The Arizona Cardinals will have no head coach on Sunday.
Kliff Kingsbury returned to Arizona on Friday after a positive COVID-19 testing. The Cardinals' offense continued to be strong in a dominant 37-14 win at FirstEnergy Stadium over the Cleveland Browns to improve their record to 6-0 and maintain their status as the NFL's only undefeated side.
After Sunday's game, quarterback Kyler Murray stated that he believed the news was good news. "It was kind of thrilling to play against a great team on the road. You could feel the energy even before the game.
The Cardinals' undefeated season was not affected by the sudden departure of Kingsbury and Cam Turner, quarterbacks coach. Murray was constantly listening to Spencer Whipple, assistant wide receivers coach. He called the passing plays and Sean Kugler, offensive line coach and run game coordinator, called the ground attack. Murray described Whipple as "calm, cool", and "didn’t panic" throughout the game.
Vance Joseph, the defensive coordinator, shared the head coaching responsibilities with Jeff Rodgers, the assistant head coach and special team coordinator. Rodgers said it was because Kingsbury had taught his assistants how to call games as he would.
Murray said that Whipple was wrong. We had all the faith when he called it aggressively. We stood behind him, no matter what he called it, we will go out there to execute."
Murray threw for 229 yard and four touchdowns. This is the second time Murray has thrown this many in his career. He was 20-of-30 when passing. The offense ran for 144 yards and accumulated 352 yards total. This included 42 on a clock-eating, 7-minute-long drive in the fourth quarter.
A.J. Arizona's leading receiver was A.J. Green, who had five catches for 79 yard and a touchdown. DeAndre Hopkins had three catches that totalled 55 yards and scored two touchdowns.
James Conner ran back for Chase Edmonds, who had 16 carries for 71 yard. Chase Edmonds had four carries for 46.
Christian Kirk, wide receiver, said that it was different because Kliff wasn't there. He had five catches totalling 75 yards and one touchdown. "It was strange for me that I didn't see Kliff when I looked at the sideline. As I said, there were many who stepped in. The game plan was the game plan. In certain situations, we all know what play will be called. Kliff is the one who develops it and we practice it every week. Spencer was able to stick to his plan while also adapting to changing situations.
Joseph stated that Whipple and Kugler, both with head-coaching experience had discussed different calls.
Joseph stated, "It was really seamless."
Murray stated that Kingsbury's absence allowed him to have more freedom at the line-of-scrimmage, which allows him to check in and get out of plays.
Murray stated that Murray may have had less coaching support, but it could also be due to Murray having more freedom. "It did give me some freedom. I could see what I saw, and go with it. That's Whipple's constant message to me: 'Whatever'. That's the same rule I follow, so long as it makes sense. "You have a plan, so you should follow it."
Vance Joseph, the defensive coordinator, shared the head coaching responsibilities with Jeff Rodgers, assistant head coach, and special teams coordinator in Kingsbury's absence. He said it was a difficult week.
Joseph stated, "It was a difficult week but our team leaders were amazing all week." "No one hesitated, no one blinks. The staff didn’t blink. It was bad news every day and nobody blinked, not even once. Even yesterday. There were no worries even Saturday morning, when Kliff was not available for the game.
"There was a real excitement to play on a great football team. They performed well. This team is incredible. This is a great football team. It's our third season together, which helps with continuity like this."
Two days after putting Zach Allen on their list, the Cardinals placed Corey Peters, a defensive lineman on the reserve/COVID-19 roster on Sunday. Kenny Bell (the Cardinals' assistant coach) suggested that Allen be allowed to travel with another lineman in case of a positive test. The Cardinals therefore brought Jonathan Ledbetter, a practice squad defensive lineman, with them. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, he was promoted to the active roster and played nine snaps on defense and two special teams.
Murray failed Friday's test and made a comment to Turner, the coach of the quarterbacks, about how it would be "sucky if someone gets it."
Joseph was not sure how Peters would return to Arizona, but said that he was in good spirits and happy for the team. According to ESPN, Kingsbury was not feeling well as of Sunday morning.
The Cardinals are not ignoring their concern about COVID spreading.
Joseph stated that "I think everybody is nervous about COVID issues." It is a moving target. It is obvious that if there are one positive, you can have two or three more. It's a surprise that there aren't more. It's still a moving target. We will see what the league has to offer us this week in terms of protocols.
It speaks to our young men and our reserve players who are able to step up and play for our team. This is a difficult time for everyone. It's hard to believe that we are going through this right now.
After the win, Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill called Kingsbury via FaceTime.
Joseph stated, "He's fine." Joseph said, "He is obviously happy and he is recovering at home."
