Beanie Wells ineffective in limited snaps against the Bears, Peterson a force in all avenues

The Cardinals were forced to stray away from some of the things they were doing the past few weeks due to injury, which made the playing time for some players increase dramatically. For example, Rashad Johnson's absence due to a hamstring injury made Adrian Wilson a key piece to what might have been his final home game. He played on 50 defensive snaps, good for 82%.

And even though it didn't appear Beanie Wells was in the doghouse with Coach Whisenhunt, the stats may tell another story. He played just 8 total snaps, good for 11% of the total offensive plays called. His fumble early on really got the team off to a bad start, which is likely why he did not see the field much after that. William Powell and LaRod Stephens-Howling saw almost quadruple the production he did.

Larry Fitzgerald was the only offensive player outside of the offensive line that was in for every snap. His versatility in the run blocking game and obvious pass catching ability make him a guy the Cards want to have on the field at all times.

It was also interesting to see how much Patrick Peterson played against the Bears. He was in on one offensive snap, in which he caught a pass from Ryan Lindley, he played 100% of the defensive snaps, mostly matching up against Brandon Marshall, who played on 90% of the Bears' offensive snaps. Peterson played on 43% of the special teams plays as well. He was certainly tired after that game.

One of the things I would look for the Cards to do in their final game is to cut down on some of the veterans' playing time. Paris Lenon, Kerry Rhodes and Darnell Dockett are some candidates to see a reduction in playing time for the game against the 49ers.

Any questions, surprises or comments? Feel free to leave them in the comments section below.

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