The Arizona Cardinals defense has been attacked quite a bit this week by both fans and media alike, and if last week is any indication they’ll be hard pressed to stop the assault.

Harsh? Perhaps, but surrendering 477 yards of offense to a team led by a rookie QB will do that to you.

However, head coach Ken Whisenhunt isn’t ready to declare his defense a lost cause.

“Our guys believe in what we’re doing and we’ll get better as the year progresses,” he said. “You’ve got to realistically look at where we are and how long we’ve been together and trying to learn the complexities of this defense.

“It takes a little bit of time.”

More time would be nice, but the games count now, meaning the Cardinals will have to deal with growing pains during the season.

Arizona’s two starting cornerbacks, Patrick Peterson and A.J. Jefferson, are as raw as they are talented, and the team is still learning its own scheme. Couple that with preparing for an NFL offense and, well, the results may not always be impressive.

So, a lack of experience — in the system and in general — will likely lead to more struggles for the Cardinals on the field.

As long as they’re winning games while getting better, chances are people won’t complain too much.

Arizona Sports’ Kyndra de St. Aubin contributed to this report

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