The Arizona Cardinals have a schedule littered with games where players or coaches face former teams. Whether it is a Cardinals player facing his former team or a former Cardinals player or coach returning, in all, there are eight such games.
Week 2: Terrell Suggs’ return to Baltimore
The Cardinals travel to play the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. Suggs played 16 seasons for the Ravens. He is an icon there. There will certainly be strong emotions for Suggs, although everything will be positive.
Week 4: Mike Iupati returns, J.R. Sweezy faces former team
The Cardinals and Seahawks swapped guards in the offseason in free agency. J.R. Sweezy signed with the Cardinals and Mike Iupati signed with Seattle. Iupati played four seasons in Arizona, while Sweezy played five years over two stints with Seattle.
Week 6: Brooks Reed, Robert Alford face team that cut them
Two free agent additions the Cardinals made on defense were cornerback Robert Alford and outside linebacker Brooks Reed. Both had been released by Atlanta, who comes to Arizona in Week 6. They can show their former team they should have kept them.
Week 7: Justin Pugh returns to New York; Markus Golden, Antoine Bethea get reunion
Pugh signed a five-year contract as a free agent with the Cardinals a year ago. he had played five seasons for the Giants previously. They did not want to bring him back. It was a year ago but this is Pugh’s first return to see the team that originally drafted him.
The Giants defense is littered with former Cardinals. The Giants signed Markus Golden and Antoine Bethea. They have Kareem Martin, whom they signed a year ago. James Bettcher is their defensive coordinator, who held the same position with the Cardinals.
Week 10: Cardinals face old coaching staff
The Cardinals travel to Tampa Bay and will get to go against Bruce Arians, their head coach from 2013-2017. Arians is also the winningest coach in team history. The Tampa Bay staff features several former Cardinals coaches and linebacker Deone Bucannon is now with the Bucs, having signed a one-year deal in free agency, after five seasons with the Cardinals.
Week 14: Marcus Gilbert faces old team
The Steelers come to town in Week 14. The Cardinals traded a sixth-round pick for tackle Marcus Gilbert. Previous to the trade, Gilbert had played eight years in the league, all for Pittsburgh.
Week 15: Steve Wilks returns
Wilks was fired after only one year as head coach for the Cardinals. The team had gone 3-13. He returns to State Farm Stadium as the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns.
He isn’t the only coach on staff who has ties to the Cardinals. New head coach Freddie Kitchens was a position coach for more than a decade for the Cardinals. Running backs coach Stump Mitchell held the same position with the Cardinals. QB coach Ryan Lindley and offensive quality control coach Jim Dray played for Arizona as well.
Week 16: Sweezy returns to Seattle
Sweezy will have already played against his former team in Week 4, but in Week 16, he returns to the actual city where he has spent most of his career.
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