- Slug: Sports-Cardinals Arians, 525
By MARIO KALO
Cronkite News
TEMPE – Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians wouldn’t officially rule out running back Andre Ellington for the team’s Week 2 game at Chicago, but did say there was “no timetable” for his return.
Ellington injured his knee in the fourth quarter of the Cardinals’ 31-19 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. The team announced after the game it was a posterior cruciate ligament injury in his right knee.
“Andre (Ellington) has a mild sprained PCL,” Arians said. “We’ll just wait and see.”
Arians added Ellington hurt his knee on the play before he went down and officially left the game. Before he exited, Ellington rushed for 69 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown.
He also confirmed both Chris Johnson and rookie David Johnson would “move up a spot” on the depth chart if the Cardinals are forced to go without Ellington, the team’s first-string running back, for an extended period of time.
Arians sounded confident in the their abilities to fill the void, adding, “Both those guys can pick up the slack easily and are more than qualified.”
Chris Johnson carried the ball 10 times for 37 yards Sunday.
“I thought he was fine,” Arians said of Johnson’s performance. “He hit his holes. Overall, he was solid.”
David Johnson only touched the ball twice in his NFL debut, but amassed 98 yards, scoring a 55-yard touchdown off a Carson Palmer pass in the fourth quarter that put the game out of reach for the Saints. He also returned a kickoff 43 yards on his other touch of the game.
Arians said there will be an expanded role on the team for David Johnson “in time,” but also noted he is the team’s current kickoff returner.
Additional Notes:
Game Balls: Carson Palmer and tight end Darren Fells earned game balls on offense, while Patrick Peterson and Tyrann Mathieu earned the honors defensively. Palmer became just the second player in franchise history to throw for 300 or more yards and at least three touchdowns without throwing an interception or being sacked. Kurt Warner accomplished the feat in 2007 versus Atlanta and in 2008 against San Francisco.
Bruce Arians on his aggressive play calling: “It’s the same way I play golf. I don’t lay-up. I hit a lot of balls in the water, but you’re not going to hit a great shot if you don’t try. There’s times we’ll run it and use the timeouts against certain teams and there’s times that you think you have a good play and use it.”
Arians on Patrick Peterson: The coach described Patrick Peterson’s play on Sunday as “outstanding.” Peterson was matched up against New Orleans’ speedy wide receiver Brandin Cooks, limiting him to four catches and 41 yards.
Fitzgerald continues to impress: Larry Fitzgerald led the team in both receptions (6) and yards (87) on Sunday. It marked the 164th consecutive game Fitzgerald has caught at least one pass, the longest active streak in the NFL.
Tight end production: Tight end Darren Fells caught four passes for 82 yards and one touchdown against the Saints. The last tight end in franchise history with more than 82 receiving yards in a game was Rob Awalt in 1989.