Washington vs. Arizona Cardinals: Full Report Card Grades for Arizona
Paired with a Seattle Seahawks loss, the Arizona Cardinals again find themselves atop the NFC West leaderboard after knocking off Washington on Sunday, 30-20.
It was dicey toward the end when the offense had nothing going, but the defense stepped up in a large way, forcing four fourth-quarter turnovers of Kirk Cousins and the Washington offense—picking off Cousins three times and forcing a fumble of receiver Andre Roberts.
"Tyrann Mathieu said last year's injury flashed through his mind while running after fumble recovery. "I had to get my ass down."
— Kyle Odegard (@Kyle_Odegard) October 13, 2014"
Penalties were a major issue most of the game, but the Cardinals (4-1) were able to overcome them and come away with the victory. It's the first time they have beaten Washington (1-5) since November 5, 2000, when Arizona was still in the NFC East and the two were division rivals.
A few players came up big, a few struggled; most good and bad performances will be laid out in the positional grades that follow. Let's get going.
Quarterback
1 of 10
In his triumphant return, Carson Palmer was 28-of-44 passing (63.6 percent) for 250 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions for a 93.9 passer rating.
He was sacked only once, but that came late in the game and only after a poor snap from center Lyle Sendlein forced Palmer to take his eyes off the receiving corps; it was a broken play from the get-go.
Palmer was sharp most of the game, as seen in his completion percentage. He did, however, miss a couple receivers short, and one play in the second half should have resulted in a Brian Orakpo interception. But Orakpo dropped the sure pick, giving Palmer and the offense a sigh of relief.
Because of that dropped interception and the resulting zero picks thrown Sunday, the Cardinals set the franchise record for consecutive games without throwing an interception at five straight. They are the only team in the NFL that has yet to throw an interception.
Palmer's ridiculous escape of a sack to hit fullback Robert Hughes for a completion bumps the grade a bit.
Grade: A-
Running Back
2 of 10
Playing running back in the NFL is mostly about running the football. But other, smaller things go into being an NFL back, like catching the ball and blocking, be it on passing downs or for fellow running backs.
The Washington game was not a good example of one of those aspects of being a running back for one Cardinals player. Robert Hughes struggled in pass blocking. A couple times he was asked to come across a formation after the snap and be the lead blocker for Andre Ellington, and he could not get there in time. This led to Ellington's yards-per-carry average suffering on the day.
Hughes was not the only one who struggled in run blocking, but we'll get to the offensive line in a bit.
As for Ellington, the second-year back set a career high with 19 carries against Washington. He totaled 67 yards (3.5 yards per carry), but he could have had a much bigger day if his blockers would have helped him out some. He added six receptions for 26 yards.
Grade: B-
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Larry Fitzgerald was the only receiver who showed up ready to dominate his opponent on Sunday. He led the way with six receptions for 98 yards (16.3 yards per catch) and a touchdown, his first score of the season.
Michael Floyd also caught his first touchdown of the season and on the day hauled in four receptions for 47 yards (11.8 YPC).
Not much else can be said about the receiving corps other than drops were an issue once again—albeit a much smaller issue this week. Ted Ginn continues to inch his way closer to a permanent spot on the bench while the offense is on the field, as he dropped yet another pass.
Run blocking helped the grade; the group was solid for the most part, especially Fitz and Floyd in setting the edge on a couple of Ellington's runs. Still, though, it was just an average day for the corps.
Grade: C+
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
While Palmer was not sacked until a broken play late in the game, the pass blocking was not great for Arizona against Washington. Frequently, the defense would send three- and four-man rushes, and Palmer would be pressured or forced to step up into the pocket.
If Drew Stanton or Logan Thomas had started, that would have created a rather sizable issue throughout.
Palmer's pocket awareness and quick release saved this from being a bad game for the line, but it showed up poorly in other areas as well—this is where you'll hear of the poor run blocking.
Especially on the interior of the offensive line, the Cardinals' run blocking was very poor against Washington. Both guards, Ted Larsen on the left and Paul Fanaika on the right, were asked to pull regularly on Ellington run plays, and both failed to get to their assignment numerous times.
What resulted was too many negative plays.
The line showed a striking lack of discipline at times, being called for far too many penalties. The holding calls you can understand, but pre-snap penalties are killers.
Fanaika played hurt again, which clearly hindered him in his pulling duties. It's been time to see Jonathan Cooper on the field for about three weeks, but head coach Bruce Arians will not budge on his stance that the kid must earn it.
How can he earn it if he's not given playing time? Can he be worse than what we saw from Fanaika and Larsen on Sunday?
Tackles Jared Veldheer and Bobby Massie held their own for the most part in the passing game.
Grade: D
Defensive Line
5 of 10
Without its leader, the Arizona defensive line saw many different players rotating in and out throughout the game. Rookie Ed Stinson saw a lot of playing time, as did the combination of Tommy Kelly and Frostee Rucker. Rookie Kareem Martin?
"Can't wait to see snap count, but I didn't see any Kareem Martin during the game. Lots of Ed Stinson.
— Jess Root (@senorjessroot) October 13, 2014"
I saw that too and thought the same thing just minutes before Jess posted this tweet.
Most of the pressure came off the edge from one linebacker in particular whom we will discuss shortly. No one on the defensive line got much pressure on quarterback Kirk Cousins, which is not a surprise considering that even with Campbell in the lineup, the line has struggled to get pressure.
Run defense, on the other hand, was spectacular as usual. The line helped plug lanes, limiting running back Alfred Morris to just 41 yards on the ground and a 3.2 yards-per-carry average. His yardage total is the fourth-lowest of his career.
Grade: B
Linebacker
6 of 10
As a group, the linebackers played well against Washington. From getting pressure on the outside to stuffing the run on the inside, even to covering the middle and the flats, the linebacking corps showed up to play on Sunday.
Three players stood out: outside linebackers Alex Okafor and Sam Acho and inside linebacker Larry Foote.
The pressure Okafor had on Cousins was constant and heavy. By the end of the game, he was being double-teamed by the Washington offensive line, and he ended up with two sacks and two quarterback hits. His run defense left something to be desired, but that is to be expected from a young pass-rusher.
Acho shined against the run and in coverage. He was credited with one pass deflection, but he was in coverage a few times and limited receivers all afternoon.
And Foote, being the crusty veteran he is, played a big role in shutting down Morris up the middle. Whether it was directly or by stuffing a running lane and causing the back to change direction, Foote helped the defense get off the field all game.
Grade: B
Secondary
7 of 10
Patrick Peterson allowed a 64-yard touchdown on a slant to DeSean Jackson. There wasn't much he could do about the play, as Cousins threw an absolute dart to the speedy receiver, who got behind Peterson and the entire secondary in a flash.
He then allowed another late to Pierre Garcon on a pick play that cut the Cardinals' lead to a field goal with a few minutes remaining.
Tight end Jordan Reed was held in check until late in the game. He finished with eight receptions for 92 yards (11.5 YPC), most of which came against safeties Deone Bucannon and Tony Jefferson.
The secondary forced all four turnovers of Washington in the fourth quarter. Two players actually: Cornerback Jerraud Powers forced the fumble of Andre Roberts then picked off Cousins later; and safety Rashad Johnson picked off Cousins twice late to seal the deal.
Overall, it was a solid performance from Todd Bowles' secondary. No one was "abused," and forcing four turnovers in a single quarter is always good for business.
Grade: A
Special Teams
8 of 10
I'm running out of good words to say about rookie kicker Chandler Catanzaro. He may be the Cardinals' Rookie of the Year when all is said and done. That's how good he's been.
He connected on all three of his field goals on Sunday and remains perfect on the year, improving to 14-of-14. Of his seven kickoffs against Washington, Roberts was able to return only one. Most sailed to—or through—the back of the end zone.
Punter Drew Butler, who has replaced Dave Zastudil on the roster for good this season after Zasty was placed on season-ending injured reserve with a groin injury, punted seven times and pinned Washington inside its own 20-yard line four times. Nice work, young man.
Ginn did not look horrible in the return game on Sunday, save for a punt return he originally called off but fielded after it bounced. It was dangerous and could have resulted in a turnover.
Grade: A
Coaching
9 of 10
Another solid game plan put together by Arians, Bowles and Co.? Color me shocked. It came down to execution of plays called, but—especially on defense—when the team needed a play, the team got a play from someone.
Washington was 2-of-10 on third down, a paltry 20.0 percent conversion rate. Bowles blitzed upward of six and seven defenders on third down throughout, putting heavy pressure on Cousins to make quick decisions with the ball in his hand.
Offensively, the plays were there to be had. If not for faulty run blocking or penalties, this game could have easily been a blowout win. The game plan was fantastic in this one.
Grade: A+
Final Grades
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| QB | A- |
| RB | B- |
| WR | C+ |
| OL | D |
| DL | B |
| LB | B |
| Secondary | A |
| Special Teams | A |
| Coaching | A+ |
| Cumulative Grade | B+ |
At 4-1, the season is just getting good for the Cardinals. They have a stretch of games upcoming that are very winnable, so before long, this team could climb into national recognition by default. People will have to talk about them—oh, the humanity!
This is a solid win. Be proud of your team, Birdgang. With so many injuries depleting the roster, less leadership in the front office and on the coaching staff likely means a different outcome so far this season. Given all they have lost, there is really no other reason than leadership and preparedness why the Cardinals are 4-1 at this point.
Next up is a trip to play the Oakland Raiders in hopes of starting the season 5-1. Can you feel the excitement growing?
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