Cardinals players sound warnings after near-collapse vs. Panthers

The Arizona Cardinals flirted with snatching defeat from the jaws of victory but managed to improve to 2-0 on the season via a 27-22 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. 

Following the game, veteran Arizona defensive lineman Calais Campbell spoke openly about all that went wrong for the Cardinals in the fourth quarter of Sunday's victory. 

Calais Campbell knows Cardinals must be better

"We have to be better," Campbell said, per Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. "We have a lot of younger guys who are hungry. We are close but have a long way to go. We have moments we take the lead and then moments where we beat ourselves. We have to be better. The No. 1 thing is to be consistent at a high level. But I love the mindset the guys have."

The Cardinals held a 27-9 fourth-quarter lead and seemed to be on the verge of icing the game away when Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray tossed an awful red-zone interception as he attempted to throw the ball away. From there, Carolina scored 13 unanswered points before the visitors recovered an onside kick with 1:55 remaining in regulation. 

In the end, Campbell ultimately sealed an Arizona win with a fourth-down sack of Carolina's Bryce Young. 

Kyler Murray knows Cardinals could be 0-2

"We could be 0-2, but we're 2-0 with this issue," Murray said about an Arizona team that earned a 20-13 win over the New Orleans Saints in Week 1, per Darren Urban of the Cardinals' website. "I don't want to make it a thing, but at the same time, we have to finish games. That's (the) bottom line. So, it didn't bite us in the (expletive) today, it didn't bite us in the (expletive) last week. But, you keep playing around, (you'll) get bit. We have to be better."

ESPN stats show that Murray ranks 19th in the NFL among qualified players with a 56.4 adjusted QBR for the season. Such information could excite Cardinals fans regarding what the club could accomplish through January if Murray gives Arizona above-average play over the next few months. 

As of Monday morning, ESPN Bet had the Cardinals as 1.5-point underdogs for this coming Sunday's game at the 2-0 San Francisco 49ers. Campbell sounded hyped for that showdown following the nervy win over Carolina. 

"Getting to play football in games that matter against good teams," Campbell added during his postgame comments. "I’m ready."