The Arizona Cardinals made an improbable comeback in Sunday’s 33-30 win over the Cowboys. One backup running back had a career outing.
Tyler Allgeier entered the Cardinals-Cowboys matchup behind Jeremiyah Love and Bam Knight. Love was coming off an injury. Knight had put together spectacular play lately. With Allgeier slumping, it was no surprise to see Love and Knight get the nods.
But both went down with injuries early in the matchup. Love’s frustration hit a breaking point when he left the game with an ankle injury. That is now three times he has been hurt this season, when counting the preseason. Bam Knight left the game with a concussion, leaving Allgeier as the number-one running back for the rest of the contest.
His 63-yard touchdown run was one of the first dominoes to fall in Arizona’s come-from-behind win. But he wasn’t finished there, ultimately rushing for 147 yards on 11 carries, good for 13.4 yards per rush.
Allgeier later caught a touchdown pass from Gardner Minshew, who replaced Jacoby Brissett halfway through the contest. It was one of five catches for Allgeier, who ended the day with 44 receiving yards, 8.8 yards per catch, and a long of 17 yards.
Overall, Allgeier finished with 191 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns. While many will remember this game for Minshew leading Arizona’s victory, Allgeier deserves just as much credit.
Tyler Allgeier’s Performance Came Out Of Nowhere
Nobody had a high opinion of Allgeier before Sunday’s contest. Heading into the Cardinals‘ Week 8 matchup with the Cowboys, Allgeier had 176 rushing yards on 61 carries, good for just 2.9 yards per attempt. He also had one rushing touchdown.
He had 16 catches on 17 targets for 84 yards, 5.3 yards per catch, zero receiving touchdowns, and 260 yards from scrimmage. What makes this statistic remarkable is that Allgeier gained 191 yards from scrimmage against Dallas, just 69 fewer than he accumulated over his previous seven games combined.
This doesn’t mean Allgeier has finally broken out for the Cardinals. But it shows that he is better than what he has shown in an Arizona Cardinals uniform so far in 2026. It also shows how deep Arizona is at running back if its top options go down with injuries.
Cardinals Could See A Sea Of Change After Allgeier, Minshew Lead Comeback Win
At this point, the Cardinals are 3-5 and were certainly headed toward 2-6 if they decided to keep everything as is. Once again, Jacoby Brissett was having a rough outing, going 10-for-23 for 119 yards, an interception, and a 41.8 quarterback rating.
Early in the game, the Cardinals were leaning on Love, but the Cowboys keyed on him early and often. Before leaving the game, Love posted 23 yards on nine carries.
While Dallas wasn’t prepared for Allgeier and Minshew to take over the game, there is little doubt that the Cardinals will strongly consider them for their plans in upcoming contests. Even at 3-5 and facing a slew of injuries, the Cardinals are still playing good enough football to hang around in the early stages of the playoff race.
If they want to give themselves a chance to string together two wins in a row, rolling with Minshew while getting Allgeier more involved may be the better option.
Cardinals’ Unlikely Hero Nearly Matches Seven-Game Production in Win