11-4-10: Arizona Cardinals Bird Droppings

All I really want to say right now is that I am sick of all the damn Spambots. Please jump off a bridge into a piranha infested lake.

ProFootballWeekly.com - Cardinals QB Anderson to start Sunday
Cardinals QB Derek Anderson will get the start for Arizona this week, replacing rookie Max Hall.

Beanie limited and the D.A. decision
Running back Beanie Wells was limited in practice Wednesday after suffered some swelling on the right knee within which he had had his meniscus surgically repaired. We will know more tomorrow on whether it impacts Wells’ status for Sunday but Whisenhunt said "I don’t anticipate it being an issue." His back, which he hurt against the Bucs, is not a problem. Linebacker Clark Haggans (groin) also sat out. Haggans will be day-to-day again, but I wouldn’t be shocked if he has to miss another game.

Dealing With Drama
Every team has some, so coaches, players must find ways to cope

Anderson The Man Once Again
Derek Anderson probably would take a pass on meeting with the media altogether if he could, so after he was demoted from starting quarterback, it wasn’t hard to keep a low-profile. He kept preparing like he always did, doing his best to help the new rookie starter, Max Hall.

NFC West: Injury situations that matter - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Arizona: Swelling in Beanie Wells' surgically repaired right knee limited him in practice Wednesday. There's no indication Wells will miss the Minnesota game, but this situation bears close monitoring. Tim Hightower's role was probably going to expand anyway after the Cardinals used him scarcely in the Tampa Bay game. Coach Ken Whisenhunt told reporters he expects Wells to play. On defense, a groin injury continues to sideline veteran outside linebacker Clark Haggans. The Cardinals are otherwise relatively healthy. Receivers Steve Breaston (knee) and Early Doucet (groin) remain limited. Playing on artificial turf might not help.

Arizona Cardinals' Beanie Wells limited in practice
Three days after making his first NFL start, running back Beanie Wells was limited in practice on Wednesday because of swelling in his right knee. Wells underwent surgery to fix a meniscus problem in the same knee in early September and missed the first two games.

How I See It: NFC West Stock Watch - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Ken Whisenhunt, Cardinals coach. The Cardinals' handling of the quarterback situation appears questionable, at best, now that Derek Anderson and Max Hall are racking up interceptions. Whisenhunt probably bet too much on both of them in the big picture when he benched and released Matt Leinart. He bet too much on Anderson in Week 8 when he called a fourth-and-2 pass play from the Tampa Bay 3-yard line while trailing by a touchdown late in the first half. Arizona got no points and lost by three. It's tough to blame Anderson or Hall for meeting outside expectations.

azcentral.com blogs - Kent Somers - Back to the future
Reinstating Derek Anderson to the starting quarterback position was a difficult decision for coach Ken Whisenhunt, but I think there were at least two major factors at play.

FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Innovative Statistics, Intelligent Analysis | Word of Muth: Marked Improvement
It's been a while since the Arizona Cardinals have been the focus of "Word of Muth," but after a three-point loss to the self-proclaimed best team in the NFL, I figured they deserved a little attention. Arizona was looking good early, until two Max Hall interceptions were returned for touchdowns. Ken Whisenhunt went to Derek Anderson, who turned a 17-point deficit into a four-point lead.

KTAR.com - Would you rather be the Cardinals or Vikings?
Cardinals fans, present company included, have been spoiled by three seasons of successful football.

KTAR.com - Cardinals vs. Vikings - Injury Report
The official injury report for the Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings Week 9 game.

KTAR.com - Cardinals LB O'Brien Schofield gets his shot
O'Brien Schofield made his first appearance for the Arizona Cardinals this past Sunday on special teams. About 10 months ago, no one knew whether he'd even make it to the NFL.

Ex-NFL QB Jake Plummer is playing a new sport these days - Shutdown Corner - NFL  - Yahoo! Sports
It's an early November day and Jake Plummer has the itch to play again. No, he's not pulling a Brett Favre. Plummer is on his way to play handball for the first time in weeks in Sandpoint, Idaho, the resort town of 7,000 people near the Canadian border where Plummer now lives three years after his abrupt retirement.

Phoenix Coyotes power past Nashville Predators with Ed Jovanovski's first career hat trick
Intangibles are great - when a team has them. The Coyotes may have found a few Wednesday night.

Phoenix Suns rally falls short, lose to San Antonio Spurs
Tuesday's Suns practice ended prematurely on account of a lack of energy in the building. The power did not go out. Suns coach Alvin Gentry just didn't like what he was seeing and sent him team home with a message that maybe they could bring whatever they were holding back when they played Wednesday night.

Madden 11 Roster Update #11 Details | pastapadre.com
The post NFL week eight roster update for Madden 11 is expected to arrive tomorrow. The Randy Moss move has been completed and he will be a Tennessee Titan with the latest update. His overall rating has fallen to a 93 however. Shawne Merriman has also been added to the Bills.

Whisenhunt, Anderson on QB decision

KTAR.com - Burns: Anderson the healthier option
I shouldn't be eating any of this crap, but if I'm going to be weak, I rationalize the choice by telling myself the 3 Musketeers is better for me because it's not as bad for me.

Sidney Rice all but rules himself out for Sunday | ProFootballTalk.com
After his first day of practice in months, Sidney Rice's injured hip is sore and "tight." It's no surprise then he's not expected to play Sunday against Arizona. Judd Zulgad of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune said on Twitter Wednesday that Rice would not play this weekend and Rice's comments Thursday support that.

Chat wrap: QB issues and Rams' chances - NFC West Blog - ESPN
paul (mesa): So here we are midseason and I can remember asking you "if Leniart fails and Andersen fails..." you said "that's alot of if's" and you didn't know but the rest of the Cardinal nation went BERSERK. Asking why you even answered my question and that I didn't know what I was talking about. Now that its "a more appropriate time" to field this question what are your thoughts?

Free Ho Hos and Big Gulps in Flagstaff - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Pete Carroll once worked at a job selling roofing materials. Mike Holmgren waited tables for $1 an hour, plus tips. From a distance, I once mistook a tropically attired Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress for a hotel valet while attending the NFL owners' meetings. Turns out Childress, whose Vikings face the Arizona Cardinals in Week 9, worked at a Circle K convenience store in Flagstaff between coaching jobs about 20 years ago.

azcentral.com blogs - Paola Boivin - Leinart earning kudos in Houston
It sounds as if Matt Leinart is making an impression in Houston.

azcentral.com blogs - Kent Somers - A look at the O-line
Ben Muth of footballoutsiders.com takes his second look at the Cardinals offensive line this season. Muth sees improvement and has some intriguing observations.

Childress worked in Flagstaff – but not with Cards
Vikings coach Brad Childress once was an assistant coach for the NAU football program as he started out in the profession. He lost his job and was working at a Circle K convenience store in the town had just begun hosting the Cardinals for training camp.

NFL.com news: Cardinals pass on Hall, give Anderson another start at QB
Derek Anderson will be back at starting quarterback for Arizona when the Cardinals play the Vikings on Sunday in Minnesota. Coach Ken Whisenhunt announced his decision before Cardinals practice Wednesday.

Arizona Cardinals NFL Week 9 Schedule Brings Lots Of Derek Anderson And No Moss, Randy - SB Nation Arizona
The Arizona Cardinals will go to Minnesota to face the Vickings and unfortunately have to play either Derek Anderson or Max Hall at quarterback. They choose Anderson. For now.

Why NFC West passed on Randy Moss - NFC West Blog - ESPN
News that the 5-3 Tennessee Titans landed Randy Moss means no team in the NFC West submitted a waiver claim for the former Minnesota Vikings receiver.

ProFootballWeekly.com - Vikings-Cardinals matchup of the day: Wednesday
Here's a key matchup heading into Sunday's Vikings-Cardinals game in Minnesota:

ProFootballWeekly.com - Vikings-Cardinals matchup of the day: Thursday
Here's another key matchup to check out in Sunday's Vikings-Cardinals game:

The LeBron James Commercial Gets The South Park Treatment
Last night's South Park featured this spoof of LeBron James's recent commercial. It features BP CEO Tony Hayward intercut with other characters in the midst of existential crises.

The 10 Worst Long-Tenured Head Coaches Of The Past 20 Years
I have to go back a while to try and remember a streak of coaching idiocy comparable to the roll Brad Childress is currently on. It takes a special kind of bald ******* to trade a third-rounder for a disenchanted food snob, release that food snob four games later in a weak attempt to be Mr. Discipline, then simultaneously allow Brett Favre to openly stick his very small **** in your ear any time he pleases. Then you toss in the bad challenges and the play calling and it's just horrid.

Matt Hasselbeck ruled out; Charlie Whitehurst to make first NFL start | ProFootballTalk.com
Charlie Whitehurst has a fun assignment for his first NFL start: The New York Giants.

Payton denies that he's hiding Brees injury | ProFootballTalk.com
Earlier today, we shared a report from Kenny Wilkerson of WIST radio in New Orleans that the Saints are covering up a knee injury to quarterback Drew Brees.

Thoughts as Seattle rules out Hasselbeck - NFC West Blog - ESPN
The Seattle Seahawks have ruled out quarterback Matt Hasselbeck for Week 9 roughly 24 hours after coach Pete Carroll said he expected Hasselbeck to start. Big shock? Not really. This is becoming a pattern with Carroll.

Is Sanchez's development on solid ground? - NFL Nation Blog - ESPN
The New York Jets are coming off their worst offensive performance. They scored no points and committed a season-high three turnovers in a 9-0 loss -- after their bye week and at home -- to the Green Bay Packers.

Look for Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan to make a play for Michael Vick in 2011 - ESPN
Donovan McNabb was the last player anyone expected to be on the free-agent market next year.

NFL.com news: Childress: Trading for Moss a 'poor decision'
If Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress had to do it all over again, he said Wednesday he would not have traded for since-waived wide receiver Randy Moss in the first place.

Polamalu speaks out against new emphasis on safety | ProFootballTalk.com
The Steelers have become downright defiant in the two-plus weeks since the NFL cracked down on head-cracking hits against defenseless receivers.

Favre, Harvin miss practice for Vikings | ProFootballTalk.com
Though Vikings quarterback Brett Favre seemed fine at his Wednesday press conference, Favre didn't participate in practice on Wednesday.

Teams often struggle to win the right way - Shutdown Corner - NFL  - Yahoo! Sports
When Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress stepped to the podium today and attempted to explain the reasons he had for dumping Randy Moss back on the open market, he did so with all the eroded confidence of a man who long ago mortgaged any authority he'd ever had in his current position. Between picking up diva quarterbacks at the airport, and encouraging teammates of the diva quarterback to fly down to the diva quarterback's compound to get him to sign on the dotted line, Childress had established a system of ethical ambiguity in which "winning by any means necessary" often meant doing things precisely the wrong way.

Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress: No regrets about releasing Randy Moss
Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress has no regrets about releasing wide receiver Randy Moss this week and said the decision was easy.

The Hot Read: Randy Moss' Career Resembles Terrell Owens' More Than Ever - SBNation.com
With Randy Moss being shipped out of Minnesota and picked up by Tennessee (his third team in one season), the career of this talented, yet controversial, wideout is closely resembling T.O.'s. It's a shame we may remember both stars for the wrong reasons.

NFL.com news: Injuries to Browns' veteran QBs accelerate McCoy's ascent
The plan was to keep Colt McCoy on the sideline this season so he could learn for the future. The future arrived earlier than planned.

NFL.com news: Titans WR Britt reportedly could miss as many as 6-8 weeks
Apparently the right hamstring injury that Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt sustained early during Sunday's loss at San Diego is more serious than originally thought.

Matt Hasselbeck injury update: Seahawks QB out; Whitehurst to start - NFL - SI.com
The Seattle Seahawks will play the New York Giants on Sunday without quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, who is sidelined with a concussion.

Steelers' James Harrison fined $20K for late hit on Drew Brees - NFL - SI.com
Steelers linebacker James Harrison's hard hits on the field keep getting matched by the NFL's hits to his paycheck.

NFL.com news: Blueprint of game mismanagement kicked off strange week
Even before Randy Moss was shockingly put on waivers by the Vikings, before the Chargers followed suit with another Pro Bowl player, and before JaMarcus Russell was brought in by the Redskins for a tryout, the week in the NFL had already gotten off to a strange start.

NFL.com news: Childress' credibility at stake now more than ever
The negative fallout that has Vikings coach Brad Childress in the crosshairs of fans -- and some, if not most of his players -- doesn't necessarily stem from his decision to cut wideout Randy Moss. What has this talented team on the brink of a Cowboys-like meltdown is the theatre of the absurd that this franchise has become. Every week, news trucks camp outside the Vikings' facility to detail something other than what's happening on the field, which may be a good thing since they're 2-5.

2010 NFL Midseason Report includes awards, story of year - Don Banks - SI.com
We're about to make the turn and head into the second half of the NFL's 2010 schedule. You know the drill. Midseason review time...