Cardinals Run Game Faces Early-Season Struggles Despite Promising Yardage Totals
The Arizona Cardinals’ offense is off to a rocky start, largely due to inconsistencies in their rushing attack, despite accumulating 228 rushing yards through the first two weeks of the season. While averaging 4.7 yards per carry a closer look reveals the Cardinals’ success on the ground is heavily reliant on two explosive plays – a 52-yard run by Trey Benson adn a 30-yard scramble by Kyler murray.
Removing those two plays reveals a significantly less effective rushing attack, with 146 yards gained on 47 attempts, averaging just 3.1 yards per carry. This disparity highlights a concerning trend for the Cardinals, who currently rank 12th in the league in total rushing yards and 10th in yards per attempt, but whose statistics are inflated by the two long gains.
The offensive line, under first-year coach Justin Frye, has struggled to consistently create running lanes, especially along the interior. This has contributed to the lack of consistent gains and has been compounded by a high number of penalties. Guards Isaiah Adams and Hjalte Froholdt have been flagged twice each in the first two games, resulting in a total of seven penalties committed by the interior offensive line.
The Cardinals’ offensive struggles have prevented them from achieving the start to the season they anticipated, and a more consistent run game is crucial for improving their overall offensive performance.
