Packers at Cardinals Matchups: Who Has Advantage?

The Green Bay Packers will face the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Here’s a look at which units have the advantages.

If healthy, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray will lead the team into Sunday's game against the Green Bay Packers. / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

The Green Bay Packers got back in the winner’s circle after an underwhelming 27-18 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals at Lambeau Field.

Underwhelming might be an appropriate word, but it was a win, which is something the Packers had not had in more than a month.

Now, they need to conquer another challenge on Sunday at the Arizona Cardinals.

The Packers have not won a road game this season, and they’re headed to a place that can be difficult to play.

The Packers have played some wild games in Arizona in recent memory. In 2021, Rasul Douglas stole victory from the jaws of defeat in the final seconds. In the 2015 playoffs, Aaron Rodgers completed two desperation heaves in the final minute to force overtime, only for Larry Fitzgerald to beat them moments later. The 2009 season ended in a playoff shootout between a young Rodgers and Kurt Warner, which ended on a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown by Cardinals linebacker Karlos Dansby.

With Green Bay’s early-season penchant for allowing inferior teams to hang around, this week’s game could have some fireworks attached to it, as well.

Here’s a look at the matchups for Green Bay’s trip to the desert. 

Cardinals Pass Offense vs Packers Pass Defense

Much like last week’s game against Cincinnati, there are questions about who the Packers will face at quarterback.

Last week, Jacoby Brissett started in place of the injured Kyler Murray and performed well against the Indianapolis Colts. He threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns and had the Cardinals on the doorstep of stealing a win on the road.

The veteran Brissett has had a solid career across six different teams. He’s thrown 55 touchdown passes and just 25 interceptions for a career passer rating of 84.4.

He’s solid, even if he’s unspectacular, and he’s probably a better starting option at this point of his career than Joe Flacco was for the Bengals last week or the Browns a few weeks earlier.

Murray has flashes of brilliance muddled by some maddening inconsistency. He is the team’s leading rusher as well as passer, which adds a different element to the passing game.

Green Bay did handle Jayden Daniels well early in the season, which is the only true mobile quarterback it has faced.

Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride makes a reception for a touchdown defended by Indianapolis Colts safety Nick Cross. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

The difference here, whether it’s Murray or Brissett under center, could lie in who is going to be in their supporting cast. Trey McBride is one of the top receiving tight ends in football, and had a big game last week against the Colts with 72 yards on eight catches. He had a big game last year in Green Bay, too, leading all players with 96 receiving yards.

He’ll play Sunday, but he might be a bit of a one-man band. Marvin Harrison Jr., the team’s second-year receiver, left Sunday’s game with a concussion. Harrison has had trouble with concussions in his career, including one suffered early in last year’s game at Lambeau Field. That could complicate his status for Sunday’s game.

If he’s out, the Cardinals are really thin on the perimeter, and their best receiving option in Sunday’s loss to the Colts was Zay Jones, the journeyman receiver.

Green Bay’s pass defense had another tale of two halves on Sunday. It was dominant in the first half, bludgeoning the Bengals offense and making it look hapless for the first 30 minutes. The second half, of course, was a different story. Receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins combined for 15 catches for the game, and a spectacular touchdown from Chase pulled the Bengals within 24-18.

Green Bay’s defense has been good from down-to-down. It doesn’t allow explosive plays, but it doesn’t make any, either, with one sack in each of the last two games and two takeaways this season – none since Flacco’s arm punt in Cleveland a month ago.

Despite that, the defense is still much more good than bad. The Packers will be facing a backup quarterback, or a quarterback who is not 100 percent healthy and missing some of his supporting cast. This matchup still favors Green Bay.

Advantage: Packers

Cardinals Rush Offense vs Packers Run Defense

Arizona’s run game is pretty similar to Cincinnati’s from a week ago if Kyler Murray cannot play. The Cardinals don’t run the ball well, and they don’t show much interest in running the ball.

It doesn’t help that Pro Bowler James Conner is out for the season and his talented replacement, Trey Benson, also is on injured reserve.

Arizona’s running duties had been given to Emari Demercado, who had a viral moment two weeks ago in a loss to the Tennessee Titans when he fumbled a potential touchdown through the end zone by dropping the ball before crossing the goal line. He carried just once last week.

Michael Carter has 28 carries for 86 yards, a 3.1-yard average. He split carries last week with Zonovan Knight, who has carried 15 times for 45 yards (3.0) in two games.

Arizona’s run game is anemic without Murray. With him, it proposes a different challenge.

Green Bay’s run defense, despite losing Kenny Clark and TJ Slaton this offseason, is even better than last season. In this case, being better means being the best in football. It is the top-ranked rushing defense in the NFL with just 73.0 rushing yards allowed per game.

The best rush defense in football facing a team struggling to run and perhaps playing without the explosive running of Kyler Murray?

Do the math.

Advantage: Packers

Cardinals Pass Defense vs Packers Passing Offense

Jordan Love shook off an early interception last week to play another good game against Cincinnati. He had a passer rating over 100 for the fourth time in five starts, and made big plays to help the team win the game.

The biggest of which came on a 34-yard completion to Matthew Golden on third-and-8, which allowed Green Bay to kick a field goal to put the game out of reach.

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Matthew Golden (0) makes a 45-yard reception while being covered by Cam Taylor-Britt. / Mark Hoffman-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

There’s no such thing as an MVP candidate in October, but if there were, Love would be on the list with a chance to work his way up to the frontrunner.

Love was the beneficiary of his starting offensive line playing a full game for the first time all season, which included Jordan Morgan replacing Sean Rhyan for most of the game at right guard.

The biggest development from the passing game last week was the expanded role for Golden. Golden had three catches, and they were all for more than 20 yards. He’s a big play waiting to happen, and it feels like a bubble is about to burst with Golden set to have an explosive play end up in the end zone.

Furthermore, he could be getting a running-mate back this week. Christian Watson practiced last week and is set to practice more this week. Whether or not he plays against the Cardinals is up in the air, but a return should happen sooner than later.

Arizona’s defense has some talented players, but it has not translated to the field. Cornerbacks Will Johnson and Max Melton were highly touted second-round picks. Safety Dadrion Taylor-Demerson leads the team in interceptions with two. Defensive end Calais Campbell is still beating Father Time, and Josh Sweat has five sacks since being signed away from the Eagles in free agency.

It has not worked thus far, as the Cardinals rank 28th in the league against the pass.

This could be a week when the Packers have an opportunity to replicate some of their production in Dallas.

Advantage: Packers

Cardinals Rush Defense vs Green Bay’s Rush Offense

Josh Jacobs channeled his inner Michael Jordan, playing sick in Sunday’s win over the Bengals.

He hit the trifecta, throwing up before, during and after the game.

You’d be forgiven if you couldn’t tell something was ailing him. Jacobs looked fresh and fast, piling up 150 total yards, including 93 yards on 5.2 yards per carry on the ground.

Starting at right guard, Jordan Morgan appeared to be a standout in the run game, especially on Jacobs’ 14-yard touchdown on Green Bay’s first series of the second half.

The Packers’ offense may not be as prolific on the ground as it was a season ago, but it still wants to emphasize Jacobs, and he rewarded them last week.

For all the issues the Cardinals have had through the air, they have been good on the ground for most of the season. They entered Sunday’s game against the Colts ranked eighth in the NFL against the run. Of course, playing Jonathan Taylor is a different story than almost any running back in football this season. Taylor rushed for 120 yards and Arizona dropped out of the top 10.

For now, however, both performances last week look like outliers, which pushes this matchup slightly in favor of Arizona.

Advantage: Cardinals

Special Teams

The Cardinals have questions at quarterback. The Packers have questions at kicker.

Brandon McManus was given all the way up until gametime due to a quad injury he suffered in practice last week but ultimately was inactive. Near-substitute-teacher Lucas Havrisik did an excellent job as a substitute kicker, including drilling a 39-yard field goal to ice the game.

He was helped by the Packers putting their preferred starting offensive line on the field-goal team for the first time this year, as well, a clear adjustment from the first four games.

Save for a personal foul on Ty’Ron Hopper, Green Bay’s special teams is coming off one of its best performances of the season.

One other question could be who is returning punts, as Matthew Golden was benched in favor of Romeo Doubs after an ill-advised decision by Golden to fair catch a punt inside his 10 with some room to run.

Arizona’s kicking duties are handled by Chad Ryland, who worked out in Green Bay during the Anders Carlson era but was not signed. He’s missed two kicks – one a block and one from 57 yards.

Return duties are largely handled by Greg Dortch, who averages 26.3 yards per kickoff return and 12.2 yards per punt return.  

Last week, former Packers punter Pat O’Donnell filled in for ailing Blake Gillikin, who ranks third in gross average and fourth in net average.

Both teams have uncertainties, so there’s no clear advantage in the third phase of the game.

Advantage: Push

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