Mike LaFleur was on the sideline, and that was a place he hadn't been much. As an offensive coordinator, he was a press box guy, going up in the booth. He did, the last couple of years with the Rams, spend preseason games on the sideline, just to have a feel.
He knew he'd need it when he became a head coach.
So there he was Thursday night in Canton, finding a spot near at least one official, in case he had a point to be made. And there were times it did feel weird. But calling plays on the Tom Benson Stadium turf wasn't much of a problem. The Cardinals scored 30 points, and preseason or not, that was meaningful.
(The 60 previous Hall of Fame games never had both teams reach 30, so the 33-30 loss to the Panthers was a record-breaker. Will there be things to monitor with the defense? Yes. But still.)
LaFleur had basic wants. "I just wanted our operation and plays come to life," he said.
They did. Carson Beck looked really good. Even fourth-string QB Kedon Slovis did some nice things in completing 9-of-10 for 106 yards and a TD. The running game clicked, there were 425 total yards, and that was without McBride, Love, Wilson, Harrison, Allgeier.
In all, a good showing on offense, especially with more than a month to go before the regular season.
-- Beck was impressive. We've seen impressive before in the preseason. But as we sit here late at night, with just that one game on which to judge, it's gotta be judged a success right now.
-- The defense did not have a good night. But veteran nose tackle Andrew Billings was awesome. He got a sack, he destroyed the Panthers center on another play, and for a team that wanted to make sure they will be tough up the middle on early downs, he and Roy Lopez are a nice pair.
"I'll look at the tape but when I did peek at it (Billings) was wreaking havoc between those A gaps and let's be real, that's what he is here to do," LaFleur said.
-- For all the talk about Jeremiyah Love, and Tyler Allgeier, and James Conner, and even Trey Benson, Bam Knight just looks good when he gets chances. He's looked good in camp, he averaged five yards a carry Thursday (yes, with all the usual preseason hesitations), and he has history with LaFleur. Both were with the Jets together. Knight swears by him. The running back room has hard decisions coming.
-- Outside linebacker BJ Ojulari was playing into the fourth quarter. Usually that's not something that happens with a roster lock, and so he'll be someone to watch the balance of camp.
-- Veteran punter Blake Gillkin missed most of last season with a back injury that eventually needed surgery. Long rehabbed, he marched out after the Cardinals' first drive stalled and simply cranked a 55-yard boot that went out of bounds at the Carolina 3-yard line. If he wasn't the only punter on the team, I'd say he's ready for the regular season and could sit until Week 1.
-- This came Wednesday morning prior to the day-before-game practice, but Mike LaFleur was asked again about outside linebacker Josh Sweat, who remains on the Physically Unable To Perform list.
"Whether you believe me or not," LaFleur said, "I'm not worried about him for Sept. 13, at all."
The Cardinals open the season in Los Angeles against the Chargers on Sept. 13.
That's it for tonight. On to the Larry Fitzgerald weekend.
