Everything That Went Right/Wrong in Cardinals Overtime Loss to Buccaneers

This loss was frustrating because of how winnable the game was. Here's everything that went right and wrong for the Arizona Cardinals vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Author:
Richie Bradshaw
Publish date:
Dec 26, 2022 11:58 AM EST

In this story:

Arizona Cardinals

Well, it certainly was not the end to Christmas that the players or staff of the Arizona Cardinals wanted, but perhaps the fans are happy that we are one game closer to the end of a nightmarish 2022 season and one loss closer to a top selection in the 2023 NFL Draft.

This Sunday Night Football travesty wasn't fun to watch, and we certainly didn't appreciate the game going into overtime either. For the Cardinals, there were a lot of negatives from this game, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. Conversely, there were some great things that the defensive side contributed.

Let's go ahead and take a look at everything that went right and everything that went wrong for the Cardinals in their SNF loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

What went right

J.J. Watt

All things considered; the Cardinals' defense was as close to lights out as they have been all year long. There were several outstanding performances throughout, including Marco Wilson's two interception putting, but none were quite as masterful as J.J. Watt's performance on Sunday Night Football.

On the night, Watt racked up six tackles, five of which were solo stops, and met the opposition in the backfield twice. While Watt didn't record a sack, he was much closer to his dominant self of old in this matchup and that's something Cardinals fans had to enjoy watching.

Watt has 9.5 sacks this season with two games to go, which means he has a shot to get his first double-digit sack season since 2018. If Watt plays the final two games of the 2022 season the way he played on SNF, that should be an easy accomplishment for the future Hall of Famer.

James Conner's touchdown streak

It has now been six consecutive weeks in which James Conner has rumbled his way into the end zone one way or another following a 79-yard rushing performance including his seventh rushing touchdown of the season. Truly, Conner has become the entirety of the Cardinals' offense.

In 2021, Conner was far from the most efficient back in terms of yardage, but he found the endzone 18 times. While his touchdowns have dipped from double-digits to eight this season, his efficiency has drastically improved from 3.7 yards per carry to 4.2. Now if only we could find a way to combine the two...

As the Cardinals' offense continues to sputter without Kyler Murray, at least Conner is providing points for the Cardinals. Even without his touchdown, the veteran running back literally carried the team into Buccaneers' territory to help muster field goals.

What went wrong

MISSING: DeAndre Hopkins - REWARD FOR RETURN

Look, any wide receiver is going to struggle with a third-string quarterback... but to have just a single reception for four yards? That seems a bit extreme.

Unfortunately, that's precisely what happened to DeAndre Hopkins against the Bucs, as the five-time Pro Bowler reeled in just one of his ten targets. His catch didn't even come until the game was very nearly over to add insult to injury. It was truly a night to forget for Hopkins.

Again, there is certainly some sympathy for Nuk, as Trace McSorley proved to be entirely incapable of managing a game whatsoever. However, that doesn't help the Cardinals, or Hopkins' fantasy football owners, win games when he can't get the ball in his hands.

Clutch gene

There were so many opportunities for the Cardinals to slam the door shut on the Buccaneers in this game and come away with their fifth win of the 2022 season. But this has been an ongoing theme for the team in 2022 and it proved to be the biggest difference in the game - when it matters most, the Cardinals simply cannot deliver.

Most of the time, holding Tom Brady to just 19 points results in wins, especially when you intercept him more times (twice) than you allow him to score touchdowns. Even with this on their side, the Cardinals couldn't pull it off. In spite of the defense doing everything they could, they ultimately couldn't overcome the offense's biggest fallacy: quarterback.

This is just another all-too-common way for the Cardinals to lose games in 2022. The only solace here is that this loss puts the team one loss closer to a top selection in the 2023 NFL Draft. As of now, the team holds the fourth overall pick, but we are hoping that they can continue to climb the board for an even richer pick.