A big week for the Cardinals. They are coming off a huge win on the road against the Rams, and Larry Fitzgerald will be at Statet Farm Stadium on Sunday as he goes into the Ring of Honor and has his No. 11 retired. A mailbag seems ... not as important. But we press on! Don't forget to send a question for a future mailbag with at least a first name and last initial.

From Jake Mathers:

"I hope the biggest thing to come out of the win Sunday was the learning opportunity for Nick Rallis that Budda Baker is a box safety. He belongs near the LOS. If you put Budda in the open field he struggles. Charles Woodson also made late career adjustments to maximize strengths and minimize weaknesses. If the Cardinals have to be a blitz-heavy team going forward, so be it. But they shut down the best offense in the NFL. This defense found their winning formula, and I hope they stick to it come heck or high water."

Budda was excellent against the Rams, and he's been really good blitzing this season. Already with 3.5 sacks, his career-best, and we still have 11 games to go. But I'd also stress that every game is different, and while you can have a winning formula, it needs to have enough flexibility to adapt week to week. Yeah, that's a "duh" statement, but it will never be copy and paste.

From Frank R:

"Hi Darren. I have always enjoyed your consistent candor when discussing the team. My question is more of an observation. I have watched Jacoby Brissett for two seasons and it appears to me that he is slower, moves more sluggishly and his accuracy with 20-yard passes (sometime shorter) has gotten worse, not better. And, when was the last time he scrambled?
Is he adjusting to the new offense or has football age caught up with him?"

I am a little confused, Frank. Brissett was never a scrambler. "When was the last time he scrambled" feels like an odd ask; he's only going to scramble on the one-off play where somehow no one is near him. (He did scramble for a first down against the Chargers in Week 1, if I recall correctly.)

This isn't to attack Jacoby, but seriously that's hardly going to happen.

As for his accuracy, it doesn't seem a lot different to me. The new offense does matter; it feels like this one is asking for shorter throws more often. I don't think there is a considerable physical difference between Brissett 2025 and Brissett 2026.

From Paul Kim:

"Hi Darren, curious about snap counts and what they mean (also thanks for bringing that article back). Just one example: Roy Lopez was in for a season low against the Rams. I would argue Roy is one of our best players on defense. Why was he in for a season-low snaps? Was he dinged up? Was it a mismatch thing? A scheme thing? Because you don't see that fluctuation with guys like Trey.

"As an aside, I'll point out we brought in big Andrew Billings this offseason, and he was a game wrecker in the preseason, but now he barely plays. Prior to Sunday this team was giving up 30 per game. Why do we have good players riding the bench when things are going badly?"

If Billings plays, who does not? The Cardinals right now are fortunate enough to have a healthy defensive line (the Walter Nolen ankle TBD. Billings is a nose tackle. Lopez is a nose tackle. You are already concerned Lopez had fewer snaps, but you understand that if Billings is in, it is Lopez who would lose more playing time, right?

I've seen multiple people upset about Billings. But he signed a one year, $2.5 million contract. He signed to be depth, because Lopez, also a free-agent signee, was going to be the starter. As long as guys are healthy, there isn't much room for Billings. The coaches can see every day what they are using in games and what they have at their disposal.

From Ron K:

"I hate to complain on a victory Monday, but we need to discuss our red-zone woes. The inability to punch it in once they reach the 10-yard line is mind boggling. the thing that was pointed out on the radio was the hesitancy to throw it into the end zone. In the past few weeks I can't think of one occasion where a ball went to a receiver under the goal posts. Everything is on the perimeter and it's not working and that's the problem. If we were scoring, great, don't care how you do it. But we are not scoring."!

Let's be honest, Ron. You don't hate to complain. It was clearly easy to do so!

Red zone is a problem, and it was really bad Sunday. They are lucky that 0-fer didn't bite them. That said, the Cardinals know this. I can't speak to why the end zone shots are going where they are going as opposed to somewhere else in the end zone (like under the goal posts.) I think it's a killer they can't seem to generate a consistent run game that close to the goal line.

But again, you (or anyone else) isn't bringing up something that is an unknown. "When we got inside the 20, obviously we know that's not sustainable," LaFleur said Monday. "We can't kick six field goals and expect to win football games, but I think those are — I don't want to call them easy fixes because there are no easy fixes, but we'll clean that up."

From Kyle Paxton:

"Hi Darren, Craig and Dani. Really have enjoyed listening to Cardinals Underground. Thanks for the entertaining show every week.

"I wanted to get your thoughts on Jacoby Brissett and the red zone. The team seems to be able to pull off sustained long drives down the field but when they are in the red zone they can't convert. Large amount of the blame I see online is about Jacoby and the play-calling. But it doesn't make sense to me that he is able to drive it down the field as well as he did on Sunday but then have consistent issues in the red zone. What factors do you think are playing a part?"

Let's be clear that defending a team between the 20s and doing it in the red zone -- and of course, calling plays to defeat those defenses -- are different. Once you are in the red zone, the threat of a deep pass is gone, because there is no "deep" there. Defenses can play tighter without that fear. You have to be able to grind out yards with the run game, and the Cardinals have struggled to do that. They are now 11 for 23 in the red zone after going 0-for-5 against the Rams.

"There are a lot of factors that go into it," LaFleur said. "Defenses change. You have to figure out where their cutoff is. Is it the 15-yard line? Is it the 12-yard line? When are some of those field pressures going to stop showing up and when are they going to start bringing some of the red zone pressures? There's a cat-and-mouse game to it as well, but ultimately when we get in there, we just have to finish the job."

From Kevin Tobey:

"Striking that right balance between veteran stability and rookie development is always a tightrope walk, especially when you look back at how franchise trajectories are completely altered by who is under center (the Warner and Palmer eras are prime examples of how a steady hand changes the entire culture). ​Giving Carson Beck the room to sit, learn, and adjust to the speed of the NFL without getting fed to the wolves early makes a lot of sense -- patience with young quarterbacks usually pays off in the long run."

That's the approach LaFleur wants to take at this point. Had the Cardinals lost to the Rams, that would've made it more difficult to continue to stick with that plan. But the Carson Beck conversation has been talked to death. Those who want to see Beck now are not going to change their minds, and those who see it the way you do likely won't either. Nothing has changed how I see this -- depending on the Cardinals' record in a month or so, I don't see Beck anytime soon but I would figure he'll get in at some point.

From John Tharp:

"One question and a statement. With all the three-TE sets the Cards are using, any word on Tip Reiman's return? He would certainly help the run blocking. Second, to let anyone interested know, I did get my Reiman jersey back from the team with a nice new autograph. The Cards did the right thing for a fan! They made a fan for life and they are also 1-0 when I wear the jersey on gameday. Please pass my 'thank you' to everyone involved!"

Tip seems to be coming up weekly. Unfortunately, there is no hint that he is about to practice. Doesn't mean that one of these Wednesdays we'll see the practice window open up, although in his case, he might need a couple of weeks of practice before he might be put back on the roster.

I am glad you were able to get the jersey signed, however. Always appreciate the feel-good story.

From Robert Malicki:

"Dear Darren. What gives with the inability to retain high first-round draft picks? It does seem there are far more Thomas Jones and Kyler Murray and now Marvin Harrison, Jr. misses than Larry Fitzgerald or Leonard Davis hits? Are the Cardinals viewed as just a waystation until these players can get outta Dodge? Regardless of our first round draft position I advocate for picking for mainly maturity, playing for at least three but preferably four years of college play and only lineman. There must be more certainty in the immediate impact of those first-rounders and their willingness to stay long-term unlike whatever happened with Marvin."

Well I don't know if you are talking about hitting on a successful first-round pick or keeping them around. I suspect the former, even though you said retain. I mean, Kyler played longer with the Cardinals (seven seasons) than Big Leonard (six). I'm also going to argue Kyler was a good pick. Just not a great one.

But yes, you need MHJ and Isaiah Simmons and Josh Rosen and Thomas Jones (who was a good pick, just not with the Cardinals) and Jonathan Cooper, etc., to be better.

If you are talking about keeping your good first-rounders, I mean, they kept Patrick Peterson and Fitz and D.J. Humphries and even Zaven Collins. You look through those first-rounders, and Haason Reddick popped his last year and got away, but I'm not sure who else you wanted to keep around?

From Ryan Redbird:

"Hi Darren. With all the chaos going on with the Cardinals (last week) folks maybe didn't notice a certain historic feat occurred on Sunday. Our beloved Calais Campbell set the all-time games record for a DL at 283. Big kudos to him. I'm certain it's worthy of an article from you, and hopefully someday a ROH induction by the team. That's all, thanks!"

Yes, in Week 5, Calais Campbell set that games played record with the Ravens against the Falcons. Then this past weekend, he got a sack, albeit in a loss. I don't think there is going to be another Calais story; I hit those notes last year when he played one more year with the Cardinals. But I think he should be in the Hall of Fame one day, and I hope to be there for that.

From Chris P:

"Hi Darren, first of all let me set the table that I'm a Jacoby Brissett guy. Even bought his jersey at the preseason game. He's not a franchise star, but he can get the ball where it needs to be without turning it over. That's a success benchmark for a competent QB.

"My question is about the offensive line, particularly vs Detroit where they kept breaking through, protection failed, and Jacoby is not great under pressure. I don't think we have a player problem, especially with so many OL starters out for the year, but we have no changes being made at the play-calling level. That's probably where I'd look to make changes. Why not?"

I'm not sure what "play-calling" changes you are looking for. One of the stories out the Giants game was specifically about calling plays where the running back stayed in to block to help that offensive line.

It feels like this mailbag is less about questions but more about people wanting to opine. The Cardinals need to be better in the red zone. They know that. They need the quarterback and offense to be more consistent. They know that too. I know this -- LaFleur likes to keep things in-house, and he talks about that frequently. We're not going to get many of the details publicly.

From Bo H:

"Thanks for your time and wisdom for the mailbag. Been a diehard Big Red fan since the early 80's. I live in the St. Louis area since forever and I still live and die with my Cardinals every year. I believe we do have a lot of talent, but injuries have just killed us the last few years.  Who should we prioritize in bringing back our own free agents in 2027? I would love to see them bring back Stills, Mack Wilson, Higgins, Garrett Williams, Gaines, Wingard, and Zaven Collins. I do believe Carson Beck will be our franchise QB so if we don't have to spend a 1st on a QB next year, just think with three picks in the top two rounds could make a world of difference."!

We are so early on some of these questions. I am not sure they are going to be certain of what Beck is by the end of this season, so I don't know if they will know if he truly could be the franchise QB. As for all the other guys, we will see. Gaines has played well as has Higgins, but on defense, I am curious to see how the defense is evaluated by LaFleur after the season and what that may mean for any changes.

From Nick Bennett:

"Why did Marvin Harrison fail with the Cardinals? To me, honestly, I have more questions than answers about his entire time with this team. This trade tells me one thing about this football team, and it is concerning. We don't draft well."

Why Harrison didn't work out is a layered question. I think Harrison is a good kid, but I also think regardless of what he would say, it was not easy for him to be the son of a legendary wide receiver and then end up on a team where they were still looking to replace a legendary wide receiver. He had two Hall of Famers to whom he was always going to be compared.

I think he never found a comfortable spot in Drew Petzing's offense. I think he never really fit what Mike LaFleur was looking for in this offense. I think when he was compared to Michael Wilson, Wilson did a lot of things better that coaches love: physical play, blocking, that sort of thing. Not that MHJ wouldn't, but Wilson was better. And obviously Harrison had his ups and downs in terms of consistently catching the ball.

It didn't help him that Jacoby Brissett had a connection with Wilson and Trey McBride that grew as Harrison had to sit out with multiple injuries last season. His father also publicly made clear he didn't love his son being in Arizona, and it's hard to believe he wasn't saying the same to Junior.

It was time for a fresh start for both. Similar to why it was time to move from Kyler.

From Ted Beck:

"Hey, Darren, as always thanks for the mailbag. Since you answered a couple of travel questions last week, I thought I could also ask a different kind of question. Since most NFL games are on Sundays, do NFL teams (and the Cardinals specifically) provide religious services on Sunday mornings? For example, do the Cardinals arrange for a priest to say Mass for its Catholic players, coaches, staff, etc.? What about other denominations? What about when they are on the road? Thanks!"

I believe they do have a Mass on Sundays before games. That includes road games and at the team hotel before home games. Not sure if it is a priest; for many years, it was former Cardinal Anthony Edwards, who was a pastor who also served as director of player engagement.

From Phillip Gilliam:

Darren: I hate ties. I've always hated ties. When do you think the NFL will get tired of regular season ties and go to some sort of simple tie-breaker like the college game?

To be fair, Phillip, if it weren't for the malfeasance of the Commanders, you wouldn't have even thought of this, right?

But since the NFL has been around since 1920, and there have been ties that whole time, I am guessing ties will not go away.