Arizona Cardinals/San Francisco 49ers Postgame Analysis And Quotes

At the close of today's game between the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers there were plenty of questions to be had. How long will Kevin Kolb be out? After winning three straight, two over playoff bound teams, have the Cards turned the corner? How much better can Ray Horton's defense get?

What isn't in question is the fact that the Arizona Cardinals defense stymied the 49ers' offense. And after sputtering about, the Card's offense finally ignited for big play opportunities. 21-19, the Cards send the 49ers away with a rare loss in the 2011 season, rallying behind John Skelton.

And quotes are much better when the team wins. Hit the jump to see what the Cards had to say.

We'll start with the defense, who kept the Cards in this game. Once again the unit have five sacks on the day, from five different players. Coach Ken Whisenhunt had this to say, "You start with the defense. They allowed us to stay in the game."

And John Skelton, pressed into action today, offered up his thoughts on the defense. "It's incredible to know that if you do make a mistake or make a turnover, it's not automatic points." On the day John needed that kind of help from the defense, as he coughed up the ball once and threw two interceptions.

Early Doucet contributed seventy-three yards and a touchdown on the day. He also spoke about Kevin Kolb going out of the game. "Injuries happen. From a mental standpoint John was prepared. For the rest of us, we don't look at it as who is back there. We just have a job to do."

Another facet of today's game was John Skelton's opportunity to gain some sample of payback against the 49ers. When asked about that, Skelton said, "You're only as good as your last play, your last game. You kind of have to live with that until you get another opportunity."

Coach Whisenhunt made mention of Skelton's performance as well. "He overcame those demons a little bit. He missed some plays, and that's because he didn't get reps with the team. But he did a great job without having gotten much to come in there and play today.

Larry Fitzgerald, who had another strong performance, managed to pass the one thousand yard mark for the season in his one touchdown one hundred forty-nine yard day. He had this to say about the game though. "We don't want our defense to have to always protect us."

That's the dynamic of a good couple. Of course you want both parties to do well, but when one slips, the other picks up the slack. The defense has shown they can do this while the offense slips.

Clark Haggans said it best. "Offense got us the lead. Our job is to keep the lead."

Until next week when the Cards host the Cleveland Browns, live Cards large!