Why the 49ers Won't Overlook the Cardinals Like the Cowboys did

Week 3 had a few predictable wins going into it.

The three easiest wins to call were the Chiefs over the Bears, the 49ers over the Giants, and the Cowboys over the Cardinals. Well, only two of those teams ended up winning. The Cowboys were upset by the Cardinals in ugly fashion.

Dallas is supposed to be one of the best teams in the NFC yet were embarrassed by the Cardinals. That is what happens when you overlook a team. The 49ers will get their shot against the Cardinals this week and could be facing a trap game.

However, the 49ers won't overlook the Cardinals like the Cowboys did. The fact that the Cardinals were able to beat a premier team like the Cowboys is enough to show the 49ers that they cannot fall asleep. Had Arizona lost to the Cowboys, then they could've been hitting the snooze button against them. But Kyle Shanahan doesn't view the Cardinals as an easy outing even if they had loss to the Cowboys.

“All you have to do is watch the two games before that also," said Shanahan. "They had every chance to win versus Washington in Week 1. I believe that they should have.

"I forget the exact score, but I want to say it was like 27-7 in the third quarter versus the Giants and they had every chance to win that and it got away from them at the end. Dallas was very similar, but they didn't turn it over there at the end and they kept finishing and keeping them out of the red zone and ended up not being close. So, they’re a team that really should be 3-0 right now."

The 49ers have the perfect mindset facing the Cardinals. Viewing them as a team that could be undefeated right now is how it should be. They very well could have been. Every game so far this season the Cardinals have been competing hard. I like to describe them as a scrappy team because they do not lay down and can battle.

It's pretty incredible that they look like this. The Cardinals were practically a lock to be picking No. 1 in next year's NFL draft. That is how lowly they were viewed coming into the season. I mean, look at their starting quarterback Josh Dobbs. Arizona barely acquired him a few weeks before Week 1. That is unheard of. Sure enough, they look like a team who can push around anyone.

The 49ers acknowledge that and won't overlook them like the Cowboys.