Arizona Cardinals vs. San Francisco 49ers

That was a tough loss Monday night, but don’t worry, the 0-3 Niners are coming to town and, well, it’s the Niners…It feels early, yet accurate, to think that this will make or break the rest of the season. If we can pick ourselves up and learn from our mistakes, we can still salvage the possibility of a successful season.

San Francisco is coming off a loss, but a loss where they and the LA Rams put up the highest scoring game in Thursday Night Football history and, man, was it a nail biter. These Niners might be in rebuild mode, but that rebuild could move quicker than anticipated. Let’s preview this matchup in this edition of Talking Touchdowns where these two coaches, one the second youngest in the NFL and the other, the third oldest in the league, battle it out in the desert.

Offense

Here are my ones to watch on offense:

The Cardinals offense in three words: Offensive Line Woes. Last week against the Cowboys, the O-line gave up six sacks, 10 QB hits and nine tackles for losses. We aren’t going to win games with those types of numbers. Not only could the O-line not protect Carson Palmer, they didn’t even open holes so the Cards could get the running game started. Arizona rushed for a total of 49 yards. RB Andre Ellington ran for a total of 22 yards on five carries. YIKES. Thanks to WR Larry Fitzgerald for doing Larry type things. Fitz caught 13 for 149 and one TD.

Now, let’s talk the 49ers’ offense. First-year Niners Head Coach Kyle Shanahan isn’t just the head coach, but he’s also their offensive coordinator…Shanahan is only 37 years old. In fact, he is JUST 13 days older than our QB, Carson Palmer. Both of them turn 38 at the end of this season. This is the first time in Shanahan’s young career that he has been a head coach. He is coming off a season where he led the Falcons’ offense to the best offense in the NFL and a trip to the Super Bowl as their Offensive Coordinator for which he was recognized as the 2016 NFL Assistant Coach of the Year. But it all comes full circle with the 49ers, as he was their ball boy as a kid!

Shanahan and Co have some interesting weapons they can use on the field. One in particular is WR Pierre Garçon. Garcon has some of the best hands in the league. The 49ers picked up Garçon this season in free agency and he has come up clutch. In his last game against the Rams, he had not only one of the best catches I have seen this season, but also totaled 142 yards receiving. Make sure to watch that handsy receiver.

Defense

On defense, my ones to watch:

In week three, the Cardinals’ defense held the Cowboys to under 100 yards rushing and Dak Prescott to 183 passing yards. The defense has been the bright light on this team for three weeks. Safety Tyvonn Branch had 12 tackles against a talented Cowboys team. Let’s hope he can do it again against the 49ers.

For San Francisco on defense, watch out for linebacker NaVarro Bowman. Here’s why: #53 is a heat seeking missile from the linebacker position. The seven year veteran has 20 tackles on the season so far and has put together three seasons of over 100 tackles each. It’ll be his job to slow down the Cardinals’ running game.

Game Prediction

Sorry, 49ers fangirl, Tracy, I am going RedBirds all the way. Wisdom comes with age and I think BA has the tools to pull this one off. I’m going Cardinals 33-27. Go Cards!

[NFL-Cardinals-footer]

Photo Credits:

• 49ers Logo on wikimedia commons by San Francisco 49ers
• Arizona Cardinals on Wikimedia Commons by Moe Epsilon
• Carson Palmer on flickr by FF Swami
• Larry Fitzgerald on flickr by Brook Ward
• Kyle Shanahan photographed by Tracy Sandler
• Pierre Garcon photographed by Tracy Sandler
• Dak Prescott on flickr by Keith Allison
• Navorro Bowman on flickr by Terence White