A quick note as I wrap up my 25th season covering this team (that's a lot, now that I see it in writing.) Remember the old Herm Edwards line – no, not "I'm on the train" from his ASU days, because as a Sun Devil I absolutely am not happy with that era – from his Jets tenure? "You play to win the game." Yeah, that one.
The Cardinals are playing to win. We have this discussion every year, about draft spots, etc., etc. But the coaches don't benefit from a loss, the players definitely don't benefit from a loss, and it's just not how it goes. That's how you get McCown-to-Poole, and why this year's Cardinals couldn't give a blank if the team is picking 11th or 17th.
Thanks for coming to my TED talk. On to other stuff.
-- Budda Baker got his contract extension and another Pro Bowl. Jalen Thompson, his safety running mate, has had a much quieter season. Part of that is he doesn't have an interception after grabbing four a season ago, while having only three pass breakups (after nine last season.) That's part of a larger issue of the defense not generating more turnovers. But I've said before that Thompson is a good fit in the defense that Nick Rallis wants to run, and coach Jonathan Gannon emphasized that Friday morning.
"He had a couple more takeaways (in 2023) and I feel like he's had less opportunities this year," Gannon said. "You don't know when they will come. I would like to see him take away the ball a little bit better. All our guys.
"But in saying that, when we put a game plan together, when we look at matchups, we never feel like what we're asking Jalen to do, we're outmanned. That's pretty comforting. He knows what to do, he plays multiple positions for us, he backs up different spots. He has (played) this year at nickel. Reliability, smart, playmaking, whether it be tackling, blitzing, coverage, the deep part of the field -- he can do it all, man."
Thompson would like some more turnovers himself, and as one of the higher paid members of the defense (his salary actually drops next season, from $8.3 million to $7.5M) that's understandable. But his versatility, always a key word for this coaching staff, is an intangible asset.
"I feel like I fit in pretty well," Thompson said. "I consider myself the complete DB, whether it's playing safety, nickel, corner, (expletive), D-lineman, wherever they need me at that's where I will play. I feel like that role is a good role for me."
-- With the 49ers in town, the best two tight ends in the NFC – George Kittle and Trey McBride – will be on the field together. Kittle has two fewer yards than McBride (who has 1,081.) What could be interesting is if McBride can have another big day; he has three games of at least 12 receptions this season, and a fourth would tie him for the most in a single season in NFL history with wide receivers CeeDee Lamb and Cris Carter. Those 12 catches would also tie Zach Ertz, then of the Eagles and McBride's one-time Cardinals teammate, for the most catches by a tight end in a season (116 in 2018.)
(It should be noted that Raiders rookie TE Brock Bowers has 108 going into the finale.)
To all that, McBride essentially shrugs at looking at the potential records.
"I never have and I never will," he said. "I go into every game and whatever that game plan tells me. I went into those games thinking I'd catch a couple balls and I ended up catching 12. You never know what will happen. I go out and do the best I can. If I catch a bunch of balls, I catch a bunch of balls. If I don't, I don't."
-- That said, McBride did admit he was happy to get his first receiving touchdown, which goes with his one rushing TD and one fumble recovery TD.
"To get into the end zone was a huge relief," McBride said. "Not trying to force anything but hopefully I can get in there one or two more times."
-- Chad Ryland has been so successful as a fill-in kicker, it's been a big story. Ryland is at 99 points in just 12 games and has outstanding stats (although the Cardinals would've preferred many more PATs than all the field-goal attempts he's gotten.) He was also named a Pro Bowl alternate, a nice jump after having such a rough rookie season in New England last season.
-- Kyler Murray v. Joshua Dobbs, the QB matchup everyone once thought about when they were teammates last year. (OK, maybe not.) With native son Brock Purdy hurt and out for this game, the 49ers will use Dobbs, the QB the Cardinals had under center for the first eight games of 2023.
Do the Cardinals benefit from having seen Dobbs half a season? "You take in everything that you can to help win the game," Rallis said.
-- Speaking of native sons, wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, who went to high school less than two miles from the Cardinals' facility at Tempe Corona del Sol, had the breakout game of his rookie season last week with eight catches for 141 yards and a touchdown.
-- Everyone is going to be watching the two first-round picks for one more game. Marvin Harrison Jr. hasn't had 50 yards in back-to-back games, so that would be a nice target to hit and finish up with. As for Darius Robinson, it's interesting to me that despite having come back weeks ago, he will have finished the regular season never once practicing fully. He was limited every workout.
-- Kliff Kingsbury, former Cardinals coach who is now the Commanders offensive coordinator, was asked this week if he desired to become a head coach again. Kingsbury said yes, and then talked about what he would do differently the second time around – interesting when looking back on his Cardinals tenure.
"I don't think I set a foundation the way I would do it," Kingsbury said. "After watching (Commanders coach Dan Quinn) set the foundation from Day 1, 'This is what we won't compromise, this is what we're going to be,' I definitely could have done a better job of that. Once you don't lay it out like that, it's hard to put it back in."
-- With their two starting tackles already on IR, current starting tackle Jackson Barton popped up on the injury report Friday for the first time with an ankle injury and he is questionable for the game. If he can't go, that likely means rookie Christian Jones will make his first NFL start on Sunday, with veteran Kelvin Beachum starting at left tackle.
-- The last word goes to QB Kyler Murray.
"I think the underdog mentality, (that) no one really believed in us or believes in us type of mentality, we kind of took that on. What J.G. preaches. We understand being a tight knit group is part of winning. I think it's a necessity to be able to love and care for one another. It is a very tight group. Unfortunately, it's our last one coming up."
See you, one more time, Sunday.
