The game of basketball is a game of rhythm. At its best, it has a flow and grace to it much like music does.

The Phoenix Suns, since 2004, have played the game of basketball like a symphony with Mike D'Antonio and Alvin Gentry as the composers and Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire as the accomplished musicians. 

This year, the composer may be the same, but they've re-arranged the orchestra.

The question is, what song will best represent the 2010-11 incarnation of the Phoenix Suns?

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Undrafted rookie Max Hall could be the starter for the Arizona Cardinals when they take on the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints Sunday at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Let that sink in.

Like many people, I'm not quite sure how to feel about that or about the overwhelming amount of fan support the possible move seems to have. As a matter of fact, I've been trying to put my feelings into words since fans began flocking to Hall during the preseason.

Luckily this afternoon, mother nature provided the answer.

As the rain began to come down in the East Valley it became clear, Cardinals fans infatuations with Max Hall is a lot like Arizonans' infatuation with monsoon thunderstorms.

People constantly talk about needing rain because of a current drought and how it will help. They are really excited to see a thunderstorm and have it live up to expectations. While it's raining, people try to stay positive but complain about some of the consequences that come with them being there.

In the end, the problem is, monsoons just create a mess that has to be cleaned up once they're done.

Right now the Cardinals are a mess and Max Hall starting at quarterback isn't the solution. Like the thunderstorms, he'll just cause more mess and won't fix the problem in the desert.

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With the Arizona Cardinals second game of the season a day away, we caught up with Dave from SB Nation's The Falcoholic blog to get a perspective on the game from Atlanta. Dave was kind enough to provide his expertise and answer five questions about what to expect from the Falcons as they try to improve from their week 1 loss to the Steelers.

1) What was the biggest thing you learned about the Falcons in week 1's overtime loss to the Steelers?

I learned that we're not there yet. The Falcons are a team that have never quite been able to put together a dominant defense and an explosive offense at the same time, and the team's sputtering offensive effort against a tough Steelers D indicates that they're not quite at an elite level.

That said, I think the defense was better than it's been in years in that single game, and the offense is too good to keep down for long. We may just be "there" by the end of the season.

2) From the sounds of it, the Falcons are having some issues in their secondary. Do they have enough talent at the position to keep up with the Cardinals talented --albeit somewhat depleted-- receiving corps?

It's going to be an interesting battle. The Falcons would be wise to have a safety cheat over on Larry Fitzgerald and give Dunta Robinson some help. Even Darrelle Revis would have difficult containing Fitz.

After that, Brent Grimes and Chris Owens match up pretty well with Steve Breaston and Stephen Williams. Grimes is a ballhawk who will try to cut in on Breaston and hopefully shake him up, and Owens is a very physical corner despite his size who will stick to Williams like glue when he's asked to. We're certainly not going to fully contain your guys, but I like to think the talent exists to limit the damage.

3) The Falcon's running game only earned 58 yards in 23 rushes last week. Was it because of Pittsburgh's defense or was it internal problems and do you expect more yards versus the Cardinals?

Basically, it was Pittsburgh's defense. The Steelers have one of the toughest run Ds in the league. Michael Turner looked a little tentative and the offensive line was bad, but at the core you can blame the defense.

That said, I'm not taking your D lightly. I don't expect Turner to average seven yards a carry or anything ridiculous like that. He'll certainly get a hell of a lot closer to 100 yards against the Cardinals, though it may take 20-25 carries.

4) Head coach Mike Smith said he was upset and demand improvement at every position. Was it really that bad and how much improvement do you expect in week two?

Well, again, we were facing a top defense. I think Mike Smith was frustrated with the offense and decided to pick on the defense a little, too.

I expect considerable improvement. Again, I'm not taking you guys lightly. The Cardinals are still a good team, even with the world's most imperfect quarterback under center. But the Falcons are going to be out for blood and your D just isn't at Pittsburgh's level yet. There will be improvement, and our defense should hold its own.

5) Who is one player that Cardinals fans might not be aware of who they will know after Sunday?

I always go with Kroy Biermann. He's developing into one of the nastier pass rushing defensive ends in the NFC, piling up three sacks in the pre-season and one against the Steelers. He's very quick and has a way of getting under and around blockers, so I'm sure you'll hear his name a couple of times this weekend.

Three guys sit around a table while a female, who is working in the room, stands nearby. One of the guys comments, within earshot of the woman, that what she's wearing makes her look like a "Madame from a Shanghai whore house". Is it an NFL locker room or the latest episode of AMC's Mad Men?

If you've followed the story of Ines Sainz and the New York Jets, you might not be too sure.

I won't waste precious words to recap the entire situation, but basically Ines Sainz, a reporter for the Mexican television network TV Azteca, was attending Jets practice for the network and had coaches throw footballs in her direction during practice -- one can only assume it was done so players could check her out and talk to her -- and later, she was called out by players in the locker room.

Sainz is known for her scantily clad attire -- for some cheap page views for the company, you can see the picture here -- and crazy antics around football players (she measured players' biceps during media day when the Arizona Cardinals were in the Super Bowl). Because of this, many players, including the Redskins' Clinton Portis and the Arizona Cardinals' Darnell Dockett, and many in the media have insinuated she was "asking for it" by dressing the way she did.

Sorry, but that isn't a good enough reason to let the locker room turn into, or rather stay as, the frat house from Van Wilder.

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I know the day when Al McCoy retires is coming, but I'm not sure Suns fans are ready for it. Luckily, today isn't that day, but it was close.

The Phoenix Suns and Mr. McCoy -- I refuse to refer to a legend and personal favorite as just Al -- announced Wednesday morning that McCoy will take "select East Coast road trips" off this season. Long time public address announcer and the voice of ASU Women's Basketball Jeff Munn will fill in during his absence.

While this doesn't signify the end of Mr. McCoy's career, it means we are inching closer to the final chapter of this illustrious ride.

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I hope you all don't mind, but today's question is more of a personal one than one directly about the team. See, I have an issue that only you, true Cardinal fans, can understand.

This weekend, instead of being parked in my palatial -- OK, tiny -- apartment in the east valley, I'll be 3,000 miles away in Boston for my cousins wedding. At the exact time my cousin says his vows to his new bride, the team I vowed never to miss will be kicking off their season.

After cursing my cousin and trying various schemes to get out of having to attend -- like getting laid off -- I've accepted the fact that I won't be watching the game and commenting on it live like I've grown accustom to.

The only issue I now face is if I should avoid all televisions, cellphones and computers in an attempt to keep the outcome of the game a mystery until I can get to my DVR on Monday afternoon, or if I should keep up to date on the game on my cellphone at the wedding.

My fate is in your hands, faithful Revenge of the Birds readers. If you think I should be like one of those ESPN commercials where I'm constantly sneaking my phone out to grab a glimpse of the game, I will. If you think I should avoid everything and watch the game on DVR, I'll do that, too. 

Thanks for the help and as always, vote in the poll and debate the topic in the comment section below.

Darnell Dockett had something to get off his chest this morning on Twitter. Then again, doesn't he always?

Today, he went on a very interesting rant about how people who haven't played football aren't "experts" and shouldn't make predictions.

I also hate men that talk about football and never played a day in there life and make predictions, and never played ONE DOWN! Half the people who make predictions never played a day in there life, they wouldn't get picked to play football in the street!

I have to agree with Dockett, in theory. The term "expert" is thrown around more often than Albert Haynesworth took and failed the condition test in training camp. Just because you are paid to write about, watch or comment on sports doesn't make you an expert (believe me, I know -- I was, and hope again to be, one of those people). They are fans with inside information. They are there to inform and entertain. Nothing more, nothing less.

The only true experts are the guys who have been in coaches meetings, who have run two-a-days and who have strapped on the helmet and competed. If you don't fit into one of those categories, I'm sorry, but you are just a very lucky fan who gets to cover the sport.

This doesn't mean that there aren't very educated and smart reporters out there providing unique and interesting information -- quite the contrary. But they aren't "experts" and very few are even insiders. Most are just guys with an entertaining perspective or a way with words who bring fans their opinions and information from the experts within the sport.

Any of these so called "experts" making predictions are doing so for entertainment purposes only and have no clue what will happen (if you have any doubt, just watch my picks in our "pickem" contest and I'll prove my theory right). They don't understand the intricacies of the game like someone who played or coached (I should know, I was the finest special teamer, kickoff tee getter and flag football coach Seton Catholic has ever seen).

So memo to the "experts": don't take yourselves too seriously. Football is about having fun, arguing about the game with your friends and, first and foremost, being a fan. That is, of course, unless you played. Then prognosticate away.

With that said, I'm predicting the Cardinals to pull off a 10-point victory against the Rams on Sunday. Sorry, Darnell, I couldn't resist. I'm no expert, and my career sub .500 record in picking games should prove it.

The AK, After Kurt, era begins on Sunday when the Arizona Cardinals take on another team all too familiar with the pain losing Kurt can cause, the St. Louis Rams. The Rams were lucky enough to have a capable quarterback to keep the team competitive for a brief time, Marc Bulger, after Warner left there. Sunday will be the first chance that Derek Anderson has to prove he can do the same for the Cardinals.

While the Rams have been anything but formidable over the last three seasons, things are looking up. Number one pick, quarterback Sam Bradford, has given fans reason for optimism while second year head coach Steve Spagnuolo has given the team a new attitude. 

While talking about the game with other Cardinals fans is fun, it doesn't provide us with any insight we don't already have. (We can only tell each other the Cards are amazing so many times before it gets old. Oh, who am I kidding, it never gets old.)

That's why we caught up with Ryan from over at Turf Show Times to break down the Rams and give his prediction for the game (Hint: he likes his hometown team).

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There are two things that I still anticipate the same way the chubby, goofy 10-year-old version of myself with the bad hair cut used to (truth be told, the only thing that has really changed about me is my age). Those two things are the start of the Cardinals season and summer movies.

No matter how much I anticipated either as a kid, they inevitably disappointed me every year. That wasn't tough to do as a Cardinals fan and growing up in the movie wasteland that was the mid ‘90s. (I mean really, the best things to come out that I could see as a early teen were Titanic, As Good As It Gets and Jerry Maguire. I saw the latter with my grandparents, which is not exactly the way you want to be introduced to the nude female body. Then again neither is having Tom Cruise on top of said nude female body. But I digress.)

With this summer's "blockbusters" falling pretty flat and many of the national media expecting the Cardinals to follow suit, why not combine both to preview the opponents our beloved NFL franchise will face off against this season?

The format is pretty simple: six different categories, all represented by six different films from Hollywood's Summer of 2010, each with a description and the Cards' opponents that fit.

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Beanie Wells missed practice again for the Arizona Cardinals Thursday nursing his bruised right knee. Coach Whisenhunt didn't seem all that concerned by it and that he doesn't want the injury to become an nagging one. Even though Whiz doesn't seemed to worried are you? Vote in the poll and debate in the comment section below.

There has been an awful lot of love given to the Arizona Cardinals' second string quarterback on this site and around the internet the last few weeks and somewhat deservingly so. He looked great in his preseason appearances for the team. The problem is, it was just that, preseason.

Hall played against third and fourth string defensive players fighting to make a roster. He didn't play against the league's elite like he will if anything happens to Derek Anderson.  

Cardinals fans are falling prey to what I like to call the "PBG" or "Preseason Beer Goggles". 

Just like how people get more attractive with each passing drink at a bar, the same can be said for athletes and preseason games. An athlete, who wouldn't otherwise play in a regular season game, becomes much more attractive to fans with each passing game. Fans fail to account for the talent the player is going up against and instead begin to believe they would perform the same way against starters or in a game that actually means something.

As it is with alcohol and attractiveness, bench players' preseason performances and fan love happens incrementally.

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Darnell Dockett isn't shy about much. Whether it's his opinion on the 49ers, his desire to get a new contract or is body on Ustream, 9-0, as he likes to call himself, isn't afraid to share things. Between his play on the field and his off the field personality, he is constantly making headlines. But, with the departure of Kurt Warner, does his outward nature make him the new "face" of the Arizona Cardinals?

Sure, it's not a clear cut answer but that's what makes it a fun question of the day. Vote in the poll and debate it in the comment section below. And remember, even if you vote no to Darnell as the face of the organization, at least his voice is always trashing the 49ers.

We're just days away from the Arizona Cardinals kicking off their season against the St. Louis Rams. When they take the field on Sunday at the Edward Jones Dome they'll do so with an undrafted rookie as the backup to starting quarterback Derek Anderson.

Max Hall will be one of only three rookies to be a backup quarterback in the NFL this season. Do you trust Hall, and his skills, enough to be comfortable with him as the Cards second string quarterback for the 2010 season?

Vote in the poll and share your opinion in the comment section below.

There is a saying that goes "trust is earned, it is not given". If that's true, and I believe it is, than the Arizona Cardinals and their fans shouldn't be worried about this season.

Think about the coaches who have called the Cards their team. Did you, as a fan, trust any of them? Did you believe in the mild mannered Joe Bugel? Was there ever a time when you truly trusted that Buddy Ryan was bringing a winner to town? Did you ever trust the moves that quiet Vince Tobin made or the rah-rah style of Dave McGinnis? Did you trust the charts touting Dennis Green's talent or buy into his quarterback carousel?

If you are anything like me, the answer to all those questions is no.

For years there hasn't been much to trust about the Arizona Cardinals as a franchise. From top to bottom the team has been filled with false promises and exaggerated skills. Things are different now though.

In a time where the "quarterback of the future" was just cut, the new starter is a Cleveland Browns reject --which is about as good as being a Cards reject from the early 2000s-- and the backup is now a undrafted rookie, it would be easy not to believe in this club. The difference between now and the franchise Cardinals fans knew for years is that they've earned trust.

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So Matt Leinart was cut today but we've beaten that subject to death in the question of the day. With that in mind, we have a variation on the Leinart topic for today's question. Who is the biggest draft bust ever for the Arizona Cardinals? Is it the former number ten pick Leinart? How about a guy like 1998's third overall pick Andre Wadsworth? What about 2002's number twelve overall pick Wendell Bryant who was out of the league by 2005? Maybe you prefer the number three overall pick from 1993 Garrison Hearst who gained a measly 1503 yards in three seasons as a Cardinal?

Vote in the poll and debate the topic in the comment section below.

The question of the day is simple and one I'm sure Rod Graves and Ken Whisenhunt are deliberating about as we speak. Do you cut Matt Leinart? Vote in the poll and share your opinion in the comment section below.

In his hit song Geek In the Pink, Jason Mraz sang the line "sometimes you gotta fit in to get in". If only Matt Leinart had an affinity for dorky, fedora wearing, guitar playing musical artists, he may be in a different position heading into Saturday's mandatory cuts.

Leinart made it through Friday's cuts but the Arizona Cardinals are still three cuts away from getting down to the required 53 man roster.

With the news that both Max Hall and John Skelton have been informed that they made the roster and the assumption that Derek Anderson is the starter, something coach Ken Whisenhunt was unwilling to confirm on Friday, it seems like a safe bet that Leinart is the odd man out (which is probably one of the few times in his life that he's been referred to as odd). Even beat writer extraordinaire Kent Somers sees it that way, telling his Twitter followers that Leinart "will not" be a member of the Cards come Sunday.

While Whisenhunt wouldn't confirm nor deny anyone's suspicions (come on though, even Mr. Magoo can see what's coming), he did have something interesting to say during his media availability Friday afternoon. He said that he was questioning whether Leinart "...can survive in the role as a No. 2 on this team. And that’s really what the decision is about." 

If Leinart gets cut tomorrow, based on Whisenhunt's quote, it sounds like it will be his own fault. Like the Mraz song says, all he had to do was fit in with his teammates and his coach's wishes and he would get on the roster, and in all likelihood with Derek Anderson as the starter, get into a game.

If Leinart listened to Mraz's song he would have known the next line and the impact it could have had on his career with the Cardinals. "But don't ever quit cause soon I'm gonna let you in."

Which is exactly what Whisenhunt would have done.