Cards (

18.5) at
Chargers (

28)

BY MJOHNSON >>

GAME OVERVIEW ::

• Heralded rookie RB Jeremiyah Love is trending towards being available for the Cardinals in Week 1 after missing most of August with an ankle injury.
• Arizona operated as one of the most pass-heavy offenses in the league the second half of last season, but looks to become more balanced under new head coach Mike LaFleur.
• Explosive Chargers RB Keaton Mitchell is back on the practice field ahead of the season opener after missing nearly two weeks of practice.
• The Chargers offense has looked explosive in the preseason and is expected to take a major leap under new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel, while Arizona’s defense was arguably the worst in the league in 2025.

HOW ARIZONA WILL TRY TO WIN::

Arizona has one of the stronger offensive personnel units in the league in 2026 after drafting the uber-talented RB Jeremiyah Love with the third overall pick in April’s NFL Draft. Love joins an offense with tight end Trey McBride, who set the single season record for receptions by a tight end last year, and two very good receivers in Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michael Wilson. The biggest concerns for Arizona’s offense this season will be their offensive line and quarterback play. Arizona struggled up front last season and things should be slightly better, but there is a long way to go before this is a top-tier unit. Likewise, the counting stats for Jacoby Brissett last season were terrific but those were primarily driven by volume and game script, rather than efficiency.

Expect the Cardinals to be a much more balanced unit this season than what we saw down the stretch in 2025. Not only did they draft Love, but they signed Tyler Allgeier in free agency and he is expected to see meaningful usage as well. After a hodge podge of mediocre backs saw time for Arizona last season, their backfield talent takes a major step forward. Their defense last season was also horrific, and while they don’t project to be great this year we also shouldn’t expect them to immediately be losing by two to three scores and dropping back 50 times a game. These two factors combine to create a situation where we expect Arizona to spread things out among their personnel, play slower, and throw less than the fantasy circus they provided in 2025. Love suffered an ankle injury in the first preseason game (a game where he touched the ball a head scratching 14 times), but is now expected to be back for Week 1. Expect a pretty even split between Love and Allgeier in terms of carries, while the passing game is likely to be centered around McBride with Love, Wilson, and MHJ rotating who is the second and third option on a weekly basis.

This week’s matchup against the Chargers will be an interesting one to watch the usage of MHJ and Wilson. Last season we saw Wilson emerge as a dominant player while MHJ was out, then take a backseat when MHJ briefly returned towards the end of the season. Wilson was rewarded last month with a big contract extension, but the draft capital and pedigree of MHJ along with a new coaching staff puts a lot of questions on the situation. That is just part of the issue as they also have to try to earn targets in an offense that has McBride and Love soaking up attention. My read on the situation is Wilson will be a more consistent target earner, while MHJ will have some spike weeks downfield. Either way, I do trust LaFleur to find a way to get everyone involved it just may take some time.