Arizona Cardinals MUST PROTECT Jacoby Brissett to Beat the Houston Texans

Arizona Cardinals MUST PROTECT Jacoby Brissett to Beat the Houston Texans

It’s a tale of two teams. Is this a trap game for the Texans or do they hold all the cards? [Music] You are locked on NFL Crossover, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. I’m John Hickman with the Locked on Texans podcast. That’s my man Alex Clancy locked on Cardinals. Not the greatest of seasons for the Cards. A lot better for Houston. So that’s what we going to dive into on today’s show. Give ourselves and our listeners some game predictions, key matchups, the rushing offense for Houston, the Russian defense for the Cardinals under Jonathan Ganon. It ain’t the greatest. Why is that? Alex Clansson will let you know more. But then also we’ll dive into the biggest story lines for each team just to tell the two different teams. How the Houston Texans have come out to be eight and five on the year. Three and 10 for the Cardinals. That stinks to high hell. So we’re going to dive into all of that on today’s show. Today’s podcast is brought to you by Prospects on this Crossover Thursday. Download the Prospect app today and use code locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 play. Alex, it’s been a long time. So, let’s dive right into it. The biggest story line for the Arizona Cardinals, no Kyler Murray. That seems to be a marriage that’s on its way to a divorce heading fast. You got uh Jacobe Brrisette stepping in. The passing offense has looked well, but it hasn’t resulted in any wins. And so for Tex fans wondering whether or not this could be a trap game for them. Let us inside into what the heck has been going on with the Arizona Cardinal. It’s not great. Bob, you know, they just it hasn’t been uh it hasn’t been fantastic. Um the Kyler Murray experiment is over. Uh he’ll pro most likely be on a different team next year. He’s on season ending IR. Uh Jacobe Brousette, bless his heart, is trying his damnedest. It just ain’t working. And it’s not necessarily his fault. Um, efficiency wise, the offense has never looked more efficient, which is crazy to say when they’re losing every game, but zero semblance of a run game has been a major issue. James Connor broke his foot early in the season. Trey Benson has been out since week four and now is on season ending IR as the Cardinals didn’t open his or didn’t activate him during the 21 uh day window, opening him up from IR. Um, the biggest issue here is the combination of a lack of run game, which is forcing Jacobe Brassette to throw the ball between 45 and 50 times a game, and the offensive line not being great. Paris Johnson Jr., uh, leader in Pro Bowl voting so far for left tackles, will miss this game. I said this a month ago, the Arizona Cardinals could be looking at a 10 sack game for this defensive front for the Houston Texans on Sunday. And I say that without any sort of hyperbole. So, the biggest storyline is the Cardinals have no defense against what they’re playing against on Sunday. And it feels like they don’t have a defense on the offensive side of the ball to, you know, defend the defense or the defensive side of the ball to maybe stop a a running team uh a running offense here in Houston that’s looking for a way to get themselves going. Not a great outing uh against their last opponent. Um, yeah, they took on who did Houston take on to beat? Oh, it was Kansas City. Wasn’t a good rushing output, but they were able to find a way to put it together. So, that’s like one of the key matchups. But I also look at the coach and the battle here between Demo Ryan and Jonathan Ganon. Jonathan Ganon was linked to Houston a couple of seasons ago. Houston opted with Demo Ryan. It has led to two playoff victories, two AOC South championships. Uh, but now I look at Jonathan Ganon, a defensive coach. However, his EPA per play allowed this year, 25th in the NFL, points per game allowed this year, 26 in the NFL, he’s gotten three seasons to try to figure this thing out, but defensively, I don’t want to say they’ve gotten worse, but they haven’t met the expectation, at least of what their head coach was going to bring to this franchise. Yeah. So, so when you look at it, uh, first of all, Demo Ryan was my sweet prince that year. I was hoping from afar, I knew it was never going to happen. I knew he was going home. I knew they had to write the ship with what was going on with Bill O’Brien and and and the aftermath of that and lobby like I knew that he was going back to Houston, but I was hoping upon all hope that he would be the rock for this team in bring in Jonathan Ganon. Okay, the defense through the first five weeks they were giving up 19 points a game. They were two and three. Not fantastic. Then the run game falls off. Everybody starts getting hurt including Max Melton who the Cardinals opted to trade back and draft instead of taking Kamari Lacier a couple years ago in the second round. one of those three in the string after Koolaid McKinstry and and Cooper Deene I think um and Max has completely fallen out of favor at this point second round pick this year looked at one of the steals of the draft Walter Nolan they’ve missed a large chunk of the season combined will Johnson’s healthy now but with all the money that the Cardinals put into the defense and six out of seven draft picks in this most recent draft yes you would expect them to not be giving up 40 burgers every other week so it’s just another thing where it’s like well is it because the offense can’t get any sustained drives or is it because the defense just isn’t as good as what we thought it was going to be going into the season? Maybe a combination of both. And on the side for Cardinal fans, Houston is one of the hottest teams in the NFL five games in a row, completely dominating the top offenses in the NFL, Indie, KC, Buffalo, eight sacks against Buffalo. uh holding Jonathan Taylor under 100 yards. No touchdowns allowed to Patrick Mahomes, including none in the fourth quarter where he’s been his best this year. The national media has been showing Houston a lot of love, but locally your team every day. What would you guys like to know? I mean, from your perspective, you know, about this Houston Texan team that could make this match up a little bit more difficult uh or maybe a way to win this game. Yeah. So, for me, the biggest thing is how good is this defensive front? Because like here’s the thing. The offense the offense has been clunky at times. It seems like it’s catching it it’s catching its stride. A lot of young guys. Christian Kirk’s first year. Nico Collins was hurt. Like you know Dalton Schultz had that career year it seemed and then he’s kind of come back to earth. But like the defense seems to just be the entity that will allow everything else to falter. You know, be wishy-washy up and down. And that defense is just so stout that it doesn’t really matter what else happens as long as that defense is there. they’ll be able to overcome a lot. The defense is what it is, man. This elite, it’s the number one defense in in in the NFL by a lot of numbers, statistics, but also more importantly, we’re football guys by the eye test. They’re getting after the quarterback. They’re shutting down running games. They’re creating turnovers. They’re giving their offense good field position. Also, they’re hitting. This is a team that ain’t scared to hit. As a matter of fact, the Miko Ryan talked about it. If you’re not going to hit, if you’re not going to be physical, then you can’t play for the Texans. And when I look at the Kansas City game, what really stood out the most was just how much more physical the Houston Texans were against that Kansas City team that honestly after the second h the second quarter, that offense looked a little deflated, especially by the time they got to the fourth quarter because of the physicality of the game. So yes, this defense is everything national media has been talking about in the last five weeks, local media, especially here in the locked on Texans have been talking about in the last five weeks. Going beyond that all year, the storylines for Houston has been traditionally week in week out this year if the offense can give them a little bit more. And when we say a little bit more, it ain’t 10 points. It ain’t double digits. is if you could have scored three more points in the third quarter. If you could have scored three more points in the first quarter, if you could have actually scored a touchdown on one of those opening drives and and had a better red zone uh impact on the game. That’s all. I’m going add to that by saying this before we move on. Look at the key matchups. I had an opportunity to speak with Aziz Alier in the locker room a few weeks ago, Texas linebacker who’s played some phenomenal football for Houston. one of the more underrated players on the team and around the league. You know what he told me? Demo Ryan had a challenge for us. The challenge was everybody’s calling y’all this number one defense, but on two occasions this year, the Texans defense has been on the field to close out the game and the offense has been able to score Tampa Denver. And since then, these one-scored victories, even when the defense is on the field on the last possession, has all been doubs for the Houston Texans. So that’s the type of defense the Arizona Cardinal are going to have to face. And that’s scary because Jacobe Brrisette, who’s only started in eight games this year, is tied for seventh in the league in sacks. Yeah, it could get very scary very early for the old man. He’s 32. Okay. He’s not a hundred, but he is a sitting duck up there who also led the team in rushing last week. Not fantastic. That’s That’s not gonna win you no games. And after this game, he may be 32 right now. After this game, after that ice bash kick in, after Will Anderson and Dil Hunter get after him, I guarantee you that body gonna feel 73. So, let’s let’s dive into the key matchups when we return. Russian offense for Houston. can get it going against a weaking rushing defense and also just some more uh in-depth outlook on what’s going on with Arizona and the Houston Texans. This episode is brought to you by Prize Picks. 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That’s code locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 play. Prize picks where it’s good to be right. Welcome back Cardinal fans. Welcome back Texan fans. We’re talking football. I’m John Hickman. Alex Clancy locked on alums. Uh but it ain’t been it ain’t been pretty for them Cardinals lately. And the the thing that really, you know, stood out to me, teams are just kind of able to run over you guys, man. You guys are allowing four and a half yards per carry defensively. Uh was it 140 on the ground this year? It’s an extremely high number. And for the Houston Texans, they don’t have runners that will just run for 100 themselves. It’s been a a unit collective where this guy’s getting 45, this guy’s getting 35, and CJ Stroud has done a good job this year. He’s going to add in 30 to get to that overall number. So, for you guys, for the Cardinals, has it just been one runner just going crazy or has it been a run by collective? You know, it’s it’s a little of both. Uh Blake Horm um had a large chunk touchdown last week when the game was out of reach, which kind of skewed the numbers a little bit, but the Cardinals went from being a smashmouth heavyhitting defense through the first month and a half of the season to being the Baltimore Ravens when the Texans gave put up a 40 burger against them when their defense couldn’t stop anybody earlier in the year. It’s it’s been a wild paradigm shift. And the crazy part is you’ll see flash plays from the stars and then you’ll see just ineptitude between the tackles. I mean, listen, Klay Campbell is 39. He’s played well this year. Dvin Tomlinson hasn’t made the impact as a run stuffer that they brought him over to be. Um, I do think a lot of the numbers, especially in the fourth quarter of games, have to do with the offense not being able to give the defense rest. Like truly, it sounds dumb, but like these guys are human beings. You know, you’re an athlete. You’re with these guys all the time. Like the Cardinals, here’s the stat, and this is going to this is going to tell you everything. The Cardinals, eight of their 11 possessions last week were comprised of five plays or less. Okay, which isn’t great. One of them was a touchdown drive, but doesn’t matter. Five plays or less. On five of those eight, the the uh possession immediately following that resulted in a Rams touchdown. So, it’s like if the defense doesn’t have a shot to rest, they’re gonna have no shot regardless of how much talent’s on the side. So, yeah, run, throw, it’s all kind of fallen off the it’s kind of falling off the wayside at this point. And the problem is it looks different every week. So, you can’t diagnose what the exact problem is, which is a huge problem in and of itself. For Houston, I think like like I said before, I think this is a perfect opportunity for them to get the ball rolling offensively for Houston Cardinal fans. Uh, and y’all y’all don’t y’all not gonna want to hear this. When they are able to run the ball effectively, it’s a totally different offense coming into this game. I had the numbers against Denver, 77 rushing yards, 2.8 yards per carry. Against Tennessee the second goound, 75 rushing yards, 3.3 yards per carry. Seattle, 56. The Kansas City Chiefs, 82, 2.6 yards per carry. The common theme in all of those games, Zack Allen on the inside. Yeah. Uh Jeffrey Simmons at second go round on the inside. Byron Murphy, Lyn Williams on the inside. Little Williams balls out wherever you line them up. Chris Jones taking over that third quarter. I don’t see that happening from a player on the inside from the Cardinals. And that’s no disrespect, but when the Texans are able to run the ball at a good average and a good amount, then that opens up the play action game. And that’s when CJ Stout has probably been his dangerous this year. Now, this could be a trap game for Houston, right? And you think, what? You think it could be a trap game? It it it it Listen, it could be. Every week in the NFL is a trap game. Yeah. Right. But what I what I do worry uh about is one guy that could completely kind of wreck this game and break it open or or keep Arizona in the game. Trey McBride has been great for you guys this year. Also, Wilson has been great for you guys. So, the playmakers that the Arizona Cardinal have, you just I know you mentioned in the first segment, the passing offense is at a high rate, so they’re getting those opportunities. What about those two players that Texans fans need to know about? Dorsch has also been playing good football a few guys in a return game as well. Yeah, and unfortunately he got put on IR recently. That that that’s a a recent um a recent uh occurrence. So the problem here is Michael Wilson third round pick out of Stanford a couple years ago. Hasn’t really been given the opportunity to do what he’s doing now. So the the the combination the infusion of Marvin Harris Jr. being hurt. Jloe Brassette throwing the ball down the field more than we ever saw Kyler Murray do over the last couple seasons. And his, dare I say, elite route running ability allows for this. Now, the smoke screen with all the numbers, if you got him in fantasy football, you know, he’s a league winner at this point. Like, it’s just one of those rare occurrences, but this dude is super talented. We just haven’t seen, you know, 14 for 175 ever. He didn’t do it in college. He didn’t do it now. But when there’s only two dudes and Trey McBride who’s all pro and Michael Wilson who could be looked at as wide receiver one if Marv doesn’t come back for the rest of the year like this is a serious situation that I know Derek Stanley I know Jaylen Petri I know Kamari Lasser it hasn’t mattered the dude’s open and Jacob Brassette throws in the ball so yeah those are the two unfortunately you got to wait you you got to protect Jacob Brassette for three seconds so they so the routes can mature down the field and if you can’t do that you’re not going to be able to get them the ball so it’s a chicken or the egg sit situation. It’s like, is it going to be really good and you’re going to get protection or is it going to be really bad because you don’t? It’s one or the other. But yes, both of those dudes can eat. How has uh the offensive coordinator Drew Ping, how’s he been for you guys this year? So, the difficult part and I want to ask about your offense as well right after this. Like the the interesting part about Drew Petting is it’s a run first offense. It’s a Kevin Stfansky tree. Okay. And they lost both of their starting running backs. So, if you can’t run the ball, then you need to pass pro 55 times a game, including sacks and, you know, whatever it is, the best remedy for that is having a good run game so you don’t have to pass protect 55 times a game. And they can’t run like when I say they can’t run the ball, John, they cannot run the ball beyond the line of scrimmage. Somebody help my man out, man. Ain’t doing too good. See, see what sucks is like the good is really good. Okay, the good is outstanding, but it’s marred by all the stuff that’s not at this point. And that’s the convolution of the 40 burgers that are putting up, you know, three out of the last five weeks they’re giving up. It’s been a far cry from earlier in the season. But like with the Texans, so talk to me about this. So for me, obviously it’s Will, it’s Will Anderson and it’s and it’s uh it’s Neil Hunter, it’s Alche mentioning on top of the DBs. I really would have liked Paris Johnson Jr. to play in this game so we could, you know, see that trade from a couple years ago. I think both teams won. I think both teams won and Barry Johnson Jr. is gonna be all pro forever. Like I think he’s gonna be great and Will Johnson is, you know, already there. Talk to me about how you can stop these guys. Like if you can say you can’t like of the weaknesses that could be there for these guys outside of bringing six offensive linemen every play and just running jumbo and just running the ball up the gut. Like how can you stop these guys? Well, stop is a is a is a I don’t know about the word stop, but when I look at how Buffalo lost that game, obviously a sacks, there wasn’t there was not a lot of double teaming going on, especially on Will Anderson Jr. who is so relentless. You kind of need a guy to block him and you also need a guy to kind of stop his momentum as he’s continuing to get going as the play is going. you know, a couple of sacks that he got on Josh Shadow was just him getting up and running around and going to find them. So, if I was to give any inside look on how to stop either of those guys, chip blocking is, you know, is will help. Uh, they are chip block at an extremely high rate. I had the number in front of me somewhere, but I lost it. Double teaming is always going to help. With Will Anderson, you can’t run at him, right? The whole talk about Michael Parsons and what he his value to the league, right? you run at him, you can kind of neutralize him. However you feel about Michael Parsons, you can’t do that with Will Anderson because he knows how to defend the run. And coming into the league, I thought he was a better run defender than pass rusher. With the Neil Hunter, you can’t necessarily run at him as well. I just think age right now kind of doesn’t allow for him to attack the run as much as he would in Minnesota, maybe last year. But he’s still a good run defender. The only help is you got to bring in the guy to chip him. you got to bring in the guy to double team, you know, and and what I love about the D line is they’re going to command that attention. And so to put it back to you guys, when I look at the offensive line, the DTackles for Houston have done such an amazing job. They just lost Tim Settle Jr. to end season in the injury. He was playing great football for Houston. Tommy told y’all playing good football. The DTackle unit has been so underrated because there not a lot of household names. However, when those play when the running backs have to get shuff shifted back inside or the quarterback is having to step up, the DTackles have been there to make a play. And that’s why that D line is so ferocious and and and hard to block. Everybody is where they need to be at the right time to make a play. Yeah. And you know, getting super inside baseball, you’re like Marcato is the best uh pass blocking running back the Cardinals have. He’s been out. Uh Tip Ryman, who is a kind of a much maligned uh third round pick out of Illinois from a couple years ago, has been he he went viral for a preseason block on a defensive end where he just threw him into the ground like he was a ragd doll. He’s been out because he is he had a compound fracture during the first six weeks of the season. So that would have been the dude that would be able to do that, be the utility guy. And Trey McBride’s got to run routes. He’s the next best pass blocker, but he’s got to run routes for me. And I know we got to pivot to the to uh keys to victory and everything. From afar for me, if I’m Houston, I’m calling Domo being like, “Bring the DBs as much as you can.” Like, cuz as you mentioned, you’re not going to be able to block everybody. You can get free runners from the secondary on this team, especially with the offensive line being down both of their tackles and their guards being not great. But the thing for me is with Will Anderson, what I’ve been watching from afar, and correct me if I’m wrong, you know that, you know, the sexy part about a good pass rusher is the bend, right? Whether it’s a DE or a guy standing up, a guy that can just bend under a tackle. Other guys know the angle so well that they don’t have to and you just you take more of a arc approach and you’re just running around a tackle like you mentioned on the two sacks against Josh Allen. Is that more what he’s like or does he do a little bit of both? in 2025, he’s doing it all. I’m I’m not lying. Uh when he came out of draft, I said he has to get a little bit more bendier with his hips. Year three, he’s gotten that way. He’s also understanding how to attack certain tackles uh differently in terms of the angle. Then he also understands certain times I he may just needs to bull rush to get through and and and and punch somebody in the in the dog on face. He’s doing it all this year. He is doing it all this year. He’s improved in areas of his game that he needed to and he’s also just elevated certain areas in his game that he was already great at. This has been one of those seasons where we look back and we we we may ask who is the catalyst of the defense. Obviously, this is the number one defense, so you can point your finger everywhere, but Will Anderson’s ability to stop the run and have different ways to get out to the quarterback. [Music] Sweet. Super sweet. It’s crazy. We got game predictions next. Uh, also hot seat for Jonathan Ganon. I wanted to get your take on that. So, more locked on cars, more locked on Texans on the way. Car shopping should feel exciting like Texan fans should feel on Sunday, not confusing like Cardinal fans will probably feel on Sunday. 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Closing out today, we’re looking at the game predictions. Before we do that, hot seat for Jonathan Ganon. Alex, is it hot? Is it warm? How’s your seat right now? I mean, I think it’s toasty at most. But let me ask you this. Let let me throw back on you. So, first season was a throwaway because Kyler Murray was out for half the year. The roster was turned over almost 50% from the last regime. So, that’s the green ribbon. You guys did a good job resetting things year. Last year, they led the division going to their by-week, fell off a cliff. This season they’ve lost every one-sore game outside of weeks one and two. They’ve lost every single one. I think it’s eight of them at this point. Seven. Seven. But James Connor, Trey Benson, Mar for a good chunk. Um, right tackle, right guard for a long time. Uh, Garrett Williams was on IR, their best corner. Will Johnson was out. Max Melton’s been out. Walter Owens missed all but two games. Dri Taylor Dmerson another safety has been out like 40 to% of their impact guys at any point in the season have been hurt. So when you look at a year like this with one year left on his deal with two easy scape coats in the coordinators and Kyler Murray gone do you fire him just because it’s the right because it’s the thing to do or do you look and say everybody’s been hurt the entirety of the season outside of Trey McBride and Michael Wilson? Do you run it back one more year? And the lame duck thing, which I don’t think is a bad thing. Play your contract out. You don’t need an extension. Just coach on the last year and see what happens. I would do that. But I understand both both sides are rational. What do you think? I don’t think he’s had a real quarterback to work with um I think once Kh was wasn’t able to get it done with um what’s my what’s my guy? Cliff Plingsberry. I thought that was probably a perfect marriage in terms of how offensive, you know, the the schematics of it. Uh once that didn’t happen, I kind of viewed Kyler Murray a little different. Uh somewhat as a an eventual bridge quarterback, and I think that’s where he is right now. And also the injury. So I think it’s unfair to uh fire Jonathan Gon, but I’ve seen a lot of comments from different Cars fan want to move on. A lot of times fans wants to fire coaches because it’ll give them sometime something exciting to talk about, but I don’t think he’s the guy that needs to be fired right now. I just think he needs to they the team needs to move on from Kyler Murray. Guys got to get healthy. Yeah. So one and we’ll get to you know keys in just a second. Like this is really important delineation with dysfunctional organizations quote unquote like say with the Texans when Cacario first came over things weren’t great with Billio. There were some weird things. The DeAndre Hopkins trade, it was dysfunctional and they were losing. Okay, with this, it’s been dysfunctional forever with Michael Bidwell. Okay, the owner is just not great at what he does. He’s a penny pincher. He’s not great at what he does. Now, the only dysfunction is between the lines. Everything else is stable. They love Jonathan Ganon. This is a good culture. Kas Campbell chose there to come home instead of going to any Super Bowl contender he wanted to because he sees a change. See, that was the biggest offseason acquisition. Josh Sweat came here, could have gone anywhere else, probably for more money. You know what I mean? Like, everything is good outside of them losing games, but everything is good. Kumbaya doesn’t get you contract extensions. So, that’s the tough balance for me. It’s like this is the most stable this organization has been, which is weird because all they do is lose right now. So, that’s the internal battle I’ve had with myself. I think they should 100% run it back with them one more year and then you move off from at the end of the year if it doesn’t work. I’mma put you on the prayer list at church, Alex. I’mma do that for you. Just know it’s been a rough couple of seasons for you. We got game predictions, man. Uh, a win for Houston, a loss for Arizona. I I don’t want to get into the semantics of it. Uh, I I do see this being a moment for Houston’s offense to catch a rhythm for four quarters. Not a drive, not a not a quarter. Um, but for four quarters, my expectation is for them to run the ball well and be able to score points. That being said, I can see this game ending around 26-13 for Houston. And this will be their first two-score victory since I think Baltimore. Gez, really? Yikes. A lot of one-sore victories in Houston. during a fivegame win streak. The only twocore victory was Kansas City. They beat them by 10. So everything else the defense has been on the field to end off the game because the offense has been able to score points. That’s been a thing. That’s how great this defense is. Yeah. See, that’s that’s going to be the big thing for me to watch is how many points are the Cardinals going to give up or can they get CJ Start out of his kitchen, get getting him on the run and see if he can make a mistake or two. Um Woody Marks hasn’t been good, right? like it for for what you thought he was going to be after that first breakout game where he had that he had a long touchdown catch and run or a long touchdown run. It’s like, “All right, it’s time everybody. We finally got our dude that’s not going to be Nick Chub and not going to be Joe Mixon and he hasn’t been super efficient.” Right? So, if the Cardinals can’t stop that, it’s been Kairen, it’s been Blake Cororm, it’s been the been the guys in Seattle, it’s been McCaffrey. So they Travis ETN ate him alive, but Woody Marks is still a rookie and first year in the league. Like if the Cardinals give up 150 burger on the ground for whoever it is, that is going to be a huge indictment on how far this defensive run. And that’s not a knock on any of the guys, but you even said yourself the efficiency hasn’t been there. Yeah. No, I agree. Yeah. So, it’s both of the defenses. And if the Cardinals give up get up, put three points up against his defense, like, well, yeah, it makes sense. That’s the game. Do you do you want to throw a score out or you’re just looking at I think the total points will be under 40. I don’t know what it’s going to look like, but I think the total points will be under 40, which very well could be 30 to 10, 30 to nine. Yeah, something like I did just say 26 to 13. That’s 39 right there. Yeah, that’s right. I just don’t think it’s not it’s not going to be a boat race team one way or the other. I mean the Cardinals Yeah, I just don’t. But yeah, I don’t think it’s going to be close. Last message to Cardinal fans or maybe Texan fans before we go. Appreciate football cuz it’s going to be gone before you know it. That’s the best way to do it. Thank y’all for watching today’s episode of the Locked On Texans and the Locked On Cardinals podcast. Two of the Locked Ons. Thank you guys for making the Lock on Texan podcast the number one sports podcast in the nation. We really appreciate it. Until next time, Cardinal fans, Texas fans across the nation. Peace.

Get ready for an in-depth breakdown as Alex Clancy of Locked On Cardinals and John Hickman from Locked On Texans join forces for a dynamic Locked On NFL Crossover episode. This show dives into the compelling tale of two franchises heading in very different directions: the surging Houston Texans, sitting pretty with an 8–5 record and playoff buzz, and the Arizona Cardinals, struggling through a tough 3–10 campaign.

The hosts examine all the crucial storylines shaping these teams—including the end of the Kyler Murray era in Arizona and the Cardinals’ ongoing offensive challenges with Jacoby Brissett at quarterback, a non-existent run game, and an injury-plagued offensive line. On the other side, Houston’s defense is turning heads across the league as perhaps the NFL’s top unit, piling up sacks and shutting down elite opponents, while their own run game tries to find consistency.

You’ll hear deep dives into coaching battles (DeMeco Ryans vs. Jonathan Gannon), the Texans defensive front’s dominance, the challenges facing Arizona’s defense, and frustrations around injuries and lack of offensive proficiency. The guys give special attention to matchups to watch—especially Houston’s rushers against a Cardinals defense that’s been gashed all season, and the dangerous playmaking of Arizona’s young receiver Michael Wilson and Pro Bowl tight end Trey McBride.

No stone is left unturned, from the impact of exhausted Cardinals defenders due to a sputtering offense, to ways Arizona might try (and likely struggle) to slow down the versatile front and edge rush of Houston. Fans get transparent insights on the hot seat status for Jonathan Gannon, the future of Kyler Murray, the pain of rebuilding, and why this is a can’t-miss stretch for Texans fans dreaming of more postseason magic.

Finally, Alex Clancy and John Hickman close with thoughtful score predictions, X-factors to monitor, and a reminder to cherish every snap of NFL action—because the season goes by fast.

The Best Daily Arizona Cardinals Podcast. Host Alex Clancy (@ClancysCorner) take an unbiased approach covering the biggest Cards stories.

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