Arizona Cardinals defeat Falcons in last look at starters
By Scott Allen
The Arizona Cardinals started sluggish but some starters find a groove against the Atlanta Falcons
For awhile on Saturday, it didn’t look like a pretty game between the Arizona Cardinals and Atlanta Falcons. In the end, some players looked like they were ready for the regular season, a game which saw the Cardinals win 24-14.
Quarterback Carson Palmer had another decent game. He went 8-13 for 86-yards and one touchdown. The touchdown was a beautiful 28-yard pass to receiver John Brown.
Running back David Johnson and receiver Larry Fitzgerald were both once again very limited in playing time. Johnson caught one pass for eight yards, his night ending after the reception.
Other guys played longer. The Cardinals offensive line struggled early but eventually got out some nice blocks for backup running back Chris Johnson.
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For his part, Chris Johnson looked good running, until he put two balls on the ground. Now, he appears to be in a spot to have to play this Thursday against the Denver Broncos to save his job.
On defense, all appeared to be well. Safety Tyrann Matheiu intercepted his second ball of the preseason. The cornerbacks looked well. Patrick Peterson almost had a nice over the shoulder interception but dropped it.
The defensive line seemed to get off the ball well. Linebackers Markus Golden and Chandler Jones also played well and seem ready for September 10th.
However the excitement was short lived. After the game coach Bruce Arians was asked about Chris Johnson fumbling and whether his job was safe. His answer was no one was safe. He couldn’t even point out any starters to say their jobs were safe.
That’s typical BA though. He doesn’t want complacency to step in. The starters now for the most part, won’t play again until two weeks from now in Detroit. Based in his comments though, just maybe we see a few of them on both sides of the ball on Thursday in Denver.