Cardinals’ Weaknesses Exposed

The Arizona Cardinals won’t be going back to the playoffs. On Sunday, every reason for their downfall was on display against the hapless Atlanta Falcons.

Needing a victory to keep alive their postseason hopes, the Cardinals instead were eliminated by a 37-14 loss to the Falcons, who took advantage of Arizona’s glaring weaknesses.

Time of possession? The Cardinals, who ranked 30th in that category, held the ball only 24:40. The Falcons pulled away with a tedious touchdown drive that consumed more than 10 minutes of the third quarter.

Stopping the run? The Falcons piled up a season-high 163 yards against the league’s next-to-worst rushing defense. Atlanta, which has struggled without all-pro Jamal Anderson, had a back go over 100 yards for the first time this season when Byron Hanspard rushed for 102.

Lack of offense? The Cardinals did nothing to improve their No. 30 ranking, managing only 289 yards and costing themselves a touchdown with an offensive pass-interference penalty.

The Cardinals (6-9) reached the NFC semifinals last season, but were knocked out of this year’s playoff race with their third consecutive loss.

“You usually don’t get more than one opportunity in life,” Arizona Coach Vince Tobin said. “We basically got three. But we didn’t capitalize on any of them.”

Long ago eliminated from the playoffs, the Falcons (4-11) reveled in the role of spoiler. Bob Christian sealed the victory with his second touchdown of the game, a career-best 33-yard run in the fourth quarter.

“We weren’t playing for a playoff spot, but we’re paid to perform,” Falcon cornerback Ray Buchanan said. “We were playing loose.”