D.J. Humphries, Kelvin Beachum were secret superstars in Week 5

Neither starting tackle allowed a single sack, hit or pressure against the Jets.

The Arizona Cardinals picked up their third win of the season on Sunday, defeating the New York Jets 30-10. We have already pointed out many of the studs from the game like Kyler Murray, DeAndre Hopkins and Dennis Gardeck.

However, two players who went a bit under the radar got recognized by Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar as some of the league’s secret superstars of Week 5.

Why did they garner this recognition?

The Cardinals’ passing game hasn’t always been as explosive as we might have expected in Kyler Murray’s second NFL season, but that changed in Arizona’s 30-10 Week 5 win over the Jets. In that game, Murray completed four of five passes of 20 or more air yards for 130 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions after completing just five of 15 such passes for 172 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions in the season’s first four weeks. One big reason for the change? Pass protection. In that Jets game, left tackle D.J. Humphries and right tackle Kelvin Beachum combined to allow no sacks, no quarterback hits, and no quarterback hurries in Arizona’s 43 pass-blocking reps. When Murray did succumb to pressure and miss deep shots, it was the result of an issue that crept up in his rookie season of 2019 — he has a tendency to bail from the pocket and make risky throws when it’s not necessary.

That’s an issue that needs to be cleaned up, but if you want to know why the deep ball has returned to the Valley of the Sun, look no further than Arizona’s tackle duo.

So in all Murray’s dropbacks, no pressure game from off the edge. That would explain the uptick in production in the passing game.

General manager Steve Keim called out his highest-paid players last week on the radio. Humphries is one of those guys and had been some of the problem.

The Cardinals rarely get praised for their offensive line play. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury has said the lack of a preseason has affected the rhythm of the offense. Now that the first month of the season is done, hopefully the play of both Humphries and Beachum in Week 5 is the beginning of a stretch of top play.

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PODCAST: What should the Cardinals do after Chandler Jones’ season-ending injury?

The latest edition of the podcast has dropped and is ready for you to listen to.

A new podcast episode is live following the Arizona Cardinals’ win over the New York Jets and the injury to outside linebacker Chandler Jones. Revenge of the Birds’ Seth Cox and I give you the best hour of Cardinals talk on the Web, discussing all the latest with your favorite team.

We break down the good and bad in the Cardinals’ 30-10 win in Week 5. We discuss the Chandler Jones injury, the options they have on the team, what free agents could make sense or not and what role rookie Isaiah Simmons might find now. We talk about what the addition of cornerback Prince Amukamara means and then give our Week 6 preview and predictions for the exciting Monday night game on the road against the Dallas Cowboys.

Enjoy the show and make sure to subscribe to it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform, and give it a five-star rating.

Check out below for the topics and approximate timestamps.

(1:15) Reactions to the win over the Jets — what there was to like

(16:37) What there was not to like in the win over the Jets

(28:11) How the Cardinals should handle the void at OLB after Chandler Jones’ injury

(41:26) The addition of CB Prince Amukamara

(45:39) Preview and predictions for the Week 6 game against the Cowboys

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Kyler Murray named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for play vs. Jets

He led the NFL with 380 passing yards in Week 5 and rushed for another 31, passing for a touchdown and rushing for another.

After throwing for a career-high 380 yards in Week 5 in a win over the New York Jets, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray has been named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in his career.

Murray completed 27-of-37 passes for 380 yards, a touchdown and an interception. It is the highest single-game passing total for the Cardinals since 2013, when Carson Palmer passed for 417 yards against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

It was the highest passing total in Week 5 in the NFL.

Murray also added 31 rushing yards and a touchdown, producing a total of 411 yards of offense and two scores.

He was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week as a rookie in 2019 after the team’s win over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6. He is now one of only four quarterbacks in franchise history to be honored as a player of the week more than once, joining Kurt Warner, Boomer Esiason and Neil Lomax. Not even Palmer was player of the week more than once.

Through five games, Murray has completed 128-of-181 pass attempts for 1,299 yards and eight touchdowns while also rushing for 296 yards and five touchdowns on 41 carries. He is the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era with at least eight passing touchdowns and five rushing touchdowns in the first five games of a season.

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Overreaction Monday: Cardinals back to winning ways after Sunday’s victory

The Cardinals convincingly beat the New York Jets this Sunday, showing signs of a talented team ready to make a playoff push.

The Arizona Cardinals convincingly beat the New York Jets on Sunday 30-10. It was a game they needed to win and were expected to win by a large margin. The win did feel like the Cardinals came to play much more than they did the previous two weeks.

Outside of an interception that was more just a great play by Jets LB Avery Williamson, Kyler Murray looked like himself again. DeAndre Hopkins continued his Offensive Player of the Year campaign by racking up 6 receptions for 131 yards and a score. Murray and Nuk seemingly dialed up the same play- a go route to the far sideline, twice to put the Jets away.

The Victory Monday feels will not be strong this week, as it is expected to be announced that All-Pro OLB Chandler Jones will miss the remainder of the season with a torn bicep. Jones, who has been an iron man for the Cards, is one of the few players that the team cannot afford to lose. Barring a change of direction, Arizona will lose one of its best players as the Cardinals prepare for the much more difficult part of their schedule.

The seemingly rejuvenated Cardinals need to keep momentum rolling and beat the Dallas Cowboys next Monday. Dallas themselves suffered a potentially fatal blow, losing star QB Dak Prescott to an ankle injury in a win over the Giants. The highly anticipated primetime matchup between the Cardinals and Cowboys will be without two of the NFL’s stars. Andy Dalton will serve as the quarterback in Prescott’s absence, who has been a quality starter for many years in his career.

After dropping disappointing games to the Lions and Panthers, the Cardinals sit at 3-2. Beating Dallas puts them at 4-2 heading into a home matchup against the red-hot Seattle Seahawks. That’s in Arizona, by the way, where we all know the Seahawks have had their way in the past few years.

On the topic of potentially losing Chandler Jones for the rest of the year, the Cardinals would be wise to search the market as the trade deadline approaches. The October 29th deadline gives Steve Keim enough time to possibly find some help for the pass-rushing unit. Without Jones, a veteran acquisition appears necessary given the talent in the NFC West (even if it is just a one-year rental).

If all comes to pass, the Cardinals will deeply miss Jones. Still, their rebound effort in New York re-ignites hope that we may see playoff football in the desert.

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WATCH: Full highlights from Cardinals’ 30-10 win over Jets

Check out all the big plays in the Cardinals’ big Week 5 win.

[sendtonews_embed video_id=”FehSrerYoJ-999358-7498″]

The Arizona Cardinals picked up a win on Sunday on the road, defeating the New York Jets 30-10. Kyler Murray had a career-high 380 passing yards and rushed for his fifth touchdown of the season.

DeAndre Hopkins had six catches for 131 yards and a touchdown.

There were plenty of highlights. Catch them all in the above video.

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Chandler Jones’ biceps injury feared to be season-ending

He has only had one sack so far this season, but his absence would be a big blow to Arizona’s defense.

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The Arizona Cardinals might lose the league’s best pass rushers for the remainder of the season. Outside linebacker Chandler Jones exited the Cardinals’ 30-10 victory over the New York Jets with a biceps injury.

Head coach Kliff Kingsbury told reporters after the game that the injury, if confirmed, would be season-ending.

Jones, who has the most sacks in the NFL since he entered the league and also since he joined the Cardinals in 2016, had started the year slowly. He picked up a sack in Week 1 but had not had one since.

Jones has not missed a game since he joined the Cardinals.

His loss would be a big blow because he is the team’s most talented pass rusher and requires the most attention from opposing offenses.

If he is lost for the season, it would give opportunities for Haason Reddick, Kylie Fitts and Dennis Gardeck.

It has not been discussed, but it could be another way to involve rookie Isaiah Simmons.

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Cardinals lose OLB Chandler Jones to biceps injury

He will not return to the game against the Jets.

The Arizona Cardinals began the game against the New York Jets without starting outside linebacker Devon Kennard, who was ruled out for the game  with a calf injury.

They have now lost their other starting outside linebacker.

In the first half of the game against the Jets, Chandler Jones exited the game and was taken to the locker room. He was having his right arm looked at.

He suffered a biceps injury and was ruled out for the rest of the game.

He had one tackle in the first half before he left the game.

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WATCH: Kyler Murray knocked to ground by OL on TD celebration

Kelvin Beachum is much bigger than Kyler Murray.

The Arizona Cardinals took an early 7-0 lead over the New York Jets on a 29-yard touchdown run by Chase Edmonds. Naturally, quarterback Kyler Murray wanted to celebrate.

However, things didn’t go as planned. He jumped up to connect with offensive lineman Kelvin Beachum.

This is what happened.

Murray was not prepared for the force of Beachum’s contact.

Beachum, the Cardinals’ starting right tackle, is 6-foot-3 and 308 pounds. Murray is 5-foot-10 and 207 pounds. The result is more or less what you would expect.

Murray ended up on the ground.

Offensive linemen are supposed to protect quarterbacks, not knock them to the ground.

It would appear they need to practice that celebration a little.

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Jets RB Le’Veon Bell to return to lineup vs. Cardinals in Week 5

He has missed since Week 1.

The New York Jets have a number of injuries to deal with but will get one of their most talented players back in the lineup. One of a few roster moves they made on Saturday was reinstate running back Le’Veon Bell to the active roster from injured reserve.

He will be in the lineup on Sunday to play against the Cardinals.

They released linebacker Alec Ogletree and receiver Josh Malone. They signed OL Jimmy Murray and elevated quarterback Mike White and cornerback Lamar Jackson from the practice squad.

Bell has only played in one game this season. In Week 1, he had six carries for 14 yards and caught two passes for 32 yards.

Why the Cardinals should bounce back against the Jets

Going into Week 5, the Arizona Cardinals travel to New York to face the Jets, one that could be a nice bounce-back game for the Cardinals.

We are four weeks into the NFL season and the Arizona Cardinals are starting to struggle early. They grabbed momentum early in the first two weeks of the season, including an impressive win against the San Francisco 49ers week one. However, the Cardinals have lost two straight against teams that many thought they should have beaten. 

Going into Week 5, the Cardinals travel to New York to face the Jets, one that could be a nice bounce-back game for the Cardinals, especially since the NFC West is the most competitive division right now. 

This team has struggled to keep guys healthy at key positions. The Jets are without starting quarterback Sam Darnold for this week’s matchup and will most likely not have receiver Breshad Perriman either. Joe Flacco will get the nod to start for the Jets this Sunday, who currently have the worst offense in the NFL, averaging just 278 yards per game. 

The Cardinals are at the top half of the league’s defensive rankings. They have given up over 1,400 yards through four games. However, even though the Cardinals’ pass defense struggles a bit more than their run defense, the Jets have a receiving corps depleted by injuries. They drafted Denzel Mims, a standout wide receiver from Baylor, who has been sidelined with hamstring injuries. The Cardinals’ secondary is the weakest part of their defense. Granted, they did lose Robert Alford for the season and have had key players injured like Budda Baker, who was a full participant in practice on Wednesday. The Cardinals’ secondary have a chance to put on an impressive showing against a Jets receiving core that does not have a whole lot of consistency led by Jamison Crowder. 

The Jets defense is among the bottom half of the league, giving up an average of 368.8 yards per game, according to ESPN. The Jets struggle immensely in the passing game, giving up 959 yards through the first four games. The Cardinals put up 224 passing yards against a healthy 49ers defense. Kyler Murray has a chance to have a field day against this Jets defense, who have struggled to contain players in the passing game.  Through the first four games of the season, the Cardinals have averaged 370.3 yards per game, according to ESPN.  DeAndre Hopkins has been nothing short of impressive in his first few games as a Cardinal and is continuing to show that he is one of if not THE best at his position.  Many wanted General Manager Steve Keim fired before the 2020 NFL Draft.  But, he has really started to prove himself with these past two offseasons.  From drafting Kyler Murray in 2019 to acquiring DeAndre Hopkins this past offseason, Keim has put the Cardinals on the map as a potential playoff team for the first time since 2015.  

The Arizona Cardinals are struggling early, coming off of two straight losses from the Lions and Panthers. However, this week’s matchup against the New York Jets is a perfect opportunity for them to have a bounce-back game, especially with a tough schedule ahead of them.  

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