Cardinals, Patrick Peterson treating Week 2 return like any other game

TEMPE — Whether former Arizona Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson left a bad taste in fans’ mouths for the way he left this offseason, there’s no denying his impact on the organization.

Over the past 10 seasons, Peterson was a member of the Cardinals’ for 154 games, including nine home openers in Arizona. This Sunday will make it 10, though it’ll be from the other side of the fence.

For the first time in his career, Peterson will enter State Farm Stadium as an opponent when the Cardinals host the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

There’s obviously a lot of history, good and bad, between Peterson and the Cardinals, adding another layer to Sunday’s affair.

But if asking the parties involved, it’s just another day at the office.

“Obviously, Pat was a great player here for a long time and his teammates here love him and we’ll see,” Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph said Thursday. “Hopefully for both sides it’s the next game. That’s what it should be about. That’s the way I see it. We wish Pat luck outside of this week and we move on.”

Peterson spoke similarly during his Thursday interview with Minnesota reporters.

The cornerback remains focused on staying dialed in for 60 minutes and not allowing his assignment to show up on the stat sheet.

“No, not at all [do I think it will be hard not to treat Sunday like another game], because in naturality it is another game,” Peterson told reporters Thursday. “I have to go out there and be at my best for the team.”

Limiting his man could be a tough feat to accomplish for the 11-year vet, with Peterson presumably defending the Cardinals’ leading target, DeAndre Hopkins. In his first action with the Vikings, Peterson didn’t see many balls thrown his way, giving up two catches on three targets for 13 yards. Peterson also made the Twitter rounds after he was shown being put in a spin cycle by Cincinnati Bengals rookie wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase.

Peterson expects to see more throws his way this time around.

Cardinals offensive lineman Justin Pugh, who understands what the corner is going through by having returned to face his former team in 2019, expects a show.

“There’s only one time I ever wished I could watch a receiver (on my own team), and that was the second time Odell Beckham and Josh Norman played,” Pugh said Thursday. “That was the only other time. I was jealous I didn’t get to see what was going on out there.

“This will probably be another game I’m jealous. … I don’t really watch the wide angle when I’m watching film, so this will be one of the games where I watch the wide and the end zone (angles) after the game.”

EXTRA POINT

– Quarterback Kyler Murray on his time with Peterson: “The first few years with him he was like a big brother, basically. He was one of the guys I was around his hip a majority of the time asking questions, seeing how he did things, because he’s been great pretty much his whole career. I just tried to stick next to him and pick from his brain.”

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