Update on Cardinals Backup QB Battle

The Arizona Cardinals just finished their second preseason game - here's who has a lead on the QB2 battle.

Cardinals quarterbacks Clayton Tune (15) and Desmond Ridder (19) warm up on the sidelines during a game at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., on Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024. / Patrick Breen/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

ARIZONA -- Another week of preseason football has passed for the Arizona Cardinals.

After a loss to the Indianapolis Colts in preseason Week 2 festivities, we continue to evaluate this Cardinals roster - and the quarterback position remains one of the battles we are watching the most. 

We all know that Kyler Murray is the starting QB until further notice, but the battle for who will be his backup between Clayton Tune and Desmond Ridder is at the forefront of most headlines.

With just one more preseason game to go, we are beginning to see one quarterback pull ahead and make it more and more apparent that he deserves the job.

That quarterback is Clayton Tune.

Tune had another quality performance following last week’s outing versus the New Orleans Saints. Today against the Indianapolis Colts, Tune tossed a team-leading 79 passing yards on eight completions (10 attempts). Tune also had the Cardinals’ lone touchdown on a 12-yard run.

*checks watch*

It's TUNE TIME ⌚️ pic.twitter.com/iiXBDXFbSQ

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) August 18, 2024

We saw Tune once again throwing some solid passes with touch and poise. Unfortunately for Tune, the pass protection was poor in his time on the field as he was sacked three times and was under constant duress.

It makes evaluating his pocket presence more difficult, but we at least saw him throwing with confidence.

On the other side of the battle, Ridder had a subpar game and is drastically trailing Tune in the competition. In fairness, Ridder did have a strong final drive.

Ridder was handed a must-win drive with 27 seconds on the clock with the team needing a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie the game up. The drive started strong with three-straight completions for a total of 32 yards.

But just when things started to get going, a false start wiped out the remaining few seconds of the clock, as the penalty results in a 10-second run-off inside of two minutes.

It was the worst way the game could’ve ended and it hosed what was looking like a strong last effort from Ridder.

Ridder would end the game six-of-eight passing for 71 yards. Half of those numbers came from that last drive and now we’ll be left wondering if he could’ve mustered together something special considering the way it started.

But regardless, Ridder didn’t do enough in the game to silence his doubters, while Tune strung together another solid contest.

We have just one more week of exhibition games and Ridder is on the hot seat. Not only will he need to ball out against the Denver Broncos next Sunday, but he’ll need Tune to be dreadful if he wants a chance to be the backup quarterback for this team.