The wet weather the Cardinals were half-expecting has come through in spades. A light but steady rain pounded the Meadowlands as game time approached Sunday morning.

The Cardinals practiced in cool, damp, sometimes drizzling weather on Thursday and Friday in Washington, D.C., so that should help them.

A question is whether the players who have been slowed by hamstring injuries will be a full strength.

A partial answer has been given moments ago; Adrian Wilson is inactive. He didn’t practice Friday because of a sore hamstring, but coach Ken Whisenhunt downplayed the matter at the time, saying the missed practice was precautionary because of the cool weather.  Wilson had been listed as questionable.

Other inactive players include J.J. Arrington, Brandon Keith, Early Doucet, Jerame Tuman, Gabe Watson, Bertrand Berry and third quarterback Brian St. Pierre.

Giants’ inactive players include kicker Mike Nugent, punter Reggie Hodges, quarterbacks Erik Ainge and Brett Ratliff (the third quarterback), defensive back Justin Miller, linebacker Marques Murrell and defensive lineman Kareem Brown.

Anquan Boldin also has had a sore hamstring but he will play.

The Cardinals, who have been almost totally healthy so far this season, got some tough breaks as they prepared to visit the New York Jets Sunday.

Safety Adrian Wilson sat out Friday’s tune-up practice with a sore hamstring. He’s listed as questionable for the game. Anquan Boldin was limited, also because of a hamstring. And then, tight end Leonard Pope suffered a lower leg injury at the practice. He’s questionable.

At least Darnell Dockett, who has a mild hamstring problem, was able to practice and should be able to play…

The Cardinals took a train ride up from Union Station in Washington to the New York area on Saturday.

 Train rides are much more pleasant than flying. You can actually get some work done, so players and coaches can study up, stretch their legs, walk to the lunch area in a different car from where they’re sitting. I’m surprised more teams in all sports don’t use this approach when traveling a few hundred miles.

Bertrand Berry, whose Cardinal career has been marred by a series of injuries, is out once again.

Berry has a torn groin muscle, coach Ken Whisenhunt told reporters at the team’s base this week in Vienna, Va. He has returned to the Valley for treatment. The Cardinals don’t know how long he’ll be out.

To replace him, the Cardinals basically will use three players in two outside linebacker spots: Travis LaBoy, Chike Okeafor and Clark Haggans.

So the Cardinals now put their new depth to use.

They hope everyone else will be ready to go. Darnell Dockett, who has a sore hamstring, will get limited work today…

The Cardinals may practice in the rain on Friday. A storm is blowing into the East Coast starting today. It probably won’t affect today’s practice at Catholic University in Washington, D.C. but might dump on them Friday.

Rain may fall Sunday at the Meadowlands in New Jersey, so the Cardinals will try to practice through any rain on Friday to get a feel for it.

The Cardinals are now practicing at Catholic University in northeast Washington D.C.
They took a bus ride of maybe slightly more than a half hour from their suburban Virginia hotel, complete with a police escort and blazing sirens as they roared past famous landmarks. As the buses and the cops passed through red lights, quizzical tourists scratched their heads, wondering who these VIPs might be…
About 15 of the Cardinals took a tour of the FBI’s training facility at Quantico, Va. on their day off. Kurt Warner went to New York City to watch a Broadway show…
The Cards have re-signed linebacker Chris Harrington, their sixth-round pick this year, to the practice squad. To make room, they released receiver Onrea Jones from the practice squad…
The theme of this week, from the TV-hype standpoint will be graybeard quarterbacks as Kurt Warner and Brett Favre will face off at the Meadowlands in New Jersey…
Bertrand Berry told me after Sunday’s game that he had a strain in his mid-section but that he should be OK (he came out then returned to the game vs. the Redskins).
Now the Cardinals say he has a pulled groin. So his status may be hazy this week.
Everyone else should be good to go, though Darnell Dockett has a mild hamstring strain.

The Cardinals are set up in their new home: a hotel in Vienna, Va, deep in the Washington, D.C. suburbs.
This is where they’ll stay this week, as they live on Eastern Time, hoping this will give them an edge for playing their second straight Eastern game, Sunday at the New York Jets.
They’ve stayed at this same hotel since Friday night, in preparation for the game at the Redskins.
It didn’t help much in that game, as the Cardinals started slow and mistake prone.
Some of the players seem puzzled that the team has a set-up where they will practice Wednesday through Friday at Catholic University in Washington, about a 40-minute bus ride, one way.
Asked about this, coach Ken Whisenhunt joked, “We just like to sit together on the bus.”
More seriously, he said finding hotels that have all the space for meetings, equipment, a training room, etc, was difficult.
“We got the best one that fits our needs, we hope.
“The downside was to go a little bit further. Hopefully, it will be smooth.”
The Cardinals had hoped to mimic their practice time in Arizona (1 p.m. here, 10 a.m. in Arizona). They’re now moving that about one hour earlier, so they don’t get stuck in one of D.C.’s massive traffic jams in the afternoon on the ride back to the hotel.
Whisenhunt, who used to play for the Redskins, said, “I’m well aware of the traffic around here. I’ve sat in it in the past. We’re not concerned about going there (to practice). “But I am concerned about getting back in the afternoon.”…
Kurt Warner figured he’d be so homesick to see his kids that his wife Brenda flew his boys to Washington D.C. They headed back to Arizona today. His girls will visit in the New York area on the coming weekend.
All in all “I’d rather be at home with my family.”…
We’ll return to football topics on Wednesday.

Gabe Watson is inactive for today’s game at the Redskins. He is coming back from off-season knee surgery and had been listed as probable, so the coaches feel he’s not ready to play in games at the same level as the other two nose tackles: the veteran Bryan Robinson and the youngster Alan Branch.
Running back J.J Arrington is inactive for the third straight week. Others are safety Oliver Celestin, tackle Brandon Keith, receiver Early Doucet, tight end Jerame Tuman (who is injured), linebacker Ali Highsmith and emergency quarterback Brian St. Pierre.
For the Redskins, inactives include cornerback Justin Tryon, the former Arizona State standout. Colt Brennan, the former Hawaii star, is the third quarterback.

Nose tackle Gabe Watson reported he felt fine after a second straight day of full practice, so maybe the nose tackle position – one of the team’s thinnest so far – finally will be at full strength.

If he returns, it will be interesting to see who gets time between Watson, the starter last year, second-year player Alan Branch and veteran Bryan Robinson.

Linebacker/defensive end Travis LaBoy, who has been hobbled by an ankle injury, will be the most interesting injury note on Friday. Will he be doubtful or questionable? He’s one of the keys to their depth on defense. If he doesn’t go, then Bertrand Berry will shoulder the load at the spot….

The Cardinals are heading out on their long road excursion Friday. I will be looking to see if they get off to a solid start after getting there two days early. Sometimes in the past, the Cardinals have inexplicably headed East the day before the game.

The Cardinals enter their third week still remarkably healthy.

None of the minor injuries they suffered Sunday appear to be lingering, though Rod Hood told me his neck is still stiff but he expects to play. Levi Brown had a limited practice with his sore knee.

A couple of other players showed up Monday banged up, however. Travis LaBoy has a sore ankle and Steve Breaston has a sore hamstring. They practiced Wednesday on a limited basis.

Tight end Jerame Tuman remains out with a hamstring injury.

Gabe Watson, coming back from off-season knee surgery, went through his first full practice on Wednesday.

The Cardinals think their 10-day excursion to the East Coast will give them a better chance to win by avoiding two round trips to the East. Kurt Warner didn’t sound enthused, though, about spending that much time away from his family.

“I refuse to be a distraction. I won’t be a distraction.”

It sure doesn’t seem as though Anquan Boldin has been, is, or will be one, as he reiterated Monday in the glow of his great game Sunday vs. Miami.

Less certain is his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, who openly campaigned for a Boldin trade to the lowly Dolphins days before the game. Boldin says he can’t control what Rosenhaus says.

Well, that’s not exactly true. Unless I have it backward, Rosenhaus works for Boldin…

The Cardinals are taking the win over the Dolphins as something to be expected. That’s part of the winning mentality they are trying to build…

Nothing new on the injuries Sunday. But Rod Hood, Eric Green and Levi Brown all returned to the game Sunday. Brown, who has a banged-up knee, said he doesn’t think he’ll miss time. Green has a calf strain; he said he’s OK. Hood had a neck injury; he wasn’t available for comment.

That’s right, J.J. Arrington is inactive for today’s game vs. the Dolphins. Looks like that might be the deal this season, in spite of Arrington’s solid training camp and preseason, as the Cardinals go with Edgerrin James and rookie Tim Hightower at running back.

Other inactives: quarterback Brian St. Pierre (the third quarterback); safety Oliver Celestin; rookie tackle Brandon Keith; receiver Early Doucet (who seems to be falliing out of the picture, too); rookie linebacker Ali Highsmith; plus two players who aren’t fully healthy: tight end Jerame Tuman and nose tackle Gabe Watson.

Nose tackle Alan Branch is active, which gives the Cardinals some needed depth at the spot.

For the Dolphins, inactives include quarterback John Beck (the third quarterback), receiver Brandon London, running back Jalen Parmele, guard Shawn Murphy, defensive end Lionel Dotson, tackle Nate Garner, tackle Kirk Barton and defensive end Rodrique Wright.