Week 9 of the NFL season has concluded, bringing even more unpredictability to an already crazy season. This week will be even more uncertain with Tuesday’s trade deadline (and perhaps another major American event happening on Nov. 5, 2024).
Without further delay, let’s look at the latest NFL Team of the Week, the Arizona Cardinals.
Second-Year Man Has a Good Season
Emari Demercado is a second-year player from TCU who is having an impressive sophomore season with the Cardinals. In a game against a solid Chicago Bears defense, he recorded four carries for 59 yards and scored his first touchdown of the 2024 season. Currently, Demercado ranks 15th among running backs in yards per carry and averaged 14.8 yards per rush in this past game alone.
EMARI DEMERCADO 53-YARD TD!
📺: #CHIvsAZ on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/B7dXbOt3Fu— NFL (@NFL) November 3, 2024
Pass Rush was Feasting
The Cardinals’ pass rush had a field day against Chicago quarterback Caleb Williams and the Bears’ offensive line, recording six sacks. The team went as the famous Oprah Winfrey quote goes, “You get a sack! You get a sack! You get a sack!” Kyzir White had half a sack, Zaven Collins tallied two sacks, Xavier Thomas took down Williams, L.J. Collier added another half-sack, Jesse Luketa contributed one sack, and Dante Stills finished it off with half a sack.
With these six sacks, Caleb Williams now holds the lead for being the most-sacked quarterback this season. The Arizona Cardinals made the Bears’ offensive line appear like the meme of the apathetic security guard simply going through the motions.
Lazy security guard pic.twitter.com/68NYXSXPSP
— reaction memes ➡️ @VideoReacts (@VideoReacts) November 19, 2019
Punting Makes a Difference
The punter position is often overlooked, but it plays a significant role in the game, especially since the NFL has changed the rules regarding kicking and punting. A team having a reliable punter, like Blake Gillikin, can be tremendous, especially during a game where field position plays such a large role. In this game alone, Gillikin recorded four punts for 187 yards, averaging 46.8 yards per punt. Notably, three of his punts were inside the 20-yard line, which is impressive.
Upcoming Schedule
The Cardinals’ schedule for November is as follows:
In Week 10, they will face the New York Jets at 4:25 p.m. This could be a challenging game for the Cardinals if the Jets’ offense performs well.
Following the Jets game, Arizona will have a bye week to recover and prepare for an important divisional matchup against the Seattle Seahawks. This game is crucial for the Cardinals if they want to compete for the NFC West division title, which is currently up for grabs.
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