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    • On the final drive as Cardinals shock 49ers in Week 5 matchup
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    On the final drive as Cardinals shock 49ers in Week 5 matchup

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    SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The scene captured all the emotions that were starting to build around this Arizona Cardinals season. Under an awning, Kyler Murray leaned back, strained his eyes and exhaled. Two consecutive drives deep into San Francisco territory had ended without points. Nothing could break the way of the cardinals.

    “A little annoyed,” Murray admitted, “at how it went.” So there he was, on that bench, the portrait of a team on its way to 1-4 and all the bad that lay behind it.

    Then somehow the afternoon changed. It changed gradually and then all at once, in four minutes and 34 seconds of glorious, season-saving redemption.

    The Cardinals took possession with 6:11 left in the fourth quarter and only relinquished it after taking the permanent lead in a stunning 24-23 win over the 49ers.

    The drive started with a nine-yard run up the middle from James Conner, which proved to be revealing. The Cardinals ran their first four plays of the drive. All four were productive, going from the 9-yard line to the 35-yard line.

    Trailing by two points, it was an unusual strategy, but Gannon and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing had a plan. They knew this was an opportunity to not only take control, but run the clock and squeeze the life out of San Francisco.

    They were able to do that thanks to Conner’s efforts in the previous quarter. After struggling early, he found his rhythm off the break and turned a handful of dead runs into chunk plays. By the fourth quarter, the Arizona run game had exhausted the 49ers’ defense, allowing Conner to finish with 10 rushing yards above expectations, according to Next Gen Stats.

    “It’s definitely fun to get into a rhythm and get lathered up,” Conner said. “And then you just get into a zone.”

    On this drive, the Cardinals had another problem. They wanted to rely heavily on isolation runs, but those require each lineman to beat their defender. And before the previous touchdown, they lost right guard Will Hernandez to a knee injury.

    However, Trystan Colon stepped up in impressive fashion. On the first play of the drive, he shut down a defensive tackle, opening a hole for Conner. He didn’t let up the rest of the way and played a key role in Conner’s success.

    But in the end, the Cardinals had to pass. On second and 5 of his 40, Murray immediately rolled out of the game. The Cardinals moved the pocket more effectively on Sunday than they had in recent weeks and here Murray had an open Michael Wilson downfield after his receiver played with a cornerback on a go route. However, he overthrew Wilson, and when the pocket collapsed on third down, the Cardinals found themselves facing fourth and fifth down.

    With 2:49 left and three timeouts, Gannon later admitted he considered punting before deciding to rely on his offense. According to ESPN, the decision increased the Cardinals’ odds of winning by 4.4%. It has paid off.

    Before the snap, the 49ers showed blitz, with six pass rushers on the line of scrimmage. They also revealed they were likely in man coverage, with defensive back tracking Trey McBride on the move. With that combination, Murray knew his first read was likely Marvin Harrison Jr. would be, who Murray said led “my witness beater.”

    As Murray expected, the 49ers got immediate pressure, so he dropped back, created valuable time and threw a floating ball to Harrison. The rookie struggled for much of the match, but this is where his talent shone through. He jumped to aim the ball high, beat his defender and came up with a crucial first down.

    “That just shows you the confidence,” Murray said. “Fourth, who do I go to one-on-one? I trust Marv to win.”

    A game later, Murray showed his best skills. The Cardinals ran a standard read-option play, allowing defensive player Nick Bosa to dictate where the ball went.

    Throughout the afternoon, Bosa had turned on Murray, allowing a productive handoff to Conner. But after opening the drive through Conner with so much success, the Cardinals expected Bosa to bite the bullet. He did just that, allowing Murray to maintain a 13-yard gain.

    Just like that, the Cardinals were within field goal range. At that point, they reverted to a reliance on Conner, forcing the 49ers to use their timeouts. It was a fairly conservative strategy, but Gannon had been impressed throughout the week of practice with kicker Chad Ryland, who had determined he didn’t need to manage a game any differently than with injured starter Matt Prater.

    “This guy,” Gannon said, “can hit from anywhere.”

    On this occasion he had to hit from just 35 yards. The bigger problem was that the 49ers still had 1:37 to go before their own game-winning score. On the sidelines, Murray could barely watch.

    “I hated it,” Murray said. “I hated it. I hated it.”

    He didn’t hate the result. That came moments later, when safety Jalen Thompson hit Brock Purdy, forcing an interception and sealing a win that no one saw coming. A win made possible by 14 plays and 75 magic yards.

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