Cardinals rushes for a touchdown over the defense of the New England Patriots in the fourth quarter of the game at State Farm Stadium on December 15, 2024 in Glendale, Arizona.
The Arizona Cardinals ended a three-game losing streak with a decisive 30-17 win over the visiting New England Patriots on Sunday.
Arizona never trailed in the contest, led by as many as 20 points in the second half and is still in playoff contention with three regular-season games left to play.
Cardinals running back James Conner rushed for 110 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns, and quarterback Kyler Murray had 224 passing yards as the Cardinals tallied 395 yards of offense in the win.
Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye threw for 202 yards and had a passing touchdown to DeMario Douglas and a rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, but New England never cut the lead to under 13 in the fourth.
The Cardinals evened their record at 7-7 with the win, while the Patriots dropped to 3-11 with a fourth consecutive loss.
Cardinals end 3-game losing streak
After suffering through a three-game losing streak, the Cardinals needed a “get-right” game. This was it. They weren’t dominant, but they were good enough. It marked their first win since Nov. 10. Considering they led the NFC West on that date, it seems much longer.
The Cardinals won with big plays. Conner broke off a 53-yard run, his longest of the season, that led to a touchdown. (Even better, it was a big-man touchdown. Receiver Greg Dortch fumbled the ball into the end zone, where right tackle Jonah Williams jumped on it.) Dortch later caught a short pass, made a nifty move and ran for 39 yards. That led to a field goal.
Perhaps the best part for Arizona: After New England scored its first touchdown with 8 minutes left in the fourth quarter, pulling the Patriots to within 23-10, the Cardinals drove 70 yards, taking a 30-10 lead on Conner’s second touchdown. That’s what confident teams do at home.
The losing streak, which included two losses to division-leader Seattle, put the Cardinals in a difficult spot. To have a postseason chance, they cannot afford another misstep. Their remaining three games: at Carolina, at the Rams and home against San Francisco. — Doug Haller, Arizona senior writer
Another ugly loss for New England
This was an embarrassing showing for Jerod Mayo and his coaching staff. The Patriots had an extra week to prepare for the Cardinals while coming off the bye, yet returned to make the same mistakes that have plagued them all season. If anything, they looked worse. Right now, it’s a wholly uncompetitive team that badly needs to get to the offseason where they’ll have hopes of improving this mess of a roster. On Sunday, it never felt like they were a threat to actually win. It’s going to be a long final three weeks for a Patriots team that is in danger of posting a 3-14 record.
The Patriots knew they weren’t going to be a good team this season. But they wanted to be one that improved as the year went along and hoped they’d be a tough team to play against in December, the kind that even if their record wasn’t good, opponents wouldn’t want to play. If that was the goal, it’s been a massive failure. — Chad Graff, Patriots beat writer
Patriots offensive line struggles
This isn’t anything new, yet it was still especially noteworthy how bad the Patriots’ offensive line was. Sure, they’ve been a problem all season but Sunday was worse than most games for them even with a low bar.
As a unit, they were blown back on consecutive plays of third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 in the second half that could’ve led to the Patriots making it a one-score game in the third quarter. Individually, there were problems everywhere. Left tackle Vederian Lowe looked lost in giving up a sack, Layden Robinson was flagged for a holding penalty that wiped away a first down and stalled a drive that ended with a missed field goal, and center Ben Brown hiked multiple snaps to Maye’s feet that effectively ruined the plays.
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