In a long stretch of success that has spanned 13 games and much of a year, the Arizona Cardinals have sent more pulses racing following the Cardiac Cardinals' latest 24-21 overtime win over visiting Miami at on Sunday. The Dolphins brought relentless pressure on the cobbled-together Arizona offensive line, sacking Kevin Kolb eight times, and rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill appeared cool, calm and collected. Until, that is, the Cardinals turned up the heat. They flustered the Miami offense down the stretch, collected two game-tilting turnovers and pulled out just the latest overtime win as they stayed perfect at 4-0.
Offense: C+
Cameron Wake had 4.5 sacks on a generally overmatched Arizona offensive line, and the Cardinals gave up eight sacks total. With the Dolphins on attack mode, Arizona failed to adjust in the running game, managing just 28 yards. And Kolb was far from accurate, missing some key throws and looking harried by the Miami pass rush. But in the game's tensest moments, the Arizona offense rose to the occasion. Particularly Kolb, whose pass to Andre Roberts for the game-winning touchdown and whose third-and-8 completion to Early Doucet set up the game-winning field goal.
Previous game's grade: B+
Defense: B
The grade might seem a little forgiving, considering the Miami offense totaled 480 yards and Ryan Tannehill looked like Dan Marino at times. But when it counted most, the Arizona defense rose to the occasion. The Cardinals forced a fumble in the closing minutes of regulation, which led to the game-tying touchdown. Then Kerry Rhodes picked off Tannehill in overtime to set up a game-winning field goal. All that makes up for the utter ineptitude in the coverage of Brian Hartline, who set a Miami record with 253 receiving yards, including an 80-yard touchdown.
Previous game's grade: A+
Special teams: B+
In gut-check games, it often comes down to two things: turnovers and field position. The Arizona defense took care of the first; Dave Zastudil took care of the second. Zastudil put three balls inside the 20-yard line, averaged 48.3 yards per punt spread across nine punts, and generally kept the Cardinals in good enough field position to control their own fate. Oh, and there's Jay Feely, who smashed the game-winning field goal and continues to be automatic for Arizona.
Previous game's grade: B+
Coaching: B
If we're able to give out two coaching grades, one for the first 55 minutes and one for the last 12, it'd probably be a D and an A+++. The Cardinals were beaten up, bruised and thoroughly bullied for much of the game, particularly up front, and Arizona seemed unable to stop it. The Cardinals' all-but-abandoned a lagging running game sorely missing Beanie Wells, failed to cover the seams and it appeared that Arizona was heading to its first loss. A handful of game-saving plays later, and Ken Whisenhunt resumes genius status, if only for convincing his defense that it is the best in the NFL.
Previous game's grade: A+
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