Cardinals Have Tall Task Ahead; Will Chiefs be too Powerful?
The Arizona Cardinals prepare to play their first regular season game today, yet their meeting with the Kansas City Chiefs already feels like an uphill battle.
The Chiefs enter Week 1 with a clean bill of health. The Cardinals have already ruled out three players for Sunday, are not likely to see J.J. Watt and are missing talents ranging from DeAndre Hopkins to Antonio Hamilton.
The seemingly infinite pile of injuries is only the cherry on top of what was already considered to be a mismatch at almost every position group beginning with coaching and ending with the guy who throws the ball.
Arizona also kicks off their campaign at home, which would typically be a good thing if not for their poor record at State Farm Stadium last season. The Cardinals wouldn't win a game in their house after October.
Depleted depth in the secondary, a front seven that is still shaky in stopping the run and new faces that will be counted across the board on offense don't leave a tremendous feeling for Arizona.
Yet we saw this same movie last year when the Cardinals marched into Tennessee and thoroughly handled the Titans. There's hope that can happen again, and perhaps more hope from Cardinals fans that last season's meltdown will only help further fuel their fire.
Football isn't played on paper, either. Things tend to get wonky on the football field, especially during the first few weeks of the season. As much of a doomsday scenario this article may have built up, the Cardinals have plenty of names that can help go punch for punch with Kansas City despite being underdogs everywhere.
A win won't directly put the Cardinals in the Super Bowl. A loss won't eliminate them from the playoffs. It's a long season ahead.
Yet there's something important about putting your best foot forward, especially playing in front of your home crowd, during the first week of the season.
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