Grades: Cardinals Fall Flat in Seattle

Coming off the bye, the Arizona Cardinals looked unprepared and outmatched in their first divisional matchup against the Seattle Seahawks, dropping the contest 16-6.

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Laviska Shenault Jr. (1) looks to pass the ball against the Seattle Seahawks during the second half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

The relatively close final score of 16-6 belies the reality of what Sunday afternoon truly was. A massively disappointing performance from the Arizona Cardinals after winning four in a row.

The division lead was on the line and coming out of the bye the Cardinals fell flat at Lumen Field and played an uninspired offensive game that cost them the chance to put some distance between themselves and their division foes in the race for the NFC West.

Offense

Quarterback: C-

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) rushes against the Seattle Seahawks during the fourth quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

It wasn't all terrible, but Kyler Murray did make an unforced error that likely cost his team the game.

In the second half, under pressure, Murray ran out of the pocket and was attempting to convert a fourth down by lobbing the ball high and hoping wide receiver Michael Wilson would somehow come back to the ball and snag it.

Instead, a Seahawks defender snatched the ball out of the air and returned it for a score, giving Seattle their only touchdown of the afternoon and making it a two score game.

Other than that terrible mistake, Murray played a pedestrian and uninspired game and visibly showed his frustration on several occasions. A step back for a quarterback that has been playing at a different level lately.

Offensive Line: D

Arizona Cardinals offensive lineman Jonah Williams (73) during organized team activities in Tempe on May 20, 2024. / Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

Fans had eagerly awaited the return of RT Jonah Williams ever since he went down in the first quarter of the Week One game in Buffalo.

Williams did return on Sunday, taking over his right tackle spot from Kelvin Beachum who has been playing at a high level all year, and the change completely wrecked the integrity of the offensive line.

Credit is due to Leonard Williams and other Seahawks pass rushers, but the swiss cheese Cardinals line did nothing to help the situation and let up five total sacks.

Add to that, probably the worst game of Paris Johnson, Jr's young career and the result was a disastrous afternoon and Murray running for his life.

Tight End: A

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) tackles Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride (85) during the first half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Whatever the result of the game, tight end Trey McBride did his bit and more.

He once again led the team in receptions and receiving yards, even setting a new Cardinals record for receptions in one game by a tight end.

The only potential knock on McBride's game is his continued lack of red zone receptions and touchdowns. An interesting component of his usage this season.

Running Back: C

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner (6) runs for yards after the catch against the Seattle Seahawks during the fourth quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Hard to lay all the blame on the running back position for the complete lack of a competent run game as the offensive line was giving them no help and struggling to open up anything approaching clean lanes, but still, the fact remains that the Cardinals run game did not show up.

The Seahawks did an excellent job at stopping James Conner, and when Conner is not humming the rest of the Cardinals offense seems to struggle as well.

Conner toted the rock a total of 7 times for only 8 yards, 1.1 yards per carry. A complete nonfactor.

Wide Receiver: C

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson (14) catches a pass against Seattle Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen (27) during the fourth quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Another week and another game with disappointing output from wide receivers.

Wilson led the position with 2 receptions for 54 yards, granted the receptions were both incredible and put his team in great position that they did not take advantage of.

The No. 4 pick of the 2024 Draft had another fairly pedestrian afternoon, only catching 3 of the 6 balls thrown his way for 47 yards. He did have an incredible sideline catch that was reviewed for a potential touchdown, but even though his second foot hit the pylon the officials determined he did not catch the ball inbounds.

Greg Dortch continued his disappointing season with a single reception for five yards.

Defense

Defensive Line: B

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Arizona Cardinals defensive tackle Dante Stills (55) celebrates following a sack against Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) during the first quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Credit goes to the Cardinals defensive line for doing an admirable job at holding down the Seahawks running game to only 65 yards and getting to the quarterback.

Linemen Dante Stills and former Seahawk, L.J. Collier, both got to Geno Smith on Sunday and played a generally good game. However, the line as a whole struggled to genuinely pressure Smith, often allowing him 4 or more seconds to scan the field and several times let him make an easy checkdown to gain 10+ yards.

Linebackers: A

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) looks to pass against the Arizona Cardinals during the first quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The linebackers, led by Kyzir White, put up another tremendous performance on Sunday.

They were more arguably more important to stopping the run than the defensive line as evidenced by the tackles for loss accumulated by the position group.

White has a great knack for being in the right place at the right time and was inches away from snagging a tipped ball for an interception that might have changed the course of the game.

Zaven Collins had a great afternoon with a sack, a pass defensed, and a forced fumble.

Secondary: B+

Nov 24, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith (7) passes the ball over Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker (3) during the second half at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Overall, the young secondary continued to play well on Sunday.

Even though Smith had plenty of time in the pocket to survey the field, the downfield coverage from the Cardinals defensive backs was sticky and didn't allow many big plays.

As always, Budda Baker was all over the field but had some uncharacteristic troubles finishing tackles though that could be attributed to the amount of time an anemic offense forced the defense to stay on the field.

Second-year cornerback Garrett Williams took a trip down memory lane and picked off Smith in the end zone reminiscent of the first interception of his career last season in Seattle.