GLENDALE, Ariz. — Kyler Murray I did it again.
The Arizona Cardinals quarterback turned and burned Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, breaking free for a 44-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that recalled his 50-yard touchdown run at San Francisco earlier two weeks ago. That run gave the Cardinals a 14-9 lead early in the fourth quarter, a lead that was ultimately lost to the Chargers’ kicker. Cameron Dicker15-14. But Murray’s ability to guide the Arizona offense on a winning drive, control the clock and put his offense in good position led the Cardinals to a 17-15 victory on a 32-yard field goal by kicker. Chad Ryland on the last piece.
The win puts Arizona in a two-way tie for second place in the NFC West with a trip to Miami this weekend. The win also helped Arizona redeem itself after an embarrassing loss at Green Bay last week.
But it was Murray’s run that sparked this sudden resurgence.
He became the fourth quarterback since the merger to throw multiple touchdowns of 40 yards or more, joining Justin Fields in 2022, Michael Vick in 2002 and Steve McNair in 1998, according to ESPN Research.
Most surprising performance: Cardinals defense cleared Justin Herbert to throw for 349 yards, but that kept him from throwing a touchdown pass. Arizona had two massive stops on third down, one by rookie cornerback Max Melton and another by the second year defensive back Garrett Williams. Both helped hold the Chargers to four field goals. The Cardinals pass rush was able to get to Herbert seven times for three sacks.
Disturbing trend: Cardinals rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr.. finished with 21 yards on three catches, extending his streak of not having touched 100 yards in a game to five. His catches came in the first, second and fourth quarters, continuing the trend of Harrison disappearing for entire quarters or more. His six targets Monday night were tied for the third most in a game this season.
QB breakdown: Murray didn’t have a stellar game, throwing for 145 yards, a touchdown and an interception on 14-of-26 passing, but he made the plays when he needed to, like the touchdown. And he controlled the offense while working to buy time when needed. — Josh Weinfuss
Next game: at Miami Dolphins (1 p.m. ET, Sunday)
Quarterback Justin Herbert looked like him again, throwing for 349 yards and easily dismantling the Cardinals defense. And yet, it wasn’t enough for the Chargers.
Their defense, which had been one of the best against the run all season, faltered, allowing the Cardinals to rush for 178 yards, including a 44-yard run by Murray in the fourth quarter for a touchdown.
The Chargers never found the end zone Monday night, relying on Dicker for five field goals. Their offense, which had dominated teams on the field early in the season, is no longer dominant and the team has not scored in the fourth quarter since Week 1. It will be another week of questions for this team and the offensive coordinator Greg Roman on how to fix the offense and whether any upgrades are needed at receiver.
Prediction for next week: Ladd McConkey has his first 100-yard receiving game after struggling on Monday. The Chargers will face the New Orleans Saints in Week 8, who have given up the seventh-most passing yards in the NFL over their last three games. This could be a make-or-break game for McConkey, who had five catches for 45 yards on Monday. Herbert described McConkey as one of his favorite targets.
Promising/troubling trend: Herbert has been sacked several times in the last four games. Herbert spent much of his time navigating collapsing pockets and throwing while having a defensive lineman wrapped around his waist or other body parts. He was sacked three times Monday, the fourth straight game the opponent sacked him multiple times. That’s a concerning stat for an offensive line that has three first-round picks at left guard Zion Johnsonright tackle Joe Alt and left tackle Rashawn Slater.
Mind-blowing statistic: Herbert is the fastest player in NFL history with 1,700 completions, according to Elias Sports Bureau. In a season in which Herbert had career lows in almost every category, he looked like the Herbert of old and set another record. The only player to reach 1,700 assists in fewer than 70 games is the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback. Patrick Mahomes who did it in 69. Herbert’s 1,700th career accomplishment was Will Dissly at 2:20 p.m. in the second quarter. — Kris Rhim
Next game: vs. New Orleans Saints (4:05 p.m. ET, Sunday)
