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Cardinals coach Bruce Arians rips team after 'awful' practice

Posted at 2:03 PM, Jul 31, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-31 19:19:51-04

With their team's first preseason game just three days away, this isn't exactly the kind of thing Arizona Cardinals fans want to hear.

Cardinals coach Bruce Arians ripped his team after Monday morning's outdoor practice at University of Phoenix Stadium, criticizing them for a "sluggish" all-around performance.

"S----y practice. Play like s---, I'll treat you like s---," Arians said. "They weren't ready to practice. They were really ready to practice on Saturday (at the Red & White Practice). With fans and all that, they were ready to roll. They had a great practice Saturday. Today, awful."

Monday marked the first time the Cardinals practiced outside during this year's training camp. Arians said the earlier start time of 8 a.m., combined with the outdoor heat, were responsible for the disappointing session.

"As good as Saturday was, today was bad," he said. "Obviously we did not come out after a day off (Sunday), at 8 o'clock in the morning and handle the schedule change or heat very well. Way, way too many mental errors and a very sluggish practice, so we did some conditioning (drills)."

It wasn't all bad, as Arians singled out safety Tyrann Mathieu for praise. Arians noted the Honey Badger intercepted some passes and was the only player he could think of who didn't draw a penalty flag.

"This was the first practice he really looked like himself," Arians said of Mathieu.

Arians hopes the team will learn from Monday's disappointment in time for Tuesday's practice, which will also take place outdoors and begin at 8 a.m. It will the Cardinals' final practice before heading to Canton, Ohio for their preseason Hall of Fame Game vs. the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night.

And despite his frustration, Arians kept Monday's practice in proper perspective.

"It's just a practice. We didn't play anybody," he said. "We just failed to handle the heat and the time."