Score it Round 1 for Clayton Tune.
That’s the consensus following the Arizona Cardinals’ 16-14 loss to the New Orleans Saints Saturday night, but it comes with a caveat.
With quarterback Kyler Murray not playing, Desmond Ridder started and played the entire first half. However, he was joined by all backups, save for rookie wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who was on the field only on the first Cardinals possession of the game, which lasted three plays.
Tune played the entire second half, while beginning and ending his playing time with touchdown drives. He was surrounded by the third team, which also faced the Saints’ second and third unit. The offensive line consisted mostly of left tackle Austen Pleasants, left guard Isaiah Adams, center Keith Ismael, right guard Marquis Hayes and right tackle Jackson Barton.
Trailing 6-0 to start the third quarter, Tune led the Cardinals on a nine-play, 70-yard drive that resulted in a Michael Carter 11-yard touchdown run for a 7-6 lead. An 11-play, 76-yard drive gave the Cardinals a 14-13 lead on a 10-yard scoring pass to running back Tony Jones Jr. with 1:55 to play. On the first drive, Tune completed 4-of-5 passes for 54 yards and he was 5-for-9 for 61 yards on the final one.
“Good command and he played fast,” head coach Jonathan Gannon said. “I thought he made some throws in there too. Some guys stepped up and made some plays. I thought he was aware of what was going on out there, making correct decisions and he made some plays.”
Said Tune, “I definitely felt more comfortable. I felt like I was seeing the defense and (I was) confident in the game plan, so I felt like I was seeing it well and playing on time. I had a good bead on what they were doing. Just felt like I had a plan pre-snap, and then post-snap I was able to confirm that plan.”
Last year as a rookie, Tune was learning and also was high on numerous passes to the sideline in preseason games. That wasn’t the case Saturday.
“I think being more decisive helps you throw the ball better,” he said. “When you know where you’re going with the ball, you’re able to throw it with a little more anticipation.”
For the game, Tune was 15-for-24 for 163 yards and a passer rating of 96.4.
Ridder wasn’t as fortunate, completing 4-of-9 passes for 43 yards and a 59.0 rating, although he was productive with his legs gaining 39 yards on five carries, including one for 22 yards.
In the first quarter, the Cardinals totaled 27 yards on 10 plays and didn’t have a first down. On their first four possessions, it was 17 plays for 55 yards until managing three first downs and 57 yards on 10 plays on the final possession of the half. A big miss came on fourth-and-2 from the New Orleans 12 with 32 seconds remaining when a pass that might have gone for a touchdown was beyond the reach of wide-open wide receiver Andre Baccellia.
Asked about Ridder’s play, Gannon said, “You’d like to get some first downs, but that’s just not on the quarterback. That’s on everybody. He’s not blocking for himself and he’s not running routes for himself. I think as a whole we have to do a little bit better. I thought we were a little leaky a little bit in pass-pro. It seemed like Des was off the spot a little too much and a little too quick, but I thought the run game looked pretty good.
“We’re going to play physical and violent and we have to be able to move people on the line of scrimmage and get our backs going.”
After two days of practice and then a game against the Colts this week, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Tune is the starter on Saturday.
As for the battle for the backup job, Tune said, “I’m not really thinking about it, but I’m not actively avoiding it. I just focus on improving my game each and every day and focusing on what I can do.”
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