Ron Jenkins/Associated Press
The Arizona Cardinals are the latest team to challenge the “N.F.L. establishment.” They are dangerous subversives with a thrilling dual-threat quarterback and a slick upstart coach whose gimmicky system is all dessert and no vegetables. They may be fun to watch, but conventional wisdom nervously warns that they won’t amount to anything until they grow out of their rebellious phase.
The Cardinals beat the previously undefeated Seattle Seahawks, 37-34, on Sunday night in a chaotic overtime thriller which played out like an overstimulated preschooler’s breathless synopsis of a superhero movie. They humiliated the shame-spiraling Dallas Cowboys, 38-10, the previous Monday night.