Sitting at 4-8 on the season, the Arizona Cardinals will not be making the postseason and are in the beginning stages of major change.
While there were little to no hopes to begin with, the Cards needed to win this game to have an outside shot at a playoff birth. The remaining schedule is pretty light, so there was still a small chance.
Instead, the Cards choked away a game they were winning by 7 for most of the fourth quarter. Chargers QB Justin Herbert found Austin Ekeler for a touchdown late and then tight end Gerald Everett for the game-winning two-point conversion.
There were a couple of studs in the game for Arizona, but there were more duds.
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STUD: WR DeAndre Hopkins
Hopkins is the only consistent playmaker on this offense since his return. He’s proven he’s still one of the top wideouts in the league and is far from slowing down.
D-Hop had an 87-yard performance and a highlight-reel touchdown in the first quarter, where he shook out of a tackle and took it to the house.
In the fourth quarter, Hopkins had an incredible diving catch to prevent a possible interception. While it only went for four yards, it was a vintage Hop moment that was reminiscent of Larry Fitzgerald’s time with the Cards.
It was the first game of the season for Hopkins paired with Marquise Brown, but it was not enough to overcome the team’s offensive woes and advance past the Chargers.
STUD: RB James Conner
It was by far and away Conner’s best performance on the season, which the team had been expecting more of after his excellent 2021 campaign.
Conner had 120 rushing yards and averaged 4.8 yards per carry. He also had a receiving touchdown to put the Cards ahead by seven points in the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals’ offense exploited the porous Chargers’ run defense despite having a patchwork offensive line. While he did have a fumble in the first quarter, Conner looked like the Pro Bowl back from last season.
After signing a three-year extension in the offseason, the Cardinals will need to see much more of this Conner.
DUD: TE Trey McBride
It has not been the season fans had hoped for from second-round tight end Trey McBride.
Steve Keim’s top choice in April’s draft has been thrust into a starting role since the season-ending injury to Zach Ertz and has not yet lived up to expectations.
McBridge was targeted three times and hauled in one for just one yard. He had a crucial drop on a third and long that stalled a promising drive for the Cardinals in the second half.
On the season, he has just eight receptions for 45 yards. While it is worth noting that tight ends typically require a bit of time to develop, McBride has not made an impact to this point.
DUD: Replay Review
For all of their woes in this game, the Cardinals were subject to two questionable calls in this contest.
Early in the first half, cornerback Trayvon Mullen forced a fumble that he appeared to clearly recover. Upon further review, the officials overturned the call to give Los Angeles the ball back.
The officials claimed that the Chargers player had held the ball for long enough to be considered down, which is a very odd ruling considering officials typically wait to get to the bottom of the pile before determining possession.
Later, Justin Herbert’s fourth quarter interception was overturned. There was definitely some ball movement on the pick, but it was questionable given the call on the field was a takeaway.
These were definitely two game-changing calls that could have gone in favor of the Cardinals.
DUD: Kliff Kingsbury
Kingsbury’s offensive scheme appears to be failing and there are numerous question marks about his future with the organization.
The Cardinals finally had their receiving duo of DeAndre Hopkins and Hollywood Brown and still failed to put the Chargers away in the fourth quarter.
They only managed 24 points against a suspect Chargers defense and blew a sure win late in the contest. There was almost zero ball movement following James Conner’s fourth-quarter touchdown.
This season has been a disaster for the Cardinals and there very well could be head coach and general manager vacancies in the near future.
