This coming Sunday we face the Arizona Cardinals. Just like last week against the Saints our secondary, passing defense, will be tested. I suggested last week that our second biggest test to the secondary might not come until week 15 when we face the Denver Broncos. Guess what I was wrong. I knew Arizona had a good passing offense but didn't realize how high they were ranked, 2nd in the NFL. QB Kurt Warner has thrown for the 3rd most yards in the league and they even had a bye week, where Drew Brees (1st) and Jay Cutler (2nd) have not.

They have great offensive weapon in wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald, Steve Breaston, Anquan Boldin and running backs Edgerrin James and Tim Hightower. The Cardinals drafted Hightower during the 5th round and many feel it was the best pickup for them, if possibly the best overall pickup for the price. Hightower, when called upon, has been able to get the short yards when needed and actually has never missed a 3-1 or 4-1 opportunity so far this season. But the running game isn't their strength. Obviously it's their passing that sets them apart.

While Boldin has been out with an injury, when they are all healthy, they arguably could have the best 3 WR on the field at the same time. Even without Boldin they could possibly still have the best receiver duo on the field.

What can we expect from the game on Sunday? Let's find out.

First, here are the each teams rankings.

Cardinals on Offensive / Panthers of Defense

As you can see Arizona is quite capable of moving the ball through the air. So far they have faced the current number 18th, 27th, 12th, 24th, 8th, and 16th ranked passing defenses from weeks 1-6 respectively (week 7 was their bye). But they will now face our 2nd ranked passing defense. For both sides a great test. Expect them to test our safeties all game long in making sure they respect the throws down the field.

Last week the Panthers showed they can slow down a pass happy team. However, with the injury to Reggie Bush and him playing only the first half, many still wonder if we can do it again. Like last week, Carolina will have to have some big plays on defense in order help the team win.

Cardinals QB Kurt Warner vs Panthers FS Charles Godfrey

Yeah, this one's pretty obvious but must be mentioned. Our rookie Charles Godfrey has played well so far but has made his mistakes. Look for Arizona to try to confuse him and takes advantage of his rookie status. If you remember against the Saints, Godfrey bit on the underneath route that allowed Saints WR Devery Henderson to make the 54 yard reception.

Side note: Godfrey will meet up with his former Iowa teammate Arizona's DE Kenny Iwebema Jr. (3rd string DE).

Cardinals RT Levi Brown vs Panthers DE Charles Johnson

Apparently Levi Brown doesn't do so well against a speed rush. While Johnson might not be has high profile as Julius Peppers, Charles Johnson in his second year is coming along nicely. He has 1.5 sacks this season, but in the KC game could have possibly had 2 more. He had a very quite game last week, so it is time for him to show up and apply the pressure on Warner this week.

Panthers on Offensive / Cardinals on Defense

The Cardinals defense is a bit hard to figure out. They rank 14th overall, 20th in passing yards but 11th in rushing yards allowed. In contrast, the defense has allowed 18 total touchdowns (tied for 18th), 4 by passing (tied for 8th) and 12 rushing (tied for 31st).

With that in mind and the fact that Fox obviously loves to run the ball, expect Fox to try and give the Cardinals a large dose of the Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams this week to keep the time of possession in the Panthers favor. The Cardinals actually do rank higher in rushing defense compared to Carolina, which many Panther fans may not have realized. This game again has the potential to be a high scoring game and so while Fox will want to run the ball, Jake will have to take his shots down the field to Steve Smith.

Panthers RG Jeremy Bridges vs Cardinals DT Darnell Dockett

Hopefully our offensive line will be healthy this week but the way Geoff Hangartner and Jeremy Bridges played last week, I feel fairly comfortable with them starting again. If there is any lingering injury to Otah or Kalil it wouldn't be a horrible idea for them to sit this week and then use the bye week to completely heal up. While the OL did allow 1 sack last week, that is only 1 sack in three games or 12 quarters of play time. The Cardinals have sacked opposing QB 18 times this season and can put pressure on Jake Delhomme so the OL is key.

Bridges played for Arizona in 2004 and 2005 before joining the Panthers. He played in 21 games and started 11. Basically this means they have a good idea of what to expect from him. If the offensive line can hold back the pass rush, Jake should be able to move the ball down the field as well giving Stewart and Williams a shorter field to navigate for their touchdowns.

Panthers WR Dwayne Jarrett vs Cardinals CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie 

Yeah, Steve Smith is a big part of the offensive. But I was tired of posting the same people over and over, which bring me to Jarrett.

Coach Fox on how wide receiver Dwayne Jarrett has played when he has seen action: I think good. He's definitely improved from a year ago. He was a young person as well as a young player, and I think he's definitely matured.

With WR DJ Hackett getting better, Jarrett must take advantage of the playing time he receives. Since Carolina uses the two tight end sets quite often, they don't put a lot of 3 WR set on the field. So when he is on the field he better make it count. Last week he had a big 3rd down reception for 13 yards on 3rd and 7.

Both Jarrett and RC are similar in size, although Jarrett has two inches and 50 lbs on him. Jarrett has learned a lot since Moose returned and started mentoring him this offseason and hopefully it will pay off this week. With Arizona's secondary allowing a large amount of yards to the opposing receivers, Jarrett could have his biggest day this season and could be the key to keeping drives alive.

Side Note: QB Matt Leinart and WR Dwayne Jarrett played at USC together in 2004 & 2005.

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Some may wonder if the Panthers are going to get a bit high on themselves again and fall flat this week, similar to how we played Tampa Bay. I believe the team has learned their lesson. This game is also important because next week is the Panthers bye.

"It's huge," exhorted running back DeAngelo Williams. "Going over into the bye week with a little momentum to push up over to the second half of the season."

I completely believe the Panthers are able to win this game. However, it will not be easy. Again, I expect the score to be in the high 20's/low 30's from both teams.

My prediction: Panthers 31, Cardinals 27