Kyler Murray had little time to look downfield early in the third quarter before he was tackled hard by Washington’s Bobby Wagner and Daron Payne, taking another sack on a tough day for the Arizona Cardinals.
After one ineffective play, the quarterback walked off the field as boos echoed from the home crowd.
Arizona’s rebuilding effort took a step back with a discouraging 42-14 loss to the Commanders on Sunday. The Cardinals (1-3) started strong with a 7-0 lead but were outplayed in nearly every aspect for the next 3.5 quarters.
“Something’s got to change,” Murray said. “We weren’t good enough today. They exploited our weaknesses, we didn’t play complimentary football. Every phase of the game, we’ve got to be better. That wasn’t the type of football we want to play.”
Murray connected with rookie Marvin Harrison Jr. for a 2-yard touchdown on the opening drive, but Washington quickly responded with two touchdowns, and Arizona couldn’t catch up in time.
One reason the Cardinals’ offense struggled was that Harrison was mostly absent during the second and third quarters. He finished with five catches for 45 yards.
“We’ve got to get our best players the ball,” Murray said. “When we’re doing good, you feel that.”
Murray completed 16 of 22 passes for 142 yards and one touchdown. James Conner added a 6-yard touchdown run to narrow the Commanders’ lead to 27-14 late in the third quarter, making things briefly competitive. However, the Commanders quickly answered with another touchdown drive, ending with a 10-yard pass from rookie Jayden Daniels to Terry McLaurin.
Arizona’s defense struggled to stop Daniels, who has impressed in his first four games. He completed 26 of 30 passes for 233 yards and one touchdown, and also ran for a 9-yard touchdown.
