Devising a Game Plan for a Cardinals Victory vs the Patriots

With the Arizona Cardinals set to face off against the New England Patriots in a playoff-stakes game, here's the game plan for victory.

Author:
Richie Bradshaw
Updated:
Dec 12, 2022 4:29 PM EST
Original:
Dec 12, 2022

In this story:

Arizona Cardinals

Somehow, the Arizona Cardinals are mathematically still in play for the playoffs. To get there, they'll need to win their final five games, starting with the New England Patriots.

The Patriots are in a similar situation to the Cardinals. The AFC East team sits at 6-6 and is currently outside of the playoff picture as it stands as the ninth team in the conference. Like the Cardinals, they'll likely need to win out to finish 2022 if they want a taste of the post-season.

But we're here to focus on the Cardinals and I have just the right formula in place for them if they want to win this game. Follow these steps, and victory is assured for the good guys.

Offense

Find #9 before every snap

The first step to victory is simple: find the best player on the field and monitor his presence at all times. For the Patriots, his name is Matthew Judon and he's rocking #9.

Judon is currently second in the league in sacks with 13 to his name, a career-best. The Cardinals have allowed 31 sacks this season and they will want to avoid giving up more to that total if they plan on winning.

The Patriots have other pass-rushing options like Josh Uche (seven sacks) and Detrich Wise (6.5 sacks), but finding Judon before every snap will be far more important than any other Patriot defender. If the Cardinals can avoid the raging storm in Judon, they will have a chance for offensive success.

Use and abuse the quick-strike passing game

The Patriots yield the ninth-best passing defense in the league, allowing just 200.6 yards per game. With a pass rush that gets home quickly thanks to the previously mentioned players and a secondary full of ball hawks, they have yet to find very many worthy opponents.

They aren't unbeatable, however, and opposing teams have found success against them recently. The secret was getting the ball into the respective team's superstar receiver's hands quickly. For the Cardinals, that means getting DeAndre Hopkins and Marquise Brown the ball.

There likely will be little time to allow deep concepts to develop, so instead, the Cardinals need to get the ball out fast to their crafty receivers. Hopkins has been a revelation since he got back from suspension and Brown has been everything the team wanted when they traded for him. Reward their successes by making them the focal point of this offense.

Defense

Operation: Stop Rhamondre Stevenson

The Patriots' offense is middling at best. The unit is just 24th in total yards per game and 19th in points per game at 20.8. The quarterback position has been frustrating and has held them back considerably. If not for the efforts of running back Rhamondre Stevenson, it would be fair to wonder if the Patriots had any offense at all.

Therefore, the mission is simple for the Cardinals: stop Rhamondre Stevenson.

Steven is averaging a solid 61.2 yards per game on the ground, but he is a great asset to the passing game out of the backfield, making him a dual-threat weapon. Combined with his 31.9 receiving yards per game, Stevenson is averaging nearly 100 scrimmage yards per outing. Finding a way to eliminate him will likely cause this offense to collapse. With the Cardinals possessing the 10th-best rushing defense, this is entirely attainable.

Force Mac Jones to win the game with his arm

When you eliminate Stevenson and the Patriots' rushing attack from the equation, it all falls on quarterback Mac Jones to beat you. This isn't ideal whatsoever if you are the Patriots.

Jones may have made the Pro Bowl in his rookie season, but he has thrown as many touchdowns (seven) as interceptions this season and hardly feels like a confident thrower. Blame the weapons if you'd like, but Jones has been pedestrian on his best days.

For the Cardinals, this is exactly the situation they want and need for a win. We've seen this defense capable of limiting opposing quarterbacks and forcing them to play outside of their comfort zones. When this happens, the Cardinals have won more often than not. If the team can force Jones to throw the Patriots to victory, the Cardinals have to like their odds of finding some turnover opportunities and pulling off a major win.