Panic Meter: Cardinals vs Bears- Who’s Feeling the Heat?

Your Arizona Cardinals are 4-4 with a two-game winning streak ahead of today’s game against the visiting Chicago Bears, who enter the desert at 4-3 and winners of three of their last four.

Both the Cardinals and Bears have exceeded expectations this year and find themselves in control of their own destiny at the midway point of the season. The playoffs are available for both teams, making this a pivotal matchup that will provide a tie-breaker down the road.

The two teams matchup pretty well on paper, with both squads having clear weaknesses but some superstar players to help them stay winning. Chicago has several players who are playing well and others who feel like a ticking time bomb set to go off eventually.

The following is a shortlist of players the Cardinals have to keep an extra eye on and how concerned they should be individually.

D’Andre Swift

Swift is one of the hottest running backs in the NFL right now with just shy of over 400 rushing yards, four touchdowns, and a ridiculous 5.4 YPC over the last four games. The Bears are also 3-1 over that stretch and were a Hail Mary away from being a perfect 4-0. Where Swift goes, the Bears follow.

The Cardinals have a mediocre run defense and will need to play their A-game when Swift and the Bears roll into the desert. The good news is the Cards’ defense has found ways to step up this year when called upon, with the most recent example against the Chargers where they clamped JK Dobbins. Like Chicago, the Bolts’ offense literally runs through Dobbins and when he struggles, they lose football games.

If the Cardinals came into this game showing no resistance against the run then this panic meter would be much higher. However, we’ve seen this group buckle down and they can do it again against Chicago. Swift is just as dynamic as Dobbins, so let’s see if they can do it again.

Panic meter: 7.5/10

Jaylon Johnson

When you think about the best corners in football your mind jumps to guys like Jalen Ramsey or Sauce Gardner. It’s unlikely you think of Johnson and if you do then kudos to you. For everyone else who may or may not be familiar with him, be prepared for a show on Sunday.

Johnson has evolved into a shutdown cornerback since coming into the league in 2020 and is one of the NFL’s best kept secrets. Johnson captains a good secondary that has plenty of other studs, but he’s by far the apple of their eye, and the Cardinals must game plan to avoid testing him too often.

I anticipate the Cards to be run heavy in this game with the Bears’ run defense being an average to slightly above average unit compared to their damn good secondary. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see Johnson lockdown Marvin Harrisaon Jr for 60 minutes, nor would I be surprised to see him shutdown his side of the field.

Kyler Murray and the Cardinals need to be smart about throwing in Johnson’s direction, but they can avoid him by pounding the rock with James Conner.

Panic meter: 8/10

Montez Sweat

Sweat hasn’t dominated the box score this season with just 3.5 sacks through seven games, but he remains a premier edge rusher and needs an individual game plan from the offense to slow him down. It should be no surprise when the Cardinals roll out extra protection wherever #98 is lining up.

The Cards’ offensive line has been admirable this season and they’re certainly playing above their talent level. They’ve also faced plenty of quality pass rushers this season, albeit with mixed results. Sweat isn’t anything they haven’t faced already, so hopefully they have somewhat of an idea of how to play around him.

Chicago has dialed up a solid pass rush this year and Sweat isn’t even the team leader in sacks (3.5 compared to 4.0 by Gervon Dexter), but he’s easily the most dangerous of the group. Any slip up could lead to a multi-sack performance from the Pro Bowler, so buckle in and make sure you do everything possible to keep him under wraps.

Panic meter: 8/10