Cardinals Dust Off Edgerrin James

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I guess the Arizona Cardinals were saving Edgerrin James for the playoffs. After demoting Edge back in November in favor of a younger and faster Tim Hightower, the Cardinals gave their veteran second team running back 16 carries for 73 yards in a 30-24 Wild Card playoff win over the Atlanta Falcons this afternoon. It’s pretty obvious Edge is playing his final games for the Cards, but he was all smiles during and after the win:

“They (teammates) were telling me they’re not ready for me to go yet. They said, ‘Edge, we know you’re ready to go, but not yet.’”

It’s obvious Edge isn’t all of the running back he used to be (and I don’t see any other team making him their featured back next season), but he can still get the job done. He ran hard and looked strong. Obviously, the Cards are happy to have the fresh legs and they’ll need all the running game they can muster to have any chance to get through January. As explosive as Arizona is with quarterback Kurt Warner and receivers Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston, it will be their ground attack that wins games on the road in foul weather. It might take a minor miracle to get past the Panthers and Giants to Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, but Edge’s experience and smarts will certainly help the Cardinal cause.

Source: AZCardinals.com, Photo: Newscom