A postseason berth could hang in the balance for the New England Patriots in Monday’s road trip to Glendale to take on the Arizona Cardinals.
It will be New England’s third consecutive primetime game, and they’ll try to avoid a third straight loss after dropping back-to-back games to the Minnesota Vikings and Buffalo Bills.
The Cardinals, on the other hand, have dropped four of their last five games, including consecutive losses to the Los Angeles Chargers and San Francisco 49ers. Both teams have been riding the struggle-bus this season, and only one will find a way to turn things around in this game.
We recently caught up with Cards Wire managing editor Jess Root for a Q&A heading into the Monday Night Football matchup between the Cardinals and Patriots.
For those interested in reading the Q&A from the Patriots’ perspective, you can find that preview here.
1. DeAndre Hopkins and Marquise “Hollywood” Brown were both finally on the field together against the Los Angeles Chargers. How dynamic do you think the offense can be with both playmakers?
We started to see it against the Chargers. They require a lot of attention. Brown was playing like a legit No. 1 before his injury and Hopkins is one of the best in the game. It is exciting to see what is coming in the weeks to come.
2. Like the Patriots, the Cardinals have had a pretty nasty strength of schedule. What do you think is the biggest reason why the team is sitting at 4-8 right now?
It’s not just one thing. It is a series of things. However, if I had to pick one thing, they just haven’t been able to get out of their own way. They have the talent to be one of the best offenses in the league. But they make mistakes and injuries have been a major issue.
3. Matthew Judon hasn’t registered a sack in the last two games. So he’ll surely be coming into this matchup hungry. How has the offensive line play been for the Cardinals, and can they keep Judon off Kyler Murray?
The Cardinals have 4 non-starters on the line now starting with 4 of their 5 original starters on injured reserve. LT Josh Jones has not allowed a sack yet. He has been waiting his turn to start and the team sees him as a starting-caliber tackle.
4. There’s one guy that used to be on the defensive side the Patriots are happy they won’t be seeing, and that’s Pro Bowl defensive end Chandler Jones. How has his departure impacted the defense?
Well, they have little pass rush in terms of consistent pressure. They get sacks but they come from all over. Only J.J. Watt has been a consistent threat. Jones didn’t do much production-wise last season after his five-sack Week 1. But he was a player that opposing offenses had to account for every play, even if he wasn’t getting to the quarterback as often.
5. Staying on the defensive side of things, the Cardinals' secondary will meet a Patriots offense that has struggled moving the ball through the air. How confident are you in their ability to shut down the Patriots’ passing game if the defensive front struggles to generate pressure?
The pass defense has been pretty all right. They have two great safeties and the corners have been solid. It has been more of keeping plays in front of them
