While it felt like a giant balloon of optimism and excitement was popped, Wilson said momentum didn’t change. It might’ve shifted in the Cardinals favor on defense. While the Lions did score on that drive and had 20 points and 246 total yards in the first half, the Cardinals settled in and shut out Jared Goff and crew for the remainder of the game.
“We gave up a lot in the first half defensively, and I feel like we did what we were supposed to do coming out the next half,” Wilson said. “We just got to clean up some more stuff. They made more plays than we did. We’ll be alright.”
Wilson was one of the Cardinals leading tacklers, finishing the game with eight, two shy of the 10 by linebacker Kyzir White. Wilson was also one of two Cardinals to get past the Lions’ physical offensive line for a sack.
The other was courtesy of defensive lineman Dante Stills, who was inactive last week. Stills, banged up with a shoulder issue, saw an extended amount of playing time after defensive lineman Justin Jones was ruled out for the remainder of the game with a triceps injury.
For Stills, a sixth-round pick that was a big part defensive front last season, he felt right at home.
“I’m here to do my job, no matter how many snaps I get, a lot or not a lot,” Stills said. “I was so focused on my technique and running the right stunts, hand placement, footwork. All of that came together into one and then good stuff happens.”
The Cardinals use a rotation along the front seven. Depending on the severity of the injuries to Jones and defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga (knee), Stills may see the field more against the Commanders next week.
As an edge rusher, Wilson has also been included in the rotation of getting to the quarterback. Earlier in the week, outside linebackers coach Rob Rodriguez said while he doesn’t spend much time with Wilson, who is primarily in the inside linebacker room, he’s a player that wants to be coached and is a “tremendous athlete (that) plays faster on Sundays than he does any day of the week.”
Moving around the defense is something Wilson said he’s enjoyed, highlighting his preparation starting right after the previous game. Immediately after the game Wilson remained encouraged by the performance of his unit.
“You obviously could see the motor, the violence, the will not to quit,” Wilson said. “You see all that on display, so as long as we got that in order, we could go correct the game stuff and learn from it and get better.”
When the referee blows his whistle may be an uncontrollable for the Cardinals, but the confidence among the players in the locker room is a controllable that isn’t wavering.
“I feel like this is something to grow upon,” Stills said. “Our group is special. Our group is very violent and has a big motor, so if we just build off that we’ll be fine.”
