At the end of week 7, the Arizona Cardinals were the only undefeated team in the NFL and most people were convinced that their 3rd year QB, Kyler Murray, had finally blossomed into a top 5 NFL quarterback and was odds on favourite to win the 2021 NFL MVP award.
Arizonal Cardinals Results Weeks 1 to 7. (Source)
As you can see from the infographic above, the Cardinals blew out 4 of the 7 teams they had played by 15 points or more. Other than the Houston Texans, none of the other 3 teams were considered pushovers. The Los Angeles Rams, whom Arizona thrashed 37-20, were a legitimate playoff team and the result seemed to suggest that the Cardinals would be genuine Superbowl contenders.
However, this was also the same team that had trailed 13-7 at halftime to the dismal Jacksonville Jaguars (1-5), been held to 17 points by the San Francisco 49ers (2-4) and won narrowly to the Minnesota Vikings (3-3).
So when week 8 rolled around, there were more questions than answers. The Cardinals might have been undefeated through the first 7 weeks of the season but they were scheduled to face-off against the Green Bay Packers (6-1) led by 2020 NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. Luckily for Arizona, they were playing at home and Green Bay would be without their star WR Davante Adams, who was Rodgers' overwhelmingly favourite target of the season so far.
I will be honest. I wasn't rooting for either team before the game. On the one hand, I was convinced that Arizona was due for a loss. On the other hand, I could not bring myself to root for Aaron Rodgers and his Green Bay Packers after all the unnecessary drama during the offseason. Despite my ambiguous feelings towards the game, I was certain that this was Arizona's game to lose. And as the game played out, I would be proven right.
Game Stats. (Source)
From the start, Green Bay set out to dominate possession, running the ball 34 times in an attempt to keep Kyler Murray off the field. And they succeeded. The Green Bay Packers offense was on the field nearly 38 minutes out of a possible 60 minutes. Theoretically, they should have won the game. But Arizona kept it close somehow. Both teams had similar yardage and number of 1st Downs.
What lost the game for the Cardinals? It was the turnovers. Arizona had 3 turnovers. With 14 seconds left on the clock in the fourth quarter, Arizona had a 2nd-and-goal at the Green Bay 5-yard line. The score was 24-21 in favour of Green Bay. The Cardinals were a field goal away from forcing the game into overtime or a touchdown away from a 27-24 victory. Kyler would throw a pass to 7-time Pro Bowler A.J. Green that would end up intercepted, all because Green seemed to think it was a running play and was not looking for the pass headed his way. No one knows what happened on that last play. Maybe it was miscommunication or maybe Green was still trying to familiarise himself with the Arizona Cardinal offense but it wasn't a mistake anyone expected of the 11-year veteran.
A.J. Green looked lost on that last play. (Source)
While many people will remember this as the singular defining moment of the game, I believe that the pivotal turning point occurred much, much earlier. With 6:52 left of the second quarter, the Cardinals special team bumbled the fair catch and the Packers recovered it at the Arizona 3-yard line. The score was tied at 7 a piece. If the Cardinals had made the catch, they could have gone on a scoring drive. Instead, the Packers scored a field goal, making it 10-7 and held on to the slender lead into half-time.
Arizona should have won, could have won, but they have no one to blame themselves. To add insult to injury, Kyler Murray picked up an injury on that last play. They will play the San Francisco 49ers next Sunday. Hopefully, the "mini-bye" will give Kyler enough time to recover from his injury.
A frustrated Kyler Murray after the game-ending interception. (Source)