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How much of a factor was only scoring 7 points?


SARASOTA, Fla. -- It’s impossible to pick only one reason for the Cardinals’ offensive struggles in Sunday’s 31-7 loss to the Saints, so coach Bruce Arians didn’t try on Monday.

The Cardinals (1-2) couldn’t convert often enough on third downs (two of last 11 opportunities). They committed dumb penalties (illegal shift that negated a first down). They didn’t protect the passer well enough. And they had two passes intercepted, both of which came after they had completed passes for first downs.

“Those are the things where your defense just gets worn out, when you start having a four (plays) and out, putting them back on the field too soon,” Arians said. “And then (we) get a good drive going and have an interception.

“When it was a one-score game, offensively we had a chance to do some things and never got it done.”

None of the Cardinals were surprised by what they saw on video Monday morning.

“We’re just going out and putting things on tape that just aren’t us,” guard Daryn Colledge said. “The first drive we showed what kind of offense we can be. Right now, it’s more mental than physical. It’s one guy off on each play. In the NFL, you have a few of those and it can go down real fast, which is what happened (Sunday).”

Defensive lapses

The Cardinals sacked Saints quarterback Drew Brees four times, but they should have had more, Arians said.

“We had guys free that were unblocked and didn’t make a sack,” Arians said. “Drew got away, got the ball out. His 40 yards rushing obviously was huge. It’s hard to come up with blitzes where guys come free, but we had them free about four times in the game and got no sacks.”

Brees gained 21 yards on six carries, including a 7-yard touchdown.

Cornerback Patrick Peterson credited the defensive line for pressuring Brees, and blamed himself and the rest of the secondary for coverage problems.

“I believe we didn’t play as tight as we wanted to,” he said. “That’s why he’s Drew Brees. He can put the ball in tight spots and make the correct throws.”

Okafor moves up

An ankle caused rookie outside linebacker Alex Okafor to miss practice time in training camp. He fell behind and was inactive for the first two games.

Okafor, a fourth-round pick, played his first NFL game last Sunday against the Saints and participated in a few plays after starter Lorenzo Alexander was injured.

“He got in four or five snaps and did fairly well,” Arians said. “They did take a long run around his end where he was misaligned one time. But with a full week’s practice, I think he should be fine.”

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