Arizona Cardinals want to see Brady in Week 1 – or not
A poll of Cardinals players and coaches conducted on Tuesday was so informal its margin of error was the equivalent of vice-versa.
You want science, don’t turn to the sports pages.
But when asked if they wanted to face Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in the season opener, the majority of Cardinals asked answered yes.
“I don’t want any excuses,” said offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Harold Goodwin, who helped run Tuesday’s practice while coach Bruce Arians was attending the funeral of his mother-in-law. “The level we’re at right now as an organization, as a team – because we think we’re one of the best teams in the National Football League – hey, when we’re playing another team we want them to be at full capacity, too.
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“Down the road, I don’t want to hear ‘coulda, woulda, shoulda,’ because they’re missing a guy. Obviously, I would like Tom to play.”
Brady is appealing his four-game suspension for alleged involvement in the deflation of footballs during the 2014 playoffs. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently voted 2-1 to uphold the suspension, and Brady has appealed that decision to the entire court.
The prevailing sentiment among Cardinals players after Tuesday’s practice: They would rather see Brady play than not.
“I wouldn’t be a competitor if I said ‘not,’ ” inside linebacker Deone Bucannon said. “I’m a competitor and he’s one of the best to ever do it. It would be awesome to play against him.
“I want them at their best because we’re definitely going to be at our best.”
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If Brady doesn’t play, the Cardinals are in an interesting position. If they win, some will attach less importance to the victory because of Brady’s absence. If they lose, they will be asked how they let a Patriots team led by Jimmy Garoppolo beat them at home in prime time.
“The competitor wants to see him (play); it’s still Tom Brady,” inside linebacker Kevin Minter said. “I already played against Peyton Manning, I would love to play against Tom Brady, too.”
But Minter also sees the advantage in playing the Brady-less Patriots.
“The ‘team’ side of me is thinking, if he ain’t got to be there, he ain’t got to be there,” Minter said, laughing. “You know what I’m saying? I’m on the fence but I’m more on the side of kind of wanting to see him, especially to see what we got. If we can beat a guy like that, that’s kind of saying something going forward about this team.”
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Safety Tony Jefferson didn’t hesitate when asked the question. He wants to play against Brady.
“I think everybody on this defense wants to see the best,” he said. “I’ve never gone against Tom Brady before. I’ve played against Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers.”
A couple of older Cardinals players, however, seemed to adopt the “be careful what you wish for” philosophy.
Receiver Larry Fitzgerald, entering his 13th season, paused a few seconds and smiled when asked the Brady question.
“C’mon, man, I think that’s a pretty easy question to answer,” he said. “I love Tom, that’s my man. But if he doesn’t play, I wouldn’t shed any tears. I’d love to see him back the next week, though.”
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Across the locker room, running back Chris Johnson, entering his eighth season, said much the same thing.
“He can come back for the second game,” said Johnson, who then started laughing.
In the grand scheme of the 2016 season, it might not matter to the Cardinals if Brady plays or not.
In 2012, Week 2, the Cardinals beat the Patriots and Brady in New England.
The Cardinals went on to finish 4-12. The Patriots went 12-4 and lost to the Ravens in the AFC title game.
