Cardinals relying on defense to win games

TEMPE, AZ -- If quarterback Kevin Kolb plays this Sunday against the Cowboys, maybe the Cardinals can begin putting their offensive house in order. The belief in the locker room is that the defense is well on its way to mastering first-year coordinator Ray Horton's complex scheme. "We are starting to trust each other and that's the biggest thing," defensive end Calais Campbell said. "We're also finally understanding what Ray's trying to do, why he makes certain calls. "It seems so simple when I say it, but it comes down to everybody being in the place they're supposed to be. At the beginning of the year, there was always someone who wasn't and teams took advantage of that." How real are the defensive strides? The answer is never as clear as statistics would indicate, but most coaches will tell you the most important number for a defense is how many points it is allowing. For the season, the Cards are allowing 23.3 points per game, which ranks 21st in the NFL, but over the past five games they are allowing 20.6, a drop of nearly a field goal that would rank them in a tie for 13th over a season. Sure, two of those games came against the St. Louis Rams, but they also played the Ravens, 49ers and Eagles, who rank seventh, ninth and 14th respectively in scoring. For the season, the Cardinals are ranked 26th overall in yards allowed at 373.6 per game. In the last five games, they've allowed an average of 356 which would rank 19th over a season. For the season, they're allowing 250.2 passing yards per game (25th) but 221.4 over the past five games (14th). The only troubling stat is the rushing defense, which is allowing 123.5 rushing yards per game for the season (20th), but 134.6 (26th) over the past five games, raising the question: Are the Cards allowing fewer points because they're playing better defense or are they allowing fewer points because opponents are playing more of a ball-control style offense against them that eats up more time through the run game, affording fewer scoring chances? "We have to get off the field on third downs and (get) turnovers," said Horton, whose team is 22nd in interceptions (nine) and tied for 14th in fumble recoveries (six), for an average of 1.4 turnovers per game (1.6 over the last five). And what of that perceived improvement in the pass rush since the Cards started playing younger linebackers Sam Acho and O'Brien Schofield more? The NFL does not keep a defensive statistic on QB pressures; only sacks. For the season, the Cards are averaging about 2.2 sacks per game. Over the past five games, the same span in which Acho has been a starter, they're averaging the same. "The (interceptions) come with pressure," Horton said. "We have to get dramatically better with pressure." Criticisms, aside, it's important to remember that the Cards didn't have an offseason to install a new scheme, and there are currently five defensive starters who were not starting last season (Nick Eason, Acho, Richard Marshall, Patrick Peterson and Rashad Johnson). "I don't want to use it as a crutch but the offseason is important when you're learning something new," inside linebacker Paris Lenon said. "You always want to expect great results but it takes time. It took us a while collectively to really put it together but I think we've done a good job and we've been improving." There is also something to be said for the naked-eye assessment of Arizona's defense. You may not be able to put a finger on it, or quantify it completely with stats, but you know progress when you see it, and the overall impression of the Cards' defense is of an improved performance. "You can definitely feel a difference in the way those guys are playing," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "Their confidence is up, they're making more plays and I think we're on the right track." But there are still five more games to play. "We've got to keep doing the good things we're doing but we also have to keep improving," Campbell said. "We have to finish the season strong if we want to say we've turned the corner."