Cardinals go into season 7-0, overtake Texans 31-5

Teasy end Zach Ertz was with Cardinals in just nine days and already has the longest touchdown catch in his nine-year career, flying 47 yards towards the end zone to put an exclamation point in Arizona. 31: 5 win over Houston Texans on Sunday…

With a wide grin, Ertz said it was a thrill to join the hottest team in the NFL. “I’ve never seen so much green grass in the middle of a field,” Erz said. “It will happen when you have DeAndre Hopkins and A.J. Green outside and a defender like Kyler. “

Cardinals scored 31 points unanswered remain the only undefeated NFL team to improve to 7-0 for the first time since 1974. The Texans (1-6) – who looked completely incomparable three-quarters – have lost six games in a row.

Arizona fell into an early hole 5-0 after a slow start to the attack, but recovered quickly and won easily. According to FanDuel, the Cardinals were the favorites with 20 points, which is a huge spread for an NFL game. “It was a game we had to win” Cardinals midfielder Isaiah Simmons said. “And we did.”

Kyler Murray completed 20 of 28 assists for 261 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. The interception was his first after the third week, but it was one of the rare bad moments on another solid day. James Conner added an 18-yard touchdown run. Ertz had three catches at 66 yards and a touchdown a week after being acquired from the Philadelphia Eagles in a trade.

It was the first time that Hopkins and JJ Watt had played against Houston, where both had grown to be stars before joining the Cardinals. Watt signed with Arizona this past offseason, while Hopkins was acquired by the Cardinals in exchange for an exchange in 2020. Both had good moments on Sunday. Hopkins caught a 1 yard touchdown in the second quarter, while Watt added a tackle for a loss.

The Texans took the lead 5-0 after a terrible start in attack for the Cardinals. Houston earned a safety and a 2-0 lead at the end of the first quarter when Murray tried to get out of the end zone and was fired by Jacob Martin. Murray was shocked by the game and briefly walked into the side medical tent for an assessment before returning for the next trip.

Houston Ka’imi Fairbairn added a 53-yard field play in the first game of the second quarter for a 5-0 lead. It was the high point for the Texans, who from that point on could do little. “We’re going to stay together,” said Texan coach David Callie. “This is the process we are going through. We don’t like where we are now. “

The Cardinals rushed to re-establish order, responding with two touchdowns and a pre-half-field shot with a 17-5 lead at half-time. The second touchdown was organized with a beautiful throw and catch from Murray to Green on the touchline. 41 yards at 3rd and 24th… Two games later, Murray found Christian Kirk for a 5-yard touchdown.

Trainer of the Cardinals Cliff Kingsbury returned to the game on Sunday after eight days of absence from the team due to a positive COVID-19 test. The 42-year-old, who was fully vaccinated, was released around 6:30 am Sunday morning, a few hours before the game. Kingsbury praised his assistant coaches, in particular Vance Joseph and Jeff Rogers, for keeping the Cardinals at the ready. “It’s a long week when you’re just sitting at home when you know these guys are working,” Kingsbury said.

TOUGH DAY

The Texans once again missed a touchdown, failing to find a home zone for the third time in four weeks. Rookie Davis Mills became the team’s starting quarterback 0-5. I completed 23 of 32 passes for 135 yards.

Houston’s defense started well, but gradually lost strength as the game progressed. Arizona had a 397-160 yard lead.

“Losing is always tough,” said Jonathan Greenard defensively. “You can’t find a single guy who likes to lose. Every loss that we can take from this. You cannot sit here and cry about it. It sucks, but we still have 10 games to play. We cannot sit and drown our sorrows. We lost. “

HELLO ERTS

Erts, who participated in the Olympiad three times, did an excellent job with his new team. Murray threw it over the middle to Ertz, but the ball ended up behind the narrow end, which extended his hand behind his body and with his left hand, and managed to stop the grab with one hand.

The crowd applauded after the catch and roared even louder when they realized it was Erts.

NEXT

The Texans will play the Rams next Sunday.

The Cardinals are rapidly changing positions and are hosting the Green Bay Packers Thursday night.