NFC Notes: Kyler Murray, Geno Smith, Matthew Stafford, Cardinals, Rams, Seahawks

Cardinals

Eleven months to the day after tearing his ACL, Cardinals QB Kyler Murray returned to the lineup in Arizona and piloted the team to its second win of the season. Murray made two trademark plays on what proved to be the game-winning field goal drive, scrambling nearly 70 yards to gain 15 and convert a 3rd-and-10, then bombing a pass deep to TE Trey McBride to set the Cardinals up in easy field goal range. 

“I just want to win,” he said via ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss. “It feels good to win. I mean, that’s like the icing on the cake. It’d been a s—ty night to come out here and lose and then kind of just all this build up for what, you know what I mean? So, I’m just happy for us and the team, man. I’m just happy.”

Murray passed for 249 yards and scored a rushing touchdown from inside the 10 in his 2023 debut — “[The defender] gave me a read like my legs didn’t work. I haven’t had a read like that since like Year 2.” — but more importantly the Cardinals looked like a competent team instead of the one that had just one win going into the game. 

• Cardinals LT D.J. Humphries was fined $16,391 for unnecessary roughness last week.

Rams

Rams QB Matthew Stafford was asked last week whether he planned to continue playing until he could no longer perform at a high level. 

“I don’t think I’ll go until the wheels completely fall off,” Stafford said on “The Pat McAfee Show.” “They’re wobbling a little bit right now as we speak. I love playing this game, I love competing. I love being in the locker room. I’ll never get that again, so I get as many opportunities to do that as I can. I love this team, I love the city, it’s been a blast. Obviously had a lot of success in our first year and trying to duplicate that this year, next year, whenever it is. I enjoy playing too much to hang it up.”

Seahawks

Seahawks QB Geno Smith‘s performance was steadfast in the team’s 29-26 win over the Commanders which now puts the team and HC Pete Carroll at 6-3 for the season.

“I thought he was almost perfect, all but maybe once perfect,” Carroll said in his postgame press conference. “The throws he had to come up with, the calls, the poise, the cadence, running the club, the whole thing. He was perfect. I thought he was just exactly what we would hope we can see in him. I’m sure he had great numbers today. Must have had terrific numbers. But more than that, he just came through, just like we’re counting on.”