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Arizona Cardinals vs. Baltimore Ravens Game Recap

Joe Rondone-Arizona Republic

The Arizona Cardinals squared off against the Baltimore Ravens for a week two preseason matchup.

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This was the first game for Arizona back in State Farm Stadium.

After giving up a 17-point lead, the Cardinals fell just short of mounting a comeback. From what once was a 24-3 deficit, Arizona fell to the Baltimore Ravens with a final score of 24-17.

 


Pregame notes

  • Heading into the Sunday night game, Baltimore held a 21-game preseason winning streak. This streak is the longest recorded in NFL history.  Ravens were -5.5 favorites via DraftKings sportsbook.
  • J.J. Watt tested positive for COVID-19 before the game began. Watt will not be with the team during their travels to Tennessee later this upcoming week. Not being able to travel with the team will lead to Watt missing out on the joint practices held with the Titans. Arizona faces off against Tennessee next Saturday for their last preseason game of the year.
  • TE Trey McBride will see his first in-game action with the Cardinals. McBride was selected in the second round of the NFL draft earlier this offseason.
  • Kyler Murray once again was not dressed up but, he was expected to see some action with the headset similar to week one. Murray was in charge of most of the play calling in the second half.
  • Arizona Cardinals GM, Steve Keim, stated Kyler is a completely different quarterback than he was last year. The entire “independent study time clause” is in the past and Murray has supposedly forgotten about the entire conflict.
  • Darrel Williams, the 27-year-old RB from the Chiefs, also got his first chance to play with the Cardinals. Wiliams missed the week one matchup.
  • Fans had the opportunity to see the new shiny alternate black helmets. These helmets were matched with the black jerseys, it’s a good thing State Farm Stadium has a roof.

First half

Trace McSorley got his first chance to face off against his former team. McSorley had an impressive first-week performance and looked to carry that momentum.

Andy Isabella started the game with a smooth sliding catch to complete a third-down conversion. However, no points were scored on the drive after Matt Prater missed a 54-yard field goal attempt.

Tyler Huntley got the start at quarterback for the Ravens. Huntley saw plenty of opportunities last season as starter Lamar Jackson faced injuries throughout the second half of the year. Leading Baltimore down the field going 5-5 on his first drive, Huntley allowed kicker Justin Tucker to take the lead with a field goal. As expected, Tucker gave the Ravens an early 3-0 advantage.

Jonathan Ward responded quickly with a 48-yard kickoff return which gave the Cardinals excellent field goal position. Once again, the Cardinals were not able to capitalize on this field position as McSorley threw an interception on a fourth down attempt.

Fast forward a couple of drives and Tyler Huntley drove right by the Cardinal’s defense. The rookie tight end, Isaiah Likely finished the drive with over 65 receiving yards along with topping it all off with a 10-yard touchdown catch. A completed extra point extended the Ravens lead to 10-0 with a couple of minutes left in the first half.

After a dropped touchdown by Victor Bolden, Matt Prater had to come back on the field for redemption. Prater was able to drill a 21-yard field goal sending the game into half with a score of 10-3.


Second half

Rookie Anthony Brown got the ball at quarterback to start the second half for the Ravens. The Cardinals were able to quickly take Brown off the field but, a good punt and a bad special teams decision, resulted in Arizona starting with the ball at the 3-yard line.

Unlike week one, McSorley had the opportunity to start the third quarter for the Cards. However, Baltimore intercepted a poorly thrown pass at midfield. This was Mcsorley’s second interception of the game.

Brown capitalized on the interception with a three-yard touchdown pass to WR Tyler Badie. Baltimore’s second passing touchdown of the night improved their lead to 17-3.

Padding onto the lead even more, Brown tossed a dart for a 38-yard touchdown pass with two minutes left in the third quarter. An extra point made the score 24-3.

Kyler Murray took over the headset attempting to make a dent in the Ravens 17-point lead. With what was a completely different result than week one, Murray was able to utilize the passing game and lead the Cardinals down the field. After an impressive 3rd and 19 conversion, Tracey ran the ball into the endzone with a 2-yard touchdown. The extra point by Prater brought the Baltimore lead down to 14.

On the first play of the following drive, Chandler Wooten got himself an interception. Jarrett Guarantano took over quarterback for Arizona with excellent field position. He wasted no time getting the Cardinals right back into the endzone with a 15-yard pass to WR Jontre Kirklin. All of the sudden, Arizona found themselves right back in the game only being down 24-17.

The Cardinals did get one more shot to tie the game but failed on a fourth-down conversion.

The Ravens improved their preseason winning streak to 22 games.


Takeaways

 

  • The Baltimore Ravens were able to pick apart the Cardinal’s defense throughout the entire game. Baltimore quarterbacks completed 19 of their first 20 passes.
  • Tracey McSorley did not seem as bright during his second game. with the Cards.  He struggled to find any rhythm with his talented wide receivers; overthrown passes were constant.
  • RB Jonathan Ward injured his shoulder in the first half. Ward did not play during week one and only saw three rushes before being ruled out for the rest of the game.
  • Penalties killed Arizona similar to what we saw during the 2021 season. A couple of pass interference calls quickly led to Raven touchdowns.
  • Murray was a lot better from the play-calling perspective. His first two drives with the headset resulted in two touchdowns.

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