A ‘focused’ Arizona Cardinals team hits the practice field, preps for first NFC West opponent
Sep 28, 2016, 6:45 PM
Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians works on the sideline during the second half of an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Sunday, Sept. 25, 2016, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Bill Wippert)
(AP Photo/Bill Wippert)
TEMPE, Ariz. — Three days after their stunning loss in Buffalo, the Arizona Cardinals returned to the practice field. It was the next step in trying to put a season with such high expectations back on the right track.
Truth be told, the work to correct the mistakes from Sunday’s 33-18 loss had started much earlier.
The film was reviewed as a team on Monday. More film was watched and dissected on Tuesday, when many players showed up at the facility despite it being the players’ day off. That’s not so uncommon of an occurrence, yet still it’s a reflection of an attitude and willingness on their part to do whatever it takes to avoid being on the wrong end of a one-sided outcome ever again.
“Everybody is focused right now. Everybody knows what’s at stake,” defensive tackle Corey Peters said. “We’re a 1-2 football team. In the NFL, you are what your record says you are, so 1-2 is not very good.”
By all accounts, practice and the preparation for the L.A. Rams went well.
“Feel like that was, by far, our best Wednesday in a long time. We needed that. I think our guys are anxious to play a division opponent at home and get this one started,” head coach Bruce Arians said, adding later when asked if he wondered how the players would respond, “Never. Never. I knew how they would respond. Our guys came back; they identified what was wrong, did a good job of starting to correct it and just continue to build every day. Take care of today, that’s all we take care of is today. Make sure it’s a great practice, great meetings. So far, so good.”
Asked what the players identified, Arians responded, “That’s up to us.”
Arians did point to third down conversions, or a lack thereof — the Cardinals converted on only 5-of-15 against the Bills and rank 16th in the league overall (41.5 percent) — and a poor performance on first down plays as reasons for the struggles offensively.
Defensively, the Cardinals have been unable to stop the run — they sit 28th, allowing 133 yard per game — and special teams play has had a negative impact on each of the two losses; the latter of which was addressed by the signing of a new long snapper, Aaron Brewer, and punter, Ryan Quigley.
All of the team’s mistakes were addressed on the field Wednesday.
“It’s always our most physical day,” quarterback Carson Palmer said, referring to the two-hour practice. “It was a very, very physical day for us, but a great start. Still a long way to go before Sunday gets here.”
And that right there may be the Cardinals’ biggest issue through the season’s first three games. Their preparation during the week has been excellent, according to Arians. It’s just when Sunday arrives, so too do the mistakes.
“Obviously, every year you have a new football team. We won’t really know what kind of team we have until we’re faced with some adversity, and we’ve been challenged,” safety Tyrann Mathieu said. “In the past we’ve dealt with injuries, but I don’t think we ever really dealt with just getting our butts whipped, so it’s a new set of adversities. It’s a new challenge for us. Our coaches, they take pride in it, so us as players we have to take pride in it as well.”
Win or lose, there is a 24-hour rule in the NFL. Of course, losses like the one the Cardinals suffered in Buffalo tend to linger a little longer.
“It burns. You definitely don’t forget, but we got to move on to the Rams,” Peters said. “We’re going to have our hands full with the different issues that they present, so everybody should be and I think everybody is focused on that.”
