The Cardinals took a loss in Week 3 and still managed to climb in several national power rankings, a strange little snapshot that says a lot about how they’re being viewed through the first month of the season.
Arizona is 1-2 and has dropped back-to-back games. Zoom out a little farther, and the picture gets rougher: dating back to last season, the Cardinals have lost 10 of their last 11.
But the tone around the team isn’t all doom. Mike LaFleur’s group has shown enough fight to keep some evaluators from burying them entirely, even if the record still leaves them near the bottom of the league-wide conversation.
ESPN knocked Arizona down two spots, but Josh Weinfuss pointed to Jacoby Brissett as the team’s most surprising fantasy storyline. “Brissett is on 4.5% of ESPN rosters and is the QB16 after Sunday's loss.
That might be middle of the pack among starters, but it's surprising when considering he was ranked 50th among quarterbacks in ADP. Brissett is averaging 16.2 points per game, which ranks 39th overall.
He was ranked 361st overall before the season started.”
Pete Prisco went the other direction and moved the Cardinals up three spots, even after the loss. His view was simple: “They battled against the 49ers, but the defense just wasn't good enough. They let Brock Purdy carve them up,” he wrote.
Frank Schwab also bumped Arizona up one spot. His explanation centered on the way the Cardinals kept pushing late.
“The Cardinals didn't play poorly against the 49ers, cutting their deficit to one score three different times in the fourth quarter. With that and a win at the Chargers already, the Cardinals might be a tougher out than expected,” he said.
That made Arizona the only team in the bottom five to rise.
FOX kept the Cardinals in the same spot as last week, but its outlook still leaned on the offense and the young pieces around Brissett. “They really do have some impressive, young, offensive weapons.
Head coach Mike LaFleur probably can do a lot this season with RB Jeremiyah Love, WR Michael Wilson and TE Trey McBride. Maybe he’ll eventually get something out of WR Marvin Harrison Jr., too.
And QB Jacoby Brissett sure will throw a lot of passes for a lot of yards. But that might just mean they’re going to lose a lot of high-scoring games.
"Arizona will have a shot to beat the broken-down Giants this week. But this team lives in the NFC West, so it's going to take a lot of lumps.”
The Athletic slid Arizona down two spots from No. 26 after the Week 3 loss, but Josh Kendall and Chad Graff highlighted Brissett’s production in their quarterback confidence discussion. “Jacoby Brissett had to hold out this offseason just to convince the Cardinals to make him the 19th-highest-paid quarterback in the league.
Brissett is living up to his end of the deal. He’s 17th in the NFL in EPA per dropback (0.07), 16th in passing yards (652) and sixth in completion percentage (70.1) while throwing more passes than all but four quarterbacks.”
The biggest jump came from Nick Shook, who moved Arizona up four spots despite the loss at Levi's Stadium. “I’ll give credit to the Cardinals for refusing to quit Sunday in a game in which lesser teams would have laid down and accepted defeat. There is still plenty to clean up, especially for a defense that gave up a ton of big plays to the 49ers," he said.
In Other News...
Cardinals Offensive Line Is Raising A Bigger Concern Than Fans Expected
Through the first three games, the Cardinals offensive line has been a mixed bag, and the bigger issue has not been keeping the quarterback clean so much as creating anything reliable on the ground. Pro Football Focus early grades point to a unit that has held up better in pass protection than many expected, but the run blocking has lagged enough to become a real concern as the season settles in.
The offseason reshuffling has left Arizona still trying to find the right combination, with the evaluation of players like Isaac Seumalo, Elijah Wilkinson, Hjalte Froholdt, Isaiah Adams, Jon Gaines and Paris Johnson showing how much the group is still being sorted out. For a team that needs the line to be a strength, the early tape suggests the Cardinals are getting just enough in one phase to mask a problem that could grow if the run game does not catch up. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Suddenly Have A Backfield Question Fans Cant Ignore
The Cardinals loss to the 49ers did more than extend a frustrating streak against NFC West foes. It also put a spotlight on Jeremiyah Love, who drew the start at running back and made the most of the opportunity by handling a heavy workload, logging 56 offensive snaps while producing 109 total yards and two touchdowns.
Mike LaFleur left little doubt that the backfield will remain fluid from here. He said playing time will be shared and that Loves role will be sorted out on a week-by-week basis, a setup that keeps Arizonas running game interesting even as the team tries to steady itself after another division setback. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Defense Is Putting Mike LaFleur In A Tough Spot
The Cardinals early-season defensive slide has turned into one of the first real pressure points of Mike LaFleurs tenure. Arizona has spent the opening weeks near the bottom of the league in expected points added per play and yards allowed per play, numbers that have underscored how often the unit is getting pushed around before it can settle in. LaFleur pointed back to coaching when addressing the issue, saying the fix has to start with clearer teaching and cleaner execution.
For a defense built around Nick Rallis scheme, the concern is not just production but whether the group is playing with enough urgency and precision to make the system work. Tackling has been a recurring issue, and the timing of blitzes has not consistently created the kind of disruption the Cardinals need. The bigger question now is whether Arizona can sharpen the fundamentals and become more aggressive without losing structure, because right now the margin for error is looking awfully thin. [Read more 🡒]