The New Orleans Saints and the Arizona Cardinals both had high expectations entering the season.
But both are off to 2-4 starts as they try to get their campaigns headed in the right direction when they meet Thursday night in Glendale, Ariz.
The Cardinals lost two offensive starters to major injuries during a 19-9 loss at Seattle last Sunday. Left guard Justin Pugh suffered a torn ACL that will end his season and wide receiver Marquise Brown will miss at least several weeks because of a foot injury.
“It’s tough anytime you lose starters that you’re depending on in your offense,” Arizona coach Kliff Kingsbury said. “But it’s the NFL and everybody is dealing with the same thing. We’ve got to be able to continue to play and improve, so we’ll make adjustments and go from there.”
The Cardinals got a boost when wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins came off the suspended list Monday and the team bolstered the position further by trading two draft choices to the Carolina Panthers for Robbie Anderson.
Hopkins is expected to make his season debut against the Saints and Kingsbury said he’s hopeful Anderson will be able to play, though the short week provides limited practice opportunities.
“I’m really excited to see what he brings,” Kingsbury said of Hopkins. “He’s a guy you can throw out and expect to make plays, there’s no doubt. We’ll see how he fits in, but he’s the centerpiece of it.”
Three Arizona starters — center Rodney Hudson (knee), running back James Conner (ribs) and kicker Matt Prater (hip) — missed practice Tuesday, as did backup running back Darrel Williams (knee).
The Saints wide receivers are also in a state of flux. Their top three receivers — Michael Thomas (toe), Jarvis Landry (ankle) and rookie Chris Olave (concussion) — missed last week’s game.
Thomas and Landry missed practice Tuesday, but Olave has been cleared in the concussion protocol and he said after practice Wednesday that he’ll play against the Cardinals. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore (abdomen) also missed practice, while offensive lineman Calvin Throckmorton (hip) and defensive end Payton Turner (chest) were limited.
It’s unclear who might start for the Saints at quarterback on Thursday. Starter Jameis Winston hasn’t played since Sept. 25 and was a limited participant at Tuesday’s practice as he works back from ankle and back injuries.
New Orleans has lost four of its last five games, but it’s just one game behind Atlanta and Tampa Bay for first place in the NFC South.
“It’s not a time for panic,” Saints coach Dennis Allen said. “The message is just keep grinding, keep working, because we’re giving ourselves opportunities. We haven’t made enough plays to win these games, but we’ve given ourselves opportunities to win.”
Each of the Saints’ losses this season have been by 10 or fewer points. They lost to Cincinnati 30-26 last week in a game in which the Bengals scored three touchdowns on three trips into the red zone and the Saints scored one touchdown on five trips into the red zone.
“Red zone has been an area that we’ve been really good at on both sides of the ball,” Allen said. “We were not in this past game so that’s an area where we’ve got to be better.”
New Orleans had its first turnover-free game of the season last week, but it’s still minus-seven on turnovers and the defense has just one interception.
–Field Level Media
