11-11-11: Arizona Cardinals Bird Droppings - Happy Veterans Day

Happy Veterans Day everyone, today we start off out links with hearing that the Cardinals are going to open up contract talks with Calais Campbell, a man who deserves it with how well he has played for big red.

Also, with it being 11-11-11, happy Larry Fitzgerald day.

Cardinals open contract talks with Calais Campbell
The Cardinals plan to open contract discussions soon with the agent for defensive end Calais Campbell, said General Manager Rod Graves. Graves said the Cardinals are entering a period where they will discuss extensions for players. "He (Campbell) is certainly one of the guys we'll be talking about," Graves said. Campbell is in the final year of his rookie contract and is due to be an unrestricted free agent in 2011. He leads the Cardinals in sacks with five and has blocked two field goals this season.

Peterson lands another mid-season honor - ArizonaSports.com
People are still buzzing about rookie Patrick Peterson's 99-yard punt return for a touchdown in the Cardinals' overtime win over the Rams last Sunday in Glendale. And they're still buzzing about Peterson' 89-yard td return on opening day that proved to be the winning margin over Carolina and the 82-yard return for a score against Baltimore two weeks ago. Three punt returns in his first eight professional football games. Peterson leads the NFL in punt return average by a wide margin and is largely responsible for the Cardinals' two victories this year. And for that reason, the mid-season accolades continue to pour in for Peterson.

ESPN analyst praises Skelton, says he'll be fine against Eagles - ArizonaSports.com
John Skelton completed 20 of 35 passes for 222 yards and one touchdown Sunday against the Rams. Those stats, while not particularly impressive, may not tell the entire story of how well the second-year pro played. "I was impressed by John Skelton," ESPN NFL analyst Ron Jaworski told Arizona Sports 620's Burns and Gambo. "When I went through the tape and saw the little nuances of the game it was much improved from a year ago."

Word From the Birds Blog - Kolb still has to watch
Quarterback Kevin Kolb said he continues to progress with his turf toe injury, and that, while last week was about reducing the swelling in the injury this week has been about rehab and trying to get back on the field. He has yet to get back to the field however, sitting out again Thursday and making a Sunday appearance in Philadelphia unlikely. "I wouldn’t say he has to (practice), but I would like for him too," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. If Kolb doesn’t get in more reps by tomorrow, it doesn’t sound like he would have any chance to start. Whisenhunt said the only way Kolb would be a game-day decision would be if he was in a backup role. At issue remains his ability to drop and move and get around in the pocket. "What you don’t want to do is compromise his mobility," Whisenhunt said.

Peterson Attacking Cornerback Spot
Notebook: Bradley returns to Philly, Dockett "step-daddy" to rookie

Chat wrap: Resetting 2011 expectations - NFC West Blog - ESPN
cards_need_heart from Arizona asks what steps the Cardinals can take to help their offensive line. He thinks the line is similar to the one Kurt Warner played behind, but he sees quarterbacks taking longer to throw the ball. He doesn't want to team to draft for need, as it did in landing Levi Brown, but wants a quick fix.

Cardinals must re-sign Campbell to improve next season - ArizonaSports.com
The Cardinals are not having a memorable season on either side of the ball, but the defense would be even more forgettable without Calais Campbell going after the opposing quarterback. The defensive end leads the team with five sacks; and even though 4.5 of those came against the Seahawks and Rams, Campbell's effort to pressure the quarterback can't be denied.

Kolb doesn't have to practice in order to play Sunday - ArizonaSports.com
Kevin Kolb's health is improving, that much is certain. But he has yet to get back on the practice field for the Cardinals, putting his status for Sunday's game in Philadelphia very much in doubt. However, not making it to the practice field would not automatically rule him out for Sunday, according to Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt.

Dockett wary of Vick and McCoy - ArizonaSports.com
With their six-game losing streak behind them, the Arizona Cardinals are looking to start a winning streak when they visit the reeling Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday. A lot of the talk coming out of Philadelphia is centered around the Eagles' offense--namely quarterback Michael Vick and how he hasn't been the same player that he was year ago when he finished 2nd in the voting for the league's MVP award. Cardinals defensive lineman Darnell Dockett isn't necessarily buying into those comments about Vick

A Special Kind Of Unit
Cards' inconsistent season hasn't touched special teams

Word From the Birds Blog - Campbell’s contract scenario
Calais Campbell is coming off one of his best games of the season, but even the defensive end himself admitted, "A lot of times I didn’t play as well as I could have. I feel like I could play so much better."

Arizona Cardinals' depth at tight end tested
The Cardinals have more talent at tight end than at any other time in their Arizona history, and they needed every bit of it through the first half of the season. Not once in eight games were all four tight ends healthy. Jeff King is the only one who has played in every game. Todd Heap missed three games and played only a snap or two last week because of a hamstring injury. Rookie Rob Housler was out last week with a groin injury and hasn't practiced this week. Jim Dray missed the first six games with a pectoral injury. "It's been one thing after another with that position," coach Ken Whisenhunt said.

Beanie Wells keeps going on injured knee | ProFootballTalk
Though the Kevin Kolb experiment has yet to produce for the Cardinals, running back Beanie Wells have come into his own during his third NFL season. Rushing for 526 yards through seven games, Wells’ production has slipped a bit lately, as he plays through a bone bruise in his knee. Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Wells likely would benefit from a week of rest. But he has decided to keep going.

Word From the Birds Blog - Toler grinds away at rehab
It’s driving Greg Toler crazy that he can’t play football. "Seeing the guys play on Sunday, man, it’s killing me," said the rehabbing cornerback, who tore knee ligaments during a preseason game against San Diego. "But the Man Above doesn"t make mistakes. It’s just a minor setback for a major comeback."

Cardinals' voice Pasch in difficult spot - ArizonaSports.com
Most red-blooded American males would gladly trade professions with play-by-play broadcaster Dave Pasch. On Sundays in the fall, Pasch describes all the action of Arizona Cardinals games. On Saturdays, Pasch works for ESPN, along with commentators Chris Spielman and Urban Meyer, broadcasting one of the network's premier college football games. This week, you probably wouldn't find too many volunteers to take Pasch's job.

Broadcaster Dave Pasch has tough gig this weekend
Talk about being thrown into a firestorm. Broadcaster Dave Pasch, who we all know as the voice of the Cardinals, will be the play-by-play guy on ESPN's broadcast of the Nebraska-Penn State game Saturday.

Video: Cardinals' quarterbacks gear up for game at Eagles
The Arizona Republic's Kent Somers and CineSports' Brian Clark discuss the Cardinals' quarterback situation as they play the first of three road games in Philadelphia.

Cards Daily - Tackling Daryl Washington
Damien Anderson catches up with the rising star linebacker to talk about his progression from his first year to this season.

Big Red Rage - Rhodes and Peterson
CB Patrick Peterson joined Paul Calvisi, Ron Wolfley, and Kerry Rhodes to talk about his game winning punt return against the Rams and the Cardinals upcoming match-up with the Eagles.

Arizona Sports News:

Phoenix Coyotes' struggles vs. Montreal Canadiens continue
Time marches on: After the passage of two decades, a century turning and a new millennium, the Coyotes still are looking for a way to beat the Canadiens. They had the upper hand but let the game slip away, losing 3-2 in overtime in front of 14,138 on Thursday night at Jobing.com Arena.

NFL News:

Fraudulent 49ers? This one should be fun - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Some of the first comments left beneath the previous item on schedule strength came from San Francisco 49ers fans fearing the information could undermine the legitimacy of the team's strong record.

Following up: About that 'pretender' label - NFC West Blog - ESPN
The San Francisco 49ers are an overtime defeat away from being 8-0 for the season. They are 4-0 on the road, own three fourth-quarter comeback victories and lead the NFC West by five games with eight to play. They are also quite likely playoff pretenders, K.C. Joyner told us Thursday, making waves on the NFC West blog.

Albert Haynesworth's Big Boat Prevented Him From Signing With Tampa Bay In 2009 - From Our Editors - SBNation.com
If you rewind two and a half years ago, Albert Haynesworth was preparing to hit the open market as the top free agent available. His price tag was very, very high and two of the top teams in the bidding were the Washington Redskins and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The NFL Gets It Right For Veterans Day - SBNation.com
In a world where tributes routinely get a little heavy on the pitch, professional football handles Veterans Day with class.