The Arizona Cardinals finally finished a game. The Cardinals entered the fourth quarter on Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys with a 17-point lead and went on to secure their third win of the season.
Things got a little dicey after the Cowboys scored a touchdown and regained possession, trailing by 10 points with seven minutes remaining, but the Cardinals’ defense stepped up, and Arizona got the job done.
With the win, the Cardinals keep their playoff hopes alive and revive any remaining hope for the 2025 season. Here are three things that went well on Monday night.
What Went Well For the Cardinals?
The Cardinals’ offense was clicking once again with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback, but the defense stepped up big. The Cardinals held one of the best offenses in the NFL to 17 points.
1) Welcome to the NFL, Walter Nolen III
The Cardinals drafted Nolen with the 16th-overall pick and have big expectations for him.
The rookie defensive lineman suffered an injury in rookie training camp and missed the first seven games of the season. However, Nolen made his NFL debut on Monday night and put on a show on national television.
It started with a tackle for loss on the Cowboys’ first offensive possession, and it felt like every time there was a big play on defense, Nolen was somehow involved.
The Cardinals’ rookie finished his NFL debut with four tackles, two TFLs, a sack, and a pass defended. Nolen was all over the place and did so against Cowboys’ left guard Tyler Smith, who’s a two-time Pro-Bowler.
2) Turnovers, Turnovers, Turnovers
The Cardinals ranked No. 22 in the NFL with seven turnovers forced this season, according to PFSN’s Defense Impact.
However, Arizona forced three turnovers on Monday night, which is nearly half of their season total to date. The Cardinals also forced two additional fumbles that the Cowboys recovered.
Arizona had four different players force fumbles, including cornerbacks Will Johnson and Garrett Williams. Linebacker Mack Wilson also forced a fumble, and when he left the game with a rib injury, Cody Simon, who came into the game questionable with a sickness, forced a fumble to seal the game.
Safety Budda Baker recovered the first fumble, and linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither recovered the game-sealing fumble, to cap off the Cardinals’ spectacular defensive night.
The defense was all over the place all night long and held the Cowboys offense to just 17 points. Dallas’ offense was the third-best in the NFL coming into the night, according to PFSN’s Offense Impact, with the second-most points scored in the league.
The Cardinals had five sacks on the night, with two each by defensive lineman Calais Campbell and linebacker Josh Sweat, and held the Cowboys to 0-for-3 on fourth down.
3) Have a Game, Marvin Harrison Jr.
Throughout the first half, the story was Harrison Jr., and rightfully so. The Cardinals’ young receiver had six catches for 80 yards and a touchdown at halftime.
Harrison’s six catches at halftime were already a career-high, and he added to that in the second half.
The defense may have been the story by the end of the night, but Harrison’s coming-out party shouldn’t be overshadowed.
The Cardinals’ young star ended the night with seven catches for 96 yards, including three third-down conversions.
Harrison had his breakout game, but it also came in the best matchup possible. Now, the challenge is to build on Monday night’s performance as the Cardinals move forward with a brutal upcoming schedule.
The Cardinals’ next game is in Seattle for a divisional matchup with the Seahawks.