Arizona Cardinals

New England Patriots vs. Arizona Cardinals: 5 things to know about the Cardinals

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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David Johnson (31) Arizona Cardinals – Charlie Kaijo/The Arizona Republic via USA TODAY NETWORK

As we near kickoff between the New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals in Week 1, Friday morning is a good time to learn a bit more about the opponent.

Here are five things Patriots fans should know about the Cardinals:

Things to Know about the Cardinals Number Five: Deep at Running Back

You can’t talk about the Cardinals without mentioning their extremely deep backfield. Heading the depth chart is promising sophomore pro David Johnson, whose skill set as a pass catcher, ball carrier and return man has him at the top of most fantasy football draft boards.

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Behind him, former speedster Chris Johnson makes for a good change-of-pace, and he’s still got good football in him. And don’t forget about Andre Ellington, who was the Cardinals’ No. 1 running back before the Johnsons joined the team.

When you have a quarterback who is closer to 40 than he is to 30, it’s always a good idea to surround him with good running backs. The Cardinals have certainly done that, and it should help Carson Palmer have more time to throw the ball. And when he does throw the ball…

Larry Fitzgerald (11) Arizona Cardinals – Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Things to Know about the Cardinals Number Four: Passing game focuses on wideouts

Jermaine Gresham is a decent tight end, but he’s not keep Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia up at night. Rather, it is Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd, J.J. Nelson and John Brown who will command the Patriots’ attention when Palmer steps back to pass.

At age 33, Fitzgerald has barely slowed down. He’s still one of the NFL’s best blocking wide receivers, and he’s coming off a season in which he set a career high in receptions (109) and passed the 1,200-yard receiving mark.

Patriots vs. Cardinals: Preview and Analysis

Floyd represents the next generation of receiver stardom in Arizona; 2016 might be the year that the Notre Dame product outperforms Fitzgerald on a regular basis. We’ll see.

Moving on to the smaller of the Cardinals’ wideouts, both Brown and Nelson possess insane speed and make the most of their catches. Brown managed to stretch 65 receptions into 1,003 yards in 2015; Nelson averaged over 27 yards per catch on 11 receptions. Expect both of these guys to see larger roles this season.

Evan Mathis (69) Arizona Cardinals – Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Things to Know about the Cardinals Number Three: Weak right side of offensive line

The Cardinals look good on the left side of the offensive line with Jared Veldheer and Mike Iupati locking it down at left tackle and left guard, and the center role will be filled by either A.Q. Shipley or Evan Boehm. But the right side of the Cardinals’ offensive line is a bit shaky, and that could be an area the Patriots exploit on Sunday night.

Evan Mathis projects as the starting right guard, but his best days are long gone; he is the oldest guard in the NFL. Surely, energetic young Pats front seven players (there are lots of them) could overpower the veteran. At right tackle, D.J. Humphries will most likely get the starting nod in his second season, but he has yet to play in an NFL game. So the Cardinals have the two extremes in age on the right side of their offensive line, which could bode well for the Pats.

Chandler Jones (55) Arizona Cardinals – Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Things to Know about the Cardinals Number Two: New faces in pass rush

To add to the existing threats of Markus Golden and Calais Campbell, the Cardinals drafted Robert Nkemdiche and traded for Chandler Jones over the offseason.

Unfortunately for Nkemdiche, it looks like he will be trailing behind Rodney Gunter, Frostee Rucker and Josh Mauro in Week 1. But if the Cardinals feel that those guys aren’t injecting enough energy into the game, they just might plug in the Ole Miss product and see if it throws a wrench in the Patriots’ spokes.

A guy that could really affect the Patriots in a negative way is Jones, who will be fired up and ready to go against his former teammates, eager to prove Bill Belichick wrong for trading him this offseason.

This writer was fine with the Patriots’ decision to wheel and deal Jones, as they got a draft pick and a starting guard in Jonathan Cooper out of the deal, not to mention the millions saved in cap space. However, Jones will be a major storyline in this game, and his sack dance will be painful to watch for Patriots fans if he does indeed get to Jimmy Garoppolo.

Patrick Peterson (21) Arizona Cardinals – Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Things to Know about the Cardinals Number One: Loaded Secondary

Perhaps no secondary in the NFL boasts such a perfect mix of youth, experience and sheer talent as the Cardinals.

Patrick Peterson will work against Julian Edelman in this game; he is one of the NFL’s best cover men and defensive playmakers in general. Speaking of playmakers, it’s hard to ignore Tyrann Mathieu, even if he’s coming off a December ACL tear. But Mathieu was not on the Cardinals’ injury report this week, indicating he will be good to go on Sunday night.

At safety, the Cardinals are looking good with veterans Tyvon Branch and Tony Jefferson manning the back end. Branch is a capable run defender and brings years of experience to the secondary.

Justin Bethel will be called upon to cover Malcolm Mitchell or Chris Hogan; those will certainly be matchups to watch as the Patriots try to get the ball to their pair of wide receiver newcomers.

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