The Arizona Cardinals answer the physicality bell in win over 49ers

The Cardinals franchise quarterback summarized it well.

“It’s not always gonna be sweet and pretty and flashy,” said Kyler Murray when referencing his team’s performance against the 49ers. “It was definitely, to our standards, an ugly one offensively but we got it done and that’s all that matters.”

Kyler Murray is right and he’s also 5-0 on the season following the Cardinals 17-7 win over San Fran.

The Arizona Cardinals muscled their way to a well earned division home win against the suddenly free falling San Francisco 49ers. Yet unlike many of their previous efforts, the Cardinals did not surpass 30 points nor did they rack up over 400 yards of offense.

On Sunday, due in much in part to their defense, the Arizona Cardinals found another way to win in a league where sometimes escaping defeat is enough.

That’s all that matters when you’re 5-0.

“I take em any way I can get em…especially division wins,” said head coach Kliff Kingsbury when asked if he needed a win like the one he got on Sunday.

“We knew it would be a dogfight.”

The 49ers entered Sunday’s matchup with a slew of injuries, most notably at quarterback, which drastically changed their style of play offensively. Newly inserted rookie signal caller Trey Lance, while grossly limited as a passer, carried the ball 16 times as the Niners did their absolute best to muck up this game in the trenches. Their goal from the start was to limit possessions for Kyler Murray, while attempting to build confidence for Lance using his feet.

Point-blank the San Francisco 49ers wanted this one to get ugly and they got their wish. What they did not anticipate, however, was a Vance Joseph led defense that was equally willing to brawl it out at the line of scrimmage.

Led by standout edge rushers Chandler Jones and J.J. Watt, the Cardinal defense limited the Niners to just 1-of-5 on fourth down attempts. After averaging nearly 27 points per game through their first four contests, the 49ers were held to a season low 10 points at the hands of the suddenly vaunted desert defense.

After weeks of up and down play, the Redbird’s defense and all their many investments upfront bailed out their potent offensive counterpart. Recent draft picks Isaiah Simmons, Zaven Collins, Zach Allen and others consistently gave Lance and company fits while high priced veterans Jones and Watt made life hell for San Fran’s bookend tackles.

Watt, in particular, led the team with three quarterback hits and was the often the driving catalyst in revving up both his teammates and those in attendance at State Farm Stadium.

Sunday was the kind of performance both Michael Bidwill and Steve Keim envisioned from Watt when they heavily recruited the future Hall of Famer some eight months ago. The former Houston Texan absolutely abused 49er right tackle Mike McGlinchey to the point where the latter seemingly committed a holding penalty every other down.

While that may seem like an extreme exaggeration, the Niners did commit four holding penalties in an eight minute span during Sunday’s second half.

“When you’re on the field, you just don’t want to give up points no matter what,” said Budda Baker.

“Whether the offense is playing good or if the offense is playing bad…we have a do your job mentality.”

While few would classify Arizona’s offensive output as “bad”, they have set renewed expectations of greatness that were quickly halted after a scoring a mere three points in second and third quarter.

Yet in true MVP fashion, with the game in the balance mid-fourth quarter, Kyler Murray orchestrated a pivotal 52 yard touchdown drive that inevitably put the contest out of reach for fledgling 49ers.

Following a houdini like catch and throw between Murray and Hopkins downfield for 30 yards, the Pro Bowl partnership would hook up again this time for six .

With the win, the Cardinals are flying high while the once league darling 49ers enter their bye week seemingly in turmoil. This was a San Francisco team with self anointed Super Bowl aspirations only to inexplicably give up three first rounders for what equates to a complete project at quarterback in Trey Lance. With Garoppolo as their place holder, that’s some next level arrogance from Kyle Shanahan, who could be staring at his fourth losing season in five years.

Meanwhile, the Cardinal Football Franchise is 5-0 for the first time since 1974. If that doesn’t call for a quality beverage, I don’t know what does.

“I’m going to drink some nice drinks and watch some football,” said Baker.

Drink up Budda, you’ve earned it.

Quick Hits

• The Cardinals did not exit their Sunday slug-fest unscathed, as numerous Redbirds left the game with injuries. Maxx Williams, who had been enjoying a breakout season at tight end, was carted off in the second quarter after a gruesome knee injury that left the Cardinal bench shaken. Isaiah Simmons, following a head on collision with Trey Lance at the goal line, briefly left the game only to return in the second half. Lastly, center Rodney Hudson also exited with an apparent rib injury. However, Kyler Murray had an opportunity to visit with Hudson post game to which he stated “I think Rodney will be good.”
• Kyler Murray also dispelled any lingering issues with his shoulder stating “I’ll be fine”. Murray was seen working on his throwing motion at times during the second half, which led to speculation of discomfort. The Pro Bowl QB did not miss a snap on Sunday.
• Following a slew of sparse performances, Cardinal first round LB Zaven Collins was awarded his largest playing time since Week 1 at Tennessee. The former 16th overall pick out of Tulsa was used heavily in the Cardinals’ base defense, which also sported captain Jordan Hicks and hybrid standout Isaiah Simmons. Collins made several splash plays, both against the run and the pass, which should put him in the good graces of Vance Joseph moving forward.
• While the Arizona offense under performed as a unit, the same cannot be said for standout rookie receiver Rondale Moore. The second round spark-plug out of Purdue was once again electric Sunday, totaling 97 yards of offense which included an unreal 33-yard catch downfield that would setup a field goal. Any lingering questions regarding Moore’s effectiveness at the NFL level have quickly been dismissed thanks to the efforts of this generational rookie.
• Last year’s fourth round defensive tackle tandem in Leki Fotu and Rashard Lawrence each put their stamp on this game for the Cardinals. Fotu had two critical deflected passes off the arm of Trey Lance, while Rashard Lawrence had a key tackle on a key QB draw that stalled a drive. The box score may not support it, but both defensive heavyweights showed up big on Sunday and could be critical cogs as the Cardinals look for support at the position.
• With both Byron Murphy and Marco Wilson inactive, it should be noted that veteran Robert Alford handled the large majority of number one corner duties Sunday afternoon. The savvy vet put on another quality performance, as the Cardinal secondary completely shut down any semblance of a passing offense for San Fransisco. It’s fair to wonder where Arizona would be without the presence of Alford in their defense.
• After failing on so many prior occasions during the Kingsbury era, the Arizona offense finally put away an opponent by picking up critical first downs to end the game. Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins and James Conner were the key catalysts in Arizona’s seven play, 18-yard drive that would ice the game for the Redbirds. Even with the uneven day for this unit, the Cardinal offense can absolutely build on this fourth quarter performance.
• Speaking of James Conner, the former Steeler standout has five touchdowns in his last three games.
• With a win on Sunday, Kliff Kingsbury moves to an even 18-and-18 as a career NFL head coach. It’s worth noting that his NFC West counterpart, Kyle Shanahan, is under .500 as a head coach in the regular season (31-38).
• For the first time in his brief NFL career, Valley native Eno Benjamin was active for an NFL game. This was due march in part to the absence of Marco Wilson, as both Benjamin and Andy Isabella were primarily used as gunners on special teams.
• After starting the season with four interceptions in three games, Kyler Murray has failed to turn the ball over once against two division rivals.
• The Arizona Cardinals travel to Cleveland Ohio next Sunday to take on the 3-2 Browns. For the third time this season the Cardinals are a road underdog, this time at +2.5.