ARIZONA — In a crucial moment for the Arizona Cardinals, they faced a sobering setback.
Optimism was high across the Valley following the team’s bye week, with the Cardinals sitting atop the NFC West at 6-4.
However, back-to-back defeats left Arizona desperate for a victory against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 14, both to maintain their playoff aspirations and to keep fans invested.
Unfortunately, that victory never came.
Podcast: A Reality Check for the Cardinals
The Cardinals’ chances of reclaiming the division they once dominated are now slim.
“Disappointing loss. We didn’t play our best football out there. I need to figure out some solutions to get us back on track because we haven’t performed well over the past couple of weeks, and that’s on me,” said Jonathan Gannon following the defeat.
“Tomorrow, we must start over, fix these issues, move them to better locations, and win a game. I believed we had a lot of points there, but we fought back. Their effort is much appreciated. That was excellent. We fought back there, had a few opportunities to even narrow the gap, but finally failed.
Give them credit, and I’ll have to perform better. I must examine it. We struck the BYE while rolling, and we still haven’t gotten it rolling, so that’s my fault. We need to make some adjustments, but I’m confident we’ll follow our procedure. I need to make some adjustments.
Kyler Murray: The Cardinals Were Let Down by Me
Kyler Murray, quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals, accepts responsibility for the defeat.
Arizona Following the Arizona Cardinals’ defeat by the Seattle Seahawks in Week 14, quarterback Kyler Murray has been the target of a lot of flak and criticism.
Maybe with good reason.
Early in the game, Murray threw a few interceptions that gave Seattle a decisive advantage that the Cardinals were unable to match. Arizona is on a three-game losing streak as a result of Murray throwing five interceptions in his last three games.
Murray does not bear full blame, but that’s just part of the job as the team’s quarterback when things don’t go your way.
“I think I failed the team today. It should go without saying. After the game, Murray told reporters, “You can’t do that.”
After the loss, Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon says Murray is not solely to blame.
Every game, in my opinion, is slightly different. He needs to do a better job of protecting the ball, even though I thought he stuck in there and made some huge throws. Gannon stated, “There will be a lot of corrections off those plays to what needs to happen because that’s not just him, that’s all 11.”
“To be honest, I thought Seahawks CB Ernest Jones IV made a really nice play on the first play, number 13. He sort of read his eyes and rocked back out of it, even though that’s where the ball should have gone. He returned to the weak after playing the strong side. Give them credit for their excellent play.
Murray said the Cardinals don’t have time to feel sorry for themselves now that they are out of control in terms of their postseason status.
“Obviously, it’s awful to put oneself in this situation, but we had to turn up again at the end of the day. Next week, we have another home game. When the time comes, present ourselves in the best possible light.
