The Arizona Cardinals have lost five games in a row by a combined 13 points, but they’re coming off a bye, which provided their reeling and banged-up 2-5 team much-needed rest.
Even so, starting quarterback Kyler Murray needs more time to heal up from a foot injury that’s sidelined him the past two games.
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Head coach Jonathan Gannon confirmed Thursday the Cardinals were preparing Murray to start Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys, but he kept things vague. Then on Saturday, Gannon told reporters that backup Jacoby Brissett will start on the road versus the Cowboys, as Murray’s foot isn’t ready yet.
“We’ve been pushing, he’s been pushing,” said Gannon, who noted that Murray could still have a role in the Week 9 matchup depending on how practice goes before then.
Murray was scheduled to speak to the media on Thursday, but he did not hold his regular midweek news conference, as has been the case while he’s been working his way back to the field. He’s remained “limited” during practice this week, according to the team’s injury report.
Gannon didn’t divulge much about Murray’s recovery progress from the mid-foot sprain that he suffered in an embarrassing Week 5 loss to the Tennessee Titans, however, Gannon shook his head and said “no” when he was asked Thursday if there was a competitive advantage to him not naming a starting quarterback until later in the week.
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Brissett has thrown for at least 279 yards in each of his starts this season while posting a 4:1 touchdown-to-interception ratio and, according to PFF, connecting on a combined eight passes of 20-plus air yards, two more than Murray has completed all season.
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Gannon stressed Thursday the importance of the off week for his club, which has recently opened the practice window for first-round defensive tackle Walter Nolen as well as for a pair of impact third-year defenders, cornerback Garrett Williams and edge rusher BJ Ojulari.
“I think for everybody [it was beneficial],” Gannon said of the bye.
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“Just with your health bucket, you start playing games, and the train’s rolling for everybody. The offense versus defense, the pace was really good. … They’re rested, and it looks a little bit different.”
Gannon reiterated: “So it was very beneficial.”
Different is a good thing for the Cardinals. They’ve suffered the same fourth-quarter heartbreak each of the past five games. It’s arrived in a few variations, except the end result has been identical week each week.
Arizona lost three straight games on walk-off field goals, the last of which came against a winless Titans team that has since fired its head coach. The Cardinals then took fourth-quarter leads against the AFC South-leading Indianapolis Colts and NFC North-leading Green Bay Packers, only to let both of them slip.
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Gannon said Thursday that there’s no “magic sauce” to closing out games.
“No secret ingredient,” he said. “Work, coach better and play better.”
The Cardinals are in a distant fourth place in the NFC West behind a trio of five-win teams in the Seattle Seahawks, Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers.
“I’ve been on both sides throughout my career of digging a hole and getting out of it, being way out of the hole and getting in it,” Gannon said Thursday.
“You’re 5-2 and lose seven in a row. That doesn’t feel so good. I’ve been 1-5 and won a playoff game. So there’s different experiences, and every team’s a little bit different. And I think the main thing for us is you can’t look into the future. You can’t look back now. We are where we are. We got to do everything that we need to do to try to win a game. That’s our sole focus.”
As for Murray, a return to action of any kind in Arlington would be fitting considering he made a name for himself as a high school football star in Texas.
Murray has led the Cardinals to a pair of wins in Jerry World, first in 2020 and then again during the 2021 season. He totaled four passing touchdowns and zero interceptions across those two games, adding one more score on the ground.
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But with Gannon’s Saturday update, it looks like Murray will likely have to wait to add to that Lone Star State résumé.
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