Notes from the Nest: Aug. 13, 2014

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Wednesday’s practice was pretty solid. Offense had its moments, but the defense also made its share of plays. No one in particular really stood out, but sometimes that’s how it goes in training camp.

Of Note

– Jonathan Cooper (toe), Kevin Minter (pectoral), Nate Potter (back), Michael Floyd (groin), Ted Ginn, Jr. (knee) and Lyle Sendlein were out of practice once again. Dan Williams joined them on the sideline. Max Starks and Anthony Steen were back on the field.

– I noticed a couple of interceptions. Teddy Williams picked off a Ryan Lindley pass down the sideline. A Drew Stanton toss was thrown behind the receiver, who then tipped the ball up in the air before it landed in Curtis Taylor’s hands.

– Not an interception, but Patrick Peterson made a nice play to break up a pass Carson Palmer threw to Larry Fitzgerald.

– It wasn’t all bad for the offense, mind you. Fitzgerald appeared to catch what was either a slant or a post-route and break free for a score. Also, Dan Buckner made a nice play to grab a touchdown in the corner of the end zone.

– Chandler Catanzaro handled the kicking duties this day, and by my count made eight of nine attempts. He converted on kicks of 33, 29, 39, 48, 43, 51, 50 and 48 yards, while missing from 47.

Stat of the Day

Incidentally, Saturday’s matchup with the Vikings represents the Cardinals’ second time in two preseason games facing a first-year head coach. Last week it was Bill O’Brien of the Houston Texans, and this week it will be Mike Zimmer.

Quotes of the Day

“You build comaraderie. You talk to guys. I was taught a long time ago, coach them hard and hug them later. That’s the hugging part. You rip a guy’s ass out there and then you go in, it’s just football. There’s nothing personal, we’re just talking about your football stinks; you’re a pretty good guy. You want to make sure that they know that. You ask them to do a lot of things and you get a lot of feedback when you go in there and talk to them.” – Coach Bruce Arians on why he, as a coach, decides to go into the locker room and converse with players

“I’m going to always temper my enthusiasm on a rookie quarterback that’s played in his first game. I don’t want to get overly amped up. I’ve always been taught in this business you never get too high and you never get too low. It was exciting to see. Eleven out of 12, and to see the guy’s arm strength and his athleticism, that play at the end of the game where he was able to escape. And some of the things he can do with his feet — you guys have seen, he’s got a rocket arm. The ball jumps out of his hand, and that’s exactly what we saw at Virginia Tech and in his workout. The good news is what I’ve seen is he’s starting to play with more poise and confidence, which is the exact thing that we were looking for.” – GM Steve Keim on rookie QB Logan Thomas

“It’s been a great challenge, individually, because there’s some really good athletes and good cover guys. But you mix in those guys with Coach Bowles’ system and the different looks. I mean, we’ve seen every single coverage there is. There’s a couple that we couldn’t identify — it’s like he’s making some stuff up just to try it, to see how it goes. So you combine, obviously, Pat and Antonio and the speed and athleticism and the ball skills that those guys have with the multitude of looks and bluffs and pressures, it’s as good a challenge as you can have in camp.” – QB Carson Palmer on facing the Cardinals’ secondary every day in practice

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