NFL Week 9 Recap: Arizona Cardinals 29, Chicago Bears 9

The upstart Arizona Cardinals rolled to their third straight win, dismantling the Chicago Bears, 29-9.

Arizona's run game thrived, averaging 0.064 EPA per play and generating five explosive runs. A 53-yard trot by Emari Demercado with four seconds left in the first half was representative.

Meanwhile, Chicago's offense was stuck in neutral, averaging -0.230 EPA per play. The Bears converted only 29% of third downs, made one red-zone trip and had three dropped passes.

PFF's dedicated team of graders was hard at work, analyzing every player on every play in real time. The grades and data will be available after a thorough review tomorrow at 12 p.m. EST.

In the meantime, we’ve gathered some high-level data and snap counts from the game to give you an early look. Our expert graders have also nominated the standout player of the game, highlighting exceptional performance on the field.

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HIGHEST-GRADED PLAYERS

CB Terell Smith, Chicago Bears – 91.3

TE Elijah Higgins, Arizona Cardinals – 90.7

OG Evan Brown, Arizona Cardinals – 86.8


Note: Follow along with PFF's in-game grading as our team of analysts evaluates every player on every play in real time! Initial grades for 1 p.m. games will then be relocked at 6 p.m. EST, while grades for 4 p.m. games will be relocked at 9 p.m. EST.

Click here to see PFF's initial grades from this game!


PLAYER OF THE GAME

Smith only played nine snaps, but he was magnificent in that short stead. The backup corner (making the start for Tyrique Stevenson) was targeted twice, allowing one catch for zero yards. He added a forced incompletion and stop.

BOX SCORE

Bears Cardinals
Total points 9 29
Total offensive plays 70 57
Average EPA per play -0.23 -0.102
Total net yards 240 350
Avg yards per play 3.4 6.1
Total first downs 16 17
Rushing first downs 5 10
Passing first downs 10 7
Penalty first downs 1 0
Third-down efficiency 29% 38%
Fourth-down efficiency 18% 0%
Possessions 12 11
Avg plays per drive 6.3 6
Avg yards per drive 18.5 29.2
Avg points per drive 0.7 2.3
Red zone posessions 1 3
Red zone plays 5 15
Red zone TDs 0 2
Red zone FGs 1 1
Red zone scoring efficiency 100% 100%

SNAP COUNTS & PLAYER PARTICIPATION

Cardinals' offensive snap counts
Name Pos. Snaps Played
Kelvin Beachum T 58
Evan Brown G 58
Hjalte Froholdt C 58
Paris Johnson Jr. T 58
Kyler Murray QB 55
Trey McBride TE 52
Trystan Colon G 41
Michael Wilson WR 41
Tip Reiman TE 29
James Conner HB 28
Elijah Higgins TE 25
Greg Dortch WR 22
Isaiah Adams G 17
Trey Benson HB 16
Emari Demercado HB 14
Zay Jones WR 11
Charlie Heck T 4
Zach Pascal WR 3
Clayton Tune QB 3
DeeJay Dallas HB 1
Jon Gaines II G 1
Bears' offensive snap counts
Name Pos. Snaps Played
Coleman Shelton C 74
Teven Jenkins G 74
Matt Pryor G 74
Larry Borom T 74
Caleb Williams QB 74
DJ Moore WR 73
Keenan Allen WR 69
Rome Odunze WR 65
Cole Kmet TE 63
Darnell Wright T 57
D'Andre Swift HB 46
Roschon Johnson HB 28
Jake Curhan T 17
Gerald Everett TE 15
Marcedes Lewis TE 10
Tyler Scott WR 1
Cardinals' defensive snap counts
Name Pos. Snaps Played
Max Melton CB 72
Budda Baker S 68
Kyzir White LB 68
Jalen Thompson S 68
Starling Thomas V CB 68
Garrett Williams CB 62
Mack Wilson Sr. LB 51
Ben Stille DI 46
Dante Stills DI 40
Zaven Collins ED 40
Owen Pappoe LB 37
L.J. Collier DI 34
Xavier Thomas ED 25
Jesse Luketa ED 24
Julian Okwara ED 19
Roy Lopez DI 19
Victor Dimukeje ED 17
Khyiris Tonga DI 16
Dadrion Taylor-Demerson S 10
Krys Barnes LB 8
Kei'Trel Clark CB 8
Darren Hall S 7
Joey Blount S 6
Bears' defensive snap counts
Name Pos. Snaps Played
Kevin Byard S 58
T.J. Edwards LB 58
Tremaine Edmunds LB 58
Elijah Hicks S 58
Jaylon Johnson CB 55
Tyrique Stevenson CB 46
Gervon Dexter Sr. DI 46
DeMarcus Walker ED 35
Jack Sanborn LB 32
Andrew Billings DI 26
Austin Booker ED 26
Darrell Taylor ED 24
Dominique Robinson ED 22
Zacch Pickens DI 22
Chris Williams DI 18
Reddy Steward CB 18
Jacob Martin ED 16
Terell Smith CB 9
Josh Blackwell CB 8
Noah Sewell LB 3
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