Cardinals pick up where they left off with dominant win vs. Jets

GLENDALE — The Arizona Cardinals offense needed little time to get going in their 31-6 win over the New York Jets on Sunday.

Behind the same type of complementary football the Cardinals put on tape in last week’s win over the Chicago Bears, Arizona was quick when it came to getting an advantage early.

Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray and running back James Conner were big in that department.

Despite New York’s struggles against the run, Murray and Arizona took to the air to kick things off, with the signal caller just missing Michael Wilson before connecting with Marvin Harrison Jr. for 18 yards.

Then it was Conner’s time to shine.

After picking up seven yards on his first carry of the day, the running back flashed his pass-catching ability behind a 45-yard catch and run to New York’s 1-yard line.

Had it not been for Conner’s “butt cheek” (as explained by the refs) hitting the ground before the goal line, the starter would have gone the distance.

Luckily for the running back, he didn’t come away empty handed on the six-play, 70-yard scoring drive, getting the rock two more times before finding the end zone from a yard out.

The offense continued to pour it on the second time around, too.

Rattling off another 70-yard scoring drive — this time on nine plays — Arizona used a blend of run and pass before Murray took it in himself from one out. The Jets defense never had a chance, as made evident by the QB’s midplay celebration.

A Sunday stroll into the end zone 🤩

📺: #NYJvsAZ on CBS pic.twitter.com/XVrWLMzmqC

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) November 10, 2024

And you know what’s better than two 70-yard scoring drives? Three 70-yard scoring drives.

Despite a monstrous sack deep in Jets territory, Murray and the offense didn’t blink on the 10-play drive.

A big part of that was thanks to tight end Trey McBride, who hurdled a defender for a first down before picking up another six plays later to move the chains.

Harrison cashed in on the tight end’s efforts the very next play with a nine-yard touchdown catch.

As for Murray, the franchise signal caller blew by his Week 9 mark of 154 passing yards in just two quarters of with 199 yards and the score on 17-of-19 passing.

Entering play Sunday, the Jets were one of the stingiest teams against the pass, averaging the second-lowest yards allowed with 158.2.

Arizona’s final drive of the first half didn’t go the distance for a touchdown, but still added to its lead with a 37-yard field goal courtesy of Chad Ryland.

And while the Cardinals only scored one other time across the final two quarters — extending their goal-to-go touchdown streak to 16-for-16 — they didn’t necessarily need to with a defense keeping Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers at bay.

Cardinals defense still streaking

The offense wasn’t the only unit that extended a streak of some sort on Sunday.

After holding opponents to zero touchdowns the past two home games, the Cardinals made it a third on Sunday, allowing just a pair of field goals to Rodgers and Co.

“I thought they played well,” head coach Jonathan Gannon said postgame. “When you come into a game like this and you prepare for a team and a quarterback of that caliber with the weapons that they have, you never know how it’s kind of going to go. I thought they really stepped up.

“I liked the plan a lot. It was well executed and a bunch of guys are making plays and I thought our mode of play was on display. We’ll grade the tape hard, but there’s not going to be a lot of loafs. Our guys are humming. They’re hitting, the hitting is on display. When you do that, you’ll give yourself a chance.”

Leading the way for the unit is veteran safety Budda Baker, who notched his fifth season of at least 100 tackles after registering nine on Sunday.

Follow @Tdrake4sports