Cardinals slip again in TD Wire power rankings after loss to Patriots

This was a gut-punch loss for the Arizona Cardinals.

Their afternoon in Foxboro, Massachusetts could not have gotten out to a better start. They deferred after winning the coin toss and let the New England Patriots offense get first crack at possession. On a 3rd and 6 situation they blitzed Cam Newton and got home, impacting the throw which was intercepted.

They scored in three plays to take an early 7-0 lead.

Then when the Patriots stalled and punted on their second possession, the Cardinals marched into field goal range after starting on their own three-yard line, and settled for a field goal. Still, it was an impressive drive and they now had a ten-point lead.

This game perhaps turned on the final play of the first half. The Cardinals faced a 4th and goal inside the one with a 10-7 lead. Remember, they would be getting the second half kickoff. Kliff Kingsbury kept his offense on the field envisioning a potential 14-point swing with the double dip. But running back Kenyan Drake was stopped short of the end zone, and the Patriots defense held.

In the second half, the Patriots scored the next 14 points to get out to a 17-10 lead. But the Cardinals still had chances to win, especially after picking off Newton late in the fourth quarter. However, Zane Gonzalez pushed a field goal wide to the right that would have given the Cardinals a three-point lead late, and then the Patriots were able to win on the game’s final play with a field goal of their own. That was enabled by Isaiah Simmons hitting Newton helmet-to-helmet, giving the Patriots 15 free yards.

After climbing to the top of the NFC West with Seattle and the Rams, the Cardinals have now lost two straight games. What might be most worrisome is how their offense looked on Sunday, as they were not in sync for most of the contest. They’ll need to get back on track — and in a hurry — if they’re going to make the playoffs.