Opening week is upon us and the Cardinals begin their journey in the rough and rugged NFL with a match up against former Super Bowl champion Drew Brees and the new look New Orleans Saints. With the final rosters preparing to be set for the tilt this Sunday, its time to do the one thing that NFL fans love to do and that is predict the games and try to guess who comes out on top. However, there are some facts and information one has to look into before making those pick.
Can the defensive line hold up?
With the departure of Darnell Dockett this offseason, Calais Campbell is the last remaining defensive player from the 2008 Super Bowl team and it leaves the defensive line more than just a little thin with the added absence of Dan Williams who signed with the Raiders. It leaves the Pro Bowl defensive end flanked by Frostee Rucker and a rookie from Delaware State in Rodney Gunter at the nose. That position would have been taken by Corey Peters but the free agent signee from Atlanta suffered a ruptured Achilles and will be out for the remainder of the season. Gunter has shown signs of brilliance in the preseason, including a safety against the Chiefs, but the preseason is a whole different game compared to the regular season.
It will be interesting to see how the revamped offense of the Saints, which has been turning towards being a run heavy offense with the loss of Jimmy Graham in a trade that sent the talented tight end to the Seattle Seahawks. The Cardinals will be seeing a lot of Mark Ingram in the game and perhaps a spurt of former Cardinal Tim Hightower as well. With the defensive line as thin as it is it will be interesting to see just how much penetration that squad can provide without running deep into their limited seven-man rotation. Campbell will likely be the target of double-teams throughout the contest so it will rest on Gunter and Rucker to make the jobs of inside linebackers Sean Weatherspoon and Kevin Minter a little bit easier in tracking down the run game.
Can the wide receivers take advantage of a thin defensive backfield?
The Saints are in cornerback turmoil currently with their number one corner Keenan Lewis out for the forseeable future and third round pick out of Florida State P. J. Williams out for the year on IR. Safety Jairus Byrd is also expected to be out until Week 3, it is expected that the starting defensive backfield for the Saints will include Brandon Browner, Delvin Breaux and Rafael Bush joining former first round pick Kenny Vacarro. The Cardinals and quarterback Carson Palmer can expect that it could take some time before that group of defenders get on the same page in order to stop the air attack and the weapons Palmer has in his arsenal.
Most of the replacement players coming in to this lineup measure at or just under six feet. That leaves tall targets like Larry Fitzgerald and Michael Floyd a whole different window for Palmer to target as they travel down the field. And John Brown will then be left the middle of the field due to his ability to blow past corners on deep routes and crossing routes due to defensive coordinator Rob Ryan’s love to blitz his corners and safeties. If the offensive line can give Carson that extra two or three seconds to let the routes develop we could be seeing a clinic by one of the deepest wide receiver corps in the game today.
Prediction:
The defense for the Saints has been one of the weakest in the league for the last few years with the occasional good game. This doesn’t look like it could be one of those good games. Not to mention Drew Brees and the Saints offense will still need some big plays down the field to get first downs as it is unlikely that the Cardinals give up huge numbers to their run game. All signs point to a Cardinals victory with the exception of the turnover sign. Brees is pretty careful with the ball all things considered and if Rob Ryan can do anything with his defense it is generate turnovers. A perfect game won’t be needed, but a near perfect one will be required if Palmer and the Cards look to take a week one victory in Phoenix.
Final score: Cardinals 24 – Saints 13