The Arizona Cardinals have the chance for a big upset
Hosting the last undefeated team in the NFL is a lot of pressure. How are the Arizona Cardinals going to respond on Sunday when they face off against Jalen Hurts and his Philly squad?
Some predictions from the team here at AZSPORTS Underground.
Robert Moore
Week 5 is upon us and we have the Philadelphia Eagles, “the undefeated of the east,” coming to the land of the rising sun to face off against the Arizona Cardinals. This will be a true litmus test for the Cardinals. The Eagles bring a healthy balance in all three phases while the Cardinals have questions in need of answers in two of the three phases.
In phase 1, the offense has yet to score any points in the first quarter so far this season. For the Cardinals to have a chance at a win, the offense will have to be effective in all four quarters of the game instead of just the last two quarters. What makes it more difficult are the injuries to the O-line. Phase 3 has the other concern. Matt Prater will be out with a hip injury. Matt Ammendola has been brought in as the backup.
Kliff Kingsbury has been struggling with play calling and game management. He will have to be on his game with both to even stand a chance. Hey Kliff, if you’re a reader of our articles, TAKE THE POINTS WHEN YOU CAN! As for Vance Joseph, just keep the consistency of the defense going.
Keys to Victory
- Offense needs to score early. Receivers corrected their mistakes last game. Just continue.
- Control time of possession. In the last three games the Cardinals controlled time of possession averaging 35.6 minutes. Get their defense tired!
- Due to Hudson not playing, the Eagles will be bringing that interior pressure. Kyler Murray should be utilizing the QB option as well as scramble plays to pass up the middle.
- Establish the run. That strategy is a concrete strategy for all teams. The Eagles are a top run defense team. It will be tricky, but not impossible. Have those designed QB runs available for Kyler.
Final prediction, based on if these keys can be met, Cardinals win a close one 27-24.
And the MVP of the game will be the ex-Eagle, Zach Ertz, as he will be motivated to bring the fire against his old team.
Joseph Comeau
Going into their Week 5 matchup, the Philadelphia Eagles are favored – and deservedly so. They are the last remaining undefeated team in the young NFL season, and while the level of competition in their wins may be suspect – the Eagles wins have come against the Lions, Vikings, Commanders, and Jaguars – there’s no question that they possess a roster that is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Cardinals find themselves at a proverbial crossroads, with one path leading toward continued mediocrity and underwhelming play on both sides of the ball, and the other path leading toward being a legitimate playoff contender. Is this Cardinals team turning a corner, or will they continue to sputter out of the gate and only succeed in beating bad football teams?
The answer to this question will have to be shown on the field. But one thing is for sure: If the Cardinals can come away with a win against the Eagles, the narrative surrounding the Arizona Cardinals will start to shift.
I believe the Cardinals possess the talent to beat the Eagles. But, objectively speaking, I have to give the edge to the Eagles.
Final prediction: Eagles win 28-24
Mark Jackson
After 4 weeks, the Cardinals are 2-2 and are really beat up. Injuries on the offensive line and the receiving rooms are going to make an already questionable offense even more questionable. With most of the O-Line either out or questionable, Kyler Murry will not have the time to throw, and the running game will suffer also. This is a team game and Kyler can’t do everything. Vance Joseph has just started to get the defense to play better, and that side of the ball is hurting also.
This week we play a talented Philadelphia Eagles that is the last 4-0 team. They have played weaker teams, but they do have confidence and that’s all a good team needs to beat any team in the NFL. Just look at the first half of the season the Cardinals had last year. Arizona needs to have a good first drive to gain the confidence to even have a chance against the Eagles. That hasn’t happened yet and I don’t see it happening anytime soon.
With the injuries and slow starts, I don’t have the confidence in the team to pull this one out. The game is won in the trenches, and a depleted O-Line will not help the offense. I see the Eagles in the backfield all day, and Kyler running for his life. With a heavy heart, I have to pick the Eagles 35-17 only because I know that the Cards are more talented when healthy. Let’s hope for no more injuries and we start getting some guys back soon.
Marcos Labrada
This is gonna be the biggest test to the Cardinals since Week 1. On offense, we are facing a truly talented defense with playmakers. On defense, they are facing a young, up and coming QB. A QB who has displayed the willingness to grow, and leadership for his team.
Gotta give it to Nick and Howie (oddly enough) they have given this team a 4 and 0 start, and you know they are looking at 5 and 0. They don’t have much respect for the Cardinals, they believe it will be a beatdown. I broke down the Eagles game last week, trust me there are some cracks to their armor, it’ll be up to the Cardinals coaching staff schematic-wise to capitalize.
I’ll remind everyone that we’ve been catching breaks on defense, don’t expect that to continue. We will see firsthand if we can stop the Eagles balanced attack.
On offense we need to attack them on the ground and Kyler will need to be involved. They aren’t expecting Kyler to run, and somehow we have been avoiding it. If we dominate the ground and contain Hurts, plus contain the ground game, we have a chance at an upset. But looking at the stats, plus the fact we haven’t really been tested like this with a team this good since week one. Until the Cardinals show they can stop getting in their own way, I’m picking the Eagles to win this one.
31-21 Eagles
