Good, Bad and Ugly From Arizona Cardinals' Week 2 Victory

The Arizona Cardinals have plenty of work to do.

Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner (6) takes the field before their game against the Carolina Panthers at State Farm Stadium on Sept. 14, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

ARIZONA -- The dust has settled on the Arizona Cardinals' Week 2 win over the Carolina Panthers, with another thrilling 60 minutes of football now in the rearview mirror.

Cardinals fans might use torturous or sabotaging instead - though Arizona is 2-0 regardless of which lens you use.

While style points don't matter, the process of evaluating your team and what went right/wrong marches forward into the next week.

The good, bad and ugly from Arizona's latest heart-stopping win:

The Good: Hot Start Was Thrilling

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon high-fives edge rusher Xavier Thomas (54) during a preseason game against the Raiders at State Farm Stadium in Glendale on Aug. 23, 2025. | Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Cardinals flashed what they could be, on both sides of the ball.

Defensively, Arizona got off to a hot start - forcing consecutive turnovers on Panthers QB Bryce Young to begin the game - the first coming on strip-sack which was returned for a touchdown before Young was hit throwing on the next drive, which resulted in an interception.

The Cardinals truly swallowed their rushing attack and made Young uncomfortable from the start, which allowed them to get out to their big lead.

Offensively, Arizona scored on their first four-of-five possessions. While no splash plays were made downfield, the Cardinals consistently moved the chains by any means necessary in the first half.

If you could just copy and paste that effort from both sides into the second half, the Cardinals might just be the most dangerous team in the division - though things don't work like that.

The Bad: Taking The Foot Off The Gas

Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator, Nick Rallis walks the sidelines as they play against the Las Vegas Raiders at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, on Aug. 23, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After the Cardinals opening drive in the second half, one that put Arizona up 27-3, Kyler Murray and co. touched the ball just twice before finally receiving it for a final time with under 30 seconds left to knee out the clock.

Arizona, in soft coverage playing with a three-possession lead, stopped throwing Young exotic looks/pressures and resorted to a soft zone coverage look with only a four-man rush.

That pass rush wasn't able to get home, and the Panthers took advantage - going on three consecutive touchdown drives with plays of 14, 14 and 12 in those possessions.

Read More: Kyler Murray Addresses Late-Game Collapse

The Cardinals went conservative defensively and it nearly cost them. In theory, you can't fault Arizona for making the Panthers drive the field and score points with a big lead.

However, that only lasts for so long before adjustments are needed - and it felt like defensive coordinator Nick Rallis waited far too long to again bring pressure on the Panthers' offense.

Had the Cardinals kept their foot on the gas or simply readjusted earlier in the second half, we may be talking differently about how Sunday went.

The Ugly: Cardinals CB Room is Decimated

Arizona Cardinals cornerback Garrett Williams (21) is helped off the field after being hurt defending a touchdown play against the Carolina Panthers at State Farm Stadium on Sept 14, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Arizona lost two starting cornerbacks before the regular season with injuries to Sean Murphy-Bunting and Starling Thomas.

What was once a key strength to the Cardinals' defense has now turned into a massive question mark, as the injury bug once again landed in the desert.

During the win, all of Will Johnson, Max Melton and Garrett Williams suffered injuries.

Johnson suffered a groin injury and wasn't able to finish the game, according to head coach Jonathan Gannon. Melton was carted off in the second quarter with a knee injury while Williams was helped off the field with a knee injury as well.

We're still awaiting news on the severity of said injuries, though it doesn't look promising for any of the aforementioned names.

That's absolutely brutal for a Cardinals defense that was expected to help carry the team to a postseason appearance.

Kyler Murray was asked about losing those guys following the game:

“Sick. You lose ‘SMB’ (CB Sean Murphy-Bunting) before this season starts. Now it just kind of feels like it's the domino effect. I have full faith in those guys. Rookies obviously have to step up, if their name is called on and they get meaningful time, it'll be good for them to grow up quick, but hopefully it's not too bad for the guys who got hurt.”

Arizona could potentially be down five cornerbacks after just two weeks of football, the latest being one of the NFL's best slot corners and two promising second-round picks.

Ugly. Very, very ugly.