Heading into a Week 5 matchup against a flawed Detroit Lions team, the Arizona Cardinals had a chance to improve their record 2-3 and keep their season hopes afloat.
Instead of an Arizona win, the Lions handed the Cardinals a beatdown, winning 45-21 at State Farm Stadium.
Four big takeaways from this embarrassing home performance:
Defensive Coordinator Nick Rallis has to go
One storyline going into the game was that former Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing is now the Lions' offensive coordinator this season. In his "revenge game", Petzing could call anything that he wanted to. From inside runs and outside zone runs to play action, screen passes, and drop-back passes, whatever it was, Petzing faced little to no resistance from the Cardinals defense.
The Lions' offense put up extremely good numbers against Rallis' unit. The Lions totaled 412 yards, averaged 6.3 yards per play, and went four-for-four in the red zone. The worst and most worrying stat is that the Lions were perfect on fourth-down conversions, going four-for-four.
Yes, going for it on fourth down has been a staple in the Dan Campbell era in Detroit, but the fact that the Cardinals couldn't get a stop is a very bad sign. If Rallis were relieved of his job, the Cardinals have senior coach Teryl Austin waiting in the wings to likely become the new defensive coordinator.
Austin has 22 years of coaching experience. Before joining Arizona this offseason he spent seven years with the Pittsburgh Steelers. During those years, the Steelers constantly had great defenses. Austin would be a good candidate if the Cardinals decide they want a change at the position.
Trading Budda Baker would be the right move
Since he was drafted with the 36th pick in the 2017 draft, Baker has been an absolute staple of the Cardinals. Baker's great instincts and ability to make highlight plays have made him a fan-favorite. However, with the Cardinals being 1-4 and still having tough teams on the schedule such as the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams and the Kansas City Chiefs, it is best to move on from Baker.
Even though Baker is 30 year sold, he can still play at a high level, as he showed in this game by sacking Lions quarterback Jared Goff while leading the team with 11 tackles on the day.
With the Cardinals trading Marvin Harrison Jr. to the Houston Texans, they're showing their cards: they are open for business. Plenty of contenders could use Baker.
While it might be hard for Cardinals fans to say goodbye to the All-Pro safety, it is the right move.
The Cardinals do not have a Quarterback Friendly Environment
In Cardinals land, people aren't fans of how quarterback Jacoby Brissett has played this season, especially last week against the New York Giants. This week, Brissett was fine. While the stats look good, three touchdowns, two of those came when the game was out of reach.
Sure, Brissett threw for 292 yards in the air, but against a Lions secondary that has shown some weakness, Arizona's signal caller should have done better.
However, the truth is, the Cardinals lack the infrastructure to support any quarterback, rookie or veteran. Their offensive line is in shambles, as shown in this game with the Lions getting five sacks. Their defense is porous, so the offense has to play catch-up. Head coach Mike LaFleur is still learning in his first year.
Even if the Cardinals had an upgrade, say Trevor Lawrence from the Jacksonville Jaguars, they still wouldn't be playoff-caliber. Before the Cardinals can think about who their next franchise signal caller will be, they need to plug the holes on their roster.
Teagan Quitoriano could be a piece of the future
Ending on a good note, the second-year tight end had a great afternoon. Quitoriano caught two passes for two touchdowns. With Harrison Jr. no longer on the team, Quitoriano could be a good rotation player in the pass game.
Brissett and Quitoriano seemed to have great chemistry in this game. If things progress very well going forward, the Cardinals could have one of the best tight end rooms in the league with Trey McBride and Quitoriano alongside Elijah Higgins.
Overall, this Cardinals team is a mess. They still have a lot to figure out about where this team stands. Next week the Cardinals travel to SoFi Stadium to take on their division opponent, the Los Angeles Rams.
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