How the Cardinals Can Beat Commanders in Week 1

As the Arizona Cardinals head to the other side of the country to face the Washington Commanders, we lay out a game plan for the Cards to win.

In year one of the Jonathan Gannon/Monti Ossenfort era of Arizona Cardinals football, there are next to no expectations for this team to be even remotely good in 2023. 

As such, we can anticipate that the Cardinals will lose a lot of games.

But that doesn't mean they won't game plan for every week with the intention of getting wins.

With the season underway starting Sunday, here is our game plan for what the Cardinals need to accomplish if they have any hopes of winning their first game of the season against the Washington Commanders.

Take what the defense gives you

The biggest advice you can give Josh Dobbs or Clayton Tune for this game is to not be a hero and just take what the defense gives you. Neither quarterback is good enough to win this game solo, and this defense could give them fits, especially with Washington's pass rush.

The run game may be bottled up by the Commanders as they stack the box and force the quarterback to beat them with their arm. Marquise Brown is also questionable for the game and may not be available. 

If all of this happens, the Cardinals could be in for a world of hurt.

This is why it will be so pivotal for the Cardinals' quarterbacks to be smart with the football and not force plays. The classic saying "live to fight another down" should be their mantra for this game. 

The Commanders' defense isn't perfect and can be beaten, but they can just as easily make you pay for your mistakes.

Pressure Sam Howell

First-year starting quarterback Sam Howell has been given the keys to the Commanders offense and with the weapons at his disposal there are no reasons for him to be anything less than above-average.

For the Cardinals will need to find a way to make his life hell. The defense doesn't have the talent to do this with ease, so it'll need to get creative. The best fix for a depleted defense is to blitz and the Cardinals should be blitz-happy in this game. 

Just find a way to make Howell uncomfortable and lead him into bad decisions.

Honestly, what do you have to lose? The Cardinals' defense is a mess of sorts and should do whatever they can for results. Even if it's blitzing more than they can cover, if it works then keep doing it. 

If it doesn't then keep trying things out, but getting Howell off balance is the key to a win here.

Dig deep for grit

Look, the Cardinals are going to lose a lot of games this year and they could very well start off the 2023 season with a loss. Expectations are low for Arizona and not many will give them a chance.

But that's where you can use this and turn it into fuel for your team to light a fire in their hearts. Upsets are made when teams believe enough and lift each other up to reach that goal together. 

For the Cardinals, this is exactly what they need.

There aren't many winnable games on the schedule for the Cardinals this season, but the Commanders are a team that is within reach of them. Washington isn't on a different level of talent than the Cardinals, and a team that is determined to prove their doubters wrong may be exactly what they need.

This isn't a game you can easily write off for the Cardinals, but they will need to dig deep for that upset.