TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — The Arizona Cardinals are in Year 2 of coach Jonathan Gannon’s tenure with the franchise and in the first game of the season, the results looked eerily similar to Year 1.
That’s not necessarily a good thing.
The Cardinals’ 34-28 road loss to the Buffalo Bills featured plenty of fight in a hostile environment, entertaining moments, but ultimately, a loss. That was largely acceptable last season when it was clear the Cardinals weren’t going to compete for a playoff spot.
This year, it’s a little tougher to swallow. But there’s little choice but to forge ahead.
“Of course, everybody in the locker room wanted to win that,” Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray said on Sunday. “I felt like we deserved to win that. We should have won. But hey, great game by them.”
Murray’s grown-up approach to the loss could provide a sliver lining. The sixth-year quarterback doesn’t like to lose — which certainly isn’t a problem — but in the past, he admitted a tight loss might send him into an emotional spiral. On Sunday, he appeared ready to bounce back.
“Next week we have a divisional opponent,” Murray said of the upcoming game against the Rams. “The next game is the most important.”
Murray and the offense played very well in the first half against the Bills, building a 17-3 lead before settling for a 17-10 advantage at the break. But there was less success after the break and the QB had a costly fumble.
Murray finished 21 of 31 passing for 162 yards and a touchdown. He also had 57 yards rushing, which led the team.
What’s working
Arizona’s offense looked like one of the league’s elite in the first half. Murray is healthy and veteran running back James Conner looks as if he still has plenty of production left. Receiver Greg Dortch and tight end Trey McBride were both productive.
“We stayed on schedule,” Murray said. “That’s the biggest thing really, staying on schedule. When you’re on the road, coming out in a first game, haven’t really played football in a long time, in a live atmosphere like that, coming out against a great team, you don’t want to be moving backward.”
What needs work
The Cardinals defense had two major areas of concern entering the season — pass rush and cornerback. One game into the season, those are still the biggest question marks. Arizona gave up four touchdowns over a stretch of five Buffalo drives midway through the game, struggling to make life difficult for Bills QB Josh Allen.
It remains to be seen if this defense can consistently make the game-altering plays that can win tough games on the road.
Stock up
DeeJay Dallas gave the Cardinals a spark of hope in the fourth quarter when he returned a kickoff 96 yards, which was the first touchdown on the play under the NFL’s new rules. The play cut the Bills’ lead to 31-28.
The Cardinals were high on Dallas for this exact reason, and it looks as if special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers might be ahead of the curve in finding ways to make the speedster useful.
Stock down
Marvin Harrison Jr.’s debut for the Cardinals was a bit of a dud. The rookie receiver — who was selected with the No. 4 overall pick in last spring’s draft — caught just one pass for 4 yards. He was targeted just three times.
“They obviously were trying to take him away,” Gannon said. “I think we had a bunch of guys catch balls. So that’s how our offense is going to be built. The ball will go where it should go, depending on the coverage. But we’ll get him involved.”
Injuries
RT Jonah Williams (knee) is undergoing tests to determine the extent of his injury. … CB Max Melton is in concussion protocol.
Key numbers
2015 — That’s the previous time the Cardinals returned a kickoff for a touchdown. David Johnson did it in Week 2 of that season.
Next steps
The Cardinals host the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, which is the first of a three-game stretch of home games.
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