The Arizona Cardinals are 2-5 through just seven weeks of football, and while stats don't always tell the story, it does sprinkle in some context into how a team is performing.
Take for example their latest red zone struggles, which has stalled their offense and overall ability to win games to begin the regular season. Seven weeks is more than enough to gather data and establish a foundation of what a football team is.
While there's a few good things the Cardinals are doing at this point in time, there's several categories where Arizona ranks near the bottom of the league — if not completely alone at No. 32.
Seven alarming stats the Cardinals have to fix, fast:
Average Offensive QB Time in Pocket: 1.8 (32nd)
What it means: The average time quarterbacks spend in the pocket before throwing or moving out.
Why it matters: Jacoby Brissett is getting the ball out at incredibly fast rates, which does keep turnovers and sacks down to a minimum. However, this usually means teams aren't able hit big plays down the field and are often only hitting the first read... which is exactly what Arizona's offense has evolved into with Brissett under center.
Defensive Line QB Pressure Rate: 24.7% (32nd)
What it means: The percentage in which the defensive line is pressuring a quarterback on dropbacks.
Why it matters: The Cardinals have seemingly only been able to manufacture sacks and pressure from exotic looks or blitzes from defensive coordinator Nick Rallis. Great defenses can rush four and drop seven, and Arizona has tried that with little success for far too long. This number only suffers the more time Walter Nolen III misses due to injury.
Offensive Yards After Catch Per Reception: 3.9 (32nd)
What it means: The average amount of yards a pass catcher gains after a reception.
Why it matters: If the Cardinals can't hit deep plays down the field, they have to rely on receivers making defenders miss after the catch — which hasn't happened. While Arizona has strong options in Trey McBride and Michael Wilson, neither are exactly known for making defenders miss in the open field. The Cardinals need a spark in their WR room.
Offensive Explosive Play Rate: 3.3% (32nd)
What it means: The percentage of explosive plays an offense has. Ten yards for a rush and 20 yards through the air qualifies.
Why it matters: The Cardinals have been forced to dink-and-dunk their way during drives, failing to hit a big play more than any other team in the league. Arizona can't take the top off the defense, make defenders miss after the catch, or block well enough to spring big plays. This falls on a mix of execution and scheme from head coach Mike LaFleur.
Scores Allowed on Defensive Drives Percentage: 46.7% (Tied for 29th)
What it means: The percentage of drives a defense allows the offense to score on.
Why it matters: The Cardinals' defense is allowing some sort of score on nearly half of their drives, operating in true feast or famine territory. Arizona's defense has unfortunately met low expectations this season by allowing the most amount of points through seven weeks at 208, which is 29.7 points per game. It's basically a coin flip to see if an offense will score against Rallis' unit, and that's not good.
Defensive Pressure Percentage: 18.3% (29th)
What it means: The percentage of plays where the defense pressures a quarterback on a passing attempt.
Why it matters: Arizona simply isn't getting to the quarterback. Whether it be their defensive line as highlighted above, outside linebackers or whoever else, opposing offenses aren't being pressured nearly close enough by Arizona's defense to make an impact. Rallis is solid at generating blitzes to manufacture pressure, he just isn't aggressive enough.
Offensive Run Stuff Rate: 20.9% (28th)
What it means: How often a rushing attempt is stopped at or behind the line of scrimmage.
Why it matters: The Cardinals can't run the ball. For what reason remains to be seen, though missing starters along the offensive line doesn't help while LaFleur hasn't found the recipe for success in terms of scheme. Bam Knight's found some success while Tyler Allgeier has been disappointing. Would love to see what Jeremiyah Love can do when he's fully healthy.
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