The Arizona Cardinals held the NFC West lead after Week 10 and their miraculous last-second win over the Buffalo Bills. One week later, after losing to the Seattle Seahawks, they are now third in the division and find themselves falling in new power rankings.
After climbing to No. 11 last week, Touchdown Wire’s Mark Schofield dropped them three spots to No. 14 overall.
The trademark application might be in process, but the Arizona Cardinals could not count on a “Hail Murray” for the second-straight week.
Given a chance to perhaps take the lead in the NFC West on Thursday night, the Cardinals lost 28-21 to the Seattle Seahawks. They had a chance on their final offensive possession to perhaps tie the game – or even take the lead with a bold two-point conversion – but quarterback Kyler Murray was sacked on their final offensive play by Carlos Dunlap, ending the drive.
Murray completed 29 of 42 passes for 269 yards and a pair of touchdowns on Thursday, but the rushing game was almost non-existent for the Cardinals. Kenyan Drake led the team with 11 carries for 29 yards and a score. That is something to watch going forward.
Also something to watch is how Arizona fares over the next few weeks. A trip to New England and a home date against the Los Angeles Rams await. This two-game stretch could go a long way toward determining how their season ends up.
The Cardinals did not look good against the Seahawks and lost 115 yards in penalties. Even still, they had a shot to tie the game in their final drive. Were it not for a mindless penalty by cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick, the Cardinals likely force overtime and if J.R. Sweezy doesn’t get called for holding in the end zone, giving Seattle a safety, they are in position for a game-winning field goal.
Seattle climbed four spots this week, going from 13th to ninth. The L.A. Rams moved up to No. 6 from No. 8.
The San Francisco 49ers rank 16th, while the Cardinals’ Week 12 opponent, the New England Patriots, fell seven spots from 17th to 24th.
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