Tag: NFL

Perplexing season of Cardinals running back David Johnson raises questions

by Bob Young
  • Slug: Sports-Cardinals David Johnson, about 870 words.
  • Photo attached.

By Jacob Rosenfarb
Cronkite News

TEMPE – The perplexing season of Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson took another turn Sunday when the former All-Pro back failed to record a single touch in the Cardinals 36-26 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Acting as the team’s backup running back behind newly acquired Kenyan Drake, Johnson was not on the field for 60 of the team’s 69 offensive snaps, marking the fifth straight game in which Johnson, who signed a three-year, $39 million contract earlier this year, was either inactive or saw limited action.

Sunday marked the first time in Johnson’s career that he played in a game without registering a single rushing attempt or pass reception. And what was possibly Johnson’s least productive performance as a pro came in the wake of what Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury called Johnson’s best week of practice this season.

Continue reading “Perplexing season of Cardinals running back David Johnson raises questions”

Heat increases on Cardinals coach Steve Wilks after a blown opportunity against the Raiders

by Bob Young
  • Slug: Sports-Heat on Cardinals coach.
  • Photo attached below.

By SAM FICARRO
Cronkite News

TEMPE – The Arizona Cardinals were a rare favorite Sunday as they hosted the one-win Oakland Raiders.

Leading 21-20 in the waning minutes, all the Cardinals had to do was avoid disaster and run out the clock. Instead, a series of mistakes that included a dropped interception, two costly penalties and a blown coverage in the secondary led to another loss and only increased the pressure on first-year coach Steve Wilks. Continue reading “Heat increases on Cardinals coach Steve Wilks after a blown opportunity against the Raiders”

Arizona Cardinals rookie quarterback Josh Rosen is learning quickly on the job

by Bob Young

By HARLEY YEAROUT
Cronkite News

TEMPE – Rookie quarterback Josh Rosen found himself in familiar territory Sunday as he and the Arizona Cardinals faced a 15-10 deficit with 2:16 remaining in the game against the San Francisco 49ers.

It was a mirror image of his first NFL action, when Rosen entered a game against the Chicago Bears in the third week of the season trailing 16-14 with 4:31 to play.

In that game, Rosen was intercepted on his first drive and failed to get the Cardinals into the end zone on their following possession as Arizona fell short against the Bears.

One week after that disappointment, the Cardinals trailed Seattle 17-10 in the fourth quarter when Rosen rallied them to a 17-17 tie. He then drove the Cardinals’ offense 49 yards into position to take the lead, only to have kicker Phil Dawson miss a potential game-winning 45-yard field goal. The Seahawks ended up winning when Sebastian Janikowski converted a 52-yard field goal on the final play of the game.

On Sunday, Rosen finished the job.

With the first-year quarterback taking command of the huddle, Arizona drove 73 yards to score as Rosen delivered a touchdown strike to fellow rookie Christian Kirk that put the Cardinals ahead with 34 seconds to play.

Continue reading “Arizona Cardinals rookie quarterback Josh Rosen is learning quickly on the job”

Toso’s Sports Bar is the place to be for Patriots fans in Arizona on Super Bowl Sunday

by Adnan Alam
  • Slug: Sports-Patriots bar, 600 words.
  • Photo available (thumbnails, captions below)

By MARK HARRIS
Cronkite News

PHOENIX — Fans will gather at sports bars around the Valley Sunday to watch the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons clash in Super Bowl LI and the crowd at Toso’s Sports Bar & Grill figures to be especially enthusiastic.

The New England Patriots Fan Club of Arizona gathers at Toso’s for every Patriots game, and when New England played in the Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale in 2015, Toso’s was filled to capacity.

“I’d say it was in excess of 250 people. Whatever the bar capacity is what it takes,” said Harry Keyes, president of the fan club. “We were outside at 9 o’clock in the morning for the bar to open at 11 o’clock for the game that was at 4:30 in the afternoon. I suspect it will be very similar to that this year.” Continue reading “Toso’s Sports Bar is the place to be for Patriots fans in Arizona on Super Bowl Sunday”