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          NFL Nation

          Arizona Cardinals' schedule has five of final seven games on road  

          • Josh Weinfuss, ESPN Staff WriterApr 15, 2016, 12:40 AM
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              Josh Weinfuss is a staff writer who covers the Arizona Cardinals and the NFL at ESPN. Josh has covered the Cardinals since 2012, joining ESPN in 2013. He is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and a graduate of Indiana University. You can follow him via Twitter @joshweinfuss.
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          Breakdown: This season will test the Arizona Cardinals' stamina. More specifically, it’ll be a challenge to Arizona’s 30-and-older set to see if their legs hold up through several airplane rides. Arizona will play five of its final seven games on the road including trips to Minnesota, Atlanta, Miami, Seattle and its season finale at Los Angeles. But the first half of the Cardinals' schedule isn’t just stacked with home games -- it’s stacked with home games on national TV. Three of the Cardinals’ four national TV appearances will be at University of Phoenix Stadium, and all four will be completed by Week 7 -- including three straight.

          On the road again:The Cardinals will be logging those frequent-flier miles with four East Coast games against Buffalo, Carolina, Atlanta and Miami. They requested at least two be played on consecutive weeks so they can stay on the East Coast between games, like they did last year at The Greenbrier in West Virginia. That road trip yielded a 1-1 record. The Cardinals play at Minnesota in Week 11 and at Atlanta in Week 12. But with four East Coast trips this season, each of them is more valuable than the one before. Only one, Week 3 at Buffalo, comes before the bye. The Cardinals have an intimate knowledge of the Panthers, whom they lost to in the NFC Championship Game, and the Falcons, whom they’ve played three times since 2012. The Cardinals will use their experience from cross-country trips last year to Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Carolina in the playoffs to prepare for a series of long-haul flights this season.

          Prime-time stretch: Is there a bigger stage for the Cardinals to host former defensive coordinator Todd Bowles and the New York Jets than on Monday Night Football? And that game comes in the middle of a run of three straight prime-time games. From the time the Cardinals start their run of prime-time games against San Francisco on Thursday Night Football (Oct. 6) until they host Seattle on Sunday Night Football (Oct. 23), 17 days will have elapsed. That’s a lot of exposure in a short amount of time. They don’t have a prime-time game in the final nine weeks -- but that’s before games are flexed. If the Cardinals can command big audiences, don’t be surprised if they get another national game or two.

          Strength of schedule: T-7th, .531

          Cardinals Regular-Season Schedule (All times Eastern)

          • Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 11, New England, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 18, Tampa Bay, 4:05 p.m.

          • Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 25, at Buffalo, 1 p.m.

          • Week 4: Sunday, Oct. 2, Los Angeles, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 5: Thursday, Oct. 6, at San Francisco, 8:25 p.m.

          • Week 6: Monday, Oct. 17, NY Jets, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 23, Seattle, 8:30 p.m.

          • Week 8: Sunday, Oct. 30, at Carolina, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 9: BYE

          • Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 13, San Francisco, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 20, at Minnesota, 1 p.m.

          • Week 12: Sunday, Nov. 27, at Atlanta, 1 p.m.

          • Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 4, Washington, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 11, at Miami, 1 p.m.

          • Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 18, New Orleans, 4:05 p.m.

          • Week 16: Saturday, Dec. 24, at Seattle, 4:25 p.m.

          • Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 1, at Los Angeles, 4:25 p.m.