Arizona Cardinals vs Miami Dolphins

After winning their Monday Night matchup and making their cross-country journey to Miami, the Cardinals must win again soon or risk falling into a two-game losing streak.

De’Von Achane quickly put the Dolphins on the board as he ran for 47 yards on their opening drive from scrimmage.

Arizona’s Offense

Kyler Murray has given the Cardinals an enormous boost on offense, and their top players are beginning to click. James Conner’s rushing yardage has increased significantly and other areas of play are beginning to come together more. Though far from perfect, they remain an unpredictable scoring threat every time they take possession.

First quarter punts by both teams gave way to Miami’s long drive that culminated in Jason Sanders’ 53-yard field goal. Tagovailoa completed passes to Hill and Jaylen Waddle during this drive, while Mikel Ingold added two yards on a run-pass option play. On third down quarterback Tim Tagovailoa went deep for Hill but Fuller came through with an amazing pass breakup play to keep Miami moving downfield.

On Arizona’s next possession, their runner was stopped on first down and they settled for a 30-yard field goal – but on their next play an exception occurred as an Arizona receiver ran an open Y-Cross route and caught Murray’s 25-yard pass for their game-opening touchdown!

After halftime, Arizona held the Dolphins to just a field goal before its running attack kicked back into gear with Murray connecting with Hill for another big play – this time 22 yards on a deep downfield pass – followed by another big gainer for McBride (12).

Arizona then managed to burn some time during their final drive of the half, as Conner ran twice for six yards while being hit hard by safety Jevon Holland in a blitz, followed by Murray throwing a 6-yard touchdown pass to tight end Michael Wilson despite Holland being injured on this play. It displayed what this offense can achieve when given full playback – with versatile runners like Conner, an electric receiving corps led by Hill and McBride as receivers, coupled with an established offensive line, Arizona can become serious contenders come 2023.

Miami’s Defense

After one of the more dispiriting finishes to a game this season, nearly 15 minutes after Arizona stole victory with an overtime field goal by Chad Ryland as time ran out, their defensive half of the locker room had nearly emptyened out. Those that did remain were left wondering what had transpired over those final five minutes that allowed Chad Ryland’s 36-yard kick to give Arizona an unexpected win.

Miami wasn’t terrible on defense, but their unit failed to prevent Arizona from scoring and could not contain their powerful running game led by James Conner. Miami had high hopes this season of becoming an elite offensive team behind their young quarterback, physical running back, and ascendant tight end – yet these dreams came crashing down with this loss.

After starting with three and out on their opening possession, the Cardinals embarked on a 12-play drive covering 40 yards and including two third down conversions. A key play on that drive was Murray completing a 17-yard pass to McBride near midfield; McBride managed to avoid Ogbah while fooling safety Marcus Maye before making the catch.

At Miami 47-yard line on 3rd-and-10, another big play came on an attempted run designed for Tagovailoa but sent over his head by an off-target snap that far enough for Murray to gain safety.

On Miami’s next possession, their drive was derailed by a sack and forced punt before the Cardinals quickly scored through an explosive 25-yard reception by Marvin Harrison Jr. against Jalen Ramsey on a deep crossing route for a touchdown reception.

The third quarter belonged to the Cardinals. On Murray’s first play of the second half, Harrison ran all the way into the corner of the end zone where he beat Jalen Ramsey for a go-ahead touchdown and two-point conversion was blocked due to Davone Bess’ recovery of an onside kick fumble recovered by Davone Bess in the end zone. The Cardinals then scored again to gain momentum heading into halftime.

Tua Tagovailoa vs. Kyler Murray

Tua Tagovailoa and Kyler Murray, two of the finest quarterbacks in the league, will surely make for an exciting battle at quarterback this week. Both accomplished passers-Tua Tagovailoa finished first and second last season in terms of passing yards respectively; Murray adds another dimension with his running game that makes him more appealing in fantasy leagues.

Early in his Dolphins’ tenure, he demonstrated his elusiveness by effortlessly dodging defenders in the backfield and finding receivers deep downfield for big gains. This made his defense nervous; this allowed him to buy time with his feet to find wideouts with big gains on them.

Murray opened up the second quarter by connecting with tight end Marvin Harrison Jr. for a 37-yard run-pass option hitch gain, before striking gold with McBride for 22 yards via pass and run-pass option hitch combination play and an on-target third down diving catch by Gannon that required his challenge for overturning an incomplete call.

Murray led his Cardinals downfield after Miami missed their field goal attempt and found McBride for another 23-yard gain, as well as finding him again for another second-and-goal conversion at the Miami 3-yard line.

Calais Campbell launched an aggressive blitz against Tagovailoa on the next play, but his scramble and throwing error weren’t expensive, avoiding either a sack or turnover. Tagovailoa’s ability to minimize impactful pass rushes while giving receivers room for explosive plays is one reason why his presence makes such an impactful impact on Dolphins offense.

With seven minutes remaining in the game, Murray once more broke through Miami’s defense for a 70-yard drive capped off by running back James Conner’s two-yard touchdown run. A missed two-point conversion kept the score tied at 20-18 until Miami fumbled and Arizona capitalised, leading Chad Ryland to nail a 34-yard go-ahead field goal as time expired – giving Arizona its first win in Week 3 since 2021.

Marvin Harrison Jr. vs. Trey McBride

Marvin Harrison Jr. made headlines following his impressive first quarter against the Rams in Week 2, drawing praise from Arizona Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing as well as fantasy owners alike. But since that initial window passed, his production has drastically declined — something which has drawn notice of quarterback Kyler Murray, Gannon, and Petzing alike.

Harrison has done well catching the ball, yet his target volume hasn’t matched his skills. For example, he ranks second on his team for receptions on go balls and fades, but only ninth for targets on in-breaking routes such as comebacks and curls. Harrison also struggles with his route running abilities when given man coverage on over half his routes.

So it makes sense for Arizona’s offense to want more from Harrison moving forward, and it seems likely he will if he finds his rhythm with the team. Gannon seemed especially enthusiastic about his rookie during an appearance on Rise Up, See Red podcast this week.

Given that the team lacks significant depth at wide receiver, Harrison and McBride should rack up yards in a high-volume passing attack – making the over on their combined yardage an effective wager.

In 2024, even though the Cardinals may not be contending for any division titles, that doesn’t mean their offense won’t pass a lot. McBride and Harrison could combine for over 2,250 yards each week on offense – an outcome which would guarantee bettors who take over on this prop a profitful payout. Click here to start betting on sports events like this and other fast, easy, fun ways! You could earn up to $200 bonus bets.