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AP: 302055ea-09d6-42dd-acc8-9ea990a8cf4c
New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, bottom, is sacked by St. Louis Rams defensive end Chris Long during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game on Sunday, Oct. 30, 2011, in St. Louis. The Rams won 31-21. (AP Photo/Tom Gannam)
The Arizona Cardinals have allowed 24 quarterback sacks in their first seven games this season, a mark that's the 5th- worst in the league.

Quarterback Kevin Kolb has been bludgeoned on a weekly basis, and now his status for Sunday's game against St. Louis is in doubt with a case of turf toe he suffered early in last Sunday's loss to Baltimore.

One interesting note on the Cardinals' pass blocking woes; they've faced an elite pass rusher in each of their seven games. Another interesting/troubling note; every single one of those elite pass rushers has registered at least one sack.

In week one, it was Carolina's Charles Johnson (1 sack). Then it was Washington's Brian Orakpo and Seattle's Chris Clemons (each 1 sack). Osi Umenyiora of the Giants, Minnesota's Jared Allen and LaMarr Woodley of Pittsburgh each dropped the passer twice. And of course, we saw Baltimore's Terrell Suggs wreak havoc in the Arizona backfield, sacking Kolb once in addition to his plethora of disruptive defensive plays.

On Monday, head coach Ken Whisenhunt hinted at changes on the offensive line for this week's game against the St. Louis Rams.

"We gave up too many sacks, that's a problem, that's something we've got to address," Whisenhunt said.

That's the good news. The bad news is, no matter who lines up in front of the Cardinals' quarterback on Sunday there's another disruptive pass rusher on his way to town, St. Louis defensive end Chris Long.

Long, the four-year veteran who was the 2nd overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, has six sacks on the year and is coming off a 3-sack performance in the Rams' improbable 31-21 win over New Orleans.

And considering the way the elite pass rushers have fared against the Cardinals, it's also bad news Arizona still has to face Philadelphia's Jason Babin and Cullen Jenkins, San Francisco's Aldon Smith (twice) and Dallas' DeMarcus Ware, who all currently rank in the top six in sacks in the NFC.

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    cardinalpowers wrote...
    Hint hint
    Whats Whiz hinting? Is he going to change the lines deodorant? There is nothing to change, they have all played and they have not done well. These individuals, I am sure are great athletes, after all they are playing pro ball. However they are not protecting Kolb. Anyone can say they are making changes, but what, who? Are there lineman I am unaware of? Is Grimm suiting up? As far as the line goes we are stuck. Kolb just make it through the year. Maybe the Bidwells will get a fever and sign/draft o-linemen.
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    FitzIsMyHero wrote...
    There's a workaround for this bad line
    its having the QB get rid of the ball faster, running the ball a lot more, playing really really good defense, and good coaching. Unfortunately this team lacks most of the above (they can actually run the ball pretty well). I've seen flashes of improvement (the 1st half of the BAL game). This team plays 1 good qtr of football then they fall apart. Failure to adjust and failure to keep your team motivated falls on the Coaches. I blame the 2nd half of the BAL game all on the coaches.
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