Jacoby Brissett entered Week 4 as one of the NFL’s better quarterbacks on the road. In a single afternoon, that narrative imploded.
Brissett had everything working in his favor. On paper, the Arizona Cardinals looked like the better football team. And the Cardinals have enjoyed an incredible run when playing at MetLife Stadium.
Talk about a disappointing performance. While it takes a team effort to lose like that to an opponent that averaged 15.3 points per game heading into the contest, Brissett’s performance is worth zeroing in on.
The final stat line was painful. Brissett completed just 21 of 35 passes for 166 yards, 4.7 yards per pass, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. He ended the day with a 55.2 quarterback rating.
Brissett completed 14 of 25 passes to his favorite targets, Michael Wilson and Trey McBride, for 126 yards. Do the math, and Brissett went 7 of 10 for just 40 yards when throwing to everyone else.
McBride also totaled just 31 yards on the day, meaning Brissett finished 14 of 22 for 71 yards when not throwing to Wilson, who had 95 receiving yards. That’s not even four yards per pass attempt.
Jacoby Brissett’s Three Interceptions Derailed Cardinals’ Fast Start
Here’s where things got ugly for Brissett and the Cardinals: Arizona’s first 14 plays resulted in 132 yards and two touchdowns. That’s a remarkable 9.43 yards per play, and the fast start put Arizona up 14-3.
Arizona’s next five drives couldn’t have gone worse. Two resulted in an interception, and the other three ended with a punt. Brissett led the Cardinals offense that lost five yards in 14 plays in that span. Every drive that resulted in a punt ended in a three-and-out.
Arizona wouldn’t score again until late in the second quarter when Brissett finally helped break the offense out of its slump. His four-play, 33-yard drive ended in a field goal, cutting the Giants‘ lead to two points going into the half.
Brissett’s Entire Afternoon Was Full Of Highs And Mostly Lows
In the third quarter, it once again looked like Brissett broke out of his mini slump. He capitalized on a Jameis Winston interception and marched the Cardinals 37 yards for a touchdown when he hit tight end Elijah Higgins on a two-yard pass.
Over the next three drives, it was a grand total of 15 yards on 10 plays, all of which ended in a punt. Brissett didn’t get the Cardinals going again until late in the game, when it looked like he was going to pull off the inevitable.
Brissett methodically moved the Cardinals down the field, and an 18-yard pass-interference penalty put Arizona at the four-yard line. Then three straight incompletions led to a fourth-and-goal situation, and Brissett threw a game-sealing pick-six.
A remarkable road trend that involved some of the safest play among NFL quarterbacks on the road hit a speed bump in the most unceremonious way possible. At this point, Brissett finds himself at a crossroads, especially since the Cardinals have a rookie quarterback in Carson Beck sitting and waiting.
If Brissett doesn’t respond well to this adversity, it won’t be long before fans start shouting for Beck to step in. That said, it’s still early in the season. And Brissett can’t let one awful afternoon define his 2026 campaign. It’s up to him to bounce back from this one.
Jacoby Brissett Sees Remarkable Trend Collapse vs. Giants