November 26th, 2020 at 10:51am CST by Zachary Links
Larry Fitzgerald has tested positive for COVID-19, sources tell Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link). At minimum, the Cardinals wide receiver will miss Sunday’s game against the Patriots.
Fitzgerald, 37, continues to be productive at his advanced age. Just last week, Fitz reeled in eight catches for 62 yards against the Seahawks, matching his stat line from their first meeting in October. All in all, he’s caught 43 passes for 336 yards alongside DeAndre Hopkins, who has become Kyler Murray‘s top target.
November 26th, 2020 at 10:42am CST by Zachary Links
Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson will be sidelined for “a week or two” with an ankle injury, according to defensive coordinator Vance Joseph (Twitter link via Kyle Odegard of the team website). This is the same ankle that Thompson injured in the season opener, so the Cardinals will be keeping a watchful eye on his condition before clearing him to play.
Thompson’s leg twisted on a play near the end of the second quarter against the Seahawks on Thursday night. After being helped off the field, the safety had to be carted to the back. Deionte Thompson — who saw significant snaps during Jalen’s first absence — took over from there. That’ll likely be the game plan on Sunday against the Patriots, though veteran Chris Banjo may also pitch in at free safety.
The Cardinals snagged Thompson in the fifth-round of the 2019 supplemental draft and immediately put him to work. After starting in nine of his 15 games last year, the Cardinals planned to install him as a full-time starter in 2020. But, thanks to the injuries, he’s seen a grand total of 169 snaps across four games.
The Cardinals, sans top free safety, will look to advance to 7-4 on Sunday against the Pats. After that, they may or may not have Thompson on the field against the Rams on Dec. 6.
November 25th, 2020 at 11:10am CST by Zachary Links
The Cardinals have signed Seth DeValve to the practice squad, per a club announcement. The tight end became a free agent when the Panthers dropped him from the taxi squad last week, and he’s yet to see live action in 2020.
The 27-year-old first joined the Panthers in March after a one-year stint in Jacksonville. That deal lasted just a few months, thanks to a lingering toe injury. In June, Carolina dropped DeValve with a failed physical designation.
DeValve logged more snaps that any other Jaguars tight end in 2019, but he was rarely targeted. He finished out with 12 catches for 140 yards off of 18 opportunities. His best season to date came in 2017, when he posted career highs of 33 receptions and 395 yards.
The Cardinals currently have three tight ends on the varsity squad in Darrell Daniels, Dan Arnold, and Maxx Williams. If an injury or opportunity arises, they’ll DeValve on call.
The Jets’ addition of Adams makes a lot of sense after rookie running back La’Mical Perine suffered a high ankle sprain that is expected to sideline him for at least a couple games. A 2018 UDFA out of Notre Dame, Adams played a significant role with the Eagles as a rookie, when he started five of 14 games and carries the ball 120 times for 511 yards and three touchdowns. Despite the reasonably productive first season, he was waived at final cuts last year.
The Cardinals officially signed Domata Peko today, and it sounds like head coach KliffKingsbury is excited to utilize the 15-year veteran.
The Cardinals will were to turn to the soon-to-be 36-year-old following a number of injuries on their defensive line; Corey Peters, Jordan Phillips, Zach Allen, Leki Fotu, and Rashard Lawrence are all sitting on injured reserve. Peko looked like he had something left in the tank in 2019, as he compiled 14 tackles in seven games with the Ravens.
Domata Peko will be in line to play a 15th NFL season. The Cardinals hosted the defensive lineman on a visit this week and have come to terms on a deal, according to agent David Canter (on Twitter).
The longtime starter has begun going through COVID-19 protocols with the Cardinals and would be eligible to practice ahead of the team’s Week 12 game. Peko would represent a vital reinforcement for a Cardinals team that now has five defensive linemen on IR.
A starter for the Bengals and Broncos, Peko played eight games with the Ravens last season. The soon-to-be 36-year-old defender has made 189 NFL starts. Peko will reunite with Cardinals DC Vance Joseph, who was the Broncos’ head coach during each of the nose tackle’s two seasons in Denver. Joseph was also with the Bengals during part of Peko’s 11-year Cincinnati stay.
Exiting the NFL’s midway point, the NFC West serves as arguably the league’s most compelling division. Although injuries have made the 49ers’ road back to the playoffs exceedingly difficult, the division’s other three teams are surefire contenders.
The Cardinals’ re-emergence has created a crowded competition. Arizona, Los Angeles and Seattle enter Week 11 at 6-3. These three teams have four more combined games against one another, beginning with Thursday night’s Cards-Seahawks rematch.
This season’s top play thus far — the Kyler Murray-to-DeAndre Hopkins game-winner over the Bills — spotlighted the primary reasons behind the Cardinals’ resurgence. They have now beaten two winning teams — Seattle and Buffalo — and rank in the top 10 both scoring and points allowed. Their plus-56 differential leads the division, one this franchise has only won twice (in 2008 and ’15).
Through nine games, Murray has accounted for 27 touchdowns (10 rushing); that is more than unanimous 2019 MVP Lamar Jackson had at this time last season. Providing a predictably strong early return on the Cards-Texans March trade, Hopkins ranks second in the NFL with 861 receiving yards. Arizona’s defense, however, enters Week 11 with five D-linemen on IR — including big-ticket offseason signing Jordan Phillips. Chandler Jones also residing on IR will make matters tougher on Vance Joseph‘s unit in the second half.
The Rams have shown plenty defensively this season; the unit has powered their 6-3 start. Hired after stays as the Bears and Broncos’ outside linebackers coach, Brandon Staley has the Aaron Donald– and Jalen Ramsey-led unit standing second in points allowed. Staley’s troops held Russell Wilson without a touchdown pass and forced him to commit three turnovers Sunday.
Los Angeles also has one of this year’s top-graded offensive lines, though that unit stands to take a hit after Andrew Whitworth‘s knee ligament tears. Jared Goff‘s 25th-ranked QBR figure, however, threatens to impede the Rams from their third division title in four years. The Rams and Cardinals do not play until Week 13.
Seattle is 1-2 in divisional play, holding that mark after a near-70-minute loss in Arizona and Week 10 defeat in L.A. Wilson has lost the MVP lead, per Las Vegas, to Patrick Mahomes and lacks the defensive support Goff and Murray are receiving. The Seahawks enter Week 11 ranked last in yards allowed. Although their maligned pass rush sacked Josh Allen seven times, that game still included 415 passing yards from the Bills quarterback. While Wilson has thrown a league-high 28 touchdown passes and is on track smash his career-high figure (35 in 2018), Seattle’s soon-to-be 32-year-old superstar passer has also turned the ball over 10 times in the team’s three losses.
The 49ers have a somewhat one-sided win over the Rams on their resume, but the defending NFC champions are 4-6. “Decimated” may be too light of a descriptor to illustrate San Francisco’s injury situation.
The new seven-team playoff bracket will make it easier for the NFC West to send three teams to the playoffs. But which of these teams will have the highest seed and the playoff “home” game?
Vote in PFR’s latest poll (link for app users) and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
More trouble for Arizona’s defensive line. The Cardinals placed big-ticket free agency addition Jordan Phillips on IR on Thursday. He will join Corey Peters as D-linemen on the Cards’ injured list.
Phillips is battling a hamstring injury that caused him to miss Week 9. He will be out until Week 14 because of Thursday’s transaction, and the Cards are certainly set to be thin on their defensive front against the Seahawks. Peters is out for the season.
The Cards promoted defensive lineman Michael Dogbe from their practice squad but are still down Peters, Phillips and Zach Allen up front. Five Cards D-linemen in total are on IR. Considering Chandler Jones is also out, the Cardinals are down most of the players they intended to have rush quarterbacks at the season’s outset. They have turned to former off-ball linebacker Haason Reddick as an edge player as a result, and the team reacquired Markus Golden from the Giants to help out.
Phillips signed a three-year, $30MM deal to come over from Buffalo in March. He has not quite flashed his contract-year form, registering two sacks and three QB hits this season. In 2019, Phillips posted a Bills-best 9.5 sacks and 16 QB hits.
The Cardinals also promoted D.J. Foster. The veteran running back has seen action as a practice squad promotion a few times this season. Tight end Evan Baylis and linebacker Reggie Walker will rise to the active roster as well.
