Cardinals offense falls flat after fast start in Week 3 loss to Lions

GLENDALE — Last week, the Arizona Cardinals offense could do no wrong. This week, that was nowhere near the case.

Despite kicking off Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions with an opening-drive touchdown for a third consecutive game, the Cardinals offense dropped off in a major way throughout most of the contest.

After racking up 70 yards on its first scoring drive of the afternoon, Arizona posted just 205 for the rest of the game. Arizona’s third-down efficiency fell off a cliff behind a 1-for-9 conversion rate (11%).

Quarterback Kyler Murray, one week removed from posting a perfect passer rating, was far from his Week-2 self, completing just 61.2% of his passes for 205 yards, a touchdown and one interception.

Arizona’s running game didn’t fare much better, though, averaging 4.3 yards per carry on its way to 77 yards on 18 carries.

Murray did most of the heavy lifting there behind 45 rushing yards on five carries. Starting running back James Conner struggled to find consistency on nine carries for 17 yards.

It’s a tough pill to swallow for a Cardinals defense that really upped its game following back-to-back touchdowns from the Lions to open up Sunday’s action.

Aside from the early scores, Arizona kept quarterback Jared Goff and Detroit’s offense largely in check, forcing four punts, a turnover on downs and an interception courtesy of pass rusher Dennis Gardeck.

The defense’s impact could have been even more, too, had it not been for a premature two-minute warning call that nullified a Mack Wilson Sr. pick-6.

Wilson along with defensive lineman Dante Stills, who was thrown into a bigger role Sunday after Justin Jones went down with a triceps injury, each recorded a sack in the losing effort.

Entering play Sunday, the Lions offensive line had allowed just two sacks on the season. That tally has now doubled thanks to Arizona’s pass rush.

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