NFC Notes: Cardinals, Cowboys, Falcons

Cardinals

Since his hire, the debut of new Cardinals HC Kliff Kingsbury‘s college-style Air Raid offense in the NFL has been a much-anticipated event. Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald said the actual scheme itself might not be as big a factor as the speed which Arizona will play. 

“It’s not so much what he’s installing that stands out; it’s how it’s run, the tempo of it,” Fitzgerald said via Sports Illustrated’s Robert Klemko. “Every single day, with more experience, we were able to run it faster and faster and faster, get more plays in more efficiently. The faster guys understand the concepts the more pressure we can put on defenses. The language is simpler, but you have to process it faster. In this system, you’re on the ball and you don’t have an abundance of time to understand what’s going on. You have to decipher and be able to play fast.”

• According to Darren Urban of the official team website, A.Q Shipley and Mason Cole will battle for the starting center spot. 

Cowboys

• According to Yahoo!’s Charles Robinson, Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott hasn’t made a final decision on a potential training camp holdout, but is weighing his options. 
• Robinson says Elliott knows his value is at its high point and wants to protect himself long-term, especially since he’s projected to take on a significant workload in 2019. 
• Robinson adds this isn’t a surprise to the Cowboys and EVP Stephen Jones, who’s been running negotiations, as the two have stayed in contact for more than a month. 
• Robinson believes if Elliott feels good about the progression of extension talks with the Cowboys, he won’t hold out from camp.

Falcons

Falcons WR Calvin Ridley led all rookies in receiving yardage after Atlanta took him in the first round last year. The team expects more big things out of Ridley this year.

“Last year, a lot of things were new,” Falcons Asst. HC/WR coach Raheem Morris said via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution. “A lot of things were going fast for him. He was picking things up as he went. He had a pretty productive season. I don’t see any way that he slows down.”