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Arizona Cardinals: 5 reasons to ignore preseason

By Scott Allen

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The Arizona Cardinals proved on Sunday afternoon that the preseason was just a mirage

The Arizona Cardinals showed us all why you shouldn’t panic when it comes to preseason games.  While it is important not to get excited about what you see in preseason either, the Cardinals showed they could get the job done in a couple of areas they didn’t in the month of August.

There were at least five things I could point to in the Cardinals 31-19 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday that proves my point.  Sure, some things will carry over but for the most part the preseason is full of things you won’t see in the regular season.  You never want to tip too much of your hand in meaningless games.

The offensive line:

The Cardinals offensive line played just about as good as they could on Sunday afternoon in the win over the the Saints. The offensive line did not allow any sacks of quarterback Carson Palmer on Sunday.  They also allowed the Cardinals to rush for 120 yards.  Leading the way there was running back Andre Ellington with 69 yards.  He had to leave early because of injury.

Tackle Earl Watford played very well.  Also playing well was tackle Jared Veldheer.  They weren’t perfect but a far cry from the horrible preseason they had.  You have to remember schemes are different in the preseason and you are also shuttling players in and out of the lineup to get a look at different guys.

The running game: Again, you are looking at many guys during the preseason.  They got good looks at Paul Lasike, Stepfan Taylor, Marion Grice, Kerwynn Williams.  Taylor was the only one of that group to make the 53-man roster.  The Cardinals got a good dose of Andre Ellington but also Chris Johnson on Sunday. Chris Johnson was signed about halftway through camp but didn’t get to play until the final preseason game.  So, no one got a good look at what he would do for the Cardinals in the regular season.  With Ellington’s injury, now we should see a whole lot more of Johnson over the near future.

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