Not that there was much hope for the divisional crown,
but if they were to have a shot at an NFL Wildcard berth, the Cards would
have to keep pace with both the Rams (8-4) and the Panthers (8-4). This
would mean the club would have to have its most productive December in
recent memory. Only to add to that challenge was the fact that RB
Edgerrin James would miss at least another two
games with the possibility of being out for the entire month. The good news
was that at least Arizona could still play their way into postseason without
much outside help, not to mention that they held several
three-way-tiebreaker advantages over St. Louis.
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Seahawks had not
been just lucky in attaining their .833 winning percentage for the first 3
quarters of the season – they had earned it. This fact showed early and
often. The Seahawks wasted no time in getting on the board. After taking
over at their own 26 yardline, QB Matt
Hasselbeck found RB Shaun Alexander on a quick
middle screen. LB Karlos
Dansby had a bead on him initially, but was nearly
juked out of his shoes on a nifty move by
Alexander, who proceeded untouched into the Arizona
endzone.
The Seattle defense found the confines just as
friendly as their offensive teammates, making life miserable for QB Kurt Warner and RB Marcel Shipp all game long. It was evident that it would be a
long day from the beginning. After starting at their own 12, the Redbird
offense could get nothing going. Shipp was stopped in his tracks by a slew
of Seahawks on the first play from scrimmage, losing 3 yards in the process.
Warner faced even worse punishment as the offensive line was manhandled by
the Seattle front four and was easily the most porous it had been all
season. On his first two attempts, Warner was sacked, the second only inches
away from being a safety.
Even the Seahawks special teams turned the screws on
their Arizona counterparts, as they did not allow a return of any kind
longer than 12 yards. In fact, of the 4 first half kickoffs fielded by
Arizona, none crossed the 15 yard line. On the other side, the Seahawks’
return men averaged 27 yards per punt return for the game. It was painfully
obvious that the division leaders were in total control for the duration of
the contest.
The second half began with a 24-3 Seattle
lead and quickly got worse. On the same play that saw Kurt Warner leave yet
another game with injury, WR Anquan
Boldin turned his ankle and had to be helped off
the field. Although Boldin expressed his desire
to have returned later in the game, the ever-cautious Cardinal medical staff
put him on ice and listing him as day-today. Warner, who was still dropping
back when CB Marcus Trufant laid into him with a
vicious helmet-to-helmet hit. The Cardinals, who picked up 15 yards on the
personal foul, inserted QB Matt Leinart into the
fire. All things considered, he performed well, going 14-25 for 186 yards
for 2 TDs and perhaps more importantly, no INT.
The game actually turned into a “futures” contest
after the Seattle first-team offensive unit was pulled in the 4th,
leading 37-10. RB J.J. Arrington replaced Shipp, who figures to be putting in
more time than expected due to the delay of James’ return. Arrington showed
some moves as well, putting up 65 yards on 8 carries in the 4th
quarter. The silver lining in this decidedly dark cloud is that not only did
Arizona have a chance to see their players of the future, but those players
shined.
Cardinals lose 37-17.
On Tap:
Things get no easier for the Cardinals, whose record
now sits at 7-6, as they host another division leader. The Denver Broncos
march into town next, riding a 5-game winning streak and ruling the AFC West
with a 10-3 record. QB Jake Plummer will return to Arizona to play his first
game in the stadium that many believe would have kept him in town. Arizona
will have no time to reminisce, however as they now have their collective
back against the wall in regards to playoff chances. They will need a win to
even pretend to remain in the race as both St. Louis and Carolina were
victorious last week, pushing the Redbirds two games from the last playoff
spot.