Breaking down the Cardinals’ NFL Week 5 victory over the 49ers
Republic sports writers Bob McManaman and Theo Mackie discuss the Arizona Cardinals’ win over the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara on Oct. 6, 2024.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Jalen Thompson sprinted towards the end zone, waving his arms wherever they wanted to go. Roy Lopez followed in hot pursuit. Khyris Tonga gestured for his teammates to join and so they did, from all corners of the Arizona Cardinals’ sideline. Their hero, Kyzir White, was somewhere in the mix, holding his interception ball up toward a stunned 49ers crowd.
That crowd arrived in Santa Clara on Sunday with justifiable expectations. This, they figured, would be one of the easiest wins on the 49ers’ schedule, against an overmatched and undertalented Cardinals team. For Arizona, it would be a fourth loss in five games, another reflection of the gap between them and the NFL’s elite.
But this is the beauty of football. One week ago, the Cardinals were decimated at home by Washington, a low point of the Kyler Murray era. On Sunday, they stunned the 49ers, 24-23, rewriting what’s possible over the next three months.
This is what we learned in the shocking win:
This was a seismic win
One win in early October does not necessarily mean that the Cardinals are heading to the playoffs. Just three weeks ago, they beat the Rams by 31 and seemed to possess an electrifying offense before scoring 27 total points in a pair of home losses. Reality changes weekly in the NFL.
But Sunday at least preserved the playoff possibility. Since 1990, just 6.6% of 1-4 teams have gone on to make the playoffs. The Cardinals, at 2-3, can still feel as if anything is possible. They trail the Seahawks by a game, are tied with the 49ers, and lead the Rams. They’re 2-0 in the division. As the standings begin to matter in the coming weeks, the Cardinals will be in the mix.
The win also displayed an impressive level of resilience. The Cardinals were 7.5-point underdogs, coming off a blowout loss, facing a team that has destroyed them in the recent past. For 60 minutes Sunday, none of that bothered them.
“We took the arrow in the forehead,” head coach Jonathan Gannon said, “and we put all our energy and focus into San Fran.”
Cardinals’ win started with defense
White’s game-sealing interception personified the Cardinals’ win. This game was about winning crucial moments on defense.
The Cardinals’ defense wasn’t perfect — it allowed 244 passing yards and 5.9 yards per carry — but it came through when it mattered. In the first half, the Cardinals got three stops inside the 10-yard line, holding the 49ers to field goals. In the second half, they forced three turnovers.
On the first turnover, Brock Purdy had time in the pocket but his pass was tipped by Roy Lopez, enabling Mack Wilson Sr. to come up with an interception. On the second, Jesse Luketa flew in late to strip Jordan Mason, who was fighting for extra yardage. On the third, Jalen Thompson broke through on a safety blitz and hit Purdy, forcing a popped-up throw that White was able to secure for the win.
The commonality: The Cardinals played hard and aggressively, just as defensive coordinator Nick Rallis preaches. Sometimes, that’s the recipe to win enough crucial moments.
“We got punched in the mouth at times,” White said. “But we kept punching back.”
Kyler Murray and the offense were resilient
Like their defense, the Cardinals’ offense was far from perfect Sunday. In the locker room at halftime, Murray was frustrated by the missed opportunities. At one point, they had consecutive drives inside the San Francisco 30-yard line end in negative-7 points — courtesy of a blocked field goal return for a touchdown and an intercepted screen pass.
“We just weren’t capitalizing on the opportunities we had when we got down there,” Murray said.
In many ways, it was a familiar scene. The Cardinals scored on their opening drive — as they have in every game this year — and then went silent.
This time, they fought back. Down 23-13 after three quarters, Murray led a 12-play, 73-yard touchdown drive and a 14-play, 75-yard field goal drive. On those drives, he was 9-for-11 with a touchdown. James Conner added 77 yards on 13 carries after halftime.
“For us to fight back, battle back, and end up winning this game on the road against a great team is huge,” Murray said.
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The offense showed its versatility
Back in training camp, the Cardinals’ offense shone with its versatility. It wasn’t just the Murray, Conner, and Marvin Harrison Jr. show. It was Trey McBride and Michael Wilson and Elijah Higgins and on and on.
That was the offense the Cardinals displayed again Sunday. Conner was silent in the first half, rushing for nine yards on six carries. Harrison was silent for most of the game, hauling in just two of seven targets.
It didn’t matter. Wilson stepped up with 78 yards and McBride went for 53 in his return from a concussion. Higgins caught the key fourth-quarter touchdown. Murray used his legs better than he has all season. Greg Dortch and Tip Reiman both got involved when the offense needed them.
It was also a performance that displayed some of the creative playcalling that has been lacking in recent weeks. On the first play of the game, offensive coordinator Drew Petzing got Murray out of the pocket for a play-action pass to McBride that gained a first down. On the second, Murray kept a read-option for a 50-yard touchdown. And on the fourth-quarter touchdown, the Cardinals feigned a designed run with Murray, drawing the attention of San Francisco’s defense, only for Murray to flip to an open Higgins.
All afternoon, the Cardinals kept the 49ers off balance. That’s a credit to both their players and coaching staff.
The Cardinals weren’t perfect
For all that went right, the Cardinals were not flawless, as they were in the Week 2 win over the Rams. They were often too porous defensively and too wasteful offensively. They might not have won without an injury to 49ers kicker Jake Moody. At one point, the 49ers had to attempt a 4th-and-23 from the 27-yard line instead of kicking a field goal.
All of that is reason for tempered optimism in the coming days, ahead of a difficult trip to Green Bay. But on Sunday afternoon, as the Cardinals sprayed water on their various heroes in a celebratory locker room, none of it mattered.
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