There are many things to talk about in camp as the Cardinals prepare for their first preseason game at home against the Kansas City Chiefs this Saturday. 
Firstly, the injuries (mostly hamstrings) have fortunately slowed down a bit in week 2. Last week was pretty rough with receiver Michael Floyd dislocating a few fingers and requiring immediate surgery. Floyd is hopeful to be back for the beginning of the season, but the time table suggests he may miss the first game on Sept 13th.
The running backs have once again been a real “sore” spot in camp, the team’s starter Andre Ellington has missed valuable practice time with hamstring issues. Arizona’s rookie running back David Johnson is also missing time because of a hamstring, and then you have Marion Grice who is out because of (you guessed it) a hamstring. Ellington did take the field (albeit limited) on Monday, that’s good, but the way Head Coach Bruce Arians sees it, Arizona cannot afford to head into the season with the same problems they had last year.
The Cardinals have reached out to RB Chris Johnson, offering him a one year (money undisclosed) deal. Johnson, whom played for the Jets last year, failed to reach the 1000 yard mark for the first time in his NFL career. Keim has had some success with these “prove it” “one and done” contracts, with the only down side being when key players like Karlos Dansby and Antonio Cromartie leave only after their value has increased.
Chris Johnson is reportedly taking time to consider Arizona’s offer, or, he could just be buying time to see what other offers pop up as training camps will obviously claim more running backs due to injury.
On the offensive line, there are new reports stating that RT Bobby Massie may be facing a 2-3 game suspension for a DUI charge in Tempe, which happened around the time Arizona was hosting the Super Bowl. Word around town is Massie will appeal the suspension but the Cardinals will most likely lose him for at least a couple of games. Many are guessing the rookie (T) D.J. Humphries and (G) Earl Watford will probably compete for the right tackle spot if Massie isn’t able to play. The Cardinals actually do have some quality depth on the O-line for the first time since… I can’t remember… but hey, I’ve only been a Cards fan since 1988. 
One of the brighter spots in training camp has been the receiving unit, where “Air-izona” is once again loaded with talent. Brittan Golden and rookie J.J. Nelson continue to impress on a squad that is already stacked with Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd, John (Smokey) Brown, and Jaron Brown. I don’t know if the Cards can roster all 6 receivers but none of these guys look like practice squad players. If Golden and J.J. can also find spots on special teams, it could help.
Inside linebacker Kevin Minter is having a good camp as well, and Arizona finally looks to have some decent pass rush coming off the edge this year. Alex Okafor is doing a bang up job in camp, Deone Bucannon continues to be versatile at multiple positions, and the ball hawks Patrick Peterson and Tyrann Mathieu have been very active in the secondary.
Carson Palmer said before practice on Wednesday that he considers it “a challenge” playing against this defense in camp, which is good news considering the play call is now in the hands of new DC James Bettcher.
Something else to watch for this weekend… Arizona’s Jen Welter will be on the sidelines coaching while Sarah Thomas will be on the field reffing the preseason game vs the Chiefs. No research needed there, this will be the first time in NFL history this has happened. The photo opportunities should be epic on Saturday, and deservedly so.
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