Jacoby Brissett may have statistically enjoyed a good game, helping the Arizona Cardinals claw their way back in a tough Week 3 matchup. Arizona may have come up short, but Brissett’s numbers, for the most part, looked impressive on paper.
Despite his two touchdown passes, 38 completions, and 98.2 quarterback rating, Brissett threw for fewer yards than San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, even if Purdy completed just 15 passes.
Brissett managed just 280 yards through the air and 5.4 yards per pass attempt. Meanwhile, Purdy notched 297 passing yards, four touchdown passes, and an astounding 11.0 yards per attempt.
Do the math: Purdy threw for 17 more passing yards despite completing 23 fewer passes.
Brissett and the Cardinals‘ offense struggled to get anything going until 3:02 left in the third quarter, when he linked up with Michael Wilson for a touchdown pass. From there, Brissett led the Cardinals on a comeback trail, cutting their deficit to two at one point. But it wasn’t enough, and San Francisco walked away with the win.
Jacoby Brissett Struggled, But This Isn’t All On Him
When a quarterback throws for 297 yards on just 15 completions, that’s a blemish on the pass defense. Arizona entered its Week 3 matchup ranked 13th in passing defense with 406 passing yards allowed, but they let Purdy rip them apart for four quarters.
The Cardinals never sacked Purdy. And the defense’s nightmarish afternoon started early when the 49ers pulled off a show-stopping play. Purdy completed a pass to Mike Evans, who lateraled to Deebo Samuel, who scored easily.
Evans would also find the end zone on a 23-yard pass from Purdy. Purdy followed that up with two touchdown passes to tight end George Kittle for 10 and 20 yards, respectively, putting an exclamation point on the Cardinals’ defense’s forgettable outing.
Brissett Must Start Playing More Consistent Football
Despite Arizona’s defense struggling to keep up with Purdy, Brissett must start producing more if he wants to keep his starting job locked in. Brissett entered Sunday’s game with just 372 passing yards and 5.7 yards per pass attempt, which are very mediocre numbers.
While nobody is expecting him to enjoy game-breaking performances, Brissett has too much talent surrounding him to put up such inconsistent play. Trey McBride is one of the NFL’s best tight ends, and Michael Wilson is solidifying himself as one of the more under-the-radar pass-catchers. If anything, Brissett should easily hover around his career yards-per-attempt average of 6.6.
Things may not be so easy in Week 4 when the Cardinals square off against the New York Giants. New York held Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward to just 181 passing yards and 5.0 yards per attempt. Brissett and the Cardinals offense must find a way to get on the same page for 60 minutes if they want to avoid a repeat of what happened on Sunday.
Likewise, the passing defense must figure out ways to stop opposing offenses before they get hot. New York (18 points in the previous two games) will give them that opportunity next Sunday. It will be interesting to see if the Cardinals are up for the challenge and are ready to put the last two weeks behind them.
Wild Jacoby Brissett Stat Sums Up Cardinals’ Loss to 49ers