How Second-String Studs Propelled Cardinals' Road Win
Often times, teams need to dig deep to find wins in the NFL, and the Arizona Cardinals just so happened to bring their shovels to SoFi Stadium.
Missing starting talent across the board, the Cardinals emerged victorious in 27-17 fashion on Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams.
Injuries have struck the Cardinals throughout the season, preventing Arizona from reaching their full strength and arguably their potential in the process.
Yet it was the second-string studs who emerged in a big way in Los Angeles:
Colt's Comfort
Missing Kyler Murray with a hamstring injury, the Cardinals relied on the veteran presence of Colt McCoy at quarterback to pull them through when their backs were against the wall.
It's a good thing McCoy's seen this movie before.
McCoy played the role of reliever quite well last year when Murray was injured, helping guide the Cardinals to a 2-1 record as a starter, which included two divisional wins against the Seahawks and 49ers.
"I think with Colt—the games that he's played for us the biggest deal is the pre-snap recognition, getting it out to those play-makers on time, accurate within catch and run, and he's just had a, had a good feel for the offense since he's been here," said Kliff Kingsbury.
"A lot of the concepts that he likes, he'll communicate with us during the week, and he'll have thoughts. It's been good getting on the same page, but I think he hadn't been in many situations with this type of talented receiving core around him and I think that's really showing up. When he has weapons like we have he can be really efficient, get to those guys and play at a high level."
McCoy went 26-of-37 for 238 yards and one touchdown on the day, making some fairly nice throws which included a bomb down the left sideline to Rondale Moore on a fourth-and-short and a toe-tap touchdown for A.J. Green in the back of the end zone.
Four-of-Five Ain't Bad
Here's the full list of regular starting offensive linemen the Cardinals had at their disposal on Sunday: Kelvin Beachum.
That's it.
Arizona deployed a unit consisting of Lecitus Smith, Josh Jones, Billy Price and Rashaad Coward against a Rams defensive front featuring the likes of Aaron Donald.
McCoy was sacked twice (Murray was sacked 17 times the previous four weeks combined for comparison) while James Conner found the end zone twice as a runner.
"I thought they battled. To see some of the runs that we had late in the game when we really needed it-- particularly down near the end zone was big time and that's not easy to do," Kingsbury said.
"(We) patch worked it together. You've got to give (Offensive Line) coach (Sean) Kugler and (Assistant Offensive Line) coach (Brian) Natkin a lot of credit, and the competitive spirit of that group yesterday was really impressive in going against one of the better D-lines and one of the best football players in the history of the game."
Dominant? By no stretch, but the Cardinals saw valiant efforts from some unlikely heroes up front against a fairly good defense.
The Grass Was Greener
The Cardinals are still missing Marquise Brown and have yet to see anything from Robbie Anderson. A.J. Green had been phased out completely from a role in Arizona's offense, and his name was one to watch as the trade deadline came and went.
Green went from playing one snap in the loss to Seattle to playing 30 in the win over Los Angeles.
He caught a modest two passes for ten yards, but both were in crucial moments.
The first came on Arizona's opening drive of the game, where he was able to reel in a ball that looked out of frame to keep the chains moving on fourth down.
The next came with a tremendous catch in the corner of the end zone.
"He's never lost confidence in himself. It's just one of those things that comes up every now and then. For whatever reason it hadn't worked in in his favor, but he's one of the best receivers that has played this league in a long time," Kingsbury said.
"He still has a lot of really good football in front of him, so it was good to see him get those plays in. I think Colt has a ton of confidence in him knowing what to do, being where he should be, and he's obviously a big target. He's a matchup problem for those smaller corners."
Getting opportunities behind DeAndre Hopkins and Rondale Moore will still be slim, yet Green flashed what he could do when given the opportunity.
No Byron, No Problem
Byron Murphy Jr. has limited the best of receivers this season, but his presence wasn't felt on Sunday when he was ruled out 90 minutes prior to kickoff with a back injury.
Stepping in was Marco Wilson and Antonio Hamilton, who helped hold Cooper Kupp to just three catches for -1 receiving yard.
Hamilton particularly played well, pacing the Cardinals in tackles with 11 (the next closest defender had seven) with two passes defensed (no other Arizona player had multiple).
The Cardinals, nowhere close to being at full strength, saw multiple players rise to the occasion when called upon to help keep them alive in the hunt for the division.
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