The skinny: The Cardinals begin defense of their NFC championship with a home game against the 49ers. Arizona would seem to have the edge, playing at University of Phoenix Stadium. But San Francisco matches up well with Arizona; had the 49ers not botched an offensive possession at the goal line last year, they would have come away with a road win. It will be interesting to see if the 49ers’ physical training camp pays dividends. Ken Whisenhunt insists his team is physically prepared and scoffs at the notion that he ran a soft camp.
3 things to watch:
Can Cardinals passing game get going? Quarterback Kurt Warner never developed a rhythm with his receivers during the preseason, and both Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston are nursing injuries. Expect the 49ers to shadow Larry Fitzgerald with a corner and safety, forcing Warner to look at other options. Boldin believes his strained hamstring will hold up but he hasn’t practiced in three weeks. What happens the first time he really lets go?
Can Cardinals stop running back Frank Gore? San Francisco coach Mike Singletary wants a physical football team and offensively that starts with Gore. Expect Singletary to give Gore and backup Glen Coffee a combined 30-35 carries to try to take the pressure off quarterback Shaun Hill. The Cardinals could counter with an 8-man front, bringing Adrian Wilson to the line of scrimmage and daring Hill to throw the ball to an average receiving corp.
Can Cardinals turn it on? Whisenhunt dismissed Arizona’s poor preseason showing, saying the team didn’t game-plan for opponents. Still, the Cardinals didn’t win a lot of one-on-one battles, either. Perhaps Arizona was bored. We’ll find out today. The Cardinals are the better football team and they’re at home. They should win. But if there’s a spillover from the preseason, San Francisco could pull off the upset.
CARDINALS OFFENSE
WR Larry Fitzgerald
LT Mike Gandy
LG Reggie Wells
C Lyle Sendlein
RG Deuce Lutui
RT Levi Brown
TE Stephen Spach
WR Anquan Boldin
QB Kurt Warner
RB Tim Hightower
FB Dan Kreider
DEFENSE
DE Calais Campbell
DT Bryan Robinson
DT Darnell Dockett
OLB Chike Okeafor
MLB Karlos Dansby
MLB Gerald Hayes
OLB2 Clark Haggans
RCB Bryant McFadden
LCB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie
SS Adrian Wilson
FS Antrel Rolle
K- Neil Rackers
P – Ben Graham
49ERS OFFENSE
QB Shaun Hill
RB Frank Gore
FB Moran Norris
WR Josh Morgan
WR Isaac Bruce
TE Vernon Davis
LT Joe Staley
LG David Baas
C Eric Heitmann
RG Chilo Rachal
RT Adam Snyder
49ERS DEFENSE
LDE Isaac Sopoaga
DT Aubrayo Franklin
RDE Justin Smith
OLB Manny Lawson
MLB Takeo Spikes
MLB Patrick Willis
OLB Parys Haralson
CB Nate Clements
CB Shawntae Spencer
SS Michael Lewis
FS Dashon Goldson
K – Joe Nedney
P – Andy Lee
