PHILADELPHIA — While the Philadelphia Eagles defense tries to figure out a way to stop the Arizona Cardinals’ lethal passing game Sunday night, quarterback Sam Bradford and the offense will face a major challenge of its own from the Cardinals’ blitz-happy defense.
“They lead the NFL in blitzing,” head coach Chip Kelly said. “Nobody blitzes more than them. They’re right around 50 percent. So, one out of every two snaps, somebody is coming, and they bring them from all different areas.”
The Eagles faced another team last week that likes to blitz a lot – the Buffalo Bills – and did a pretty good job against them. Bradford completed 23 of 38 passes for 247 yards and a touchdown in the 23-20 win. He was 7-for-13 for 87 yards when the Bills sent extra rushers.
“One of the unique things about this (Arizona) defense is they run a lot of different personnel groups with those blitzes too,” Bradford said. “The communication between (center Jason) Kelce and our tackles and our running backs and making sure we have everyone properly identified will be a real key to us protecting and blocking the blitzes.
“You can get into trouble against this team when you misidentify people and you’re not sliding to the right guys.”
Bradford has been sacked just once and doesn’t have any interceptions against the blitz this season. That’s the good news. The bad news is he only has a 49.3 completion percentage and has averaged a puny 4.2 yards per attempt when teams have sent extra rushers.
“You always have to prepare for the blitz, no matter who you’re playing,” Kelly said. “But these last two opponents – the Bills and Cardinals – are teams that really come after you. A big part of our preparation this week is trying to handle those blitzes and how we’re going to be able to pick them up.”
SERIES HISTORY: 116th regular-season meeting. Cardinals lead series, 56-54-5. The two teams have played each other in each of the last four years. The Cardinals won last year’s game in Arizona, 24-20, on a 75-yard touchdown pass from Carson Palmer to wide receiver John Brown with 1:21 left in the game.
GAME PLAN
–Defensive coordinator Bill Davis has blitzed a lot less the last couple of games, opting to get pressure with three- and four-man rushes and drop seven or eight in coverage. He almost certainly will do the same Sunday night against Carson Palmer and his outstanding receiving corps.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH
–Eagles S Malcolm Jenkins vs. Cardinals slot WR Larry Fitzgerald.
Jenkins has done a pretty good job on opposing slot receivers in the Eagles’ sub-packages. But Fitzgerald is an eight-time Pro Bowler with 96 catches.
–Eagles DL Fletcher Cox vs. Cardinals LG Mike Iupati and C Lyle Sendlein.
Cox has been a disruptive force all season and can’t be single-blocked. Iupati, a three-time Pro Bowler, and nine-year vet Sendlein have 207 combined career starts.
–Eagles TE Zach Ertz vs. Cardinals S Rashad Johnson.
Ertz is coming off his best game of the season. The Eagles need another big one from him Sunday night. Johnson, who has a team-high five interceptions, figures to be matched up frequently against Ertz.