The list of drafted cornerbacks included one going to the New England Patriots.
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The Arizona Cardinals followed up a worrisome preseason by losing a heartbreaker to the Tom Brady-less, Rob Gronkowski-less New England Patriots 23-21 at University of Phoenix Stadium on Sunday night.
Jimmy Garappolo, a third-year pro in his first start, completed 24 of 33 passes for 264 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions. It seems as if with the departure of Rashad Johnson to Tennessee this offseason, Tyrann Mathieu is spending more time in the back of the secondary roaming the field and they are sending Jefferson into the box.
Garoppolo has said ahead of the game: “There’s so much going on right now”. Keeping the defense on its toes will help, because if they are expecting pass every play, Garoppolo is bound to make a mistake.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals are kicking themselves. “It is not flawless but he made a lot of good plays”, Bilichick said. “That falls on my shoulders.”. Head coach Bill Belichick, Patriots players, and Patriots fans should all be feeling very confident after this win.
Let’s count on four fingers the major players that were missing from this game.
When Arizona needed a big play to tip the scales back in its favor, it counted on Larry Fitzgerald – of course, when has it not? – but the Cardinals cast of talented catchers was mostly invisible besides the old man’s 81 yards and two touchdowns. Not only did Garoppolo lead the Pats to a victory in the first of their four games without Brady, but he did it on the road, against a Cardinals team that should be competing for the NFC crown…in his first career start.
He guided the Patriots on a 13-play, 61-yard drive that was capped by Gostkowski’s third field goal of the game, a 32-yarder, with 3:44 remaining. “We were further behind the 8-ball than we expected to be.”.
“He”s a playmaker,” teammate Deone Bucannon said.
Carson Palmer of the Arizona Cardinals is shown in this file photo. It was announced Friday that Gronkowski will not play Sunday night, along with Jonathan Cooper and Nate Solder.
“You put quite a bit of time in with what they’ve done in the past and what they’ve done this season so far, in the preseason, and you try to prepare for the unknown because there is always unknown in the opener”, he said. Once you know the offense, you know what you’re looking for on defense and everything like that, you can mentally break it down to where you nearly know where you’re going with the ball. “As poorly as we played, we should have still won”.
“I wish I could take it back, but I can’t”, Canaday said. “But I”m looking forward to this one.”.
The Patriots take away an opponent does best, and exploits what it does worst. Then two years ago, the Patriots beat Seattle in the Super Bowl here, with Seahawks Coach Pete Carroll making the ill-fated decision to pass at the goal line at the end, as opposed to running Marshawn Lynch. Anytime you lose the opener at home, it hurts. “It”s something that Brady commonly does before games, cracking an ammonia capsule, apparently to sharpen his senses.
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NOTES: Cardinals’ rookie CB Brandon Williams, when asked if he ever could have dreamed of starting in the National Football League in Week 1 just a year removed from being a running back: “Of course, why wouldn’t I?”
