ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com's Mike Sando

The facts: Arizona fell behind by 34 points in the first half of a 56-35 defeat to the Jets at the Meadowlands.

The upside: Even the worst defeats tend to feature a bright spot or two. We found a few for the Cardinals ...

• Receiver Anquan Boldin apparently escaped serious injury during his violent collision with two Jets defenders.
• Third receiver Steve Breaston caught nine passes for 122 yards, easily the best game of his career. Breaston and fourth receiver Jerheme Urban went without a catch against Washington in Week 3. Urban caught five passes for 50 yards against the Jets.
• Tim Hightower made a couple of key blocks in pass protection. Rookie running backs can struggle in those situations, and Hightower did miss one block early in the game. He seemed to improve from there.
• The Cardinals held Jets running back Thomas Jones to a 2.6-yard average with a long run of 9 yards.
• Linebacker Chike Okeafor picked off a pass for the first time since 2003. Okeafor and Darnell Dockett had sacks.
• Edgerrin James made a great hustling play to recover a fumble in the first quarter. Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald also made outstanding effort plays. Boldin's block sprung Urban for a first down. Fitzgerald fought hard for a first down, breaking a tackle.

Life isn't going to get much easier for Arizona. I expect at least one more silver-linings file in the next couple weeks. Buffalo and Dallas loom on the schedule.