TEMPE — Throughout the offseason and leading up to last week, questions swirled around the Arizona Cardinals’ pass rush.

And although the Cardinals proved naysayers wrong in Week 2 behind a five-sack effort spearheaded by outside linebacker Dennis Gardeck, Arizona faces a whole other tier of offensive linemen against the Detroit Lions this Sunday.

It’s like going from algebra to calculus in the matter of a week.

Unlike the injury-riddled Los Angeles Rams offensive line that was missing multiple starters, the Lions enter Week 3 pretty much intact. Starting left guard Graham Glasgow is listed as questionable, though head coach Dan Campbell told reporters Friday that “he should be good.”

That means Gardeck and the rest of Arizona’s pass rushers are going to get the full brunt of a cohesive O-line that’s one of five other units to allow just two sacks through two weeks. Per NFL Next Gen Stats, Detroit’s sack rate of 2.3% allowed is lowest in the league.

The offensive line play has helped the Lions turn in a top two offense (413 yards per game) and passing game (262 yards per game). Can’t forget about Detroit’s top 10 rushing attack (151 yards per game), either.

But for as good as Detroit’s line looks on paper, there is potential for the Cardinals pass rushers to apply pressure on Lions quarterback Jared Goff.

Per NFL Next Gen Stats, the Lions have allowed the fifth most pressures (29) among teams who have yet to play in Week 3. They’re 17th in quarterback pressure rate (32.6%), just two spots ahead of the Cardinals (32.8%).

For a Cardinals defense, they’ve got to continue to be advantageous when pass-rushing opportunities arise. While Arizona is among the bottom six teams in total pressures (18), it’s tied for the fifth most sacks (seven) in the league.

A big piece of those totals has come from Gardeck alone, who has four pressures and three sacks on 38 pass rush attempts to go along with four tackles for loss and three QB hits.

And much like he did in his three-sack performance against the Rams, Gardeck will be counted on once more to be among Arizona’s biggest tone-setters defensively.

“He really did an extraordinary job (last week) executing the rush plan to a tee and still setting up his rushes,” outside linebackers coach Robert Rodriguez said on Friday. “It’s not that easy to do. I think there’s a nuance to it. Some guys just rush like crazy. Other guys have to be a little bit smarter.

“It’s cool that he puts on display his talent and his ability but also his intelligence, so it’s a whole lot of fun to watch him execute that.”

It can’t all be on Gardeck’s shoulders in the outside linebackers room, though.

Zaven Collins, who should have another sack on the year and is “lightyears ahead” of where he was last year in Rodriguez’s eyes, must continue to make positive strides and have them show up on game day.

Zaven Collins vs. Jackson Barton. #AZCardinals pic.twitter.com/PpzaSL6LOG

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) September 19, 2024

Rookie Xavier Thomas on the other hand has to get up to regular season speed after standing out in the preseason.

“Immediately out of the preseason, we made it clear with him, ‘There’s a difference between sacks in the NFL and preseason sacks in the NFL. The thing is you put on display you can rush at this level and you can handle what we’re giving you,'” Rodriguez said.

“I’ve seen growth from him just in these last three weeks that I’m really still encouraged by him, but I’m not going to put a number or a cap on him because he can exceed it or it can crush him. I don’t want to put that line on top of him. Let’s just let Xavier be Xavier.”

If last week’s victory didn’t already, a win against the Lions would firmly put the Cardinals on the NFC’s radar. Generating consistent pass rush and getting home on Goff are two big ways in making that become a reality.

Follow @Tdrake4sports

The Arizona Cardinals began with a relatively clean injury report ahead of their Week 3 game against the Detroit Lions, but offensive starters Greg Dortch and Kelvin Beachum are questionable for the game.

Beachum, who is already filling in for starter Jonah Williams, is dealing with a hamstring issue and was downgraded from limited to out on Friday. Last week, Arizona elevated practice squad member Jackson Barton to add depth at right tackle behind Beachum, putting Barton as a name to watch if Beachum is not able to go Sunday.

Dortch appeared on the Friday injury report with a hamstring injury as well but was limited in practice.

Defensive lineman Dante Stills was also limited and is questionable.

Arizona got rookie pass rusher Xavier Thomas back after he missed Thursday’s practice for personal reasons.

Detroit, on the other hand, has a number of starters hoping to get healthy as the weekend hits.

The defense is a bit banged up, with backup cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (hamstring) and backup safety Ifeatu Melifonwu (ankle) set to miss the game.

Starting linebacker Alex Anzalone (concussion) is questionable.

Fellow starters in cornerback Terrion Arnold (illness) and offensive guard Graham Glasgow (knee) are questionable, as is backup receiver Isaiah Williams (abdomen).

Arizona Cardinals injury report vs. Lions – Week 3

Here is the Detroit Lions’ injury report:

Detroit Lions injury report

Follow @AZSports

As the smarter, less-yelly national sports talk shows explained why Mel Kiper Jr.’s complaints about the trendy use of cover-2 defenses was off the mark, some pointed directly at the Arizona Cardinals for evidence about how to force a defense’s hands.

Run. The. Ball.

If you do, opponents will be forced to move their safeties into the box, closer to the line of scrimmage. And if they do that, then offenses can start taking deep shots — the ones Kiper claims he misses in the pro game so much.

Arizona’s run game and offensive line continuing to hammer opponents will likely force defenses out of constant deep safety coverages. That theory will again be tested Sunday against a physical Detroit Lions defensive front at State Farm Stadium.

But so far, the Cardinals have liked what they’ve seen through a 1-1 start. They’re either baiting teams out of cover-2 or taking advantage of opponents who refuse to load the box.

“I think the offensive line is doing a good job to open up holes in the run game and the backs are doing a good job of gaining positive yards and staying out of long down and distances,” Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort told Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Friday.

“Kyler (Murray) has made plays from the pocket and made off-schedule plays. … That always helps when you can have those explosives and those chunk plays and not forced to have those long, drawn-out drives because those are tough to do, to finish off.”

To that point: The Cardinals are averaging 6.83 yards to go on third downs this season — a positive sign with the ranges by team usually spanning 6.0 to 8.0 yards for a full season.

Arizona’s early down efficiency has led to the team pacing the NFL in third-down conversion rate (58.3% or 14 of 24).

The Cardinals also lead the NFL in average drive length (42.1 yards).

Perhaps that efficiency comes down to earth with more games played, but the strong start is undeniable. Arizona ranks fourth in rushing yards per game (177.5) and is fifth in yards per rush (5.5).

The Cardinals’ run game has gotten props this week from ESPN’s Mina Kimes to Yahoo! Sports’ Nate Tice.

It’s especially impressive after Arizona lost starting right tackle Jonah Williams in Week 1 and was already switching last year’s right tackle, Paris Johnson Jr., to left tackle. Johnson is playing alongside newcomer left guard Evan Brown.

“Paris has done a great job with that transition,” Ossenfort said. “He worked on that in the offseason and really went into overdrive on it here in the spring and then training camp and early on in the season here. Paris had experience playing on the left side there at Ohio State, so it wasn’t anything new to him. There are certainly plays he feels that he can get better on and I know that he will. The one thing about Paris that I know, is he is going to constantly work on his craft.

“I think he’s going to have a good measuring stick this week in Aidan Hutchinson lining up with him on the other side. If Paris wants a measuring stick, he’s got a good one coming in this week.”

And the Arizona Cardinals have run with that strong offensive line play …

The running game led by back James Conner and Murray has set up everything else, including the chunk plays.

Murray hit on all five deep balls last week in a win against the Los Angeles Rams.

Ossenfort has liked how it’s been doses of different contributors at different positions, too.

“Whenever offensively you can be multiple it really presents problems for the defense,” the general manager said. “When Kyler is doing the things Kyler can do … it really brings a dilemma to the defense.

“I think the more we can continue to do that and put our offensive skill players in positions to make the plays and our offensive line continues to get moving in the run game, I think that’s where we want to be.”

Follow @kzimmermanaz

TEMPE — Much like the Arizona Cardinals, the Detroit Lions led by head coach Dan Campbell pride themselves on playing with violence and a high motor.

And much like safety Budda Baker, defensive end Aidan Hutchinson encapsulates exactly what his team is about.

The third-year pro is well on his way to a consecutive double-digit-sack season, entering Week 3’s matchup against the Cardinals with a league-leading 5.5 sacks.

Per NFL Next Gen Stats, Hutchinson’s 11 pressures and 67 pass rush attempts are both tied for the fifth most among league defenders through two weeks. He’s 17th with a quarterback pressure rate of 15.9%.

DENIED! Strip sack by none other than @aidanhutch97 🔥

📺: #TBvsDET on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/8PIsOuNg6C

— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024

“You have to be (aware of where he is at all times),” quarterback Kyler Murray said Wednesday. “He warrants that, he’s a great player. The things he has done in his short career are pretty impressive.

“He is who he is and he’s going to continue to be that guy for the rest of his career. We definitely have to be aware of him.”

And although he mostly lined up on the left end a majority of the time in Week 2, Hutchinson has the versatility to rush off both sides.

So, while right tackle Kelvin Beachum is expected to see a big dose of Hutchinson on Sunday, left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. could also be in for some action against the No. 2 overall pick out of Michigan.

“He is in a really good scheme. They give him some freedom and he’s got a skill set,” head coach Jonathan Gannon said Monday. “Wherever he got drafted, you could tell why he got drafted that high.”

Hutchinson presents a big challenge for an Arizona offensive line that is coming off a stellar showing against the Los Angeles Rams.

He is far from the only Lion to watch, though, especially when looking at the offensive side of the football:

The Lions’ two-headed monster

Detroit has plenty of receiving weapons (more on them later), but the offense runs on a strong ground game behind the duo of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.

The complementary backfield has been nearly an even split, with Montgomery (28) outpacing Gibbs (24) by just four carries. The difference in rushing yards is even tighter with two separating the former (126) and latter (124). Montgomery also has the lead in touchdowns (two) over his counterpart (one).

Montgomery brings added physicality to the position. Gibbs on the hand brings added shiftiness and ability as a pass catcher.

Among Lions pass catchers, Gibbs trails only wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (14) in catches with 11 for 56 yards.

More slot problems

The Cardinals came away victorious when it came to limiting slot wide receiver Cooper Kupp in their win against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2.

If they want to have the same result against the Lions, keeping the versatile Amon-Ra St. Brown in check could go a long way towards achieving that.

Cardinals safety Budda Baker on WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and the Lions offense as a whole: pic.twitter.com/nyMVCKB4vA

— Cardinals Corner (@AZCardsCorner) September 19, 2024

After posting a lackluster stat line of three catches for 13 yards in Week 1, the four-year pro bounced back with an 11-catch, 119-yard showing in Sunday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Don’t let his inconsistent start to 2024 fool you, either. St. Brown is coming off 11 games of at least 90 receiving yards on his way to 1,515 just a season ago.

Quieting St. Brown won’t fall solely on nickel corner Garrett Williams, either, with the wideout finding plenty of success lining up out wide.

“St. Brown’s a great player, a guy who can run the whole route tree,” Baker said Thursday. “An all-round great player and a player that of course we gotta understand where he is on the field. Ultimately whatever (defensive coordinator Nick Rallis) calls, it’s about doing our job and taking it one play at a time.

“St. Brown is a great player, but that offense is a great offense. It’s about understanding our rules and bringing our rules to the field as soon as we get the play calls in.”

Jamo

St. Brown may be quarterback Jared Goff’s favorite target, but it’s Jameson Williams who is pacing the team in yards (200) and receiving touchdowns (one) entering Sunday’s tilt.

Aside from his speed, what makes Williams such a menace is his playmaking ability with the ball in his hands.

Of his 200 receiving yards, 86 have come after the catch.

27-yard gain by matching Jameson Williams with an underneath linebacker

Amon-Ra and LaPorta push coverage downfield. Creates a void.

Ragnow 77 peels back to get just enough pic.twitter.com/sBmG3cwTkE

— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) September 10, 2024

“He’s fast, very fast,” Baker said. “Can run the whole route tree. I would say the speed and the athleticism that he has when he catches the ball, he can get a lot of YAC.

“That’s definitely something that we understand and know. … He can run anything. He’s probably about (180 pounds). We understand that change of direction is very good.”

Arizona Cardinals safety Budda Baker on what stands out about Detroit Lions WR Jameson Williams: pic.twitter.com/uki26MFUT7

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) September 19, 2024

Don’t overlook LaPorta

Compared with those listed above, fellow playmaker and tight end Sam LaPorta is having a slow start to the year.

After reeling in 86 balls on 120 targets for 889 yards and 10 touchdowns, LaPorta has just six catches on eight targets for 58 yards in two games played this year.

“Last week it was [Amon-Ra] St. Brown. This week it’s LaPorta. Next week it’s going to be somebody else,” Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson told reporters Thursday. “That’s just the nature of the beast. … We’ve got a lot of weapons and it’s hard to guarantee someone five to eight targets every single game. That’s just not how it works.”

The Cardinals haven’t had much trouble against tight ends the past two weeks. Let’s see if they can keep that trend afloat for another game.

Follow @Tdrake4sports

After an incredible performance on Sunday, Harrison received one of the most prestigious player awards in the NFL.

Not the MVP but the NVP — the Nickelodeon Valuable Player.

.@MarvHarrisonJr ARE YOU READY TO GET SLIMED?! pic.twitter.com/4mqbkTtoXo

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 18, 2024

The rookie scored two touchdowns and racked up 130 receiving yards on four catches to help the Cardinals defeat the Los Angeles Rams 41-10 on Sunday.

Cardinals offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. was eager to present Harrison with the honor and dump two jars of green slime on his head, a mandatory ritual following any Nickelodeon award win.

The NVP award, part of the “NFL Slimetime” on Nickelodeon, is a player of the week honor given to players based on fan votes.

Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray was the first to ever receive an NVP in 2021 after the Cardinals crushed the Tennessee Titans 38-13 during their season opener. Murray finished the game with four touchdown passes.

Harrison wore a protective cap in the video but to no avail. After Johnson dumped the jars of green goop on Harrison, the wide receiver was left covered in slime.

“Remember that, P?” Harrison asked Johnson before referencing the iconic Nickelodeon tune, the SpongeBob Krusty Krab Pizza song.

In addition to the award, Harrison received a purple chain with an NFL Slimetime logo pendant and a silver trophy featuring the orange Nickelodeon blimp.

Harrison looks to continue his success on the field during the Cardinals’ game on Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

Keim will take on the role of “general manager” to “help run the agency the way he once helped run a football team, with some of the same responsibilities.”

“Steve gives us a tremendous amount of depth through the lens of knowledge, experience and expertise,”’ said Klutch CEO Rich Paul. “This is a game changer for us and I imagine the industry. His entire life has been loving the game of football, and we couldn’t be happier to have him join us.”

Keim has largely spent time away from football since exiting the organization in 2022, occasionally joining a podcast or NFL-related program to provide insight as an analyst.

Midway through the Cardinals’ 4-13 run that year, Keim stepped away halfway through the year to focus on his health before the team parted ways with him at the end of the season. Keim later revealed part of that was time in rehab due to sleep and anxiety drugs.

Arizona hired Keim as GM in January 2013 after he originally joined the organization in 1999 as a collegiate scout. Keim oversaw a successful Bruce Arians era followed by far less success for one-and-done head coach Steve Wilks and four years under Kliff Kingsbury. With Kingsbury, however, the Cardinals improved year-to-year in win total from three to five to eight and 11.

Even though the 11-win year ended with large warning signs because of the way it crashed and burned, Keim was given an extension off all that improvement before the 2022 season that ran through 2027.

Klutch Sports Group was founded in 2012 by Rich Paul, the business partner and agent for LeBron James. It has proven to become incredibly successful, now home to star athletes well beyond James such as Jalen Hurts, A’ja Wilson, Myles Garrett, Trae Young, JuJu Watkins and Tyrese Maxey.

Follow @AZSports

ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky is very high on Kyler Murray after the Arizona Cardinals quarterback’s Week 2 performance against the Los Angeles Rams.

“It’s probably the best I’ve ever seen Kyler play,” Orlovsky said on Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Tuesday. “If you just look at the totality of the game, you get that for the majority of season, you’re looking at a guy that’s gonna be firmly in the MVP conversation.”

In the Cardinals’ 41-10 victory, Murray completed 17 of 21 pass attempts (81.0%) for 266 yards, three touchdowns and had a perfect 158.3 passer rating.

Murray also ran for 59 yards on five carries.

Why is ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky so high on Kyler Murray this year?

Orlovsky admitted that he was critical of Murray’s ability to get through progressions in the past, but he believes Murray has looked a lot more comfortable making reads this year.

“I didn’t see that consistently really over the past couple of seasons,” the ESPN analyst said. “So getting through progressions in an efficient way and a timely way and just sometimes you got to make a boring choice, and I thought he did that at a good pace. I thought that he made the appropriate throw and the type of throw on a consistent basis.”

Murray completed all five of his passes of at least 20 air yards for 156 yards and three touchdowns on Sunday. According to Next Gen Stats, that perfect completion rate had a probability of just 0.3%.

And while Murray dished the ball to seven different teammates in Sunday’s win, the quarterback went to rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. more often than anyone else. The rookie caught four passes for 130 yards and two touchdowns.

“Yeah, I think the big thing is walking the fine line of not lining him up in the same spot all the time,” Orlovsky said about Harrison. “So making sure that you’re moving him around but also not overwhelming him with information that’s going to slow him down.”

Orlovsky also thought Murray has been a lot better in play-action after being critical of Murray in play-action situations in the past.

“Again, something that I’ve been critical about him not doing a good enough job in is operating the play-action game in a manner of full-field progressions,” Orlovsky said. “I thought that was really good and then obviously he made three or four plays that, you know, really only four people on the planet are probably making, him being one of them.”

Follow @AZSports

TEMPE — Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Greg Dortch is finally getting the opportunity he’s fought for since entering the league in 2019.

A more consistent presence in the Cardinals offense as Arizona’s starting slot man, Dortch has already paced the team in receiving yards once (Week 1).

“When you have that role and you have that security — he’s a hungry dude anyways; he’s had to earn everything he’s received in his life — it’s definitely allowed him to just be himself,” quarterback Kyler Murray said Wednesday.

Where is Cardinals WR Greg Dortch’s confidence level at after stacking joint practices on top of his strong training camp?

“Confidence has always been high. … Hopefully when I play you can see it.” pic.twitter.com/c8LyT8gzvZ

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) August 16, 2024

Now up against a Detroit Lions defense in Week 3 that struggled mightily against Tampa Bay Buccaneers slot man Chris Godwin this past Sunday, there’s a real chance Dortch could find himself atop the stat sheet for a second time in three weeks.

All but one catch throughout Godwin’s 117-yard, one-touchdown performance came out of the slot. All six went for no less than 10 yards. That included a 41-yard TD, three more catches of at least 17 yards and four first downs gained.

Outside of Godwin’s performance, it was a relatively quiet day for some of the Buccaneers’ other playmakers. Mike Evans finished with three catches for 42 yards. Quarterback Baker Mayfield led Tampa Bay’s rushing attack with 34 rushing yards and a touchdown on five carries. Former Arizona State Sun Devil and running back Rachaad White accounted for 18 yards on 10 attempts.

Even if Dortch doesn’t put up Godwin-like numbers out of the slot in Week 3 — the Cardinals do have more pass-catching talent overall than the Buccaneers — there’s still a good chance he leaves a noticeable mark on the game after seeing what Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp did to Detroit in Week 1.

While Kupp caught half of his 14 receptions out of the slot, he didn’t explode yardage-wise behind 40 yards.

Most of those catches, however, came in early-down situations and helped put L.A. in more advantageous positions. Only one of the five catches to start a series went for at least five yards. His two second-down grabs resulted in first downs.

And much like Kupp and Godwin, Dortch brings added versatility and determination his signal-caller covets.

“You can throw him a bubble, you can throw him a hitch, you can throw him a fade. G can do it all,” Murray said of his wideout. “I love the stature that he is, because he’s inspiring to not only me, but smaller receivers around the world or young kids that want to say they can’t do it because they’re 5-foot-7, 5-foot-8, whatever it is, Greg’s doing it and he’s doing it at a high level.”

Another layer to Dortch’s game

You know what else the 5-foot-7 wideout can do that adds to the potential for a Week 3 impact?

Win 1-on-1 matchups. Or as Murray put it in June, the wide receiver is “unguardable” in such situations.

And that’s just what head coach Jonathan Gannon, who has the utmost confidence in Dortch’s abilities, is calling for against this Lions’ secondary.

“They have a really good back end. (Lions passing game Coordinator/DBs coach) Deshea Townsend’s a really good football coach. … They’ve got really good players,” Gannon said.

“We’re going to have to win some 1-on-1s if we want to make some plays, which I feel really good about.”

If the combination of Carlton Davis III, Terrion Arnold, Amik Robertson and the rest of the Lions’ secondary aren’t careful — and don’t clean things up at practice this week — they very well could become the Dortchure chamber’s next victims on Sunday afternoon.

Follow @Tdrake4sports

The Hall announced 167 modern-era candidates for the class on Wednesday, which included 16 players nominated for the first time, including two-time All-Pro guard Marshal Yanda.

A screening committee will reduce the list of nominees to 50 players next month. Then the full 50-person selection committee will cut the list down to 25 semifinalists and then 15 finalists for the annual meeting before the Super Bowl that will produce the new class. Players must get 80% of votes to get in with between three and five players getting in as modern-era candidates.

There will also be three senior candidates, grouped with one coach and contributor with at least one and no more than three of those finalists getting in based on voting.

Arizona connections in the Pro Football Hall of Fame nominee class

Suggs, who went to Hamilton High School in Chandler and then Arizona State for college, was one of the top pass rushers in the league over his 17-year career, with his 139 sacks ranking eighth best since they became an official stat in 1982.

Suggs had seven double-digit sack seasons in his 16 seasons with Baltimore, including 14 in 2011 when he was selected as the top defensive player in the league and led the NFL with seven forced fumbles.

He won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2003 and helped the Ravens win the Super Bowl in the 2012 season. He finished his career in 2019, splitting time with the Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs, where he helped the latter win the Super Bowl in the 2019 season.

The other first-time candidates are offensive linemen Travis Frederick, Ryan Kalil and Joe Staley; running back Darren Sproles; receiver Demaryius Thomas; tight ends Vernon Davis and Delanie Walker; and defensive backs Antoine Bethea, Aqib Talib and Earl Thomas.

Bethea played for the Cardinals from 2017-18 before finishing his career in 2019 with the Giants.

Fellow former Cardinal and receiver Anquan Boldin returns as a nominee after he tallied 7,520 receiving yards — out of 13,779 for his entire NFL career — with Arizona from 2003-09.

Boldin was a semifinalist in last year’s class.

Pass rushers Simeon Rice (1996-2000) and John Abraham (2013-14), plus kicker Jeff Feagles (1994-97) are among other candidates who spent time with the Cardinals in their careers.

There are also 10 players back under consideration who were finalists a year ago with tight end Antonio Gates, receivers Torry Holt and Reggie Wayne; offensive linemen Willie Anderson and Jahri Evans; defensive backs Darren Woodson, Eric Allen and Rodney Harrison; defensive lineman Jared Allen; and running back Fred Taylor back on the list.

Woodson went to Phoenix’s Maryvale High School and played his college ball at Arizona State (1988-1992).

The Arizona Wildcats are represented by linebackers Tedy Bruschi (1995) and Lance Briggs (2003), who were both third-round picks out of college.

The top new names on the list

Manning will look to follow his brother Peyton into the Hall following a standout career with the New York Giants. Manning was picked first overall in the 2004 draft and spent his entire career in New York. He led the Giants to an upset win over the undefeated New England Patriots in the Super Bowl following the 2007 season, throwing a game-winning TD pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute.

He led another late TD drive to upset Tom Brady and the Patriots four years later. Manning is one of 13 QBs to win multiple Super Bowls with eight of the nine who are eligible for the Hall getting inducted.

Only Jim Plunkett has not been inducted along with more recent players such as Brady, Ben Roethlisberger and Patrick Mahomes, who aren’t eligible.

Manning was a four-time Pro Bowler but never made All-Pro or led the league in a major statistical category in a season but finished his career with 57,023 yards passing and 366 TDs.

His best moments were in those two postseason runs. Manning joined Brady (five), Mahomes (three), Joe Montana (three), Bart Starr (two) and Terry Bradshaw (two) as the only multiple winners of Super Bowl MVP awards.

Kuechly and Suggs were among the top defensive players of their era with Kuechly selected as the top defensive player in 2013 and Suggs in 2011.

Kuechly’s career was brief but impactful. The first-round pick by Carolina in 2012 was an All-Pro five times in his eight-year career with seven Pro Bowl nods and a Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

Over his eight-year career, Kuechly led all linebackers in the NFL in tackles (1,090), takeaways (26), interceptions (18) and passes defensed (66).

Vinatieri was one of the most clutch kickers in NFL history, making the game-winning field goals in the first two Super Bowl titles during New England’s dynasty.

He helped launch the run with one of the game’s greatest kicks — a 45-yarder in the snow to force overtime in the “Tuck Rule” game against the Raiders in the 2001 divisional round. He made the game-winning kick in OT to win that game and then hit a 48-yarder on the final play of a 20-17 win in the Super Bowl against the Rams.

He then made a 41-yarder two years later to give the Patriots a 32-29 win in the Super Bowl against Carolina. Vinatieri also won Super Bowls in 2004 with New England and in the 2006 season with Indianapolis.

Vinatieri is the NFL’s all-time leader in points (2,673) and made field goals (599) over a 24-year career with New England and Indianapolis. He also leads all players with 56 field goals and 238 points in the postseason.

Yanda was a member of the 2010s all-decade team as a key of Baltimore’s success. He also was selected second-team All-Pro five times and made the Pro Bowl in eight of his final seasons, missing in 2017 when he played only two games of an injury.

Pro Football Hall of Fame 2025 class candidates

QUARTERBACKS (10): Marc Bulger, Randall Cunningham, Jake Delhomme, Doug Flutie, Rich Gannon, Jeff Garcia, Donovan McNabb, Eli Manning, Steve McNair, Tony Romo

RUNNING BACKS (31): Shaun Alexander, Terry Allen, Jamal Anderson, Tiki Barber, Larry Centers (FB), Jamaal Charles, Stephen Davis, Corey Dillon, Warrick Dunn, Charlie Garner, Eddie George, Priest Holmes, Steven Jackson, Chris Johnson, Thomas Jones, John Kuhn (FB), Vonta Leach, Dorsey Levens, Jamal Lewis, Marshawn Lynch, Eric Metcalf (also WR/PR/KR), Glyn Milburn (also WR), Lorenzo Neal (FB), Clinton Portis, Tony Richardson (FB), Robert Smith, Darren Sproles (also PR/KR), Fred Taylor*, Chris Warren, Ricky Watters, Ricky Williams

WIDE RECEIVERS (21): Anquan Boldin, Donald Driver, Antonio Freeman, Irving Fryar, Torry Holt*, Joe Horn, Chad Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Derrick Mason, Herman Moore, Muhsin Muhammad, Jordy Nelson, Andre Rison, Jimmy Smith, Rod Smith, Steve Smith Sr., Demaryius Thomas, Hines Ward, Reggie Wayne*, Wes Welker, Roddy White

TIGHT ENDS (6): Ben Coates, Vernon Davis, Antonio Gates*, Jeremy Shockey, Delanie Walker, Wesley Walls

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN (26): Willie Anderson* (T), Bruce Armstrong (T/G), Matt Birk (C), Lomas Brown (T), Ruben Brown (G), Jahri Evans* (G), Travis Frederick (C), Jordan Gross (T), Ryan Kalil (C), Lincoln Kennedy (T), Olin Kreutz (C), T.J. Lang (G/T), Nick Mangold (C), Logan Mankins (G), Tom Nalen (C), Jeff Saturday (C), Mark Schlereth (G/C), Josh Sitton (G), Chris Snee (G), Joe Staley (T), Dave Szott (G), Brian Waters (G), Richmond Webb (T), Erik Williams (T), Steve Wisniewski (G), Marshal Yanda (G)

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN (18): John Abraham (DE also LB), Jared Allen* (DE), La’Roi Glover (DT/NT), Casey Hampton (DT/NT), Robert Mathis (DE), Chester McGlockton (DT), Haloti Ngata (DT), Simeon Rice (DE), Clyde Simmons (DE/DT), Justin Smith (DE), Neil Smith (DE), Henry Thomas (DT/NT), Justin Tuck (DE), Ted Washington (NT/DT), Vince Wilfork (DT/NT), Jamal Williams (DT/NT), Kevin Williams (DT), Pat Williams (DT)

LINEBACKERS (20): Jessie Armstead, Brendon Ayanbadejo, Cornelius Bennett, Lance Briggs, Keith Brooking, NaVorro Bowman, Tedy Bruschi, Donnie Edwards, James Farrior, London Fletcher, James Harrison, Luke Kuechly, Willie McGinest (also DE), Ken Norton Jr., Julian Peterson, Bill Romanowski, Takeo Spikes, Terrell Suggs, Mike Vrabel, Lee Woodall

DEFENSIVE BACKS (18): Eric Allen* (CB), Eric Berry (DB), Antoine Bethea (S), Dré Bly (DB), Kam Chancellor (S), Nick Collins (DB), Antonio Cromartie (CB), DeAngelo Hall (DB), Rodney Harrison* (S), Eugene Robinson (DB), Samari Rolle (DB), Allen Rossum (DB), Bob Sanders (S), Aqib Talib (CB), Earl Thomas (S), Charles Tillman (CB), Troy Vincent (CB), Darren Woodson* (S)

PUNTERS/KICKERS (15): David Akers (K), Gary Anderson (K), Darren Bennett (P), Jason Elam (K), Jeff Feagles (P), Jason Hanson (K), John Kasay (K), Sean Landeta (P), Shane Lechler (P), Pat McAfee (P), Brian Moorman (P), Matt Stover (K), Matt Turk (P), Mike Vanderjagt (K), Adam Vinatieri (K)

SPECIAL TEAMS (2): Josh Cribbs (KR/PR also WR), Brian Mitchell (KR/PR also RB)

Follow @AZSports

Kamara scored four touchdowns, an NFL-high so far this season.

Three came on the ground with another receiving touchdown as Kamara totaled 180 scrimmage yards: 115 rushing plus 65 receiving.

Kamara got a steady diet of 20 runs, with none going longer than 15 yards. But 57 of his receiving yards came on a delayed dump-off that went for a touchdown as New Orleans beat the Dallas Cowboys, 44-19.

Kamara won the award over Murray, who posted a perfect passer rating (158.3) and threw for three touchdowns in Arizona’s 41-10 win against the Los Angeles Rams.

The Cardinals quarterback completed 17 of 21 passes for 266 yards while rushing for another 59 on five carries.

Murray’s game ball and jersey were shipped to the Pro Football Hall of Fame after he became the second Cardinals quarterback to finish a game with a perfect passer rating.

Murray also was the second NFL player to finish with a perfect passing rating while recording 250 or more passing yards and at least 50 rushing yards (Ken Anderson, 1974).

Kamara and the Saints lead the NFL with 91 points this season, the most points for the first two weeks in the past 15 years.

Arizona has scored 75 in two games.

Follow @AZSports

Dan Campbell’s squad that has Super Bowl hopes now has to get on the road for the first time this year and face an Arizona Cardinals team that had perhaps the most impressive performance of Week 2.

Campbell spoke Monday on his initial impressions of the Cardinals.

“The nature of the way they play, I would say schematically on both sides of the ball, it’s tricky,” he said. “They run some things that are, not unorthodox, it’s just they give you a lot. And they’re very active up front. Offensively, they give you a lot of different personnel groups. They play hard, they’re physical.”

Campbell went on to run through the main pieces on the Arizona offense.

“Obviously, the quarterback, when he gets out and runs around, he’s dangerous,” Campbell said. “He’s always been that way. They’ve got some weapons to throw to. This back room is heavy.”

The nod to Kyler Murray could not have been better timed after his off-schedule mastery versus the Rams in Sunday’s 41-10 thrashing was a true difference-maker. Arizona also got the running game going in a major way via 21 carries and 122 yards for James Conner. The “heavy” nod goes to not only a 233-pound Conner but 223-pound rookie Trey Benson too, two physical runners with different skill sets to worry about.

Campbell knows that “tricky” maneuvering goes beyond the 12 and 13 personnel the Cardinals offense runs, noting how defensive coordinator Nick Rallis mixes it up plenty as well.

“Defensively, they can give you multiple looks up front and coverages as well so you gotta be on it,” he said. “Now the good news is we just played a team that gives you a lot of differnet looks defensively and so that’s actually good. We oughta be primed and prepped a little bit to be able to adjust on the fly.

“It’s a good football team. They’re playing at a high level.”

Follow @AZSports

Taylor played eight games with the Los Angeles Rams last season, recording four sacks as a seventh-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft from Oklahoma State. He was cut from the Rams’ practice squad on Wednesday.

At Oklahoma State, he appeared in 51 games and was a second-team All-American, first-team All-Big 12 selection and was honorable mention for the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2022.

Taylor finished the 2022 season ranked third among all FBS players with six interceptions and led the team with 99 total tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss.

Hayes, a 2022 seventh-round pick out of Oklahoma, was waived by the Cardinals on Aug. 27, re-signed to the practice squad, and then subsequently released.

Follow @AZSports

TEMPE — Kyler Murray turned in one the best games of his career in the Arizona Cardinals’ dominant 41-10 win over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

Completing an impressive 81% of his throws for 266 yards and three touchdowns for a perfect passer rating of 158.3, Murray was on one throughout Arizona’s home opener. Can’t forget about his 59 rushing yards on five carries, either.

The effort marked just the second time in NFL history a player put up at least 250 passing, 50 rushing yards and a perfect passer rating since Ken Anderson did so with Cincinnati in 1974.

It was also Hall-of-Fame worthy, with Murray’s game-worn jersey and game ball from Week 2 heading to Canton where they will be displayed at the Pro Football HOF.

But which plays from Sunday’s showing stood out the most?

A look at Murray’s top plays from Week 2 before turning the page to Sunday’s matchup against the Detroit Lions:

Not enough love

Murray had plenty of big-time plays that had a whole lot of people talking.

But it was a seven-yard pass to running back Trey Benson that really caught the eyes of his head coach and offensive coordinator when watching the tape back.

After finding wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. for a 32-yard gain, Murray kept the ball moving in the right direction with the dump off to Benson.

@BurnsAndGambo here’s the throw Gannon mentioned pic.twitter.com/t4NVYjgOeO

— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) September 16, 2024

Most people would see it as a ho-hum play from the signal caller. Take a closer look, though, and you’ll see Murray’s knowledge of the system and game on display.

“He went from bubble to over-route to checkdown in less than a second for a (seven-yard) gain, because that’s where the ball should go,” head coach Jonathan Gannon told Burns & Gambo on Monday. “That’s pretty special. … That’s accelerated vision, that’s high IQ, that’s never being sped up, that’s playing extremely fast with 100% command.”

“The ability to play that fast in the pocket and get that quickly through a progression in a critical situation when you know protection’s not going to hold up forever is huge,” offensive coordinator Drew Petzing added. “Now, it puts a lot more stress on the defense of, ‘We can’t take away the first two reads and expect him to break down and run out of the pocket.'”

Vintage K1

OK, now it’s time for the real fireworks.

All three of Murray’s touchdowns were impressive in their own right. But the 18-yard touchdown strike to tight end Elijah Higgins to give Arizona an early 21-0 lead might take the cake for most impressive.

KYLER MURRAY ARE YOU SERIOUS?! 😱

📺: #LARvsAZ on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/gfHzqbrZ0w

— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024

Kicking off the second quarter with a bang, Murray did Murray things. After making Rams pass rushers miss on multiple occasions — looking at you Jared Verse — Murray bought himself a wealth of time before finding Higgins in the back of the end zone for the score.

Murray celebrating before Higgins secured the catch was the icing on the cake.

pic.twitter.com/Bi4c2XHkx1

— Kyler Murray (@K1) September 17, 2024

Per Zebra Sports, Murray held onto the ball for 8.55 seconds before the TD strike. Since the inception of Next Gen Stats (2016), that’s the seventh longest time to throw and third longest since 2019.

The catch meanwhile had a completion probability of 24.7%. That’s the lowest mark for a tight end in Week 2 and the 10th lowest among all pass catchers in 2024.

Giving the people what they want

Harrison’s one-catch effort on three targets in Week 1 was far from what many expected to see from the K1-MHJ connection.

Early on in Week 2, however, the two quieted the noise and gave everyone a glimpse of what’s possible.

Kicking off Sunday’s scoring barrage, Murray and the rookie pass catcher linked up for a 23-yard touchdown that raised eyebrows across the league.

On top of it being Harrison’s first touchdown of his NFL career, it was the way it all went down.

MARVIN HARRISON JR.’S FIRST NFL TOUCHDOWN HAS ARRIVED pic.twitter.com/EFquDWaM8V

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 15, 2024

Per Next Gen Stats, the touchdown grab had a completion probability of 13.7%, the most improbable score of the season.

That’ll happen when Harrison had just 0.7 yards of separation and 0.7 yards to work with when the ball got to him.

Chemistry building

Murray’s first touchdown to Harrison was something else.

His second TD strike to the rookie isn’t that far behind, albeit for a different reason.

Marvin Harrison Jr. we love you pic.twitter.com/GE6a9vVabw

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) September 15, 2024

Despite having running back James Conner and tight end Trey McBride as his first two reads, Murray rolled out to his right to find Harrison breaking his route down the field.

All Murray had to do was fire a dime on the run and let Harrison do the rest.

Scramble drill

While this one didn’t result in a touchdown like the last three, it was still a major play from Murray.

“You gotta be kidding me.”@K1 and @MarvHarrisonJr have many in disbelief in the first quarter 😱

📺: #LARvsAZ on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/bwBNmggHuB

— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024

Looking to keep the drive alive in the first quarter, Murray again made a pair of defenders miss before finding Harrison down the sideline as he drifted out of bounds.

Harrison again made a great read off his QB, breaking down the field for a wide-open catch. Had Murray put a little more juice on it, there’s a real possibility we’re talking about yet another touchdown between the duo.

“The one-off schedule play on third down I think was awesome, but we practiced that — scramble drill,” Gannon said postgame. “When you have a mobile quarterback, you practice that. The touchdown to start the game, they played a coverage and the safety was sitting low and that’s where the ball should go. That’s what happened in practice. That’s what happened today.”

Follow @Tdrake4sports

Former Arizona Cardinals linebacker Markus Golden says quarterback Kyler Murray was the first player from the team to reach out after the Cardinals cut Golden in 2023.

“That says a lot about his (Murray) leadership and his development as a leader to reach out and show me love,” Golden said when he joined Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Tuesday.

Murray had a near-perfect performance during the Cardinals’ 41-10 win on Sunday against their NFC West rivals, the Los Angeles Rams. He finished with a passer rating of 158.3 after completing 17 of 21 passes for 266 yards and three touchdowns.

“He can throw the ball and scramble and run the ball down the field,” Golden said on Murray’s strengths. “When you can do that at a high level like him, the sky’s the limit.”

The linebacker has seen Murray grow all the way from a rookie to team captain of the Cardinals.

After being released from Arizona, Golden became a free agent and signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Aug. 1. Shortly after, the Steelers placed Golden on the reserve/retired list.

Golden officially announced his retirement on Aug. 21, concluding his nine-season career in the NFL.

“I’ve been able to live my dreams and do everything I’ve wanted to do with football,” Golden said. “It was time for me to move on to the next step of my life.”

The Cardinals selected Golden in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He played in 127 games throughout his career, recording 51 sacks, 11 forced fumbles and 344 total tackles.

Despite his retirement, Golden’s ties to Arizona remain strong. The University of Missouri alum attended the Cardinals-Rams game as an honorary captain.

Golden praised Cardinals linebacker Dennis Gardeck for his performance during Sunday’s game.

“I always believed in him (Gardeck) because he came to work every day,” Golden said.

Gardeck led Arizona’s defense on Sunday with three sacks, four tackles for loss and a forced fumble against the Rams.

The Cardinals will host the Detroit Lions at State Farm Stadium on Sunday.