5 takeaways from the Cardinals' first preseason game

Any hope of catching a genuine glimpse of the Arizona Cardinals‘ potential evaporated just after the opening kickoff at State Farm Stadium on Saturday.

While the New Orleans Saints opted to play their starters in the preseason opener for both teams, the only certain Cardinals starter to see the field was 2024 No. 4 overall pick, Marvin Harrison Jr. — and that felt more like a cameo for the fans than a genuine opportunity to gain experience.

The Saints’ 16-14 win, which came on a 37-yard field goal from rookie kicker Charlie Smyth with five seconds to play, was riddled with the usual preseason fare. Both teams went deep into the depth chart, there were 71 yards of combined offense in a mind-numbing first quarter, and there were mistakes aplenty.

But there were also notable moments and notable performances.

Coach Jonathan Gannon also delivered the most important news in the opening remarks of his postgame media availability.

“On the injury front, nobody came out of the game, so we looked pretty clean,” he said. “That’s always a good thing.

“I thought we battled. I told them I liked our effort, our enthusiasm. I thought violence and motor were pretty good. Hitting was on display. As always, the most important thing for us right now is we’ve got to learn. Obviously, we’re not enthused about a win, but we did some good things, and we’ve got to clean up some execution and play a little bit better in all three phases to win a game.”

Here are five takeaways from that game.

Cardinals starters

It wasn’t surprising to see Gannon rest or limit the starters. Aside from Harrison and injured rookie cornerback Max Melton, the starters are veterans who know how to pace themselves and prepare for the regular season. The Cardinals will also have the benefit of joint practices next week with the Colts in Indianapolis, so the starters will get some valuable reps.

Gannon has not clarified the plan for any of his starters other than Kyler Murray, who will not play in the preseason. While it is likely that they will get reps, the more experienced vets will likely see fewer reps and the overall group is being managed, health-wise, for the regular season.

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Marvin’s cameo

Receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. started the game but quarterback Desmond Ridder did not target him so when he left, it left fans and media wondering why he even played — especially without Murray there to build some chemistry.

Gannon said there were still experiences he hoped Harrison gained.

“His routine of what it looks like when he leaves the hotel, gets on the bus, gets here, warms up, all that stuff.”

That said, Gannon was also hoping to get Harrison some touches, but the performance of the offense did not allow it.

“We ended up being backed up there so [we ran] some different plays,” he said. “I wanted to see him touch it a little bit, but he’s good to go. He’ll learn from today, too.”

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Tune vs Ridder

Quarterback Desmond Ridder started the first half while Clayton Tune took over in the second half.

Their performances were dramatically different, but Ridder was playing against the Saints’ first-team defense; Tune was not.

It is clear that Ridder can make plays with his legs. He had five carries for 39 yards, but he completed just four of nine passes for 43 yards. He missed a wide open Andre Baccellia on what would have been a walk-in touchdown, he threw behind Zach Pascal on a crossing route and he awkwardly dove around center to try and convert a fourth-and-1 but came up short. 

“You’d like to get some first downs, but that’s just not on the quarterback,” Gannon said. “That’s everybody. He’s not blocking for himself and he’s not running routes for himself. I think as a whole, we’ve got to do a little bit better.”

When asked if it was difficult to evaluate the offense against the Saints’ starting defense, Gannon shrugged that notion off.

“That’s who they’re going to play against so it’s a great form of evaluation,” he said. “We’re going to go up against really good players week in, week out. Who can win their one-on-ones? Who can do what they’re coached to do? Who can make plays? That’ll be a good tool for us to look at tonight.”

On the flip side, it was encouraging to see Tune look so comfortable. Again, he wasn’t playing against the starters, but he showed nice touch on several balls over the middle and a pair to the sidelines. Tune completed 15 of 24 passes for 163 yards and a 10-yard touchdown pass to Tony Jones, who made a great, leaping play to stay inside the pylon.

“He looked good,” Gannon said of Tune. “Good command. Played fast. I thought he made some throws in there, too. Some guys stepped up and made some plays. I thought he was aware of what was going on out there, making correct decisions.”

Tune has talked throughout camp about how much more comfortable he feels in the offense in his second season. He was able to display that on Saturday.

“I felt like I was seeing the defense and confident in the game plan,” he said. “I felt like I was seeing it well and playing on time.”

When asked about the competition with Ridder, here’s what Tune said: “I’m not really thinking about it, but I’m not like actively avoiding it. I just focus on improving my game each and every day and focus on what I can do.”

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Defense shines early

The Saints started their first-team offense but it was tough sledding against the Cardinals second-and third team defense. Arizona held the Saints to two field goals in the first half and there were some impressive individual performances despite a breakdown late that led to a Blake Grupe 33-yard field goal at the end of the half.

“I wasn’t pleased with the end,” Gannon said. “That was a communication issue on the coaches; myself. We’ve got to get that cleaned up because it led to points there, but I thought they hung in. They battled. The field position wasn’t in our favor early and we battled and made some stops. That was good to see.”

Among the notable performances:

– Linebacker Owen Pappoe had three combined tackles and two solos, including a good open-field tackle to end New Oreleans’ second drive.

– Gannon liked the performance of outside linebacker Xavier Thomas, the team’s fifth-round pick this year. Thomas had the Cardinals’ lone sack and worked his way into the backfield often.

“I thought he played [with] a high motor, high effort, which was really good to see,” Gannon said. “I saw a violent edge out there and I think he rushed pretty good. He was definitely back around the mix.”

– Defensive lineman Darius Robinson and Dante Stills were a problem for the Saints D. Stills has a good chance to work himself into the rotation.

– Cornerback Darren Hall had four tackles (three solos), a pass defensed and a forced fumble.

Kickoff rules debut

The Cardinals got their first live look at the new “dynamic kickoff.” There wasn’t anything particularly notable about Saturday’s debut, but Gannon did have some takeaways.

“I can’t wait to watch the tape right now,” he said. “One popped on us a little bit. It was interesting to see them obviously kick it through there on the last one so it was good. We’ll have a lot to learn from off the tape.”

The Cardinals averaged 26.7 yards on three returns. New Orleans averaged 27.3 yards on three returns.

Top photo of Tony Jones diving for a touchdown via Getty Images

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