Arizona Republic writer Bob McManaman examines what we learned from the Cardinals on Sunday against the Chargers
Arizona Republic
The bottom line: Arizona answered the bell and responded with a well-played game but lost 25-24 in a wild finish 25-24 as the Chargers rallied with less than two minutes left to play. The Chargers had a 20-yard punt return to begin their final scoring drive at the Arizona 38 and seven plays later, Justin Herbert hit running back Austin Ekeler for a 1-yard touchdown.
Safety Derwin James Jr. kept himself between Hopkins and the football and came down with it for the pick in single coverage. The Chargers cashed in the turnover for a touchdown and a 14-10 lead just four plays later. For the most part, that’s exactly what Kingsbury and new running game coordinator Spencer Whipple did. They had no choice with that derelict analytic staring them in the face. In the first quarter alone, Conner rushed for 54 yards, the most he’s had in the first quarter of a game since 2018 when he ran for 62 first-quarter yards for the Steelers.
The presumption, of course, was that by having the speedy Brown as a deep-threat option who can get behind the defensive coverage, things would open up in a big way underneath for Hopkins. Also, there was no way the Chargers could bracket both receivers with two defenders. Somebody is always going to get open when these two talents are on the field.
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