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Giants (2-1) Cardinals (1-2)
Last
week the Arizona Cardinals trailed from the start in their game with the San Francisco
49ers. They managed to close the gap to two points in the fourth quarter, but
the 49ers held on to win 36-30.
The weather conditions were tough in the Meadowlands,
and the scoring was low. The Giants scored four field goals, and held the Tennessee
Titans scoreless going into the fourth quarter. The rain soaked fans had to worry
when the Titans scored a touchdown, and looked to be on their way to another,
when an endzone interception killed their drive to give the Giants a 12-7 win. Arizona
Cardinals
The last time the Arizona Cardinals
took the top spot in the NFC West Division was in 2015. Their 13-3 record was
the best they ever had, and they went on to win in the Divisional Playoffs, but
lost the NFC Championship game to the Carolina Panthers. They finished 2nd in
the division the following year, and the next time they finished that high was
in 2021 with a 11-6 record. Their wild card playoff game was a loss to the Los
Angeles Rams. Those years in between, and up to now, have had them finishing in
3rd or 4th place. Last year was their worst of all, closing out the season at
3-14. The Cardinals hired Mike LaFleur to help get things moving in the right
direction for 2026. This first time head coach was the offensive coordinator for
the Los Angeles Rams for their last three seasons. Arizona
Cardinals Offense
Quarterback Kyler Murray spent his first seven seasons with the Cardinals. Murray
was the starter last year, and in the fifth game suffered a foot injury. Jacoby
Brissett was the backup, and he took over for the rest of the season. The Cardinals
had trouble winning games, but the total passing offense was ranked 7th in the
NFL. Murray is gone now, and Brissett was named the Cardinal's starting quarterback
for this year. He has thrown 117 passes, and has completed 70.1 percent of them.
Brissett's two favorite targets are wide receiver Michael Wilson, and tight end
Trey McBride. More than half of Brissett's passes have been thrown to them (64),
and they have caught 44. McBride and Wilson were the top receivers last year,
as well, in that order accounting for 18 of the teams total 29 touchdowns. They
have caught 3 of the 4 that Brissett has thrown in these first three games.
The
Cardinals knew they had to fix their running game which was ranked 31st in the
league, averaging 93.1 yards a game. The two leading running backs Michael Carter
and Emari Demercado, combined for just 1 rushing touchdown, and are no longer
with the team. James Conner was the lead running back in 2023, and 2024, running
over 1000 yards in each year, the best in his career. Conner appeared in only
three games last year due to a season-ending foot injury. The Cardinals were counting
on Conner to help guide their first round draft pick, number three overall, Jeremiyah
Love. Conner has started this season on IR, so the task has fallen to Tyler Allgeier,
brought in during the offseason. Still finding themselves, the Cardinals have
run for 279 yards in three games, but last week Love led the team with 90 rushing
yards on 21 carries. Arizona
Cardinals Defense
Their passing defense ranked 27th in the NFL last year, giving up an average of
230.8 yards a game. They have not improved, and that average has climbed. The
rushing defense was ranked 25th, allowing an average 126.9 yards a game. They
did well in their first winning game of the season, but in the last two losses,
the average moved up to a 150 yard average. The Cardinals are giving up 27 points
a game, which is better than last year, but in the last two games, it was 31 and
36 points.
Edge rusher Josh Sweat come up with 12 sacks last year, the best
in his career. Calais Campbell had 6.5, and the two accounted for most of the
teams 30 total sacks. Sweat hasn't been able to bring it so far, has no sacks,
is listed as questionable for this game, and Campbell now plays for the Tennessee
Titans. The defense has come up with just 4 sacks, and 3 of them came in their
first game win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
In the secondary, safety Budda
Baker, who led the team in total tackles last year with 120, continues at it.
This year Baker leads in solo tackles, and has 1.5 sacks. They were counting on
second year cornerback Will Johnson to shine this year, but he suffered a neck
injury in the second game, and is on IR. Starling Thomas was moved up off the
practice squad in his place. Thomas missed all of last season after tearing his
ACL in training camp. The defense has Garrett Williams back after seeing him go
down late last season with a torn Achilles. Max Melton has regained his starting
spot after being benched last season. Giants
Offense
The Giants have lost quarterback
Jaxson Dart for the season, and Jameis Winston will be making his second start.
The rainy windy conditions at the Meadowlands last week led to Winston not taking
any chances with the ball. Playing it safe led to a low scoring game that the
Giants won 12-7. The Tennessee Titans were losing, and taking some chances led
them to score the only touchdown, and fortunately for the Giants, also an interception.
The Giants traded for J.J. McCarthy this week to improve their quarterback depth.
Jake Haener was the backup for Winston last week, and head coach John Harbaugh
has not been clear on who will fill that position for this game. The offensive
line should be able to handle what the Cardinals pass rush has to offer, and it
will be up to Winston to take advantage of their secondary.
The Giants should
also be able to run the ball with Cam Skattebo leading the way. Najee Harris averaged
5.8 yards per rush on his 9 carries last week. The two running backs will be hard
to stop, and Harbaugh will be pushing the running game to be effective, so Winston
will have time for some deep throws this week. The offense will definitely have
to keep a close eye on Cardinals safety Budda Baker. Giants
Defense
The defense held its own last week
up until the final quarter, when the Tennessee Titans were aiming to get a go
ahead lead. They were inside the Giants 10-yard line, and safety Jevon Holland
intercepted a pass Cam Ward threw into the end zone. Holland has done all the
Giants can ask for this season with 3 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, and one
fumble recovery. If the Giants want to continue to win games, they need more than
a one man band. They have not been able to get to the quarterback.
They have
one sack on the year. Outside linebacker Brian Burns is on the injured reserve
list for the rest of the season with a torn ACL. They sure miss the 16.5 sacks
he came up with last year, but Kayvon Thibodeaux, Abdul Carter, and Arvell Reese
haven't done the job, except for Carter's one sack. The game plan should be simple,
considering that Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett is always looking to throw
to wide receiver Michael Wilson, and tight end Trey McBride.
Cover them well
and the pass rush will have more time as he checks down to next in line, wide
receiver Kendrick Bourne, and talented rookie Jeremiyah Love who is 10 of 13 catching
the ball. Brissett has thrown to those four 91 times on his 113 passes. Love is
the only running back in that group, and had his best game last week, carrying
the ball 21 times for 90 yards, and caught one for a touchdown. The Giants will
have to give him special attention. Overall
Same as last week, the Giants need to show they can win football games without
Jaxson Dart running the offense. They did win last week, but it was by a close
margin, almost losing the game in the fourth quarter. The Arizona Cardinals
showed some of what they can do, outscoring the San Francisco 49ers in the third
and fourth quarters last week, but they still fell short. This Sunday the winner
will be the team that can get their act together for the full four quarters. NFC
East Games
Sunday at 9:30pm Colts (1-2)
at Commanders (1-2)
Sunday at 1:00pm Cardinals (1-2) at Giants (2-1)
Sunday
at 1:00pm Rams (1-2) at Eagles (2-1)
Sunday at 1:00pm Cowboys (1-2) at Texans
(1-2)
No NFC East teams are favored to win in these games.
Check out.
Giants
On The Air. Listen to the Radio Broadcasts.
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Next Games
Oct
11 Giants at Washington
Oct 18 Saints at Giants
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