Skip to main content

Giants need win vs. Arizona Cardinals

By WTOP Staff

TOM CANAVAN
AP Sports Writer

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — The Arizona Cardinals are picking up right where they left off last season, and that’s not good news for the struggling New York Giants.

While many consider the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks to be the NFL’s hottest team, the Cardinals (1-0) are right there with them.

They have won 8 of 10 dating to last season — including a win over Seattle — and they opened the season by rallying to defeat the San Diego Chargers 18-17.

The Giants (0-1) are going the other way. They have missed the playoffs the past two seasons and they didn’t show any signs of turning things around in a 35-14 loss to the Lions in Detroit on Monday night.

Not only didn’t the new offense work, the defense was just as bad. It left many with visions of another 0-6 start.

The Cardinals will make a trip to the Eastern time zone off a short week when they play the Giants on Sunday at MetLife Stadium in the first game between the teams in three years.

“Every time you change the number of players we do in the NFL and more each year, it’s hard to know what is going to carry over from year to year,” said Cardinals coach Bruce Arians, whose team missed the playoffs with a 10-6 record.

“The second half of the season we played pretty well and (with) the core group of guys that are back, I think the belief that we are good enough did carry over and it was evident in the fourth quarter.”

Coming off a 7-9 season, the Giants had high hopes after they hired former Packers assistant Ben McAdoo to run their new offense and added depth on the defense. After the opening week, there is concern.

“There is always pressure each and every week to get victories and win in this league,” Giants receiver Victor Cruz said. “We’re not thinking about last year. We’re thinking about what we have now, the talent we have on this team and we feel like we are capable of going 1-1 in this next game and improving to 1-1. We have to prepare and be focused and confident that we can do that as an organization and a team.”

Here are a few items to watch Sunday:

THE UPFRONT BATTLE: The Giants’ offense struggled last week because the offensive line played poorly. The running game was limited to 52 yards on 22 carries, a 2.4 yard average. Eli Manning threw for 163 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. He was also was sacked twice and hurried nine times. The Cardinals are just as good as the Lions against the run, limiting the Chargers to 52 yards on 24 carries. They held Philip Rivers to 238 yards passing with an interception. The Giants need to pick it up if they want to win, especially left tackle Will Beatty, who was beat several times.

PUNTING: Giants punter Steve Weatherford tore ligaments in his left ankle after being roughed on a play Monday night. He hopes to be ready for the game, but kicker Josh Brown has handled the punting in practice this week. Backup quarterback Ryan Nassib would handle the holding on kicks. Arizona used recently signed Drew Butler on Monday with Dave Zastudil nursing a sore left groin. Butler had one blocked, but he averaged 54.5 yards on the ones he got away.

CARSON AND COMPANY VS. GIANTS SECONDARY: The Giants’ secondary was supposed to be the strength of the defense, but it struggled against Matthew Stafford and Calvin Johnson, giving up 346 yards. Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer threw for 304 yards and two touchdowns against San Diego. Star receiver Larry Fitzgerald was limited to one catch for 22 yards. Michael Floyd led Arizona with five catches for 119 yards.

ARIZONA LINEBACKERS: Arizona has less than a week to replace John Abraham. The 36-year-old outside linebacker left the team Tuesday after sustaining a concussion in the season opener. Coach Bruce Arians said the concussion was not the main reason that Abraham, the game’s active sacks leader and ninth on the NFL’s career list with 133½, walked away. He led the team with 11 1/2 sacks last season. Sam Acho will move into Abraham’s spot. The Cardinals have lost two other linebackers. Karlos Dansby left for Cleveland via free agency and Daryl Washington is suspended for the season for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.

FAMILY TIES: Cardinals tight end Darren Fells is going to have a family reunion this week. His older brother is Giants tight end Daniel Fells. A former college basketball player who played abroad after competing for California-Irvine, Darren is in his first NFL season after spending last year on the Cardinals practice squad. He was inactive for the Cardinals opener. Daniel is in his sixth NFL season, his first with the Giants. He had one catch for 7 yards against Detroit.

___

AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org

___

Follow Tom Canavan on Twitter: http://twitter.com/APTCan

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
Read Next Story

Related News

Frustration grows in Venezuela as earthquake death toll reaches 1,430

Israel and Lebanon sign framework agreement with US in ‘first step’ toward peace, Rubio says

Trump-endorsed populist poised to become Colombia’s next president as rival challenges vote