Kyler Murray rallies Cardinals for wild OT win over Russell Wilson, Seahawks
This time, there was no Russell Wilson miracle.
Kyler Murray’s Arizona Cardinals rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit on Sunday to force overtime against the Seattle Seahawks, where chaos ensued and Zane Gonzalez got a second chance at a game-winner in one of the wildest games of the NFL season.
Gonzalez’s 48-yard field goal with 15 seconds remaining was true to secure a 37-34 Cardinals thriller over their NFC West rivals. The kick got him and head coach Kliff Kingsburgy off the hook for a bizarre decision that set up Gonzalez for a missed 41-yarder earlier in the extra session.
Zane called game. pic.twitter.com/RsUtvAXjqX
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) October 26, 2020
It also delivered the NFC-West leading Seahawks their first loss of the season.
Cardinals blow first chance
The Cardinals appeared to have the game won on their previous possession in ovetime. The Seahawks won the overtime toss, but were forced to punt after a gutsy third-down blitz near midfield resulted in a sack of Wilson.
Murray’s offense responded by almost immediately getting into field-goal range, driving 48 yards on six plays that included a 32-yard run by backup running back Chase Edmonds. When Arizona got into Gonzalez’s range, Kingsbury tried to put an end to the game right there.
Kingsbury’s strange decision to kick field goal
On second-and-15 at the Seattle 23-yard line, Kingsbury opted to trust his kicker with the game instead of going for more yardage. It was a mistake. Gonzalez missed a 41-yard field goal, breathing new life into Wilsons’s Seahawks.
But where he’s converted so many times before, Wilson didn’t on Sunday. He appeared to connect with DK Metcalf on a game-winning 48-yard screen pass that Metcalf barreled into the end zone. But a holding penalty on David Moore nullified the score. Wilson’s next pass was intercepted by Isaiah Simmons, giving the Cardinals— and Gonzalez — one last shot at redemption.
Cardinals convert this time
Murray drove the Cardinals 19 yards and back into field goal range on six plays. When a deep heave to Christian Kirk near the end zone fell incomplete, it was once again up to Gonzalez, only this time from seven yards farther out.
This time he made good on the chance, capping a wild game featuring a duel between two of the NFL’s most electric quarterbacks.
Murray finished the game with 360 yards, three touchdowns and one interception on 34-of-48 passing. He added 67 yards and a touchdown on the ground. But for most of the night, it looked like the effort would be for naught as Wilson’s Seahawks remained in control of the game until its madcap final minutes.
Frantic final minutes
Wilson completed a pass to Tyler Lockett for their third touchdown connection of the night with 6:44 remaining in regulation. The score gave Seattle a 34-24 lead that in the moment appeared safe.
TWO FEET IN! 🙌
Make it 3️⃣ touchdowns on the day for @TDLockett12!
📺: #SEAvsAZ on NBC pic.twitter.com/3gTJUqoO1m— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 26, 2020
Murray’s Cardinals responded by setting Gonzalez up with a 52-yard field goal to seemingly cut Arizona’s deficit to 34-27. The kick was good, but a personal foul on Seattle’s Benson Mayowa for leaping over a blocker on the field goal set up Arizona with a first down.
Two players later, Murray found Kirk in the end zone to set up Arizona with a 34-31 deficit.
Savvy Larry Fitzgerald sets up OT
The Seahawks punted on their next possession, and the Cardinals drove 54 yards in 52 seconds on the ensuing possession to force overtime with a 44-yard Gonzalez field goal. They wouldn’t have gotten the kick off in time if not for a heads up move by veteran receiver Larry Fitzgerald to set up a spike.
The Cardinals didn’t have a timeout and failed to get out of bounds with time running out prior to the field goal, but Fitzgerald made sure the ball got lined up in time for a spike before the clock hit zero.
Larry Fitzgerald made sure to set his team up to spike the ball before the game-tying FG 👏
(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/FM72EUmbnl— ESPN (@espn) October 26, 2020
Fitzgerald’s was one of several plays the Cardinals needed in the final minutes to ensure the victory and improve to 5-2, closing within a game in the loss column of the now 5-1 Seahawks in the NFC West.
Huge night for Wilson, Lockett spoiled
The win spoiled a big but imperfect night from Wilson who threw for 388 yards and three touchdowns on a 33-of-50 passing effort. He added 84 yards on the ground.
Lockett, meanwhile, had a career performance, hauling in 200 yards and three touchdowns on 15 catches.
But Wilson threw three interceptions in his first game with multiple picks since 2018. Metcalf ensured that his first didn’t turn into seven points for Arizona, running down safety Budda Baker for a touchdown-saving tackle and play-of-the-year candidate.
But Wilson and the Seahawks didn’t survive his last mistake that set up Gonzalez’s game-winner, ensuring that Murray and the Cardinals would win a frenzied duel.
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