Packer Central

Packers-Cardinals Score, Live Updates: Micah Parsons Helps Clinch 27-23 Win

The Green Bay Packers (3-1-1) are playing the Arizona Cardinals (2-4) on Sunday in Glendale, Ariz. Follow along for all the updates as Green Bay seeks a breakthrough road victory.
Bill Huber|
Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) takes the field for warmups before the game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) takes the field for warmups before the game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

The Green Bay Packers (3-1-1) will battle the Arizona Cardinals (2-4) on Sunday in Glendale, Ariz. Will the Packers win their first road game of the season? Or will the Cardinals win, period, after four consecutive losses?

Follow along all day for updates.

Final Score: Packers 27, Cardinals 23

Fourth Quarter

Packers 27, Cardinals 23 (1:50 remaining)

Given great field position after the fourth-down stop, Jordan Love, who has struggled under pressure, faced immediate pressure on third-and-4 but stepped up and hit Tucker Kraft for 8. On the next third-and-1, Josh Jacobs lost 1 because the Packers failed at the point of attack, which meant John FitzPatrick couldn’t block Jalen Thompson.

On fourth-and-2, the Packers initially sent out the field-goal unit but called timeout and sent the offense back on the field. Love threw a 15-yard pass to Kraft the 14. On first down, Jacobs bounced to the left and might have scored and he not stumbled for 5 at the 2-minute warning.

It didn’t matter. Jacobs broke two tackles on an 8-yard run to the 1 before breaking another tackle at the 2 to score the go-ahead touchdown.

Cardinals 23, Packers 20 (5:51 remaining)

On a critical fourth-and-1 sneak, Green Bay’s defensive line won the battle and linebackers Quay Walker, Isaiah McDuffie and Edgerrin Cooper stuffed Jacoby Brissett, giving the Packers the ball at Arizona’s 48.

Cardinals 23, Packers 20 (7:58 remaining)

Starting at their 16 on the kickoff following Kitan Oladapo’s holding penalty, the Packers had a lot of work to do. It didn’t start well with Jordan Love dropping the snap and throwing at away. A three-and-out punt puts the pressure on the defense.

Cardinals 23, Packers 20 (9:01 remaining)

Green Bay’s special teams gift-wrapped a score. On the kickoff, Arron Mosby was flagged for a facemask and Isaiah McDuffie missed a tackle, which allowed Greg Dortch to take the return from the 25 to the 40, and the penalty tacking on 15 more to Green Bay’s 45.

One play later, the Packers missed three tackles as Brissett turned a sack into a 3-yard run, with defensive holding Nate Hobbs tacking on 5 more for the first down. Finally, Green Bay’s defense showed some spine. On first-and-goal at the 8, Ty’Ron Hopper blitzed off the edge and had a tackle for loss on Zonovan Knight. On second-and-goal at the 10, Micah Parsons pressured Brissett into a throwaway. On third-and-goal, Parsons sacked Brissett. Chad Ryland kicked a 39-yard field goal.

Packers 20, Cardinals 20 (14:55 remaining)

The Packers desperately needed an answer – preferably a touchdown, given their problems on defense. On third-and-3, a screen to tight end Tucker Kraft gained 22 yards, with Kraft gaining 21 after the catch, with help from right tackle Zach Tom. Moments after getting smoked by safety Budda Baker, Jordan Love avoided a sack and ran for 12 yards. Kraft dropped a bootleg on first down and Malik Heath lined up offside on second down.

However, Green Bay got its second freebie of the drive, this time when defensive tackle Dante Still was flagged for a weak roughing-the-passer call on the final play of the third quarter to give Green Bay a first down at the 11. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Love faked the handoff to Josh Jacobs and threw a pass into the flat to Kraft for a 7-yard touchdown.

Third Quarter

Cardinals 20, Packers 13 (4:17 remaining)

Green Bay’s vaunted defense has been shredded. On third-and-14, Nate Hobbs gave up a 35-yard bomb to Marvin Harrison. On second-and-10 from the 12, tight end Trey McBride – again – was wide open. He caught the ball at the 6, plowed over Hobbs and scored the go-ahead touchdown.

Jacoby Brissett looks like a Hall of Famer, going 17-of-23 for 199 yards and a pair of scores to uncovered McBride.

Packers 13, Cardinals 13 (9:47 remaining)

Takeaway becomes touchdown. Starting at Arizona’s 44 and moved back on a false start, Jordan Love hit Romeo Doubs for 7 and 18 and Matthew Golden for 17 – his incredible speed on display on a crossing route – before Josh Jacobs scored untouched from the 7.

Cardinals 13, Packers 6 (11:43 remaining)

Finally, the Packers’ defense forced a fumble. Jacoby Brissett was pressured by Colby Wooden and hit from behind by Rashan Gary. The ball went backward and was recovered by Evan Williams at Arizona’s 44.

It’s Green Bay’s third takeaway and first forced fumble this season.

Cardinals 13, Packers 6 (13:19 remaining)

“We’ve got to convert on third down,” coach Matt LaFleur told Fox’s Jen Hale at halftime. “That’s really on both sides of the ball. We’ve had some critical errors on third down. We’ve got to do a better job on those money downs.”

So much for that. On the opening third-and-3, Jordan Love threw an incomplete pass. It didn’t matter because left tackle Rasheed Walker was flagged for illegal formation.

Halftime: Packers, Cardinals tied

Cardinals 13, Packers 6

The Packers’ vaunted defense was shredded by the Cardinals’ backup quarterback and backup running backs. Jacoby Brissett was 12-of-18 passing for 137 yards and one touchdown, including an inexplicable blown coverage on tight end Trey McBride’s 15-yard touchdown with 7 seconds left in the half.

Lucas Havrisik’s 61-yard field goal prevented a complete disaster, with the Packers down by seven points but getting the ball to start the second half.

The longest field goals in Packers history had all been kicked by Mason Crosby:

Mason Crosby, 58 yards vs. the Vikings in 2011

Crosby, 57 yards vs. the Giants in 2013

Crosby, 57 yards vs. the Cowboys in 2013

Crosby, 56 yards vs. the Broncos in 2015

Crosby, 56 yards vs. the Falcons in 2011

Crosby, 56 yards vs. the Eagles in 2010

Crosby, 55 yards vs. The Jets in 2014

Second Quarter

Cardinals 13, Packers 6 (0:00 remaining)

The first half went from a disaster to some record-setting momentum. Starting at their 35 with 7 seconds remaining, coach Matt LaFleur’s aggressive approach was rewarded. Jordan Love floated one over the middle to Romeo Doubs for a gain of 22 with a timeout with 1 seconds remaining. Kicker Lucas Havrisik booted a franchise-record 61-yard field goal as time expired to make it a one-score game.

Cardinals 13, Packers 3 (0:07 remaining)

What a disastrous finish to the first half.

Micah Parsons on Thursday called the (well, that wasn’t really the word). On first down to start the drive, he drew a holding penalty against star tight end Trey McBride. On second-and-15, Quay Walker sacked Jacoby Brissett at the 2-minute warning. That made it third-and-23, meaning a chance to get a stop, score and get the ball to start the second half.

Instead, on a free play, Jacoby Brissett threw a bomb for 43 yards to Zay Jones to Green Bay’s 41. Green Bay got it to third-and-4 and called timeout, but Brissett, under pressure from Walker, threw a jump ball to Michael Wilson for 14. On third-and-9 with 19 seconds left, Micah Parsons jumped offside. That made it third-and-4 with 12 seconds left. The Packers somehow blew coverage on McBride for a 15-yard touchdown.

Cardinals 6, Packers 3 (3:04 remaining)

The Packers went three-and-out. On third-and-6, Zaven Collins overpowered left tackle Rasheed Walker and appeared to push Walker into Jordan Love for the sack.

Cardinals 6, Packers 3 (5:02 remaining)

A 15-yard hip-drop penalty on Micah Parsons’ sack of Jacoby Brissett and Brissett’s 22-yard completion to Marvin Harrison against Nate Hobbs pushed the Cardinals into scoring position. Green Bay prevented further damage, though, when Edgerrin Cooper prevented a 22-yard touchdown pass to Trey McBride on second down and Brissett and McBride weren’t on the same page on third down. Chad Ryland kicked a 40-yard field goal.

The Packers have an opportunity with the ball coming up and to start the second half.

Packers 3, Cardinals 3 (9:06 remaining)

Lucas Havrisik booted a 31-yard field goal. Josh Jacobs had a 10-yard run and rookie cornerback Will Johnson handed the Packers 20 yards due to defensive holding and a facemask. The drive stalled, though. On third-and-7, Jordan Love – who has not been good under pressure – was pressured and threw incomplete to Dontayvion Wicks.

Cardinals 3, Packers 0 (13:35 remaining)

Green Bay’s top-ranked run defense was smashed by the Cardinals’ fourth-string running back, Zonovan Knight, and backup quarterback, Jacoby Brissett, in the first quarter. They had eight carries for 46 yards in the quarter alone. Of Knight’s 31 yards, 22 were before contact.

However, on the second play of the second quarter, Kingsley Enagbare made a sensational play to get past pulling guard Will Hernandez and drop Knight for minus-2. On third-and-10, Brissett hit Marvin Harrison, who had the ball punched loose by Keisean Nixon for Green Bay’s first forced fumble of the season. The play was overturned but the Cardinals punted.

First Quarter

Cardinals 3, Packers 0 (1:18 remaining)

The Packers wasted a big opportunity. On the initial third-and-5, Love hit Matthew Golden at the sticks for a catch-and-run gain of 10. On fourth-and-2, Love hit Golden at the right sideline – cornerback Max Melton thought he had a chance for an interception – for 8 more. However, the drive stalled. After a third-and-4 was stuffed by unblocked defensive lineman Calais Campbell, Love overshot Romeo Doubs for what should have been a 38-yard touchdown.

Josh Jacobs started and got the first few snaps before giving way to Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks.

Cardinals 3, Packers 0 (7:34 remaining)

Can the Packers close a game? How about can they start a game? After Green Bay’s defense started the season with five consecutive shutout first quarters, the Cardinals breezed right down the field before settling for a 32-yard field goal.

On the initial third-and-4, Jacoby Brissett threw a superb pass to Michael Wilson for a gain of 18 despite excellent coverage by Evan Williams. The Cardinals converted a third-and-1 and a third-and-10, thanks in part to roughing the passer on Quay Walker, before stalling. On first-and-goal at the7, Micah Parsons stopped Zonovan Knight for minus-1. On third-and-goal, Parsons sacked Brissett.

Big Game for Both Teams

The Packers are 0-1-1 on the road. In the loaded NFC and NFC North, they can’t afford to lose winnable games.

The Cardinals are 2-4, losers of four in a row by just nine points – three in walk-off fashion.

“We’re kind of at a crossroads,” Cardinals defensive tackle Calais Campbell told reporters this week. “If we use this as a stepping stone for us to get better and we figure out how to close out these close games, it’ll pay off for us in the long run and make us a better team. Which is what I am expecting to happen. But it is hard when you lose four in a row.

“Emotionally you are like, ‘What is going on? Can we win ballgames?’ You have to remind yourself, ‘Yes we can.’”

The Packers are looking to close out a game, as well.

“I think it’s us not doing what we can do,” defensive end Micah Parsons said. “We’re just not playing great in that area, which I emphasized on. I’m excited to try and go prove it on the road.”

The Packers would be 5-0 had they played better in the fourth quarter in the loss at Cleveland and the tie at Dallas.

“It starts with us,” Parsons said. “It starts with the best players. We all said it today. I challenged just our front, ‘This is what we’ve been bad at. Let’s just be great at it today. That way we can play great at it on Sunday.’ I’m actually really looking forward to Sunday, because we all said that might have been our best practice on third down and two-minute emphasis that we had all year. If that situation comes up, I know we’ll be prepared.”

Packers-Cardinals Inactives

Kicker Brandon McManus is out for the Packers. Running back Josh Jacobs is active.

After his “Flu Game” against Cincinnati, can Josh Jacobs have a second “Calf Game” against Arizona?

Quarterback Kyler Murray is out for the Cardinals; Jacoby Brissett will start.

“It can be challenging with the two different quarterbacks,” safety Xavier McKinney said. “You’ve got Brissett or Murray, obviously, they play two totally different ways. Brissett doesn’t really use his legs as much as Murray does and, obviously, the scheme will change a little bit if Murray’s in there than if Brissett’s in there.

“We’ve got great backup guys that’ve been doing a great job on the scout team of giving us a good look of what Murray’s going to look like and then we also have here’s Brissett, as well. Just having those different options at practice is giving us a good look, so we’ll be ready for it in the game.”

The Fine Line?

Josh Jacobs had a big game last week. Why? It certainly didn’t hurt that Green Bay’s injury-plagued offensive line played the entire game.

Presumably, they’ll once again go with Rasheed Walker at left tackle, Aaron Banks at left guard, Elgton Jenkins at center, Jordan Morgan at right guard and Zach Tom at right tackle. Banks and Tom missed two of the first four games and played every snap for the first time last week.

“It was great,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “I think that’s something we’ve been bouncing around with. Obviously, injuries are a part of that, and then just kind of moving guys around, giving guys the best fits.

“I think anytime you get the starting five out there, you’re in good hands. Obviously, J-Mo and Sean, they’ve been rotating in, doing different things, so I’ve always got confidence in all these guys, no matter who’s in there. But it is nice to be able to settle down and just get some consistency in there.”

Wanted: Takeaways

The Packers entered Week 7 with just two takeaways. After finishing fourth last season with 31, they were 31st before Sunday.

While the defense hasn’t made many big plays, it hasn’t allowed many, either. Green Bay has allowed seven plays of 20-plus yards (six passes, one run). No other team has yielded less than 10, and the league median is 20.

The Packers are fourth with 3.58 yards allowed per carry and first with 5.13 yards per pass.

“If you look at our yards per pass play, it’s as low as I’ve ever seen because of that,” defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said. “So, how do we get takeaways if teams are going to just throw the ball quick? I don’t think teams are going to be able to go up and down the field like that and play the game like that and beat us.”

The Packers have two interceptions and haven’t even forced a fumble, let alone recovered one.

“I think it’s people are being a little bit more careful, so we don’t get as many opps as we did last year,” safety Xavier McKinney said, “but I also think that on the opps that we do, we’ve got to capitalize. Y’all seeing what we’re seeing. It’s a lot of checkdowns the majority of the time, so we’ve got to try to keep finding ways to punch at the ball and when they do throw the ball deep, we’ve got to capitalize on those opportunities.”

The Melton Bowl

More Green Bay Packers News

Published | Modified
Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.