There is just something about the Carolina Panthers that seems to be an issue for the Arizona Cardinals. Kliff Kingsbury’s Cardinals finally managed to get a win against Sean McVay, but faltered against a familiar nemesis in the Panthers. Simply put, the Cardinals got slapped, at home, by an underwhelming Panthers team. Down both Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins, backup quarterback Colt McCoy did not get close to recreating his Week 9 heroics; McCoy had a league-worst QBR of 4.5 on Sunday. The Cardinals struggled mightily in Week 10, and in truth, gave the game away early in the first quarter.
The Cardinals and Panthers were billed as two of the top defenses in the NFL, but Carolina’s defense had much the better showing, although Arizona’s offense was not doing their defense any favors. The game had shades of last season’s appalling loss to the Panthers where the Cardinals were flat and ineffective. On Sunday the Cardinals played their worst game of the season so far and deserved to lose. Now Cardinals fans wait nervously for the status of Murray, as his importance has now become even more apparent.
Carolina Panthers Blowout Arizona Cardinals in Week 10
Arizona Cardinals Show They Can Lose With Colt McCoy
Against the San Francisco 49ers, Colt McCoy showed why he is an excellent backup in the NFL, and against the Panthers, he showed why he is a backup and not a starter. Now, credit where credit is due; this Panthers defense is good. Heading in as the second-ranked unit in the league, they posed a threat on paper. Living up to the expectation, they played a complete game. They were effective upfront and suffocating on the back end. Former Cardinal Haason Reddick blew past D.J. Humphries to strip McCoy inside the Arizona 20 and ultimately set the tone for the rest of the game.
No one played particularly well and McCoy didn’t single-handedly lose the game, but he was very obviously not in top form. Despite Carolina being far better against the pass than the run, the pass-heavy gameplan reflected Arizona’s confidence in McCoy. But he didn’t deliver. Kingsbury commented on the speed of Carolina’s defense before the game, noting that they are the fastest defensive unit the Cardinals will face this season. McCoy’s performance did not help to nullify this speed. His passes were inaccurate and, while not late, he was not throwing his guys open. A third-down incompletion to Christian Kirk was indicative of this trend; McCoy didn’t deliver the ball before Kirk broke on the route and gave the Panthers defenders a chance to close.
Throw in the abysmal interception, and it all adds up to a very bad day for McCoy. He looked like a backup. McCoy has demonstrated his value to the Cardinals both on and off the field, but Sunday’s performance showed why it is important that Murray returns quickly.
James Conner Underused
James Conner became Arizona’s De Facto RB1 in Week 10, so it made complete sense, with a backup quarterback, that Conner ran the ball a paltry ten times for only 39 yards. Carolina’s defense is good, but their very best players upfront are the pass-rushing duo of Reddick and Brian Burns. Their second-ranked pass defense is balanced by a comparatively average twelfth-ranked rush defense, but the Cardinals failed to exploit this in their game plan. Opening the game with three straight pass attempts was telling of what was to come, and Conner saw his role slip away as Carolina’s lead grew. But Conner did score the Cardinals only touchdown, albeit in garbage time, and now leads the league in touchdowns.
Conner’s excellent performance against the 49ers seemed to set him up for a prominent role against the Panthers. Yes, given the injury situation around Arizona at the moment, it is important to preserve his health, but against a top pass defense, Conner should have had more than 10 carries. Conner was egregiously underutilized against the Panthers on Sunday.
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Looking for Positives on Defense
Carolina’s utilized two quarterbacks and blew out Arizona’s defense, which did not play well. Granted, the offense left them in some bad spots, and those two early turnovers hardly set them up for success, but Arizona’s defense should be disappointed in their performance. A returning Christian McCaffrey had a bit of a field day against a Cardinals defense that lacked the ability to contain him. With 95 yards on 13 carries and 66 yards on ten receptions, Arizona’s linebackers struggled against McCaffrey as he re-staked his claim as one of the NFL’s best running backs.
In a dreadful overall performance by the Cardinals defense, Jalen Thompson continued to be one of Arizona’s most consistent players. He did a good job of coming up and tackling, as per usual, and was quick to engage Carolina’s offensive weapons. The Cardinals had few defensive highlights, but Thompson was at the heart of them. A sharp read and tackle on a D.J. Moore screen preceded an interception for Thompson, a high watermark in a bad performance for Arizona.
This was Arizona’s worst performance of the year, no two ways about it. Their lack of energy was reflected in their lack of production and effectiveness in all phases of the game. Yes, they were missing Kyler Murray and DeAndre Hopkins and they faced a top NFL defense, but they managed to get a win against the Niners under those same conditions. But they could not muster anywhere near the same performance against the Panthers on Sunday.
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