49ers vs. Cardinals: Postgame Grades, Notes and Quotes for Arizona

In what will go down as an afternoon to remember in Glendale, the Arizona Cardinals pushed their record to 3-0 with a 47-7 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.

Arizona terminated San Francisco's first two drives with interceptions returned for touchdowns, and things only got better from there.

The offense got into the act with three scoring drives in the second quarter, propelling the Cardinals to a 31-7 halftime lead. The second half was largely ceremonial.

Led by Larry Fitzgerald and Chris Johnson, the offense looked sharp for the third straight week, but this game belonged to the defense.

Arizona's secondary picked off Colin Kaepernick four times in total while limiting San Francisco to 156 yards of offense. To top off the day, linebacker Kevin Minter stuffed Carlos Hyde in the end zone for a safety.

The win moves Arizona two games clear of all three NFC West division rivals.

Click ahead for the full game recap. 

Position Grades for Arizona

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QB	B+
RB	A-
WR	B+
TE	B
OL	B
DL	A
LB	A-
DB	A+
Special Teams	B-
Coaching	B

Starting with the secondary and working toward the line of scrimmage, it's almost impossible to find any fault with the defense today. The defensive backs were the standout performers (more in the next slide), but all three levels got the job done.

Calais Campbell and Frostee Rucker won their battles all day, which really set up the defense to make plays. Kevin Minter was stout at middle linebacker, while the edge rotation did a good job creating pressure and maintaining contain on Kaepernick. 

As productive as the offense was, you still don't get the sense they're quite clicking on all cylinders (scary, that). Carson Palmer had one bad throw that was intercepted but was solid for the rest of the game.

Larry Fitzgerald continues his Fountain of Youth tour, catching nine passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns. If this keeps up, he could potentially have a career year at the age of 32.

San Francisco did manage to generate some pressure and get to Palmer on numerous occasions, but the offensive line held up reasonably well. They were strong in the run game, helping spring Chris Johnson for 110 yards.

Hang about. The Cardinals win 47-7, but the coaching staff only earns a "B"? Is that right?

That is right. The game plan was flawless and well-executed, but Arians loses a full letter grade for playing fast and loose with Palmer. Considering how the season unravelled following Palmer's injury a year ago, there's no reason for Arians to have his 35-year-old quarterback in the game so deep into a blowout. 

Secondary, Defense Make Emphatic Statement

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We won't pretend Arizona has gone up against efficient, high-powered offenses the past two weeks, because it hasn't. Still, the message the Cardinals defense is broadcasting to the NFL is clear: "If you make a mistake, we will bury you."

Sparked by Justin Bethel and led by Tyrann Mathieu, Arizona's secondary picked off four Kaepernick passes, the first two of which were returned for touchdowns in the first quarter. The Cardinals now have seven interceptions on the season.

Heading into the game, I wondered if James Bettcher would use more linebackers and fewer defensive backs to corral San Francisco's running game. By halftime, I was wondering if there were any sane ways for Bettcher to somehow get more defensive backs onto the field. They were everywhere, and they were fantastic.

Bigger tests await, but Bettcher has quelled any fears fans might have had about Todd Bowles' departure. It can be easy for the media to lose this team in the desert, but NFL offenses will have no choice but to take notice of what this defense is capable of. 

Chris Johnson Provides a Spark

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Rookie David Johnson entered the game with all the hype, but by the end of the fourth quarter, the spotlight had fully swung around to Chris.

The 30-year-old running back rushed for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries, the first time he's cracked the century mark and found the end zone twice since 2013. 

Johnson was effective picking and fighting his way for tough yards, but he really opened eyes with two big gainers, a 30-yard run in the second quarter, and a 40-yard reception in the third quarter. It wasn't vintage "CJ2K", but the ghost of Johnson's youthful explosiveness was certainly there. 

Andre Ellington's impending return will mean a return to reduced roles for Johnson and Johnson, but the duo provides a nice safety net for the Cardinals' oft-injured featured back. Chris Johnson proved more than capable of carrying the mail should Ellington go down again. 

Historic Night for Arizona

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It's always a good sign when statisticians have to go back several decades to find the last time a team or a player accomplished a given feat. Here are a few such marks set by Arizona against San Francisco, although it's possible more exist:

• Via Kent Somers of AZCentral.com, Sunday marked Arizona's largest margin of victory since 1970.
• Mark Dalton, Arizona's vice president of media relations, pointed out this was the first time the team has scored more than 40 points in consecutive games since 1969.
• The director of NFC communications for the NFL, Randall Liu, had this nugget: Arizona became the first team since the 1945 Packers to return two interceptions for a touchdown, record a safety and score more than 40 points in the same game.
• From Dalton again, this is the first time in franchise history the Cardinals have scored three touchdowns off of interception returns in the first three weeks of the season. 
• From Fox Sports 910's Mike Jurecki, the Cardinals put up at least 115 yards rushing in the first three games of the season for the first time since 1988.

That's a pretty impressive list, which is what one would expect from Arizona's impressive start to the season. 

And, for those who missed it, former safety Adrian Wilson was inducted into the Ring of Honor at halftime. You can watch the video on the team's official website.

Cardinals Control NFC West, but They're Not Satisfied

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The theme following the Cardinals' Week 2 destruction of Chicago was that there was room for improvement. Arizona somehow improved in Week 3, but the theme hasn't changed, according to Darren Urban of the team's official website.

Of his team, Bruce Arians said, "They smell a little better," a reference to the statement he used to knock his players back to reality this week.

Next up is quarterback Carson Palmer:

“It wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t pretty, there are definitely a ton of things we can improve on. (Perfection) is something you always strive for, maybe you never get."

Larry Fitzgerald echoed the sentiment. "That’s scary to think about that, that we can get much better."

Getting the message?

By virtue of St. Louis' loss, Arizona now holds a two-game lead over all three division rivals, all of whom have struggled in the early going. Insomuch as it's possible, the Cardinals have lapped the NFC West through three weeks.

But there's still 13 games left to be played, and the team realizes that much. The team can't afford to peak in Week 3, regardless of how well it's playing right now. In the NFL, momentum can evaporate in a second.

Arizona is off to one of the best starts in the league, but it's not getting caught up in the hype.

That's a good sign as the team now gets set to play host to the Rams in Week 4.