Arizona Cardinals In Holding Pattern Rest of Season is Best Case For Future

Arizona Cardinals In Holding Pattern Rest of Season is Best Case For Future

Regardless of if we want to believe it or not, the Arizona Cardinals are most likely going to be in a holding pattern for the remainder of the season. What does that mean, though? Let’s discuss. You are locked on Cardinals, your daily Arizona Cardinals podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. Alex Clancy here. Thanks for making Lockdown Cardinals your first listen. Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, now the number one sports podcast platform on the planet. Just continues to be unbelievable. Got a lot to talk about today. Nick Rouse, is he getting a pass for this here? Relax. We’ll have a conversation about it. Okay, it’s not rhetorical. Is the Trey Is Trey Benson the key to the flow of this offense with his imminent return? You’d expect um I think the answer is yes, and I’ll talk about that in the second segment. But the Cardinals are in a holding pattern for the rest of the season, and I’ll tell you what that means. Today’s episode of Locked on Cardinals is brought to you by FanDuel. Right now, new customers can bet just $5. And if your bet wins, you’ll get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. So, the last thing people want is lethargy as pertaining to moves made when production hasn’t been what you’ve wanted it to be or really not anywhere close. And I’m speaking primarily about the coaches. I don’t see a world where anybody gets fired this year. And I think it’s the right call. Should Drew Pensing be OC for the Cardinals in 2026? It’s probably a no, but I’m still in the TBD camp. Should Jonathan Ganon be head coach in 2026? I’m leaning yes. But I could see the case for TBD obviously with the wins and losses and how the Cardinals have fallen flat on their face for a large portion of this season and got to have it plays that they just never had. And finally, should there be any sort of credence held towards who should be the quarterback moving forward for the Cardinals? No. I think it’s time. And I think that it’s regardless of if you think Kyler Murray is going to be gonna pop off in year eight. looked bad when he was quarterback and he’s the reason why the offense isn’t affect, you know, as efficient now. Okay, that’s cool. Uh, you can think what you’d like. I just choose to disagree because I I mean, I use my eyes. I see what’s happening. The offense doesn’t look great, but at least the playmakers are getting the ball with far more frequency than the first five weeks of the season. Is your percent the long-term answer? probably not. Could he be the answer for 2026? Yeah. But the holding pattern is primarily surrounding the coaching staff. And this is where the, you know, most potent point of contention has been ever since the wheels fell off. It’s like you got to fire somebody. And while I completely understand the merit and the rational thinking behind that, I think it’s a fool’s errand in the same in the same breath. And both can be true simultaneously where traditionally you fire somebody mid-season because somebody’s got to go because that’s the way the world works. I would tend to push back and say why. Well, they deserve to lose their job. That may be true, Drew Pensing specifically, but what is firing somebody mid-season gonna do that letting him or not re-upping his contract at the end of the year won’t? Well, it’ll send a message. Okay, what message would that be? You got to produce to keep your job. I don’t think sending a message midseason is any more effective than letting him walk at the end of the year. And on top of that, he’s still coaching for a job with the Cardinals and potentially another suitor. And what I’ve seen with Jacobe Brassette, even though they’ve lost games, is an offense that has far more potential than what we saw in the first five weeks against far more difficult opponents. And it’s not perfect. It’s probably not good. It’s probably average just muddled with the fact that they can’t run the ball and they can’t pass protect especially on the right side of the line. But the holding pattern I agree with. This is it’s not like a hold on for dear life and hope. It’s acknowledgment of failure and you’re just going to ride it out. It’s not a loser mentality. I think it’s a very astute and mature way to deal with the situation many didn’t think the Cardinals would be in. It’s not laying down. It’s not being passive. It’s not being aloof. It’s technically being in control of your surroundings and being in control of the dysfunction. And this dysfunction is not defined the same as the historical dysfunction of this organization. So, while we’re speaking in more philosophical terms now, like theoreticals, that doesn’t mean it’s not rooted in exactly what we’re experiencing. This is a I can’t call this team a bad team. Talent-wise, they’re not. Injuries have killed them, but that’s not an excuse. poor timed execution gaffs have been around, but they’ve had multiple big time fourth down stops that gives the offense a chance to win games like they did in San Francisco when they couldn’t execute like they did to save the game and give them a chance to win the game against Jacksonville. bad teams would get a, you know, a neutral zone infraction on a hard count and the game would end in victory formation for the other team. There’s good here. And I think harnessing and maybe not, maybe harnessing is not the right word. Um, keeping that in a controlled environment until the off season is paramount. What does that even mean? Everybody go about your day the same. Everybody knows they’re not making the playoffs. Everybody knows this was a missed a massively missed opportunity. Everybody knows there’s been injuries. Everybody knows there’s been a lot of downs. They’ve shown some promise with key players for the future. And you just hold serve. You ride out the next few weeks and then you make your changes because at this point it doesn’t serve anything. It doesn’t help anything. Well, somebody deserves to lose their job for the coaching that they’ve done. It’s been three losing seasons in a row. Yeah, that’s a very very insightful and rational way to look at these things. You wait till the end of the year. Why? That’s what losing organization. No, this has nothing to do with functionality or dysfunctionality. The Cardinals are plenty dysfunctional on their own. I mean, just look at the ivory tower with who’s signing the checks. But this, even though it looks backwards, and even though it looks like you’re punting on the, you know, the confrontation of removing somebody from their post, it’s actually the mature way to go about things. It’s actually the mature way to do it. So, we’ll see about Jonathan Ganon. I’m sure when Michael Bidwell said that he it fully stands behind Jonathan Ganon, I think this isn’t one of those um vote of confidence things. I thought that initially and when when JJ went on local radio and said that you know that he has a thousand whatever thousand times 10 or whatever it was 100% times a thousand backing by ownership. I believe it. I believe it. I think Michael Bwood just saw, hey, lot of injuries. Yeah, wasn’t great, but this wasn’t like the Cardinals were healthy all year and they won four games. You’re on your backup quarterback. You’re on your backup right tackle. You’re on your fourth running back. Your wide receivers one has been out. You know, there’s a lot of things that went against the Cardinals this year, and those aren’t excuses. Those are factual things that happened. So holding serve in my eyes is the mature and best way to go about things until the end of the season and then you make your decisions. Then lock down Cardinals your team every day. Does Trey Benson yield the skeleton key to show what this offense could look like with an actual run game? We’ll discuss it next. Today’s episode of Lockown Cardinal is brought to you by FanDuel. The NBA is back full swing. There’s no better place to get in on the action than FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Even if you miss the start of the game or want to ride the hot hand, FanDuel has live bets on everything but who for who will score next to fourth quarter comebacks. Plus, you can even combine your live bets into a same game parlay for a shot at a bigger payout. It keeps getting more and more exciting and FanDuel helps with that, especially when your team’s making that late push. Right now, FanDuel is giving new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. Uh, excuse me. FanDuel is giving new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. So, head to fandle.com to sign up and play your game with FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Please go to the YouTube channel, search locked in Arizona Cardinal, hit that subscribe button, man. Number one sports podcast platform. number one sports podcast platform. Um, honored to be a part of it every day. If you’d like to join the insider program, links in the description. Um, I love texting with, you know, fans and and and listeners and viewers and people have differing opinions like we It’s a beautiful thing. It’s awesome. Another way that we can connect, um, outside of just you watching or hearing things come out of my big dumb face. Um, is Trey Benson the key to the offensive flow? Yeah, either he is or they’re going to be searching for a running back. And I think it’s going to be fascinating because they play very difficult opponents down the stretch. They got Tampa Bay on Sunday, then they have the Rams, then they have Houston, then they have Atlanta, and then they have the Bengals, which, you know, if the Cardinals don’t put up a 40 against the Bengals, it should be fascinating. Um, and then they have the Rams in week 18. So, it’s not like they play some honey pots and it’s like, “Oh, cool. Trey Benson’s going to run rough shot when he’s healthy and then, you know, that’s not a clear indicator of what happens next season.” But you would assume, let me take that back. There’s strong evidence from what we’ve seen to think that James Connor may not be him full his full self again. Uh, we don’t know obviously. Um, I’m assuming that he’ll be an Arizona Cardinal next year if he doesn’t, you know, retire. Like, I don’t I think an injury early on in the season doesn’t deter him from being a part of the organization next year. But this is Trey Benson was drafted for him to take over the show. And unfortunately, he played, you know, 10 minutes after James Connor got hurt and then he got hurt. Um, but I’d like him to play on Sunday. You’d hope. And then you can kind of see what it’s going to be like. It’s at least there’s going to be some sort of semblance or there won’t be. I think what Trey Benson what Trey Benson brings is the ability to catch the ball to the backfield. He’s got more giddy up than Bam Knight. Um Michael Carter’s, you know, probably faster, but that’s what Michael Carter’s calling card is. He’s a pretty good uh pass protection guy. Um they missed a Mari D Marcato last week for sure in pass pro. But I feel like when you’re looking at and diagnosing what next season’s offense could look like and where what pieces should be there as integral parts, you I mean Marv, Michael Wilson, I think has shown at this point. I Trey Trey McBride, Tip Ryman will be back. Obviously, he’s severely missed at this point for differing re for differing uh for different things, but you got to see what the run game is going to look like. You just got to see. So if Trey Benson comes in these last five weeks or last six weeks and he balls out or at least shows this is a guy who can take the brunt of a run game and they start to score more points and the offense looks better and Joy Brassette only has to throw the ball 30 times a game or 35 times a game instead of 55 and the sack numbers go down because they’re running the ball more and you know the offense is in more synchronicity. It’s like, okay, well then you have to re-engage the conversation on is Drew Pson the offensive coordinator for this team for next year. Like everything has changed from when this season started obviously, but everything has changed in the sense that Kyler Murray got hurt and even though the Cardinals are still losing, the offense looks better. Sorry if you don’t believe it. I was a Kyler Murray guy until that indie game and then I’m like, oh, just makes you question things. It’s like having the same thought process going into the season as you do now. I implore people just to look at your surroundings and see that things are different. We’re living in a different world now. You got to think about things differently. You can’t hold on to whatifs when the whatifs are already a no. And with Jacobe Brassette, Michael Wilson, Trey McBride the last few weeks, last couple weeks, I it’s undeniable what’s going on here. Imagine if they could run the ball for more than 55 yards on 20 carries. So when it when the question is Trey Benson, is he the skeleton key? I mean, is he is is he the guy that can kind of open up the the balance of this offense? Well, yeah. I’m immediately giving him all the carries. That’s what I said earlier in the season. Then he got hurt, but like it wasn’t like he was getting 30 touches a game and then he wore down. Like he didn’t have a chance to even start that. So when you look at this team and you look at what you need to diagnose for the rest of the year, the run game is probably most important. You’ve seen enough with Trey. You’ve seen enough. You’d think with Marv, he’s gonna, you know, when he comes back, hopefully he’ll be healthy this week. It’s still TBD, still too early in the week, but you know what you got. Michael Wilson has shown he’ll probably do it again this week. I mean, Matthew Stafford threw all over Tampa Bay. And I’m not saying that Matthew Stafford. Not saying the offensive line is as good as the Rams, okay? But he they threw all over Tampa Bay. So Trey Benson is like you’re that’s the the magnifying glass. That’s the spotlight. It’s like do you have to draft another back to go one two with him or can he be that guy and James Connor comes back healthyish? He could finally step into that RB2 role that I think he’s going to be so great at for at least a couple years to come. So that’s it. And at this point, it’s great that they’re playing difficult opponents. It’s great. So, you can really know. So, you can really know. And I know there’s it’s kind of under the smoke screen of like, well, the season’s almost over, so or not, the scene, the the playoff contention’s over. So, it’s like, well, is the game plan going to be the same? Are they going to take more risks? Is it going to be different because they don’t have anything to quote unquote play for in the win loss column? No. That’s not how this team operates. So when you look at Tampa Bay, tough opponent, you look at Houston, the toughest defensive opponent, you look at Atlanta, who’s been frisky this year. Well, hold on. Sorry. They play the Rams next week. Sorry. So Bucks, then Rams at home, then Texans, then Falcons. Like the Rams have everything to play for and they probably will in week 18 to get the number one seed. So, you’re going to go through that gauntlet like we knew was going to happen when the year started. This is the tough the tough the tough the toughest and most difficult part of the season. So, you’re going to know you’re going to see if Trey Benson is 11 for 33 four games in a row. Maybe you have a different conversation regardless of how strong or weak the offensive line is. But this is kind of tangentially a Drew Petting segment. It’s like I understand the vitriol. I understand the push back on having him call one more play this season, let alone uh coming into 2026. I get it all. Just like Nick Rollis gets a pass for this year, which I’ll explain in the next segment, Drew Petting’s life has been reborn when Kyler Murray got hurt. It it has. This is why I said earlier in the segment, you can’t think about this team now exactly how you thought about this team leading up to the season and through the first, you know, few games of the season. It’s a different world, different planet. You could be divorcing a quarterback who’s been here seven years. It’s a different thing. So with that, it’s like, okay, so yes, the offense hasn’t looked great for chunks of games with Jacobe Brat. Also, they only scored seven points. Uh they had, you know, they had the pick six. Uh and then I think they only scored seven points going into the fourth quarter against Jacksonville. It was a smashmouth game, man. like this with Jacobe Brassette, regardless of down in distance, the Cardinals have a chance to convert. Anything third and long wasn’t their strong suit with Kyler Murray. Okay, so none of this is perfect. All of this is gross and yucky if we’re going to harness our three-year-old selves. So, you’ve got to grade all this on a curve. And that’s not me giving Jacobe Brassette a pass. That’s not me casting shade in Kyler Murray whatsoever. That’s just the situation that we’re experiencing with this team. You’re grading everything on a curve. But with that, on the back end, the curve will be removed once the season ends. And the removal of the curve will be like the catalyst of that will be us determining who’s going to be the dudes moving forward for this team. Primarily the offense. So is Trey Benson the key to figuring out what the hell this is? Especially if who’s going to be calling the plays for the Cardinals next season? Yeah, Trey Benson is that guy that’s going to give us some sort of determination on how good of an offensive coordinator Drew Pensson is when his offense actually has verticality and a run game regardless of how weak the offensive line has been. Lockdown Cardinal your team every day. Here’s the thing. I’m sorry, but Nick Rollis gets a pass this year. I’ll discuss that. Um, just just chill for a second, okay? Let’s not freak out. We’re in this together. We’ll talk about it next. Today’s show is brought to you by our friends over there at Pelaton. Look folks, it’s time to break through the busiest time of the year with a brand new Pelleton Cross Training Tread Plus that’s powered by Pelaton IQ. It’s Pelaton’s most elevated technology and equipment yet that gives you real-time guidance and it gives you endless ways to move. Whether you want to work out by yourself or if you want to work out with your favorite instructor like my personal favorite, Alex Tousant. He always gets me fired up to tackle the day. And the thing I like about Pelaton, it helps me achieve more in less times. They have features that help you plan, stay motivated, track your progress, and Pelaton IQ also provides personalized workout plans and recommendations. That’s something that I use right now during the busiest time of the year covering the NFL. They plan my workouts for me based on my mood, my vibe, and also my favorite instructors. So, make sure you check it out and use it because it also helps you correct your form in real time, and it maximizes your reps. to count your reps so that you can do it smarter, safer, and more efficient. Let yourself run, lift, flex, push, and go. Explore the new Pelaton Crossraining Tread Plus at onepelon.com. Okay, here’s the thing, guys and gals, every day. This your first listen to Lockdown Cardinals. Thank you. Why don’t you go to the YouTube channel, search lockdown Arizona Cardinals, hit that subscribe button, man. You should. Tomorrow, um, we’re doing our, uh, squad show and I believe it’s going to be at 6:45 Arizona time. And, uh, I’ll be doing crossover Thursday with James Yo from, uh, Locked on Bucks on Thursday, Thanksgiving edition. Um, you know, it’s difficult when the defense this season, especially in the fourth quarter, has fallen short, um, to kind of give a pass to anybody. I understand that. And I understand when there hasn’t been much pressure called so far this year, when the Cardinals let Carolina back in the game, Tennessee back in the game, uh, you know, they got blown out by Seattle and and the 49ers, even though there were couple defensive touchdowns scored by Seattle in that game. Um, I understand the body of work doesn’t look great. I also understand that that side has been riddled with injuries all year. So in this situation, the Cardinals gave up 19 points per game during their first five games and they were two and three. They gave up that game-winning drive in Indie where Jonathan Taylor just marched. Um, Green Bay kind of had their way with them at times even though that was a tightly contested matchup. This is the tough part because I do think that Nick Rollins just gets a pass. I think he gets a pass even though the body of work hasn’t been great. Garrett Williams missed a lot of time. Will Johnson has missed time. Walter Nolan missed the first several games. Max Melton has missed time. Drian Taylor Demerson has m missed time. Uh M Wilson has been out the last couple games. You know, like he hasn’t had a full deck outside of week two and then week 10 against Dallas. So again, while everybody’s to blame for this season and while injuries are never should never be an excuse at production isn’t there, even though a lot of times it is the root cause, I think Nick Res has shown over the first three years of his experience as a defensive coordinator that he is well equipped for the role. With that said, I believe his contract is up as well. So, what does that mean? Do you move off of Nick Rollis? I feel like to start the season that would have been something that somebody would have had to take a drug test for if that question happened or if that question arose after their hot start and then do you beg the question, well, they can’t run the ball. They got to throw it all the time. It’s not conducive to helping a defense and some crazy things needed to happen for them to lose the Tennessee game. Some crazy things needed to happen for them to even lose the Indie game, the Green Bay game, going forward on fourth and one and just lolly gagging through the A gap thinking that Micah Parsons or uh Rashan Garry was was just going to let you waltz and the defensive turnovers against uh against Seattle. the second time and two weeks ago the 98 yard kickoff return. It’s like you’re playing with one hand behind your back at times this year for multiple games. The offense sleepwalking through three quarters against Seattle and then holding that offense to 20 points even though the even though the Cardinals offense wasn’t doing jack. So it’s trickier than just yes or no. But I would lean to yes because I think this defense over the last three seasons far outweighs the drive, the preparation, and just the dog in him than anything that Vance Joseph did. Now, Van Joseph also uh did a lot with not a lot for a good good chunk of his tenure here with an offense that was all over the place. And while it seems, you know, while it seems too kumbaya to even do this segment, I do think Nicarawis deserves a pass. I think they should bring him back. And listen, you sign him to a two-year deal and you kind of see I listen I think that you could even coordinate cuz like if he blows up and then he goes gets a head coaching job obviously the Cardinals are going to be removed from having to pay the full freight on what his contract was. But are he and Jonathan Ganon a package deal? That’s a conversation for a different day. I just do think when this this show really turned into the coordinators, I think Nigel has shown more than enough over the last three seasons that he’s well equipped to coach the defense. And when they’re healthy, they were one of the better defenses in the league this year, just statistically speaking. And I think that in and of itself should merit whatever close to a pass a DC can get on a three and eight team. Lockdown Cardinals, your team every day. Remember, without you, there is no me. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.

Alex Clancy opens the show by addressing the current state of the Arizona Cardinals, describing them as being in a “holding pattern” for the remainder of the season. He discusses what this means: rather than making drastic changes like firing coaches mid-season, the organization is likely opting to ride out the rest of the year and assess things during the offseason. He argues that letting coaches go now wouldn’t offer any more benefit than simply not renewing contracts at the end of the season and suggests that such decisions are best handled with maturity and patience—what he calls a “mature way to go about things.”

He examines the coaching staff’s status:

Drew Petzing (Offensive Coordinator):

Alex Clancy is undecided if Petzing should remain beyond 2026, but leans towards letting him finish the season and then re-evaluating.

Jonathan Gannon (Head Coach): He’s leaning “yes” on Gannon staying as head coach, though admits results haven’t been great this year. Injuries and other challenges are cited as contributing factors.

Quarterback Situation:

Alex Clancy expresses that it’s time to move forward and close the loop on the debate over whether Kyler Murray is the long-term QB; he believes the playmakers are more involved now, even if the offense continues to struggle.

He talks about the broader organizational philosophy, asserting that while the Cardinals are clearly not playoff-bound and this season is a missed opportunity, it’s better to maintain stability for now. The team isn’t “laying down,” he insists, but rather managing the dysfunction in a controlled, non-reactionary way, which contrasts with the typical dysfunctional behavior of the organization in the past.

On the field, he notes:

Personnel Evaluation: With injuries, inconsistent execution, and a depleted roster, the team has shown moments of promise—especially on defense with key stops—but lacks any playoff hope. Promising young players should be evaluated to help make offseason decisions.

Offensive Performance: The offense has looked mediocre at best, and the run game in particular has been disappointing, especially in the absence of James Conner.

A focal point of the episode is whether rookie running back Trey Benson could be the “skeleton key” to unlocking the offense’s real potential. Alex Clancy argues that Benson’s return could open up the playbook and make things easier for Jacoby Brissett (the current QB), possibly reducing the pressure on the passing game and leading to better offensive flow. Benson’s skills as a pass-catcher and his ability to take on a larger workload will, over the tough upcoming games, determine whether he can be the lead back next season or if the Cardinals need to draft more RB help.

In the back half, Alex Clancy defends defensive coordinator Nick Rallis, stating that despite late-game collapses and criticism, Rallis deserves a “pass” due to the crippling number of injuries the defense has faced. At points when personnel was healthy, the defense performed well statistically.

He closes by reiterating the importance of patience and assessment rather than rash decisions, and encourages listeners to stay tuned for more analysis, including an upcoming Locked On Cardinals Squad show. Let’s discuss.

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