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After The Red-White Work

Notebook: Wilson awaits MRI on injury; Kolb still learning

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Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald hauls in a touchdown pass past cornerback A.J. Jefferson during Saturday's Red-White practice.


FLAGSTAFF – The fans came in droves and the weather was perfect, and coach Ken Whisenhunt was happy with that.

He was also happy with his team after Saturday's Red-White practice, even if its play was far from perfect, as the Cardinals finished up their first week of training camp.

"There were a number of mistakes, which you would expect," Whisenhunt said. "But there was a lot of fight in the guys. There's still a lot of work to do. So much we hadn't done before."

Fixing mistakes isn't the only concern. Safety Adrian Wilson left early in the workout after hurting his right biceps/elbow, and he is scheduled to undergo an MRI. Full results from Wilson's situation aren't expected to be released until Monday, but the team is re-signing Matt Ware, so it does sound like Wilson will miss at least some time.

After Wilson played through a torn abductor muscle most of last season, he had been anxious to get back on the field and prove to people he wasn't at the end of his career. It could be a hard blow for a defense that not only values his leadership, but expected to benefit from Wilson's talents in defensive coordinator Ray Horton's new aggressive, blitzing scheme.

The rest of the practice was about both sides of the ball taking turns winning the battles. Whisenhunt had his team spend almost the entire two hours in 11-on-11 game-like situations, and new quarterback Kevin Kolb got a good chunk of those snaps.

"We have so much work to do from that standpoint we had to do it today," Whisenhunt said. "We did some live things in practice, not the norm for us. We had to do it."

Kolb had some pretty passes, hitting tight end Todd Heap with a perfect ball on a crossing route on one play, and hooking up with Larry Fitzgerald for a 39-yard touchdown bomb to the corner of the end zone on another.

He also was intercepted three times, once on a nice play by defensive tackle Darnell Dockett flushing Kolb from the pocket, batting the ball in the air and then diving for the interception. Cornerback A.J. Jefferson and linebacker Daryl Washington had the other two, with Washington's coming in the end zone on Kolb's final pass of the afternoon.

Kolb admitted he forced the final throw to Heap.

"Things are happening fast, but I like it that way," Kolb said. "I like having the pressure on me.

"We're going to get it right, it's just going to take some time."

HUGE CROWD
Law enforcement estimates put the crowd at the practice at about 13,000, with fans overflowing into side areas of the field where they had never had to go before, just to accommodate everyone.

"There were a lot of people here," Whisenhunt said. "They just seemed like they were coming in and coming in."

Said Heap, "The enthusiasm from the fans, that's something we feed off of."

KOLB-TO-FITZ
Fitzgerald was asked about the catch of the day. So Fitzgerald, knowing exactly to what was being referred, instead broke down a 40-yard throw from quarterback Rich Bartel to Isaiah Williams for a touchdown – which was a fantastic grab.

"Isaiah made a heck of a catch," Fitzgerald said. "Isaiah made the play of the day."

Fitz's catch was impressive as well, though, hauling in the ball coming straight over his head.

"With him, you just put it in his area," Kolb said. "I think we all get a little greedy and expect him to catch it every time. That's a special play."

EXTRA POINTS
Besides Williams and Fitzgerald, Stephen Williams also made a highlight touchdown catch in the back of the end zone. …

Cornerback Michael Adams sat out with a sore knee. …

The Cardinals are off until meetings Sunday night. …

Arizona congressman Paul Gosar attended the practice.

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