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Arizona Cardinals: Carson Palmer Can’t Afford Mistakes vs. Carolina Panthers

By Nick Ziegler

Jan 16, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer (3) celebrates following the game against the Green Bay Packers during an NFC Divisional round playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 16, 2016; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer (3) celebrates following the game against the Green Bay Packers during an NFC Divisional round playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Arizona Cardinals were victorious in one of the best playoff games in recent history against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Divisional Round, but it was far from perfect for the Cardinals.

It could have been due to the extra week off, but the Cardinals’ offense came out very flat against the Packers and looked out of sync. In the first half, the Cardinals shockingly only scored seven points.

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The Cardinals only had four drives in the half, as they went three-and-out on two of them, and then only totaled 26 yards on their fourth and final drive of the half. If it wasn’t for the great field position to start their second drive of the game, the Cardinals may not have scored at all with how poor their offense looked.

To start the second half, the Cardinals’ defense were able to intercept and Aaron Rodgers pass to give the offense great field position again around midfield, but Carson Palmer would throw his first interception of the game to give the ball right back to the Packers.

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After the Packers capitalized on Palmer’s mistake, the Cardinals’ offense finally appeared to wake up a bit. After the touchdown, the Cardinals would answer with a field goal on their next drive, but with a great chance to score a touchdown on the following drive, Palmer threw a pass of his back foot in the end zone which was intercepted.

The Cardinals would drive down the field on the Packers once more in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, as thanks to Sam Shields dropping a possible game-winning interception, Palmer was able to connect with Michael Floyd for his second touchdown of the game. The touchdown pass to Floyd was also a scary pass, as it also could’ve easily been intercepted.

After a few magical plays by the Packers to force overtime, Palmer was helped by Larry Fitzgerald on the game-winning drive to win the game.

For the game, Palmer totaled 349 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and two interceptions. While the passing stats were very good, Palmer easily could have had more than two turnovers, which is something that must be cleaned up before the NFC Championship game against the Carolina Panthers.

During the regular season, Palmer was one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, as he totaled 4,651 passing yards, 35 touchdown passes, and 11 interceptions. Whether it was the extra time off, a banged up finger, or the added pressure of trying to win his first playoff game, we did not see the Palmer of the 2015 regular season against the Packers.

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The Panthers come into the NFC Championship game with the sixth-best defense in the NFL in total yards allowed, and they also did a great job getting pressure on Russell Wilson in the Divisional Round, which was another problem for the Cardinals’ offense against the Packers.

If the Cardinals are to win on the road in Carolina, they will need a much cleaner game from Palmer, who is certainly capable of leading this team to the Super Bowl.

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