Rondale Moore had a heck of a game Sunday, creating production out of nowhere at times (and perhaps more importantly, not dropping a wide-open touchdown pass. Sometimes the simple things are the most important.) That he did all that damage on only 28 offensive snaps -- less than half of the 61 offensive plays -- made it even more impressive.
Now that the Cardinals are into the season, the snap counts weren't out of whack from Week One, save for the limited snaps both cornerback Marco Wilson (ankle) and tackle Kelvin Beachum (ribs) played because of injury. It was notable that linebacker Jordan Hicks again played almost the whole game (59 of 61 snaps), although the percentage of snaps Zaven Collins played actually went up (41 percent, or 25 snaps, after playing 34 percent the week before.)
J.J. Watt played 55 snaps, which was 90 percent, and it's clear the hope to dial him back will rest on how the defensive line plays as a whole; take the Pro Football Focus grades as you will but the run grades for the defense were not good -- not a shock after watching Dalvin Cook and the Vikings rush for 166 yards and 6.6 yards a carry.
On the running back front, out of 61 offensive snaps, Chase Edmonds played 39 and James Conner played 24.
As for the aforementioned PFF grades, there was only one defender that reached the "good" range of 70.0 -- linebacker Isaiah Simmons, who got an 80.0.
Not surprisingly, there were a bunch of offensive players that fared better, led by ... wait for it ... tight end Maxx Williams, who had seven catches for a career-best 94 yards. Williams graded as a 90.4. Wide receiver Christian Kirk continued his hot start with a grade for 80.3, complete with two incredible catches to provide key first downs.
QB Kyler Murray (76.7), Edmonds (73.5) and Moore (71.5) were the other top grade earners, although guard Justin Pugh (69.9) just missed.
