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Another week has gone by, another win by the Arizona Cardinals and now we have another week of power rankings in the NFL. At 8-2 and with two key prime time wins over two quality teams, the Arizona Cardinals find themselves among the league's elite. In fact, except for one major poll, the are considered the No. 3 team in the league behind the undefeated Patriots and the undefeated Panthers. ESPN, though, has the Broncos ahead of the Cardinals.
Let's take a look.
The Cardinals proved they're not to be trifled with by winning a great game over the Bengals on Sunday Night Football. Arizona's offense continues to be deadly, and in the last two games have posted 73 points against two of the league's better scoring defenses in Seattle and Cincinnati. Carson Palmer is dealing it right now, and the Cardinals have a surplus of weaponry to work with.
ESPN: Fourth (AND THEY DROPPED A SPOT!)
The Cardinals have scored 336 points through 10 games. They scored 326 points, including playoffs, all of last season.
They scored 78 points the past two weeks on the top two scoring defenses in the league. They can throw it on anybody.
When the Cardinals needed it most, Carson Palmer led a game-winning field goal drive against Cincinnati by throwing passes of 19, 18 and then 20 yards, with no timeouts. Arizona is legit and a Week 16 game against the Packers could loom large for playoff seeding.
Let's give Carson Palmer some MVP mentions, too, especially after he's fired off 11 TDs over past three weeks.
Rookie J.J. Nelson had four catches for 142 yards on Sunday night. It's unfair how deep Arizona is at receiver.
Another steady step up the rankings for the Cardinals, who are now sturdily in the three-hole. What makes for a solid hitter in the three-hole? Someone who has a balanced approach -- someone who can hit for power and take a few pitches, and who is generally better at hitting to all fields than the cleanup man. Tell me that doesn't describe Arizona under Bruce Arians. The Cards can run the football with two quality RBs, and Carson Palmer distributes the ball while being able to connect deep when appropriate. Would love to see the Cardinals win their first Super Bowl this season. But let's not put the victory beret before the headset. #Arians