoulder. I’m a clean player, a safe player.”
He also laughed, recalling when Moore learned he had been fined. “He came into the locker room and said, ‘I know I got fined, but JT, how did you not get fined?!’I got lucky on that one, I got lucky.” The non-fine makes it appear the league also believes a penalty shouldn’t have been called on the play.
White was fined $18,056 for his hit on Commanders quarterback Sam Howell. The other Cardinals fined were tackle Paris Johnson ($10,927) for pulling an opponent off the pile in a fumble scrum and safety K’Von Wallace ($5,611).
Wallace said he will have an appeal hearing Monday or Tuesday and said, “They said I attacked a guy unnecessarily after the play. I went to talk to one of their linemen and my reaction was why I got the fine. It shouldn’t have been a fine, in my opinion. That’s what I’m going to fight for.”
In Week 1, there were 32 fines on 2,468 plays (1.3 percent) for a total of $327,600.
Fines are deducted from paychecks, but not until after an appeal is heard. Anything collected is donated to the Professional Athletes Foundation to support Legends in need and the NFL Foundation to further support the health, safety and wellness of athletes across all levels, including youth football and the communities that support the game.
The officials also made a bad mistake apparently not noticed by the Cardinals when they failed to restore a timeout the Cardinals called late in the loss to the Giants.
After a run by Saquon Barkley, the Cardinals quickly called their final timeout with 1:08 remaining in the game. However, Barkley was injured on the play and had to be helped off the field. In the final two minutes, a team with an injury is charged a timeout, so the Cardinals should have gotten their timeout back. After the next play, the Giants called timeout with 23 seconds remaining and Graham Gano kicked the game-winning 34-yard field goal.
The Cardinals then gained possession after the kickoff at the 20-yard line with 15 seconds on the clock when they should have had another 40 seconds.
Safety in numbers
When the Cardinals have an extra defensive back on the field, it’s a safety. Last week, with Budda Baker inactive, Wallace played every snap and Andre Chachere missed only five. Meanwhile, cornerbacks Antonio Hamilton Sr. and Christian Matthew played only three and none, respectively. The week before, it was five for Hamilton and none for Matthew.
“Every week we evaluate it,” Gannon said of the personnel groups. “We feel good about both of those guys going in the game. We like where we’re at with who’s playing right now, but not to say that people’s roles don’t change as we get going.”
When Baker was placed on reserve/injured Monday, the Cardinals signed safety Qwuantrezz Knight off the 49ers practice squad.
Said Gannon, “He’s extremely athletic. He’s played on (special) teams before. He can cover, he can tackle, and it was a good addition by Monti. We’ll get him acclimated here as quick as we can and we’ll see what he can do.”
Knight has yet to play in a regular-season game after also being on San Francisco’s practice squad the entire 2022 season.
Asked if he’s surprised or disappointed in his role, Hamilton said, “No, I don’t really care. I just do what I do and when I’m called on, I take care of business.” He did play 70 and 68 percent of the special-teams snaps in the first two games, while Matthew was at 85 and 79.
Thompson has been utilized in the slot and said, “I’m loving it, I’m loving it. It gets me a little closer to the ball and I feel like I can just make more plays down there. I can communicate and see stuff a little bit quicker as for being at safety, where you see everything a little bit later or you have to see as it progresses.”
He said “not at all” when asked about there being any issues covering often quick receivers. He added, “We’ve been working it all of training camp. We’ve been working this during practice and I feel like I’m ready to go. I believe I’m pretty sticky on receivers. In college, I used to do that, so I’m familiar with it.”
Dallas D jolted
The Cowboys’ high-flying defense suffered a significant loss Thursday when cornerback Trevon Diggs was lost for the season after tearing his ACL in a drill during practice.
How will the Cardinals approach the game knowing he won’t be on the field? Gannon said, “You’ve just got to know who they’re playing with and who we’re going against and how that impacts with what you’re doing on offense, defense, special teams — obviously with our offense. You feel bad and never want to see that happen. Our thoughts and prayers go out to him. He’s a great player and it’s part of the game, but you hate to see that obviously.”
DaRon Bland is expected to take Diggs’ spot in a Dallas defense that is first in total yards allowed (348), yards per play (3.48), takeaways (seven) and sacks (10). They are tied for third in third-down defense, permitting success on only 23.1 percent of the plays (6-for-26). Opponents have reached the red zone only three times and they came away with one field goal.
For the Cardinals, many eyes will be on Micah Parsons, who has three of the sacks and had two in Week 2 against the Jets. That was his 10th career game with at least two and he is tied with Dwight Freeney for the fifth-most two-sack games in a player’s first three seasons. Reggie White did it 16 times followed by Richard Dent, Shawne Merriman and Aldon Smith with 12.
Asked about stopping Parsons, Petzing said, “So far I don’t think you can, but that’s our task. That’s going to be our focus. Obviously, he’s one of the better defensive players in the entire league, so he’s earned that respect. Certainly, we’re going to give him that respect in terms of the way we call the game, put the plan together and go out there and try to execute.”
Gannon said, “Obviously, he’s one of the elite players in the world. He’s explosive, fast, and powerful. He can rush, he can play the run, and he takes the ball away. He lines up everywhere truthfully. Left, right, over the center, stack the WILL and MIKE; everywhere. You’ve got to have a plan for him; with whatever plays you have up you’ve got to have a plan with where he’s at to try not to let him impact the game like he’s been.”
Right tackle Paris Johnson Jr. was a freshman at Ohio State in 2020 (the pandemic-affected season) when Parsons was in his final season at Penn State. The teams played, but early in a season where Johnson played only five games as a backup.
Johnson said he has “respected him since high school” and added, “As a player, I feel like the players you respect the most, you play hardest against. There’s not a lot of guys that have a high motor and are very athletic and are as gifted as him.”
Asked the challenge of figuring out where he’ll be, Johnson said, “He can’t turn invisible. So it’s going to be pretty easy to find where he’s at on the field. As much as we want to know about him, where he rushes, we also have to know how 90 (DeMarcus Lawrence) rushes, how 56 (Dante Fowler Jr.), 54 (Sam Williams), whoever they have. To know how they rush, I think it’s just as much about our fundamentals. We play in the NFL too.
“With the mentality I have, I want to know my opponents inside and out, so I just worry about myself on Sunday and that’s the mentality that the rest of this team has. As much as it is where those guys will be, they also have to account to where we will be.”
In addition to Parsons, Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa also has three sacks.
Ertz said Thursday, “This is like the 19th time I’ve played these guys in my career and this is probably the fastest they’ve looked in my time in the NFL. Micah Parsons is a phenomenal football player, but DeMarcus Lawrence in all my years is one of the toughest guys to block. He’s got all the tools; he’s long, he’s explosive, he’s tough physically. Those guys fly around.
“You don’t want to play these guys if you’re behind early, because they’re just going to let those guys go and it’s going to be extremely difficult in the back end.”
Dobbs said, “They do a really good job in their scheme with (defensive coordinator) Dan Quinn moving him around. He’s inside and he’s outside. Last year he was lining up at linebacker; you have to figure out where No. 11 is going to be in the run game, in the pass game and in the protection game. That’s what we’re diving into. What’s kind of his plan on first and second down? On third down, how are they getting him in ideal spots to rush the passer and how we can try to neutralize that as an offense?
“They just have really good personnel that’s played a lot of football in Dallas, that’s played in that scheme and that have gelled well together for a couple years now. Just like when we played Washington, it’s very similar when you have a team that’s been together for a while, especially on the defensive side of the ball. They understand the looks that they’re going to get. They understand where their deficiencies may be, so they look to defend those. As an offense, it’s executing and it’s trying to give them different looks. At the end of the day, it’s just going out and playing high-level football and being as aggressive as we can be as an offense.”
Cardinals offensive line coach Klayton Adams said, “They’re like a lot of teams in the NFL, but maybe even to another level; they’re all good, so you have to be able win your one-on-ones and then when you have opportunities to create zones, you have to take advantage of those.”
Adams likes his starting group that has been working as a unit throughout the offseason, in training camp and the first two games of the season. Last Sunday, Dobbs wasn’t sacked and the Cardinals had no turnovers.
“I think they’ve done a good job of gelling,” Adams said. “Obviously, there’s stuff that we have to get a lot better on, but I like the mentality of the group. I like the direction that they’re headed. They’re fun guys to be around. They work at it and so, not perfect, but certainly headed in the right direction. I think we’ve got the opportunity for growth this week.”
Said Johnson, “I think we’re all hungry because people are counting us out already. I’m excited for this matchup. Good on good. It doesn’t get better.”
Petzing concluded that the goal is to “try to see where the matchups are that we think are favorable. How do we get our best players the ball and how do we keep them off balance. That’s the battle you go through every week and certainly these guys create some unique challenges for a number of reasons.”
The Cardinals hope Parsons won’t be able to showcase his new sack celebration in which he crawled last week after sacking Jets quarterback Zach Wilson.
On the Pat McAfee Show, Parsons said, “This year coming in, I was like, ‘Yo, I hope y’all know, I’m like possessed this year. I hope everyone’s ready to work, I hope everyone’s ready for this lion mentality.’ I’d be going around the locker room growling at people like, I’m out there jumping around. I’m growling at (quarterback) Dak [Prescott] before, in camp, like, ‘I hope y’all are ready for this. I’m gonna kill you today.’
“When they see it, they’re like, ‘Man, this dude’s really nuts.’ Especially some of the rookies; it’s funny seeing them coming in and it’s like, ‘Bro, you’re really like that.’ I was like, ‘You ain’t really seen nothing yet.’”
The Cardinals hope they don’t see it Sunday, but that might be too much to ask.
Getting offensive
While the Cowboys’ point differential of plus-60 (70-10) has made headlines, the reality is that the offense hasn’t had to do that much in the first two games.
For the record, the Cowboys are the fifth team in history to score at least 70 points and allow 10 or fewer in the first two games of a season. They can become the first team ever to score at least 30 and allow 10 or fewer in the first three games.
Currently, the Cowboys are 18th in total yards and 24th in yards per play (4.69). Most important, however, is that Prescott has been sacked only once and the team has no turnovers. They have also reached the red zone tied for a league-high 10 times and have scored on every trip with five touchdowns and five field goals. They are also fourth on third down with a 48.4 conversion rate (15-for-31).
This will be Prescott’s 100th career start and Dobbs’ fifth. Both were selected with the 135th selection (fourth round) of the draft with Prescott in 2016 and Dobbs in 2017.
Prescott needs 22 completions to pass Jared Goff and Matt Ryan for the third-most completions in a quarterback’s first 100 games.
The Cowboys ran 83 plays against the Jets, although they averaged 4.6 yards per play.
Gannon said, “They’re very successful on first and second down They convert third downs. The defense goes three-and-out, so it impacts the number of plays the offense has. They do a good job of possessing the ball, not turning it over, converting third downs, staying ahead of the sticks and playing well in the red zone.”
The Cowboys do have injury issues on their offensive line. Right guard Zack Martin (ankle) did not practice this week and is questionable. Center Tyler Biadasz was added to the injury report Thursday with a hamstring injury. He was limited that day, did not practice Friday and is also questionable.
An indication that Biadasz might not play Sunday is that on Saturday the Cowboys elevated centers Brock Hoffman and former Cardinal Sean Harlow from the practice squad. They also placed Diggs on reserve/injured and signed cornerback C.J. Goodwin from the practice squad.
They do have Tony Pollard and the cat-quick rookie Deuce Vaughn (5-foot-6) at running back along with receivers CeeDee Lamb, Michael Gallup and Brandin Cooks.
“They’ve got a lot of weapons,” Gannon said. “It’s a well-coached scheme. They’ve been together for a while now. He’s one of the elite throwers in the league. He’s a really good decision-maker. The ball comes out on time. He hasn’t been putting it in harm’s way. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
Coach Mike McCarthy has taken over the play-calling from Kellen Moore, who was let go after the 2022 season and is now with the Chargers. Given Gannon’s experience coaching against the Cowboys while with the Eagles, he was asked about any differences he’s noticed this season.
He said, “Even with Kellen calling it, he (McCarthy) is obviously a really good offensive mind. Done it for a very long time at a high level. Won a Super Bowl calling plays. So you saw his fingerprints over that offense even with Kellen calling it, but he’s got new coaches in there, he’s got his own plays running with (Brian) Schottenheimer being the OC. He’s really good; he’s called plays for a long time. It’s changed a little, but you see the structure of what he really wants to do since he got there.”
Said Rallis, “As an offense in general, they’re very well-rounded. And Dak can beat you dropping back, he can beat you throwing the quick game, he can beat you play-action boot, getting out of the pocket, throwing in the pocket, throwing on time, not on time, extending plays. That’s hard to defend.
“When people are not one-dimensional is how do you pick your poison? What do you take away and whatever you end up taking away, you better do a good job with the other things and winning your point of attack, one-on-ones. Dak is well-rounded, he’s playing really efficient right now and their offense is rolling. His versatility, his decision-making right now is leading to them playing good on offense.”
As for Pollard, Rallis said, “He’s always been very explosive. He can hit you on the home run. You can’t let him get through to the second, third level because he can take it the distance. He’s doing a good job right now toting the load.”
The quotebook
Dobbs on two potential touchdowns to Ertz in the first two games where he slightly overthrew the tight end: “With reps, we’ll 100 percent get on the same page. Zach’s awesome because as a tight end we’re always texting each other different looks from the defense like, ‘Hey, what are you thinking here? Hey Josh, what are you thinking?’ Just to stay on the same page. We’re going to hit those, and we know that.”
Ertz on the miss last week: “Hopefully we get some more opportunities. That’s a play we were excited about all week and we were just inches away. That’s just going to come with running the routes together. Both of us regret that play, and it stinks we couldn’t get seven points there.”
Gannon on running back James Conner: “He’s the workhorse. The run game’s going to go through him.”
Conner had 23 rushes last week and in the first two games has 37 carries and five receptions. Keaontay Ingram has seven rushes and Emari Demercado one.
Rallis on replacing the leadership of safety Budda Baker while he’s sidelined by a hamstring injury: “I don’t think anyone is gonna replace Budda Baker as a leader. I think guys are going to be themselves and I think we have enough leaders throughout the defense that there’s not going to be a void in leadership. But no one’s saying, ‘Hey you got to be Budda now until … no, it’s not that. I want guys to be themselves and not try to be someone that they’re not. But I think we have a group of leaders and a group of good teammates whether they look at themselves as leaders or not.”
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