Is Arizona Ready to Turn Last Season’s Promise into an Unstoppable Surge?

The Cardinals ended last season with an 8-9 record. That is fairly respectable, but looking at their schedule, it seems like there is very little rhyme or reason to why they won games vs. why they lost games. They were competitive against the Lions and Bills, but were blown out by the Commanders and Packers. They lost five of their final seven games after the Bye Week. In some games, their offense looked dynamic, and in others, it looked like they had no game plan whatsoever. 

The offense this year, still rests on the right arm of quarterback Kyler Murray. At his best, he is scrambling around, extending plays, and eluding sacks. At his worst, he is inconsistent, unprepared, and making questionable decisions. The problem has been, over his career, you can’t always know which Murray to expect to show up. There have been some interesting theories about him and performance based on when Call of Duty is released, but some of it seems a bit coincidental. In any case, Murray needs to leverage the weapons he has – arguably the best he has ever had. Marvin Harrison Jr. is a great young receiver who was used inconsistently last season. Michael Wilson is a decent option, but seems like mostly a short-yardage receiver. Zay Jones and Trey McBride also offer decent options for Murray when he is extending plays. James Conner is a reliable running back, so this offense is good, but consistency will be key. Profootballnetwork.com ranks the Cardinals as the sixth best offensive line in football. That’s always a big bonus for a club. Last season they were great for a few games, and then fairly average the remainder. If they can keep up the greatness all season, this could be an explosive offense.

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