while the team was enjoying a long weekend off, the C

When the season started for the Arizona Cardinals Limited Taysom Hill Jersey , Sam Bradford was the quarterback and Mike McCoy was offensive coordinator.Now both are gone.On Saturday, ardinals released Bradford, who lost his starting job after three games to rookie Josh Rosen and had been inactive for the last five. Bradford's departure came a little less than two weeks after McCoy was fired and replaced by quarterbacks coach Byron Leftwich.Coach Steve Wilks said Monday that in releasing Bradford "we did what we thought was best for the team. We needed that position to be able to add quality depth at different positions."The Cardinals made several roster moves during their bye week. Last week, they signed tight end John Phillips and offensive lineman Colby Gossett. Gossett was signed off the Minnesota practice squad. On Monday, Arizona signed offensive lineman Zack Golditch from the Indianapolis practice squad. The team also re-signed wide receiver Kendall Wright, who had a 10-day stint with the team in October.Arizona was looking to add depth on the offensive line even though all five starters might be healthy enough to play Sunday at Kansas City. John Wetzel, a backup at both tackle and guard, was placed on injured reserve Saturday with a neck injury.Right guard Justin Pugh said he is hoping his broken hand will be healed enough for him to play Sunday, which would be four weeks from the day he injured it.The Cardinals (2-6) are coming off a come-from-behind win over San Francisco but face a much more daunting challenge against the Chiefs (8-1), who opened as 15-point favorites with the advantage moving to 16 陆 points on Monday."Dynamic in every area," Wilks said of the Chiefs, "particularly on the offensive side of the ball. (Patrick) Mahomes is playing outstanding, an MVP-caliber player right now, and all the weapons around him. Again, it's just about trying to eliminate the big plays, and that's what they're known for thus far this year is just creating big plays over the top. We've got to try to eliminate that."It's the first of several difficult road challenges for Arizona in the second half of the season. The Cardinals also play at Atlanta, Green Bay and the Los Angeles Chargers.Arizona's practice Monday was its first since last Tuesday. A workout had been scheduled for last Wednesday but Wilks cancelled it."A lot of injuries, I wanted to be able to give the guys an opportunity to recover Marcus Davenport Jersey ," he said.Despite the long weekend, Arizona got an extra day of practice this week. Players have Tuesday off before returning to their regular Wednesday-Thursday-Friday practice schedule.It gives Leftwich a little extra time to work on the offense, which slogged through three quarters before Rosen threw two TD passes in the fourth-quarter in the 18-15 win over San Francisco."I think it was very beneficial," Wilks said. "I'm out there, and I'm watching the flow of practice. I'm seeing it in action with Josh and the things that they're doing. Not really to indulge a lot in the game plan, but you can see Byron trying to evolve and move this offense in another direction. I think the bye week was very beneficial to him, as well as to the offense."Rookie wide receiver Christian Kirk said Leftwich brings "a lot of new energy.""He's such a smart mind and he's just really good at putting his guys in the right position," Kirk said.Keys to success: More Tre’Quan Smith is one of few tweaks Saints are making to gain advantage over Falcons Whatever it takes to get the upper hand, you do it!Tre’Quan Smith, Cameron Meredith, Ted Ginn Jr., and Alvin Kamara will all be doing something slightly different than they’ve done up to this point in the season when they arrive in Atlanta to face the Falcons in Week 3.For Smith, this appears to translate into an expanded role according to head coachSean Payton.“We have to find ways to get him more touches. He is handling our installation. He knows what we are doing game plan wise, and I think he is ready to prove that.” I get it.This is a chance to see what the rookie can do in an important game where any wrinkle can result in an upper hand.He’s shown a lot in camp and during preseason, so now is as good a time as ever for him to swim or sink.The question is, will he look more like Kenny Stills or Robert Meachem? Meanwhile, following an injury to return specialist Tommylee Lewis that placed him on injured reserve, the Saints have inserted two new candidates into the now vacant punt return duties.One of those candidates Sean Payton said, “I know I’m comfortable with Alvin (Kamara) back there” but the other he was a little more guarded about and used it as a chance to give the player a vote of confidence“Ted Ginn is someone who’s done it and we just got to get that gas can in his locker and get him going. I think he’s someone who can give you some juice in that area.”Notice the highlighted “subtle” differences in the certainty of the two individual players?Over his career as a punt returner Authentic Archie Manning Jersey , Ginn has fielded 257 punts for 2,600 yards and 4 TDs.The drawback to some of that “juice” Payton alluded to is that he’s also had 16 fumbles in that time span.Two of them last year as a Saint that had Payton suggesting they “needed to find someone they can trust” before relieving him of those duties.When Payton had his issues with Reggie Bush, he used Lance Moore for the fair catch scenarios.I’d imagine something similar with Kamara and Ginn on Sunday.Finally, Cameron Meredith looks set to make his much anticipated regular season debut as a Saint after being inactive for the previous two games.“He’s doing well. He’s healthy. And this will be a week we’ll look to see how he progresses and see if we can get him into this plan.”Now granted, I trust that the staff knows when he’s ready to contribute but practice speed and game speed are two different things.His first preseason game saw him drop a pass (albeit thrown with questionable touch) that resulted in an INT for his quarterback.He would go on to fair much better in his fourth preseason game with 2 catches for 77 yards and a TD.It obviously took him some time to get up to speed, but those games were meaningless and the current scenario now begs the question - Does game rust and lack of action in the offense for Meredith show up at an inopportune time?I brought all of this to you to make a single point.There is some serious boom or bust potential with the timing of these changes.On one hand, the “newness” of these players and roles could give the Saints a slight advantage in what will be an otherwise close game. On the other they provide a breeding ground for potential mishaps because of that very same “newness”.In a rivalry that is usually won by the team that makes the fewest mistakes, we’ll find out which side of the coins these moves land on following Sunday’s game.Matchup to watch vs FalconsThe Falcons offensive line is missing starting left guard Andy Levitre after he was placed on IR earlier this week.If the secondary is going to hold up against Atlanta’s receiving talent, the defensive line will need to be the catalyst that makes it all possible.Yes, it’s important that the defensive backs force Ryan to go through more than his 1st or 2nd read, but it’s up to the front seven to make him pay when he does.Once you begin hitting Ryan (like any other quarterback) that’s when the mistakes and the second guessing start to appear.If they can rattle him Marshon Lattimore, Ken Crawley, and Marcus Williams should have a chance to turn some tipped passes or errant throws into turnovers late in the game.Random Thought IEven at a young age, when you walk out on the field with your friends you know the consequences of playing tackle football.While being hurt as a kid was more likely than getting injured, you still recognized it’s a gladiator sport.Interesting that many QBs are coming out and trashing the NFL’s current aims to protect the quarterback position.Random Thought IIAdd the recent news that Saints plan to start P.J. Williams in place of Ken Crawley, as another change that has boom or bust potential.The Saints offense is moving the ball and the Falcons offense is moving the ball.The Saints defense is giving up points and the Falcons defense is giving up points.Per usual in this rivalry, it could all come down to which defense or special teams makes the key play that ultimately ends up being the difference in this game.There will be plenty of opportunities for either side but with the Falcons down at least three of it’s primary play makers and the Saints fairly healthy New Orleans should could steal a victory in Atlanta.Prediction: Saints win 28-27 Custom Seattle Seahawks Jerseys