Arizona Cardinals WR Updates & Training Camp Notes

Another day, another practice.

• Word from Cardinals camp is that Early Doucet will likely be held out of Monday's game against Tennessee. The injury to Larry Fitzgerald has Coach Whisenhunt wary of risking the health of another of his top receivers. Doucet has been struggling with an abdominal strain.
• With Early out, Wiz has not yet named a replacement for Monday's game.
• Darren Urban reports that new acquisition Mike Jones performed well in his first practice. The former Arizona State standout is looking to work his way up the depth chart and is hoping to play on Monday.
• The Redbirds will have a joint practice with the Tennessee Titans two days after their game. The idea that Darnell Dockett and Joey Porter will have an oportunity to settle any grievances that may be still stewing from Monday's game certainly does seem intriguing. It is probably correct to assume that the practice may get a little heated.
• Kent Somers reports that OLB Cody Brown has yet to make headway in depth chart. Whisenhunt explained that Brown's main issue is consistency, noting that he has failed to perform well in practice on a steady basis. The Cardinals' second round pick from 2009 missed all of last season with a wrist injury and is currently playing behind Joey Porter.

Cardinals Ink Former Sun Devil Receiver Mike Jones

The Associated Press reports that the Arizona Cardinals have signed a player with in-state ties: Mike Jones, former Arizona State Sun Devil wide receiver. Jones has been a journeyman as a pro.

The 6-foot-4 Jones caught 131 passes for 1,853 yards in 49 games for Arizona State including 61 receptions for 744 yards as a senior in 2008.

He was signed by Houston as a rookie free agent last year but was released in September. Jones was put on Seattle’s practice squad a month later and re-signed with the Seahawks in January before being let go in June.

Rouse played last season for the New York Giants after two years with Green Bay.

To make room for Jones, the Cardinals reportedly released safety Aaron Rouse.

For everything Cardinals, head over to SB Nation’s Revenge Of The Birds.

Arizona Cardinals Training Camp Updates And Tidbits

As the last long week of training camp winds down, there is no rest for the weary.

• Darren Urban reports that luckily the car accident that Cardinals Safeties Rashad Johnson and Aaron Rouse were involved on Sunday was not as serious as it potentially could have been. The vehicle in front of the pair blew out a back tire before fishtailing and flipping several times. Johnson, the driver, managed to avoid the out of control car, but crashed into another vehicle in the process.
• After the injury to star WR Larry Fitzgerald, the Cardinals find themselves in an unsteady situation. Fitz (knee) joins Early Doucet (abdomen) and Ed Gant (foot) on the sidelines as the Cardinals suddenly have an alarming lack of depth at the position. Coach Ken Whisenhunt hopes that everyone will recover in time but did say that there was a possibility that the team may need to make a move.
• Alan Faneca has been receiving criticism lately that he has fallen off after his performance against the Texans. Whisenhunt disagrees with all of the remarks, as he defended the newly acquired Guard today.

"There has been a lot of talk about the demise of Alan Faneca, and I haven't really seen that. Have I seen him get beat in one-on-one pass protections in camp? Sure I have. But Calais (Campbell) is becoming a pretty good pass rusher. At least he's developing into one. I've also seen him (Faneca) do a good job against him. What I look at is how he continues to get ready for the season and how he looks in these games. And what I saw Saturday night was a very good effort by him."

• Thus far, LB Gerald Hayes' rehab has been progressing right on schedule. The team is holding out hope that he may play in the season opener in St. Louis.
• Matt Leinart apologized for skipping his scheduled post-game conference after Saturday's game. He said that it was a mistake and that he certainly did not skip the media session intentionally.
• Kent Somers reports that Wiz is happy with the progress of the secondary. He particularly mentioned Marshay Green, an undrafted rookie from Ole Miss. Green has so far impressed the coach, and he looks forward to watching his development.
• The Cardnials once again found themselves practicing inside on Tuesday due to the friendly Flagstaff weather.

Cards Safeties Johnson And Rouse In Minor Car Accident

Arizona Cardinals safeties Rashad Johnson and Aaron Rouse were in a minor car accident on Monday, on their way up to Flagstaff.

Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com had this to say about the incident:

A pair of Cardinals were in a minor car accident on the way up to Flagstaff today on I-17, when they were apparently behind someone whose tire blew. Safeties Rashad Johnson and Aaron Rouse were in the car. Johnson was OK and he practiced today (he actually made a nice play to jump one pass and dropped what should have been an interception) while Rouse was evaluated at Flagstaff Medical Center and then released. Rouse was then sent back to the Valley for further precautionary tests.

Larry Fitzgerald Sprains Right Knee MCL

There's always a price to pay in football. Today, word comes down from the MRI machine on the toll yesterday's preseason game took on No. 11, Larry Fitzgerald.

Word From the Birds Blog
An MRI of Larry Fitzgerald’s right knee revealed just a sprain of the MCL (which is better than an ACL sprain). That’s good news. Fitzgerald said he’s talked to coach Ken Whisenhunt and the Cards will play it conservatively, which probably means no more preseason. But Fitz is expected to be ready by the time the Cardinals open the regular season in St. Louis Sept. 12.

Video: Hamza Abullah Hit On Beanie Wells

Video of The Hit and aftermath.

Beanie's Just Fine, A Bit Sore But Fine

His ribs are fine. Nothing broken. Just a bit sore and is listed as day-to-day. You can resume watching Jersey Shore.

Word From the Birds Blog
UPDATE: Just talked to coach Ken Whisenhunt. Beanie Wells, who suffered a rib injury in practice (see details below), is only sore and will be day-to-day. A CT scan showed there is no fracture or other damage. “He just got hit on the ribs, and that’s football,” said Whisenhunt, who said Abdullah was just doing his job by getting in good tackling position and Beanie was running a bit too high.

Beanie Wells Rib Injury May Or May Not Mean Anything

Beanie took a shot during this afternoon's practice courtesy of safety Hamza Abullah. The second year running back who many feel will have a break-out season, was down for a few minutes before being carted off the field with a rib injury according to many media sources.

The injury could mean that Beanie is hurt and will miss training camp or even game time or it could mean nothing.

The entire NFL holds its breadth waiting to find out which it is.

Cards TE Ben Patrick Sprains Knee, Will Be Back For Regular Season

Ben Patrick, the starting tight end for the Arizona Cardinals, sprained his knee last night in practice.

Patrick had an MRI this morning that revealed no structural or ligament damage. He is expected to make it back in time for the regular season and, at least for now, the team will not make any roster moves.

Whisenhunt had this to say about Patrick:

“It wasn’t as bad as we thought it was when he was down on the field or what we thought afterward. He displaced his kneecap, it’s back in, but there is no ligament damage. It’ll be a few weeks and he should be able to return. It was a lot better news than what we thought last night.”

Video: Things Get A Little Snippy At Camp

The team has released video footage showing just how chippy things can get when a bunch of large men are very eager to start football season.

It’s all bodes well for the Cardinals this coming season, who have shown they’re at their best when they’ve got a chip on their shoulder and a touch of anger.

Unlike A Certain 'Fat Albert' Situation, All Cardinals Pass Conditioning Tests

And that includes our own resident Marshmallow Man, Deuce Lutui, who reportedly weighed in around 365 pounds (down from 395 a few weeks ago).

Darnell Dockett even had enough time for a snack AND a quick tweet.

Meanwhile, Albert Haynesworth is having knee issues, which may or may not be related to being out-of-shape.

Heading Into 2010 Training Camp, Cards Extend NAU Deal

The Arizona Cardinals have announced a three-year contract extension with Northern Arizona University to keep their training camp in Flagstaff.

The team's been training in the wintry, frigid Arizona north since 1998 when they moved from St. Louis.

The Red Birds will report to camp on Friday, July 30, and are estimated to provide a sweet $2 million boost to Flagstaff's economy.

Darnell Dockett Won't Hold Out Over Contract Dispute

Darnell Dockett wants a new deal but hasn't yet come to terms with the Cardinals who are focused on signing first-round pick Dan Williams.

Dockett called into XTRA910 radio and has this to say according to Mike Sando's NFC West blog:

"I sat down to talk to my coach and Rod Graves and I feel good about our conversation and I think everything is going to work itself out," Dockett told XTRA910.

"I want to just focus on football and getting our team back to the winning chemistry. We have lost a lot of good guys and for me not to be in that huddle, it ain't about the money at that point. It's about pride. It's about what I mean to my team. I feel if I'm not there, we are taking a step back. I'm just ready to play football. I trust those guys to do a great job and handle the situation and I want to be accountable to my teammates."

Good news, because the Cardinals will need the Full Dockett doing his thing this season. A contract hold-out would put a sour note on the start of camp.

Dockett, one of the more colorful Arizona sports personalities, called from the road but don't worry about his safety. Darnell has a driver for the drive up. He prefers to uStream himself and look at the pretty landscape.

Deuce Lutui's Agent To Cards: Big Is Beautiful, Deal With It

Deuce is a big boy. Last season he played at around 340 pounds. That's a lot of offensive lineman to love, but this summer, the big boy couldn't lay off the Lay's and showed up to his contract signing at 396 large.

Ruh-roh.

Coach Whiz wasn't too happy with his monster, as quoted by the Arizona Republic:

"If you're trying to put your best foot forward … in order to get a long-term contract, you would think when the time comes to sign and you get a physical, you would be in good shape."

"As for his weight, he's a hard worker and I have no doubt he will be within the range he reasonably should be when it counts. If the club isn't pleased with him, I'm happy to assist them on a possible trade. Otherwise, we should let his play on the field this season speak for itself like it did last year."

Cards Links, Miscellaneous Not-So-Thinly-Veiled Insults

Only 13 days until the Cardinals kick off training camp in the cool pines of Flagstaff - football talk is starting to heat up. Here’s group of links to get you up to speed.

Adrian Wilson and Ken Whisenhunt did radio interviews in the last couple of days, via azcardinals.com. Coach Whisenhunt makes his feelings on Duece Lutui’s off-season workout regimen pretty clear:

"I have very little tolerance for that," Whisenhunt said. "Because, listen, this offseason, we had our guys in there working about as hard as I have ever been around. They are focused because everybody said we don’t have a chance, we lost all these players and we can’t do it. Our guys have really taken that challenge and worked hard. And it’s difficult when you have guys in there busting their tails and one of the players isn’t in there and then when he comes in and signs his contract, he’s pretty heavy. That is frustrating. The onus is on Deuce."

Whoops, Deuce, I guess that bacon-milkshake diet wasn’t the best idea.

Adrian Wilson expresses why he bypassed the bacon-milkshake diet and spent a ton of time in the gym:

"I don’t know, I think it’s an addiction," Wilson said. "My wife told me I need to be on the show "Intervention." … It’s the scare factor. You don’t want to be passed up or have people think you don’t got it. I’ve got it. A lot of people are talented, but I’m gifted. To me, that’s important for me to have people understand. There are a lot of talented safeties out there, there are a lot of talented guys in the league, but I’m gifted. And that’s something, for me, if I continue to work hard and if one day my talent begins to diminish, I can fall back on my hard work."

Wilson also has some opinions on Twitter, i.e. don’t hold your breath and wait for him to open an account.

Matt Leinart waves off USC’s NCAA penalties:

“I’ve talked to a lot of people I played with on those teams and we all say the same thing. Everyone who knows football knows we won those games and we won the title. It’s unfortunate what happened and you move on from it but I just feel for the guys who are there now but they’ll move on from it.”

I tell you what’s unfortunate: running late for Basket Weaving 102 and not being able to find a parking spot big enough to accommodate the Bentley.

Cards schedule is considered one of the easiest and that’s just fine.

Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald Jr. continued his voluntary workout camp on Friday, with other pros in attendance.

Cardinals Training Camp Schedule

Cardinals 2010 training camp schedule