Tag: Arizona Cardinals

NFL makes decision about whether to move Cardinals-Vikings game to Monday night

After rumors and whispers that the Cardinals’ Week 13 game against the Vikings might get moved to Monday night, nothing will change.

The NFL has made a decision about the Week 13 Monday night game. The Arizona Cardinals will not see their Week 13 road game against the Minnesota Vikings moved to prime time.

The originally scheduled Monday night game, set to air on ABC and ESPN, was the 2-8 Cleveland Browns on the road against the 6-5 Denver Broncos, will not be flexed out in favor of another matchup.

The game between the 6-4 Cardinals, who lead the NFC West and the 8-2 Vikings, both teams in the thick of the NFC playoff race, which was one many believed could get flexed into the Monday night time slot, will remain on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.

If the NFL was going to make a change in the Monday night game, they had to do so by Tuesday night.

So for Cardinals fans who already had travel plans to be in Minnesota for that game, those plans do not have to change.

The Cardinals and Vikings will play on Sunday, not on Monday.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals linebacker makes statement about 6-game PED suspension

Markus Bailey received a six-game suspension after testing positive for a banned substance. He issued this statement about it.

Arizona Cardinals linebacker Markus Bailey, on the team’s practice squad, was suspended for six games under the NFL’s policy for performance-enhancing substances, has responded to the punishment in a statement by his legal representative.

The statement began, “It is with sadness and disappointment that Arizona Cardinals linebacker Markus Bailey accepts his suspension under NFL rules” and continued with a statement from Bailey:

“Anyone who knows me knows I would never have purposely taken any banned substance and that I’ve always been very intentional about what I put in my body. I’ve been tested countless times over the course of my NFL and college career and I’ve always been clean. I am accepting the suspension now so that I can put this behind me and get back to the locker room with my brothers as soon as possible this season. I have always been and will always be a clean athlete.”

Accepting it also makes sense on another level. Had Bailey appealed, there likely wouldn’t have been a decision until late in the season or even after it ended. In that case, if the suspension was upheld, some of the games or even all would have carried over until 2025, which would affect his pursuit of a contract because he will be a free agent.

If the Cardinals elect to keep him around, the suspension would end after Week 17, with one game remaining in the season.

The statement included comments from Oliver Catlin, anti-doping expert and President of Banned Substances Control Group (BSCG).

Catlin said, “The trace amount of the banned substance in his urine sample – at low picogram per gram levels—does not suggest a performance enhancing effect. This coupled with the fact Mr. Bailey tested clean less than a month earlier suggests the positive drug test likely came from inadvertent ingestion of a contaminated supplement or medication used between the negative and positive tests. We are continuing to do testing to hunt for the source.”

It ended with words from Bailey’s attorney, Rick Collins, Esq. He said, “The NFL has an unforgiving strict liability policy. Each athlete is responsible for whatever banned substance is detected no matter how it got there. Unlike some other sports, the NFL offers no reduced sanction for food or supplement contamination, which is a common concern. There is no threshold for most banned substances below which results are partially or fully excused in cases of inadvertent ingestion. We are investigating the source of the trace contaminant.”

Bailey’s spot on the practice squad was taken by tackle Charlie Heck, who had been placed on waivers Monday and cleared Tuesday.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

RT Kelvin Beachum has been lockdown pass blocker for weeks for Cardinals

The Cardinals get Jonah Williams back from IR this week. Will he or Beachum be the better option for the rest of the season?

The Arizona Cardinals will welcome back starting right tackle Jonah Williams this week from injured reserve and that presumably means he will return to the starting lineup, where he was to start the season before suffering a knee injury in the first quarter of the season opener.

But it is going to be hard to improve on the play of Kelvin Beachum, at least in pass blocking.

Beachum struggled in relief of Williams in Week 1, but has been fantastic since.

In Week 1, he allowed a pair of sacks and a hurry, according to PFF.

Since then, in eight games (he missed one game with a hamstring injury), he has allowed a total of one sack and one hurry and has been perfect (no sacks, no hits, no hurries) in the last five games.

He has been doing that next to a backup right guard in Trystan Colon, who is in the starting lineup because Will Hernandez suffered a season-ending knee injury.

Williams was the clear-cut starter before the season and there were major questions at right tackle based on Beachum’s play in Week 1. But now you wonder if Beachum or Williams would be the better option over the rest of the season.

We will see if Williams jumps right in this week and gets all the snaps on Sunday or whether the Cardinals will split time and ease Williams back.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

After bye, Cardinals remain in same spot in new Week 12 NFL power rankings

Have a look where the Cardinals rank in USA TODAY’s latest NFL power rankings.

The Arizona Cardinals did not play in Week 11 and also did not move in their place in the NFC West, remaining in first place and even gaining a half-game because the San Francisco 49ers lost to the Seattle Seahawks.

The Cardinals are now one game ahead of every other team in the division because they are 6-4 and the 49ers, Seahawks and L.A. Rams are all 5-5.

And, guess what? They also didn’t move in the latest NFL power rankings from USA TODAY’s Nate Davis. They hold at No. 10 overall.

The NFC West leaders come out of their bye with a one-game lead but two of their next three contests against Seattle, which has beaten the Cards in five straight.

Who is ahead of them? The Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, Minnesota Vikings, Washington Commanders and Green Bay Packers. You know who the Cardinals lost to this season? Four of those teams — the Lions, Bills, Commanders and Packers.

Go figure.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals lose linebacker to 6-game suspension

One of the Cardinals’ practice squad players has been suspended six games under the league’s PED policy.

The Arizona Cardinals have lost a linebacker for the next six games. First reported by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, practice squad linebacker Markus Bailey was suspended by the league for six games under the performance-enhancing substance policy.

Bailey had only played in one game, getting elevated to the active roster to play 16 special teams snaps in Week 7 when linebacker Owen Pappoe was hurt.

With seven games left in the regular season, he will be away from the team until after the team plays the Los Angeles Rams in Week 17.

A six-game suspension under the PED policy means he tested positive for a banned anabolic agent.

His suspension opens a spot on the practice squad, which the Cardinals used to bring back tackle Charlie Heck, who was cut on Monday, presumably so that tackle Jonah Williams could return to the roster from injured reserve.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Golden Tate believes the Seahawks can ‘shock the world’

Golden Tate believes the Seahawks can ‘shock the world’

It is simply amazing the world of difference even a single win can mean in the NFL. The Seattle Seahawks likely saved their season from going under with their 20-17 upset win over the San Francisco 49ers. It may only be a single win, but it was the difference between falling to 4-6 or improving to 5-5, which puts them right back in the middle of the NFC West hunt.

Folks around the league are noticing it, such as former Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Golden Tate. On Good Morning Football, Tate explained how this team can potentially “shock the world” given the opportunity presented to them in the near future.

Namely, the Arizona Cardinals, who Seattle faces twice in the next three weeks. Including this weekend, for a crucial divisional showdown.

When Tate says the next few weeks could “make or break” the Seahawks’ season, he is not exaggerating. Arizona is the only team in the NFC West with a winning record, but they are only 6-4. Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco are all close behind with identical 5-5 records. In fact, the NFC West is the only division in football where not one team is below .500 on the year.

Facing the Cardinals twice in a three-week span is a tall order, but an excellent opportunity to potentially find a way to get back into first place.

Right now, the NFC Playoff picture looks like the North is going to send three teams to the postseason – Detroit, Green Bay and Minnesota. In the East, the Eagles look back to their usual winning ways, but the Washington Commanders are perhaps the shock team of the conference. Should all those teams qualify for the playoffs, then the only path for a West team to get in the dance would be to win the division outright.

So, why not Seattle? Like Showtime Tate said, it’s make or break time.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4 category=1360]

Cardinals enter final seven games with confidence building

A look at the remaining schedule for the Cardinals and the rest of the NFC West.

It’s no secret that everyone knew how difficult the schedule would be for the Arizona Cardinals over the first eight weeks of the season, with six against 2023 playoff teams.

Conversely, the second half of the slate wasn’t as daunting with only three playoff teams from the year before.

In those first eight games, they won three of four games against playoff teams: the L.A. Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Miami Dolphins, edged the L.A. Chargers and then beat up on the Chicago Bears and New York Jets to be 6-4 at the bye.

Winning close games was a big reason. Prior to the Week 5 game at San Francisco, the Cardinals were 2-7 under head coach Jonathan Gannon in one-score games. That included losses to the Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions earlier this season.

Starting with the 49ers game, the Cardinals have won three consecutive one-score games (by a total of four points), all on late Chad Ryland field goals.

It doesn’t take a math major to realize that if only two of those were flipped, the Cardinals would be 4-6.

Conversely, the 49ers’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks Sunday on a touchdown with 12 seconds remaining was their third loss this season on scores in the final two minutes.

Against the Rams, a touchdown tied the game with 1:51 to play and the Rams then won on a field goal with two seconds on the clock. The third, of course, was to the Cardinals on a Ryland field goal with 1:37 remaining.

Playing the “flip” game, if two of their four overall one-score losses were wins, San Francisco would be 7-3 instead of 5-5 and no one would be wondering what’s wrong with the 49ers.

That’s life in the NFL.

Now, back to what’s ahead on the schedule.

The combined record of the Cardinals’ seven opponents (counting the Seahawks twice) is 34-37 and the Minnesota Vikings are the only opponent with seven or more victories.

The other three teams have a decidedly tougher road.

The 49ers play Detroit (9-1), Buffalo (9-2) and Green Bay (7-3), and the combined record of their seven opponents is 44-27.

The Rams play Buffalo and Philadelphia (8-2) and the combined record is 40-33.

The Seahawks play Minnesota and Green Bay and the combined record is 39-32.

What’s most important is that the Cardinals control their own destiny and they have to make sure to take advantage of this opportunity. No matter the opponent, most of the time it’s hard to win games in the NFL.

It’s simply a reality to know that just as this season turned around the way it is, it doesn’t take much to head back in the other direction.

As Gannon said Monday about what he expected in the first practice after the bye, “Attention to detail, focus, enthusiasm. We can’t be moping around today. We have to get a lot done today. You have to use the bonus day as a bonus day. Break a sweat, get going with our winning behavior. Let’s pick up where we left off.”

Remaining schedules in NFC West

Cardinals

  • Week 12 at Seattle (5-5)
  • Week 13 at Minnesota (8-2)
  • Week 14 vs. Seattle (5-5)
  • Week 15 vs. New England (3-8)
  • Week 16 at Carolina (3-7)
  • Week 17 at L.A. Rams (5-5)
  • Week 18 vs. San Francisco (5-5)

Combined opponent record: 34-37

Rams

  • Week 12 vs. Philadelphia (8-2)
  • Week 13 at New Orleans (4-7)
  • Week 14 vs. Buffalo (9-2)
  • Week 15 (Thursday) at San Francisco (5-5)
  • Week 16 at N.Y. Jets (3-8)
  • Week 17 vs. Arizona (6-4)
  • Week 18 vs. Seattle (5-5)

Combined opponent record: 40-33

49ers

  • Week 12 at Green Bay (7-3)
  • Week 13 at Buffalo (9-2)
  • Week 14 vs. Chicago (4-6)
  • Week 15 (Thursday) vs. L.A. Rams (5-5)
  • Week 16 at Miami (4-6)
  • Week 17 (Monday) vs. Detroit (9-1)
  • Week 18 at Arizona (6-4)

Combined opponent record: 44-27

Seahawks

  • Week 12 vs. Arizona (6-4)
  • Week 13 at N.Y. Jets (3-8)
  • Wek 14 at Arizona (6-4)
  • Week 15 vs. Green Bay (7-3)
  • Week 16 vs. Minnesota (8-2)
  • Week 17 (Thursday) at Chicago (4-6)
  • Week 18 at L.A. Rams (5-5)

Combined opponent record: 39-32

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals TE Trey McBride’s size makes him tough to cover

McBride is No. 4 in receptions by tight ends in the NFL as the Cardinals get ready to face the Seahawks.

Arizona Cardinals playmaker Trey McBride ranks No. 4 in receptions among NFL tight ends. It is McBride’s 6-foot-4 and 246-pound frame that makes him very difficult for nickel defenders to guard him in one one-on-one in man coverage.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C_jGjiiyvjt/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

McBride is averaging a whopping 11.3 yards per catch and should be credited for quarterback Kyler Murray’s suburb pass completion percentage this season. McBride’s 65 targets are the most on the Cardinals and his sure hands have been a security blanket when his number has been called.

McBride still hasn’t recorded a receiving touchdown this season (he has a rushing touchdown and recovered a fumble for a touchdown), but it’s only a matter of time before he reaches the end zone. With running back James Conner and Murray working exceptionally in the RPO game, the Cardinals have been able to score on the ground so effectively that McBride hasn’t received many red zone targets. However, as opponents increase intel on the Cardinals’ ground attack, head coach Jonathan Gannon and offensive coordinator Drew Petzing will be able to scheme more heavily for McBride down in the red zone.

Stopping McBride will certainly be an area of focus for Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald in Week 12. Time will tell how the Seahawks plan to defend McBride when play-action scenarios arise.

Updated Cardinals practice squad in Week 12 after latest addition

The Cardinals added safety Andre Chachere to the practice squad this week. Here is what the full squad looks like in Week 12.

The Arizona Cardinals announced a practice squad move on Monday as they returned to the practice field for extra work after their bye week. They added safety Andre Chachere.

That filled their 17-player unit after releasing Russ Yeast last week.

So what does the practice squad look like now in Week 12 as they get ready to play the Seattle Seahawks?

Cardinals practice squad

  • QB Anthony Brown Jr.
  • RB Michael Carter
  • WR Andre Baccellia
  • WR Tejhaun Palmer
  • TE Bernhard Seikovits
  • OL Keith Ismael
  • OL Nick Leverett
  • OL Luke Tenuta
  • DL Anthony Goodlow
  • DL P.J. Mustipher
  • DL Ben Stille
  • OLB Ronnie Perkins
  • ILB Markus Bailey
  • ILB Milo Eifler
  • CB Jaden Davis
  • CB Divaad Wilson
  • S Andre Chachere

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.

 

Cardinals bring back DB who started 5 games for team last season to practice squad

Chachere joins the practice squad as the Cardinals have injuries to safeties Jalen Thompson and Joey Blount.

The Arizona Cardinals announced a small roster move for the practice squad on Monday as they returned to the practice field for bonus work coming off their bye week.

After he had a visit last week, the Cardinals announced the addition of safety Andre Chachere, who spent all last season with the team and even started five games.

The Cardinals claimed him off waivers when he was cut by the Philadelphia Eagles in May 2023. Last season, he played in 17 games, starting five, logging 30 total tackles and three pass breakups.

He spent this past offseason with the team before being part of the final roster cutdown to 53 players. He spent time earlier this season on the practice squad of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

This is actually Chachere’s fourth stint with the Cardinals.

Before he spent last year with the team, he originally joined the Cardinals on their practice squad in September 2019, was released in October, then signed to the active roster in December 2019 off Carolina’s practice squad. He was cut in May 2020 before spending 2021 and 2022 with the Philadelphia Eagles.

He gives the Cardinals safety depth, especially for special teams, as Jalen Thompson and Joey Blount were not at practice on Monday.

Get more Cardinals and NFL coverage from Cards Wire’s Jess Root and others by listening to the latest on the Rise Up, See Red podcast. Subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple podcasts.