This will be the first game played under the new name of Paycor Stadium, rather than Paul Brown Stadium.
The Cincinnati Bengals were one of the only teams in the NFL without a naming rights deal for their stadium, going with the name Paul Brown Stadium, named for the man who founded the team.
But things have finally changed. The stadium officially was named Paycor Stadium this week before the Arizona Cardinals face the Bengals in their preseason opener.
It isn’t a new stadium, just a new name.
It was a bit of a surprise for Cardinals receiver A.J. Green, who played a decade for the Bengals when it was Paul Brown Stadium.
“It’s weird. I thought it would never happen,” Green told reporters Wednesday. “But when I was there, Paycor started working with us, so I could see this coming, but I didn’t think it would happen this fast.”
The Cardinals and Bengals kick off Friday at 4:30 p.m. Arizona time at Paycor Stadium (not Paul Brown Stadium).
A.J. Green played for the Bengals for a decade, while Myjai Sanders and James Wiggins played collegiately for Cincinnati.
The Arizona Cardinals landed in Cincinnati Thursday afternoon in preparation for their preseason opener against the Bengals Friday night. It is only the second time the Cardinals have faced the Bengals in the preseason and the first time since 1971.
For a trio of Cardinals, it will be their first football trip back to Cincinnati, either since they played for the Bengals or for the Cincinnati Bearcats in college.
The second-round pick has been dealing with a back injury. Kliff Kingsbury hopes McBride can be ready for their game against the Ravens.
Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury wants to give rookie tight end Trey McBride playing time in the preseason so he can be prepared for a role in the offense once the regular season begins. That isn’t likely going to happen this weekend when the team takes on the Cincinnati Bengals on the road Friday in their preseason opener.
Kingsbury told reporters Wednesday it is unlikely McBride will be able to play in the opener. He has been dealing with back tightness which has kept him out of practice over the last week or so.
“After today, we just rested him,” Kingsbury said. “I doubt it will be Friday night. Hoping for Baltimore at this point.”
The Cardinals play their second preseason game at home against the Ravens next Sunday night.
McBride, drafted in the second round this year, needs the game reps so Kingsbury can trust him to be used in the regular season.
With Bears inside linebacker Roquan Smith requesting a trade out of Chicago, could the Cardinals be one of the suitors?
The Arizona Cardinals have been heavily linked to a Chicago Bears linebacker this offseason, but not the one circling the news this afternoon.
Bears inside linebacker Roquan Smith requested a trade out of the organization Tuesday afternoon. Smith is one of the best at his position and is seeking his first big contract in the NFL. He has been a second-team All-Pro each of the last two seasons.
At just age 25, Smith will likely generate tons of interest from across the NFL. Could the Cardinals be one of those teams to pick up the phone to the Windy City area code?
General Manager Steve Keim has spent his entire tenure with the Cardinals searching for long-term stability at the inside linebacker position. While he’s had some short-term success, he’s struggled to find that elite presence in the middle of the field.
The Cardinals under Keim have selected four inside linebackers in the first round in Deone Bucannon, Haason Reddick, Isaiah Simmons and Zaven Collins. Only one is currently slated to play the inside linebacker position for an NFL team this season. Given the front office’s infatuation with the position, it is almost guaranteed they will at least inquire about a player of Smith’s caliber.
Similar to the running back position, many teams have become hesitant to allocate premium contracts to inside linebackers. Reports surfaced Tuesday that the Bears gave Smith a ‘disrespectful’ offer.
For the Cardinals, they would have to send over high draft capital or young players (or a combination of the two). They would then have to commit a lucrative contract extension for Smith. A contract to compare could San Francisco’s Fred Warner, who inked a five-year, $95 million contract with $40 million guaranteed.
The Cardinals are currently slated to start former first-round pick Zaven Collins and journeyman Nick Vigil at the two starting inside linebacker spots. There are certainly a ton of question marks there.
Acquiring Roquan Smith would be undoubtedly pricy, but would give the team an elite player on defense for the next half decade. The Cardinals have struggled with run defense and overall physicality at times under Vance Joseph. Smith solves a ton of those problems and gives the team a much more threatening defense in the daunting NFC West.
Perhaps Steve Keim can put together another extraordinary trade for the Cardinals, which he’s proven capable of. In all likelihood, however, this would get very pricy.
Kyler Murray is being eased back after catching COVID and having a sore wrist, while Colt McCoy deals with arm soreness.
The Arizona Cardinals will play their preseason opener Friday night on the road against the Cincinnati Bengals. Their top two quarterbacks are not expected to play in the game.
Starting quarterback Kyler Murray and backup Colt McCoy have been nursing minor injuries, which means Trace McSorley will get the start, according to head coach Kliff Kingsbury.
“Trace will start the game and get a bunch of reps, and he’s done a really nice job when he comes in there,” Kingsbury told reporters Tuesday. “I like how he plays. He’s got some swagger and got some moxie, and (he) moves around and extends plays, so I’m excited to see him play.”
He will have the opportunity to potentially cement a spot on the roster as a third-string quarterback, while Murray and McCoy rest up.
Murray is being eased along after coming back from a bout with COVID-19. He also has a sore wrist, so the Cardinals want to be sure he is 100%.
McCoy, according to Kingsbury, is experiencing some “arm soreness” related to his early report to training camp.
The Cardinals kick off against the Bengals Friday in Cincinnati at 4:30 p.m. Arizona time.
NFL Network will carry 22 preseason games live. None will feature the Cardinals.
The NFL announced Monday that the NFL Network will carry live coverage of 22 preseason games. None of those 22 games will feature the Arizona Cardinals.
However, the Cardinals will already get live, prime-time coverage. Their second preseason game, at home against the Baltimore Ravens on Aug. 21, will air on FOX on Sunday night 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. Arizona time).
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Between Aug. 11-14, the week of the first week of the preseason, eight games will air live on NFL Network.
Another eight will air live the second week between Aug. 19-21.
Another six will air in the final week of the preseason between Aug. 25-29.
There is one positive to the Cardinals not having a preseason game on NFL Network. Live games on NFL Network will be blacked out in the participating teams’ over-the-air station markets. Fans will be able to watch all three of the Cardinals’ preseason contests on free television.
Arizona Cardinals’ 2022 preseason schedule
Game 1: Cardinals at Bengals, Friday, Aug. 12, 7:30 p.m. ET (4:30 p.m. AZ time)
Game 2: Ravens at Cardinals, Sunday, Aug. 21, 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. ET)
Game 3: Cardinals at Titans, Saturday, Aug. 27, 7 p.m. ET (4 p.m. AZ time)
The Cardinals play the Bengals, Ravens and Titans in the preseason and their home game against the Ravens will be nationally televised.
The Arizona Cardinals released an incomplete preseason schedule with the release of their regular-season 2022 schedule. We know they face the Cincinnati Bengals, Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans in their three preseason contests.
Their one home preseason game is against the Ravens. It will be nationally televised on FOX.
The details of the games were not set, but the team announced dates and times for the three games. You can now make plans and arrangements if you are going to travel to those games.
This is the Arizona Cardinals’ final unofficial depth chart before final cuts.
The Arizona Cardinals play in their preseason final this weekend, as they will be on the road Saturday night to take on the New Orleans Saints. The team has released its final depth chart of the preseason without many changes.
Isabella has not yet played in the preseason because of testing positive for COVID-19.
The Arizona Cardinals made a few roster moves on Monday before their first practice of the final week of training camp. One was reinstating wide receiver Andy Isabella to the roster from the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Isabella tested positive for the virus and has missed over a week.
The timing was bad because his missed both preseason games so far.
It is for that reason that head coach Kliff Kingsbury called it “a big week” for the third-year receiver who was a second-round pick in 2019.
“He hasn’t had preseason action yet and that’s important to see how he responds in a game,” he said at Monday’s press conference. “I expect him to play a lot on Saturday.”
The Cardinals play their preseason finale Saturday evening on the road against the New Orleans Saints.
Kingsbury said he has not yet decided on how he will handle playing time in the finale, except for Isabella.
After one preseason game, we make our latest projections for the final roster.
The Arizona Cardinals have completed one preseason game and must cut down their roster to 85 players by Tuesday. They had notable performances by a few players. Other disappointed.
There are still two preseason games remaining before final cutdowns, but we have a slightly better look at what the 53-man roster could look like.
Below are my latest projections for the Cardinals’ 53-man roster, based on what happened in training camp and the first preseason game.
