Carson Palmer, Justin Bethel, motivation and other notes from Monday’s Bruce Arians media session

TEMPE, Ariz. — Monday began what will be a fairly interesting week for the Arizona Cardinals as the NFL enters the playoff portion of its schedule.

Given that they do not play again until Jan. 16 and will not know who their opponent will be until this weekend, there really isn’t much they can do to prepare for the divisional round other than try and work on some internal issues.

And though it may seem like there are plenty of those following a 36-6 loss to the Seattle Seahawks Sunday, it’s fair to wonder how much a lack of effort and/or motivation played a role in the defeat.

So yeah, this week should be fairly interesting, and Monday, head coach Bruce Arians met with the media to discuss a variety of topics.

Who was that team?

On the idea that the Cardinals played poorly because they didn’t care, Arians said it makes sense that his players were focused on the playoffs and not their regular season finale. However, that does not mean he was OK with it.

What bothered him the most about a game in which his team was out-gained 354-232, turned the ball over three times and couldn’t contain Seattle punt returner Tyler Lockett in what was otherwise a forgettable performance?

“Just a lack of energy and passion. That’s not the way we played all year,” he said. “It was fairly obvious all week in practice; they were ready to get to the playoffs and get this one over with. That’s just the way we played.”

Fair enough, but in a way, is it a bad thing the players were looking a bit ahead?

“Yeah, because we had a game to play,” Arians said. “A team like that can embarrass you. On the very nice side of it, I was ready for it too.”

The Cardinals had accomplished most everything they possibly could in the regular season before they even stepped on the field Sunday afternoon and really, they will ultimately be judged and remembered by how they fare in the postseason. Win the Super Bowl, and the Week 17 clunker won’t matter.

Protecting Palmer

All last week Arians maintained they would approach Sunday’s tilt with the Seahawks as if it was Week 1 of the regular season. The starters would play their full complement of snaps, and the Cardinals would do everything they could to win.

Last Monday, when asked if he would consider resting players in the second half of the game, Arians answered, “No.”

Last Wednesday, when asked if he would sit QB Carson Palmer in order to make sure he is healthy for the playoffs, Arians answered, “No. No. Like I’ve said, it’s no different than any other ball game” before also saying Palmer would not be treated different than any other player.

Then, on Sunday, Palmer played the first half of the game — and that was it, and then other key players were removed throughout the course of the second half.

Monday, Arians said the plan going into the game was to remove Palmer at halftime no matter what, and the decision to do that was made last Monday.

So, he lied to the media?

“Of course,” Arians said, with a smile.

The coach noted Palmer had “no clue” of his plan, but said the reason for having him sit the final 30 minutes had to do with ensuring he was healthy for the playoffs.

“I just wanted everybody to have a good week of practice, which we didn’t do,” he said. “I wanted to have a nice week of practice and rest some guys as the game progressed. But, it just didn’t work out that way.”

Banking on Bethel

To say Justin Bethel had a rough go of things Sunday would be a bit of an understatement. He was picked on fairly regularly, and was beaten on the 24-yard touchdown pass from Russell Wilson to Jermaine Kearse near the end of the first half.

It wasn’t necessarily that Bethel was beaten badly at any point during the game, but he was beaten.

“He just needs to not get so damn tired, because he was tired after the punt coverage,” Arians said. “He’s going to get thrown at, so he better get used to it.”

Bethel is the team’s primary gunner on special teams, and is stands to reason since the Cardinals punted the ball away six times, Bethel may have been a bit worn out. Sunday, he was on the field for 53 defensive snaps and 24 special teams, with his total of 77 snaps ranking second on the team behind Tony Jefferson’s 86.

Might the fact that the Cardinals need Bethel to perform at a high level as a cornerback mean his role on special teams could diminish?

“No. Not when you go to the Pro Bowl,” Arians said. “I saw (Richard) Sherman out there covering punts and then he turned around and covered us. So, I ain’t buying into that [expletive].”

Planning for the Playoffs

The Cardinals know they will be playing on Jan. 16, and they are also sure they will be facing off against either the Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers or Washington Redskins that evening at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Next week, when the exact opponent is known, the Cardinals will narrow their focus to that team. For now, though, they can only do so much.

“Wednesday will be Green Bay, Thursday is Minnesota and Friday will now be Washington,” Arians said of this week’s practice schedule. “We’ll spend a lot of time on Washington, because there’s no chance of playing Seattle until the end. So, we’ll focus on those three teams.”

The Cardinals already faced off (and beat) Green Bay and Minnesota this season, so they have some familiarity and game-plan experience for them. They played Washington last season, winning 30-20 at University of Phoenix Stadium.

“We’ll do a complete open field, red zone, third down, and especially practice, on each team,” Arians said of how much time goes into each team. “We’ve got so much left over from both those two game plans that we have more than enough to practice with.”

About that interception

Arizona’s first drive Sunday did not result in points, but the Cards did pick up 19 yards and flip the field some. Their second drive, however, ended on second down as Palmer was intercepted on a deep throw. Jeremy Lane picked off the pass, which the box score says was intended for J.J. Nelson.

That would seem to indicate there may have been an incorrect route or some kind of miscommunication, but Arians said that wasn’t it at all. The pass, he said, was intended for Larry Fitzgerald, who was in the area but not nearly far enough down the field.

“Larry was badly interfered with and it wasn’t called,” Arians said. “When a guy’s tackled as the ball’s getting thrown, that’s usually called pass interference.”

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