It was National Tight Ends Day on Sunday, and Trey McBride, as he does on game days holiday or not, was excellent. Again.
The All-Pro finished with 10 catches for 111 yards and a touchdown on Sunday, although it was in a loss to the Broncos. His score made it 20-13 in the third quarter, and it felt that maybe, just maybe, the Cardinals were going to find a way to put a bow on Larry Fitzgerald day and get a win.
But McBride alone can't make that happen (and don't get it twisted, McBride did drop a third-down pass and couldn't quite hang on to another big gainer, which isn't to say he was bad but simply imperfect.) That brings us to the Cardinals' final possession Sunday, the epitome of frustration of where the Cardinals are at the moment.
Twice Jacoby Brissett tried to find McBride again for a touchdown while at the Denver 1 beginning with two minutes left and a 14-point deficit. Twice, McBride earned pass interference flags to give the Cardinals a first-down reset. Five total snaps at the 1 only got those two penalties. On second down coach Mike LaFleur said "I got greedy" in his quest to save time (and perhaps get an onside kick recovery) and called a play-action pass.
Brissett was sacked at the 5. Two more passes fell incomplete.
"It was a stupid call," a frustrated LaFleur said.
The Broncos have a good defense, and as I'll get into later, beat the heck out of Brissett. The Cardinals still had 353 yards. They had no turnovers. But they just can't get into the end zone. There were five more red-zone trips Sunday, and McBride had the lone TD, after the 0-for-5 the week before.
The most frustrating thing about not scoring touchdowns? "Not scoring touchdowns," Brissett deadpanned. To do that "covers up a lot of things."
Maybe Jeremiyah Love returns next week against the Cowboys. Maybe playing in Dallas, where Brissett shined last season in a win, will help the finish. We know McBride will play well. But the Cardinals don't want him to be the whole story.
"I hate playing not good football more than I hate losing because good football usually can lead to wins," LaFleur said.
-- Brissett was drilled repeatedly by the Broncos. He was sacked three times and the Broncos were credited with 13 quarterback hits. He got up slowly more than once.
Not surprisingly, he shrugged it off afterward. "I feel like I was in a football game," Brissett said matter-of-factly, adding later, "(I'm) still standing."
-- Broncos edge rusher Nik Bonitto was credited with a career-high 13 pressures according to Next Gen Stats, often going against Cardinals rookie left tackle Jayden Williams.
-- The 62-yard touchdown run by Broncos QB Bo Nix was the longest by a quarterback since Justin Fields sprinted 76 in 2022, and topped Nix's career-best by 30 yards.
-- The Cardinals drew five pass interference penalties on the Broncos, three from McBride and two from Wilson, plays that don't show up on the stats. (Wilson had four catches for 55 yards).
"They are going to be huge reasons when this thing gets flipped," coach Mike LaFleur said.
-- Near-plays early. Kei'Trel Clark could've had an interception on the Broncos' first drive, but the play was essentially broken up by teammate Kalen King when King's momentum took him into Clark while Clark was trying to grab the ball. Running back Bam Knight ran a beautiful pattern and got a perfect pass from Brissett in the end zone, only to drop it. Instead of a 7-6 lead, the Cardinals got a field goal and trailed, 6-3.
Would those plays have turned the game? Maybe not. But they are examples of why LaFleur keeps calling the results a collective issue. There was something similar to open the second half when the Cardinals were down, 13-6, but moving the ball. A deep shot to Jalen Brooks could've drawn a pass interference but didn't, and then Blake Gillikin's punt was partially blocked and went just seven yards.
A few plays later, running back RJ Harvey scored on a 52-yard screen pass for the Broncos.
-- One more McBride: He surpassed 400 career catches on Sunday (406) and right now is on pace to smash the tight ends reception record in a season of 126 that he just set last season. I don't think McBride is going to be around long enough to catch Larry Fitzgerald's 1,432 catches, but you never know.
That's all for tonight.
