Today’s afternoon game between the San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals could have been a quarterback showdown between Carson Palmer and Colin Kaepernick. Instead, the Cardinals will be hard pressed to advance to a 3-0 record, as Palmer has been ruled out for today’s 49ers game and Arizona’s defense will be without a key stopper in linebacker John Abraham.
Abraham suffered a concussion in Arizona’s 18-17 win over the Chargers in Week 1. Since that time he’s been working through the NFL’s concussion protocol but hasn’t yet passed. After failing the protocol again Thursday, Abraham was scratched from his second straight game. His presence was missed last week and will be again as you watch today’s Cardinals 49ers game live. Abraham’s 133.5 career sacks leads all active NFL players.
That’s bad news for the Cardinals, as 49ers QB Colin Kaepernick may have the chance to find his stride. Kaepernick hasn’t been quite the dual threat from seasons past, completing 37 of 57 pass attempts for 449 yards and three touchdowns. He’s carried the ball 14 times for 75 yards, a 5.4 yards/carry average, but the Niners and their All-Pro QB haven’t found their groove and have a 1-1 record.
Statistically Cardinals QB Carson Palmer is having a better season through two weeks. Although his raw numbers are worse — 24-for-37 for 304 yards and two TDs — his 79.9 quarterback rating is seventh in the league. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Carson will likely watch today’s Cardinals 49ers game live from the sidelines rather than the field.
For the second straight game, Palmer is sitting out to recover from a nerve injury to this throwing shoulder. He’ll be replaced in today’s 49ers game by backup QB Drew Stanton, who started last week’s 25-14 road win over the Giants. Stanton wasn’t huge, going 14-for-29 for 167 yards against a bad Giants D, so he could struggle against San Francisco’s sixth-ranked defense.
You can watch today’s San Francisco 49ers vs Arizona Cardinals game live on TV on FOX. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:05pm EST / 1:05pm PST from University of Phoenix Stadium. You can also watch 49ers vs Cardinals game online live free streaming using the FOX Sports video website or DirecTV’s website. The latter requires you to subscribe to the NFL Sunday Ticket MAX package, but all subscribers can watch the game online free via the DirecTV live stream on a smartphone, tablet or PC.
