All-Access with Bruce Arians: Following the win over San Francisco

Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians meets the media the day after every game, often times explaining injury situations as well as anything else he may have seen the day before.

Here in this space, we’ll highlight some of the most notable quotes.

“I’ve got really good news this morning as far as injury-wise. Antonio Cromartie’s knee is not — it’s just a bone bruise with a little swelling, so there’s no (damage to the) ACL. His old surgery is intact and is in good shape, so he’ll be day-to-day this week and be ready to roll next week. Deone Bucannon has a mild foot sprain. He’ll miss (practice) this week, probably and hopefully be ready to go (next) Wednesday. But it looks like everybody is going to come out of this ballgame okay and not miss any time. Hopefully, we’ll get Alex (Okafor) back. Carson’s (Palmer) shoulder is improving and hope to get him throwing sometime this week or hopefully next week.”

What has stood out about this 3-0 start?

“Just the resiliency of how we’ve done it. The point differential in the fourth quarter (30-0) is huge. I think it shows a true belief in each other and that you play for 60 minutes and you play until the end. I think that part of it is very pleasing. That always gives you a chance to win. But I said yesterday, I think the biggest thing for our football team right now is they respect the process. They come to work every day, they focus on that day and we get better each day and we don’t look to the future. We have to guard against that. As we get better and people start patting you on the back, it’s easy to start looking and start talking playoffs and all of that crap. It’s still Wednesday, Thursday, Friday (and) Saturday that you have to take care of that day and not (get) caught looking ahead or counting wins.”

What are some things you want to work on during the bye week?

“The big thing right now is get some young players some action for depth. We will not wear pads, but we’ve got to get some guys some work. Logan (Thomas) in particular, Coop (Jonathan Cooper), Earl Watford. Get some guys some quality snaps against Ed Stinson and Kareem (Martin) and Alameda (Ta’amu) and all of those guys who are all in the backup roles. Get them some work and get them up to speed. I would love to have both days in pads, but we just can’t do it.”

Can Cooper win the starting left guard job this week?

“No.”

How much better are you on the offensive line than you were a year ago

“Oh, gosh. I don’t know. I can’t count that high. Both tackles are playing — all five guys. The pass protection was outstanding. Our run efficiency was better. Again, we ran it when we needed to. But we need to get some more chunk runs. We’re real close. We had like four more really close ones if we just finish (our blocks) a little bit more, get our head inside, Andre (Ellington) is going to pop. If he doesn’t slip on the one, he’s going to pop a couple of those. The efficiency, like I said, was better…but the big plays. We need to get two or three a game with the talent that we have.”

Are you any more impressed by the adjustments defensive coordinator Todd Bowles has made given the personnel changes?

“He’s done a fantastic job. He’s a great teacher. The whole defensive staff is putting the guys in position to be successful. Kareem Martin had a heck of a game. Tommy Kelly had a heck of a game. I thought Patrick (Peterson) had one of his best games. So, all of those guys are being put in position to be successful and they’re doing a good job of it.”

Do you feel Drew Stanton can be even better?

“Oh, there’s no doubt he can get better. Just throw that one to Jaron Brown. He never misses that one. He does more than manage the game. He gave us a chance to win, especially those throws in the red zone. We had a chance to come up with some balls that we didn’t come with, but he played extremely well.”

The two big hits on Stanton, have you had a chance to look at the film?

“I kept asking him on the headset, ‘you okay? Are you faking?’ He said, ‘I’m okay.’ He wasn’t faking though. That was a vicious hit that he took. I thought both were really, really good calls. The second (hit) was on the tape last year sent out by the referees, you can’t lead with the crown of your helmet on the quarterback, so that was a very good call. The first one, I thought, was a cheap shot. There’s no doubt he was sliding. That could’ve ended his career, that hit. But he’s extremely tough. Like he said, some players won’t wear a mouthpiece. It should be mandatory. That mouthpiece probably saved his concussion.”

How much does having Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd on the field help John Brown?

“It always helps to have those two guys. It’s a good combination — also with the tight ends that we have. They’re all getting touches. Andre, he gets his attention, too. I think John is being humble. (Teams) know who the hell John Brown is, I promise you.”

Does Tyrann Mathieu still have a little bit of rust to shake off?

“He was way too apprehensive and afraid he was going to cost us. You could tell by the look in his eye. We had a little talk right before the kickoff to start the second half about letting it go and don’t be out there thinking you’re going to cost us. We wouldn’t put you out there if you were going to cost us.”

What did you think of the performance of Tony Jefferson?

“Great ballgame. Had a little baby on Saturday. Got to miss the walkthrough to go to that. His girlfriend is in bad shape right now, we’ve all got our prayers for her, but he did come out and had one whale of game, probably his best game yet.”

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