CANTON, Ohio (AP) — The NFL says the Arizona Cardinals will play the New Orleans Saints on Aug. 5 to kick off the preseason in the Hall of Fame game.

Last season’s Hall of Fame game was canceled because of the NFL lockout.

New Orleans will be playing in the game for the fifth time, most recently in a 20-7 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2007. Arizona will be back for the fourth time, and first since 1986.

The game comes a day after six players, including Saints tackle Willie Road, are inducted into the Hall of Fame.

NFL Network will televise the game, which starts at 8 p.m. EDT, the league announced Wednesday.

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

CANTON, Ohio (AP) — The NFL says the Arizona Cardinals will play the New Orleans Saints on Aug. 5 to kick off the preseason in the Hall of Fame game.

Last season’s Hall of Fame game was canceled because of the NFL lockout.

New Orleans will be playing in the game for the fifth time, most recently in a 20-7 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2007. Arizona will be back for the fourth time, and first since 1986.

The game comes a day after six players, including Saints tackle Willie Road, are inducted into the Hall of Fame.

NFL Network will televise the game, which starts at 8 p.m. EDT, the league announced Wednesday.

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Colt McCoy will not play in the game against the Arizona Cardinals as he continues to recover from the concussion he sustained in the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Owen Marecic – a Cleveland Browns’ fullback – will also not take part in the Cardinals’ game due to a concussion.

Seneca Wallace will quarterback in McCoy’s place. He made two plays in the Steelers’ game after McCoy sustained the hit that was responsible for his current concussion.

Eddie Williams will take Marecic’s place at fullback for the Cardinals’ game. He was signed off the Browns’ practice squad.

“I saw [McCoy] this morning,” Browns’ coach Pat Shurmur said. “He’s still having some symptoms [including headaches], and that’s why we sent him home. I wouldn’t know exactly how to characterize it, but we’ll talk about him, obviously, next week when we get back.”

It is critical that McCoy take off the necessary time to fully recover. First and foremost, if he was to get a second concussion prior to a full recovery from this one, the consequences could be very serious for him. Second, if he is unable to play at 100 percent, he is not helping himself or his team, and he is putting himself at risk for further injury. Being a dedicated athlete, it is hard to sit on the sidelines, but right now, this is the best thing he can do for himself, his health and his team.

The Arizona game will mark Wallace’s 19^th pro start. The nine-year veteran, made four starts last season and went 1-3.

“I’m anticipating that Seneca’s going to go out and execute efficiently and I think we saw Colt do that at times this year,” said coach Shurmur.

This will certainly be an interesting game. Hopefully the rest of the team will play well and remain healthy, and those who are injured will quickly recover and be ready to tackle the Ravens and Steelers in the final two weeks of the season.

R. Elizabeth C. Kitchen is a lifelong Browns fan who grew up in a household of Browns’ fans. She was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio and still lives there. Regardless of the trials and tribulations the Browns have been through, she remains loyal, albeit honest about her home team. Follow Rose on Twitter @Rose_Kitchen

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

BALTIMORE (AP)—The Baltimore Ravens got the bounce-back victory they needed, in record-breaking fashion.

After rallying to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 30-27 on Sunday, Baltimore hopes to ride the momentum of its big second half into next week’s AFC North showdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Down by 21 points in the second quarter against Arizona, the Ravens (5-2) staged the biggest comeback in franchise history and won the game on Billy Cundiff’s 25-yard field goal as time expired.

The victory eased the sting of their 12-7 defeat at Jacksonville on Monday night and set up Baltimore for its duel on Sunday night in Pittsburgh.

“We still have the Steelers in front of us next week,” coach John Harbaugh said. “We have to get ready for that now. That’s the challenge.”

If the Ravens are to beat Pittsburgh on the road, they can’t afford to fall 21 points behind. Overcoming that kind of deficit at home against Arizona (1-6) is one thing; doing it at Heinz Field is quite another.

On Sunday, however, Baltimore found that one great half of football was good enough for an important win.

“I think we just turned our level up just a little bit,” said linebacker Ray Lewis(notes), who missed a few plays in the first quarter with a right shoulder injury but returned the next series.

Outscored 24-3 in the second half, the Cardinals (1-6) lost their sixth straight. Four of those defeats have been by four points or fewer.

“It’s hard right now,” coach Ken Whisenhunt said. “Our guys are very disappointed after today’s game because it was an opportunity to do something nobody thought we could do. But our guys believe in what we’re doing. If you look at what we did the first half, it shows that if we do it the right way, we can be a good football team.”

In the second half, the Cardinals made only six first downs and were penalized nine times for 87 yards.

The Ravens, on the other hand, played to form.

“Those guys came out in the second half with a different approach,” said Arizona’s Patrick Peterson(notes), who returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown but was flagged for pass interference prior to the second of Ray Rice’s three touchdown runs.

“They just made more plays than we did in the second half,” Peterson said. “We definitely thought there was a couple of bad calls in the second half, but that’s how the game goes.”

Using a fumble by Joe Flacco and Peterson’s sensational punt return, Arizona scored three touchdowns during a five-minute span of the second quarter to take a 24-3 lead.

Baltimore answered with a 24-point run and moved in front 27-24 when Rice scored on the opening play of the fourth quarter.

Arizona pulled even with a 45-yard field goal by Jay Feely with 8:55 left, but the Ravens won it with a 37-yard, beat-the-clock drive in the final minute.

After the Cardinals were forced to punt from deep in their own territory, Baltimore took over at the Arizona 44 with 52 seconds left. A 36-yard completion from Flacco to rookie Torrey Smith moved the ball to the 5, setting the stage for Cundiff’s game-winner.

The Ravens’ previous biggest comeback was from 19 points down against Tennessee in 2006.

“We woke up, plain and simple,” said former Arizona star Anquan Boldin(notes), who caught seven passes for 145 yards and was a key contributor in the rally.

Flacco went 31 for 51 for 336 yards, and Rice ran for 63 yards on 18 carries. Against Jacksonville, Rice was limited to 28 yards on eight carries.

“We had to get over Monday,” Rice said.

Kevin Kolb threw for 153 yards and a touchdown, and Peterson became the eighth player in Cardinals history to have at least two punt returns for touchdowns in a single season. The last one to do it was Vai Sikahema in 1986.

Down 24-6, the Ravens began the second half with an 80-yard drive in which Flacco went 5 for 5, including a 37-yarder to Boldin that set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Rice to make it 24-13.

“I felt like the way we came out at halftime is what turned it around,” Baltimore linebacker Jameel McClain(notes).

Late in the third quarter, Boldin caught passes 21, 23, 27 and 9 yards during an 88-yard march that ended with another 1-yard TD run by Rice.

The momentum turned even further in Baltimore’s direction immediately after the ensuing kickoff. On first down, Kolb was hit by Terrell Suggs while throwing a pass that was intercepted by McClain and taken 8 yards to the Arizona 22. Three plays later, Rice ran in from the 3.

Two holding penalties against the Ravens extended the Cardinals’ drive that ended with a field goal that tied it at 27.

Mistakes by Baltimore also played a big part in Arizona’s big second quarter. But the Cardinals couldn’t hold on.

Asked to assess the mood at halftime, running back Beanie Wells said, “We just didn’t want to let up. We wanted to keep on fighting. We wanted to go out there and prove that we’re a good football team. We came up short, unfortunately.”

Notes: The Cardinals placed TE Todd Heap (hamstring) on the inactive list. Heap played 10 seasons in Baltimore before signing with Arizona as a free agent this year. … It was McClain’s first career INT. … The loss dropped Arizona into a last-place tie with St. Louis in the NFC West.

BALTIMORE (AP)—The Baltimore Ravens got the bounce-back victory they
needed, in record-breaking fashion.

After rallying to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 30-27 on Sunday, Baltimore
hopes to ride the momentum of its big second half into next week’s AFC North
showdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Down by 21 points in the second quarter against Arizona, the Ravens (5-2)
staged the biggest comeback in franchise history and won the game on Billy
Cundiff’s(notes) 25-yard field goal as time expired.

The victory eased the sting of their 12-7 defeat at Jacksonville on Monday
night and set up Baltimore for its duel on Sunday night in Pittsburgh.

“We still have the Steelers in front of us next week,” coach John Harbaugh
said. “We have to get ready for that now. That’s the challenge.”

If the Ravens are to beat Pittsburgh on the road, they can’t afford to fall
21 points behind. Overcoming that kind of deficit at home against Arizona (1-6)
is one thing; doing it at Heinz Field is quite another.

On Sunday, however, Baltimore found that one great half of football was good
enough for an important win.

“I think we just turned our level up just a little bit,” said linebacker
Ray Lewis(notes), who missed a few plays in the first quarter with a right shoulder
injury but returned the next series.

Outscored 24-3 in the second half, the Cardinals (1-6) lost their sixth
straight. Four of those defeats have been by four points or fewer.

“It’s hard right now,” coach Ken Whisenhunt said. “Our guys are very
disappointed after today’s game because it was an opportunity to do something
nobody thought we could do. But our guys believe in what we’re doing. If you
look at what we did the first half, it shows that if we do it the right way, we
can be a good football team.”

In the second half, the Cardinals made only six first downs and were
penalized nine times for 87 yards.

The Ravens, on the other hand, played to form.

“Those guys came out in the second half with a different approach,” said
Arizona’s Patrick Peterson(notes), who returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown but was
flagged for pass interference prior to the second of Ray Rice’s(notes) three touchdown
runs.

“They just made more plays than we did in the second half,” Peterson said.
“We definitely thought there was a couple of bad calls in the second half, but
that’s how the game goes.”

Using a fumble by Joe Flacco(notes) and Peterson’s sensational punt return, Arizona
scored three touchdowns during a five-minute span of the second quarter to take
a 24-3 lead.

Baltimore answered with a 24-point run and moved in front 27-24 when Rice
scored on the opening play of the fourth quarter.

Arizona pulled even with a 45-yard field goal by Jay Feely(notes) with 8:55 left,
but the Ravens won it with a 37-yard, beat-the-clock drive in the final minute.

After the Cardinals were forced to punt from deep in their own territory,
Baltimore took over at the Arizona 44 with 52 seconds left. A 36-yard completion
from Flacco to rookie Torrey Smith(notes) moved the ball to the 5, setting the stage
for Cundiff’s game-winner.

The Ravens’ previous biggest comeback was from 19 points down against
Tennessee in 2006.

“We woke up, plain and simple,” said former Arizona star Anquan Boldin(notes),
who caught seven passes for 145 yards and was a key contributor in the rally.

Flacco went 31 for 51 for 336 yards, and Rice ran for 63 yards on 18
carries. Against Jacksonville, Rice was limited to 28 yards on eight carries.

“We had to get over Monday,” Rice said.

Kevin Kolb(notes) threw for 153 yards and a touchdown, and Peterson became the
eighth player in Cardinals history to have at least two punt returns for
touchdowns in a single season. The last one to do it was Vai Sikahema in 1986.

Down 24-6, the Ravens began the second half with an 80-yard drive in which
Flacco went 5 for 5, including a 37-yarder to Boldin that set up a 1-yard
touchdown run by Rice to make it 24-13.

“I felt like the way we came out at halftime is what turned it around,”
Baltimore linebacker Jameel McClain(notes).

Late in the third quarter, Boldin caught passes 21, 23, 27 and 9 yards
during an 88-yard march that ended with another 1-yard TD run by Rice.

The momentum turned even further in Baltimore’s direction immediately after
the ensuing kickoff. On first down, Kolb was hit by Terrell Suggs(notes) while throwing
a pass that was intercepted by McClain and taken 8 yards to the Arizona 22.
Three plays later, Rice ran in from the 3.

Two holding penalties against the Ravens extended the Cardinals’ drive that
ended with a field goal that tied it at 27.

Mistakes by Baltimore also played a big part in Arizona’s big second
quarter. But the Cardinals couldn’t hold on.

Asked to assess the mood at halftime, running back Beanie Wells(notes) said, “We
just didn’t want to let up. We wanted to keep on fighting. We wanted to go out
there and prove that we’re a good football team. We came up short,
unfortunately.”

Notes: The Cardinals placed TE Todd Heap(notes) (hamstring) on the inactive list.
Heap played 10 seasons in Baltimore before signing with Arizona as a free agent
this year. … It was McClain’s first career INT. … The loss dropped Arizona
into a last-place tie with St. Louis in the NFC West.

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — The Arizona Cardinals had two weeks to prepare for the Pittsburgh Steelers, what they had hoped was enough time to straighten out their myriad of problems.

Apparently, they needed more time.

Plagued by defensive breakdowns, another so-so performance by Kevin Kolb and inopportune penalties, Arizona pushed its losing streak to five games with a 32-20 home loss to the Steelers on Sunday.

Climb back in the NFC West race? The Cardinals are hoping to just win a game, any game.

With that in mind, coach Ken Whisenhunt said Monday that he and the coaching staff are looking at possible changes to get the Cardinals out of this funk. And not just a player here or there. The team at 1-5, they’re going to look at everyone.

“We have to find somebody to make plays,” Whisenhunt said. “If we have to make changes across the board for the different positions in order to do that, that’s what we’re going to do. One-and-five, five straight losses is certainly frustrating. It’s certainly not from lack of effort — we’re working our tails off to try to win — but we’ve got to look at every position and if they’re not getting it done, we have to make changes.”

The easy finger pointing, at least from the outside, would be at Kolb.

He started his first season in the desert at a bit of a disadvantage when the lockout limited the time he had to learn a new offense.

Still, six games into the season, the Cardinals would like to see him progress a touch faster.

Kolb did take some good steps against the Steelers. He took control of the huddle better, was smoother calling plays, hit some big throws, including a short dump-off to LaRod Stephens-Howling that turned into a 73-yard touchdown.

What held Kolb — and the Cardinals back — were the mistakes he made, ones that the Steelers took advantage of seemingly every time.

The first came on Arizona’s opening drive, when Kolb threw a pass that bounded off tight end Rob Housler’s helmet — he hadn’t fully turned around yet — and Pittsburgh’s Ryan Clark picked it off, setting up Pittsburgh’s first touchdown. Kolb also missed Housler on what should have been a sure touchdown in the second quarter that would have tied the score at 7-all and was later called for intentional grounding in the end zone for a safety.

“You just have to be mentally tough,” Kolb said. “That’s all you can do. You have to know that you’re doing it right and get a little extra inch. What choice do you have? There is no simple answer. All you can do is put your head down and grind and know that you definitely don’t want to move back.”

Footwork might be the key to Kolb moving forward.

Whisenhunt said some of Kolb’s problems this season have come from poor footwork in the pocket, in part because of his unfamiliarity with the offense — he spends most of the week working on the schemes against the upcoming opponent instead of dialing in his footwork.

Kolb’s feet let him down a couple of times against the Steelers, including the missed throw to Housler and the safety.

“He’s getting his body in bad position because of his footwork,” Whisenhunt said. “A lot of those plays where he’s running out of the pocket is because of his footwork and we’ve got to get that corrected. He’s got to step up in the pocket on some of those throws, avoid the rush to the left or the right and make those throws. And he can do that, he’s shown he can do that.”

Of course, it’s not just Kolb. A five-game losing streak can’t be pegged to just one of 53 players.

Arizona’s defense couldn’t get stops when it needed to, allowing Pittsburgh to score right after its first touchdown and run down the clock with a string of first downs in the closing minutes. The Cardinals also had several penalties that gave the Steelers first downs and the safety was set up by a penalty on a kick off that backed them up.

The best news coming out of Sunday’s game was that running back Beanie Wells did not suffer a significant knee injury.

Whisenhunt had feared Wells might be lost for the season after he didn’t return from a right knee injury in the second quarter, but the team learned Monday he won’t need surgery.

Still, when the best news of the day is that someone’s injury isn’t as serious as first thought, it’s probably not a sign that the team is headed in the right direction.

“It’s tough, I’m not going to lie,” center Lyle Sendlein said. “But the worst thing you can do is let one game beat you twice. We’re on five in a row, but after today we put it behind us and go on to the next one.”

That next one is Sunday against Baltimore, kicking off a stretch of four out of five games on the road. Fail to get their mistakes ironed out and an already-long season could get a whole lot longer for the Cardinals.

If Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt had to assess his team’s performance this season – and at 1-5, he’d rather not – he would offer this summary: “Other teams are making us pay for our mistakes,” he said, “and we’re not making other teams pay for their mistakes.”

Each defeat contains multiple examples of that, including Sunday’s 32-20 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

A good punt and a penalty backed up the Steelers to their 5-yard line in the second quarter. But Steelers receiver Mike Wallace sprinted by cornerback Richard Marshall and caught a 95-yard touchdown pass.

In the third quarter, the Cardinals took possession at their 7 after being penalized for holding on a kickoff. Like the Steelers, they called a pass on first down. Unlike the Steelers, the play turned into disaster. Under pressure, quarterback Kevin Kolb retreated into the end zone, then dumped the ball before he was sacked. The intentional-grounding call gave the Steelers a safety.

When the Cardinals’ time for a big play comes, they can’t execute it. In the second quarter, Kolb badly missed tight end Rob Housler, who was open down the middle of the field. What should have been a 39-yard touchdown pass became an incompletion.

“We had an opportunity to make them pay, and that makes it a 7-7 game,” Whisenhunt said Monday. “That’s where we are as a team. That’s happening too much, and that’s what we have to correct.”

Of all the corrections that need to be made, the most important is fixing what’s wrong with Kolb. His passing statistics Sunday weren’t awful – 18 of 34 for 272 yards, a touchdown and an interception – but they don’t tell the entire story.

Kolb badly missed two open receivers, Housler and Larry Fitzgerald, and because of the protection scheme called, it was his job to realize pressure was coming on the play that resulted in a safety.

He looks uncomfortable in the pocket and has been inaccurate when he’s on the move.

On Monday, Whisenhunt reiterated that personnel changes are being contemplated throughout the lineup, but the coach appears more focused on fixing Kolb than replacing him.

“He has to get better at his footwork, which will allow him to say in the pocket and make some throws,” Whisenhunt said. “There are times when he’s done some really good things for us. We’ve had more scoring plays from outside 40 yards than we had the whole year last year.

“But when you have a play, like Rob Housler down the field yesterday, that was purely a footwork thing. A lot of the plays where he’s running out of the pocket are because of his footwork, and we have to get that corrected. He has to step up in the pocket . . . avoid the rush to the left or right and make some of those throws.

“He can do that, because he’s shown he can do that.”

Kolb didn’t meet with reporters Monday, and the Cardinals’ locker room overall was subdued. That’s not a surprise, considering the five-game losing streak.

Kolb is one of many Cardinals making mistakes, and losing polishes the miscues to a high sheen. Errors tend to not be so glaring when a team can overcome them and win, tight end Jeff King said.

“I’ve seen plenty of ‘bad’ wins where guys missed blocks and thrown picks,” said King, who spent the previous five seasons with the Panthers. “We (the Panthers) won in Oakland, and Jake Delhomme threw five picks. There’s a fine line between winning and losing. It’s one or two plays every week. We have to take our opportunities when those one or two plays come up.”

The Cardinals aren’t just missing opportunities. They also are creating them for opponents by missing blocks, blowing coverages, committing penalties, etc.

“That’s something that cannot only get you beat, but can get you out of this league,” guard Rex Hadnot said.

Plagued by defensive breakdowns, another so-so performance by Kevin Kolb and inopportune penalties, Arizona pushed its losing streak to five games with a 32-20 home loss to the Steelers on Sunday.

Climb back in the NFC West race? The Cardinals are hoping to just win a game, any game.

With that in mind, coach Ken Whisenhunt said Monday that he and the coaching staff are looking at possible changes to get the Cardinals out of this funk. And not just a player here or there. The team at 1-5, they’re going to look at everyone.

“We have to find somebody to make plays,” Whisenhunt said. “If we have to make changes across the board for the different positions in order to do that, that’s what we’re going to do. One-and-five, five straight losses is certainly frustrating. It’s certainly not from lack of effort — we’re working our tails off to try to win — but we’ve got to look at every position and if they’re not getting it done, we have to make changes.”

The easy finger pointing, at least from the outside, would be at Kolb.

He started his first season in the desert at a bit of a disadvantage when the lockout limited the time he had to learn a new offense.

Still, six games into the season, the Cardinals would like to see him progress a touch faster.

Kolb did take some good steps against the Steelers. He took control of the huddle better, was smoother calling plays, hit some big throws, including a short dump-off to LaRod Stephens-Howling that turned into a 73-yard touchdown.

What held Kolb — and the Cardinals back — were the mistakes he made, ones that the Steelers took advantage of seemingly every time.

The first came on Arizona’s opening drive, when Kolb threw a pass that bounded off tight end Rob Housler’s helmet — he hadn’t fully turned around yet — and Pittsburgh’s Ryan Clark picked it off, setting up Pittsburgh’s first touchdown. Kolb also missed Housler on what should have been a sure touchdown in the second quarter that would have tied the score at 7-all and was later called for intentional grounding in the end zone for a safety.

“You just have to be mentally tough,” Kolb said. “That’s all you can do. You have to know that you’re doing it right and get a little extra inch. What choice do you have? There is no simple answer. All you can do is put your head down and grind and know that you definitely don’t want to move back.”

Footwork might be the key to Kolb moving forward.

Whisenhunt said some of Kolb’s problems this season have come from poor footwork in the pocket, in part because of his unfamiliarity with the offense — he spends most of the week working on the schemes against the upcoming opponent instead of dialing in his footwork.

Kolb’s feet let him down a couple of times against the Steelers, including the missed throw to Housler and the safety.

“He’s getting his body in bad position because of his footwork,” Whisenhunt said. “A lot of those plays where he’s running out of the pocket is because of his footwork and we’ve got to get that corrected. He’s got to step up in the pocket on some of those throws, avoid the rush to the left or the right and make those throws. And he can do that, he’s shown he can do that.”

Of course, it’s not just Kolb. A five-game losing streak can’t be pegged to just one of 53 players.

Arizona’s defense couldn’t get stops when it needed to, allowing Pittsburgh to score right after its first touchdown and run down the clock with a string of first downs in the closing minutes. The Cardinals also had several penalties that gave the Steelers first downs and the safety was set up by a penalty on a kick off that backed them up.

The best news coming out of Sunday’s game was that running back Beanie Wells did not suffer a significant knee injury.

Whisenhunt had feared Wells might be lost for the season after he didn’t return from a right knee injury in the second quarter, but the team learned Monday he won’t need surgery.

Still, when the best news of the day is that someone’s injury isn’t as serious as first thought, it’s probably not a sign that the team is headed in the right direction.

“It’s tough, I’m not going to lie,” center Lyle Sendlein said. “But the worst thing you can do is let one game beat you twice. We’re on five in a row, but after today we put it behind us and go on to the next one.”

That next one is Sunday against Baltimore, kicking off a stretch of four out of five games on the road. Fail to get their mistakes ironed out and an already-long season could get a whole lot longer for the Cardinals.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

GLENDALE, Ariz. —
Make it five straight losses for the Arizona Cardinals.

The Cardinals fell behind early and could never quite catch up in a 32-20 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Arizona’s Kevin Kolb had another uneven performance at quarterback, although he insists things are getting better as the team faces a rough part of the schedule that has the Cards playing four of their next five on the road, beginning at Baltimore next Sunday.

The Cardinals have lost 10 road games in a row dating to last season’s opener at St. Louis.

“We are moving in the right direction. We believe, in the future, we are going to be something special,” Kolb said. “That future can be one week, that future can be one year. Whatever it is, we feel like we have a lot of key components here to do some special things.”

That optimism may be warranted, but it didn’t jibe with much of what was on display against the Steelers.

Ben Roethlisberger threw for 361 yards and three touchdowns, including a 95-yarder to Mike Wallace, the longest pass play in Steelers history.

“You know he can run by you,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said, “but he still finds a way to do it.”

Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt had studied tape of Wallace outracing one defender after another.

“We knew that was coming,” he said. “We did everything we could to prevent that.”

To no avail.

“You put it out there for a guy like that and you start smiling,” Roethlisberger said, “because you know he is not going to get caught.”

Roethlisberger, 26 of 39 for 361 yards, also had TD passes of 12 yards to Heath Miller and

4 yards to Emmanuel Sanders in the first game between the teams since Pittsburgh’s 27-23 thriller over the Cardinals in the 2009 Super Bowl.

Kolb threw a pair of touchdown passes for Arizona (1-5), his first in three games, but missed several open receivers and, with a blitzing LaMarr Woodley in his face, drew an intentional grounding call in the Cardinals’ end zone for a safety.

“When you lose five in a row, it’s tough,” Whisenhunt said. “Everybody wants to point to one thing but we have had chances to make plays to change games, and we are not getting that done. Whether it’s a missed tackle, a missed assignment, a lot of things are going on, but we did fight. We did have a chance in the second half.”

Pittsburgh (5-2) won its third straight and improved to 2-2 on the road.

Shaun Suisham kicked field goals of 41, 42 and 39 yards for the Steelers.

The big play from Roethlisberger to Wallace, cheered on by a crowd that included a generous and boisterous bunch of Steelers fans, came in the second quarter after an Arizona drive stalled at the Steelers 39 and Dave Zastudil’s 30-yard punt pinned Pittsburgh on its 9-yard line. A false start pushed it back to the Steelers 5.

On the next play, Roethlisberger dropped back into the Pittsburgh end zone and lofted a pass down the sideline toward Wallace, who had beaten cornerback Richard Marshall.

Wallace caught the ball in stride, breaking free of a pair of would-be tacklers along the way, and raced to the end zone for the score that made it 14-0 with 8:09 left in the half.

He said he was not the No. 1 receiver on the play, but was trying to clear things out for Miller underneath.

“Their guy jumped outside and let me get inside,” he said. “The safety was in the middle of the field so I just threw my hand up.”

And the ball landed perfectly in his fingertips.

“A play like that kind of deflates them I would hope. I hope it takes a lot of out them, but they kept playing,” Wallace said.

The previous longest pass play was 90 yards, first set by Terry Bradshaw to Mark Malone against Seattle in 1981, then matched by Bubby Brister to Dwight Stone against Denver in 1990 and Kordell Stewart to Bobby Shaw against Baltimore in 2001.

It was the second-longest play from scrimmage for the Pittsburgh franchise. Only Bobby Gage’s 97-yard run against Chicago in 1949 was longer.

Down 17-7 at the half, the Cardinals cut the lead to 17-14 with 9:26 left in the third quarter when Kolb threw short over the middle to LaRod Stephens-Howling and the 5-foot-7 back outran defenders on a 73-yard touchdown play.

Pittsburgh scored the next 15 points.

The Steelers rolled for 445 yards in a successful warmup to next Sunday’s home showdown against New England.

The Cardinals have lost 10 straight road games, their past win at St. Louis in the 2010 season opener.

Arizona was coming off a bye week and Kolb had talked about how good the practices had been.

“I feel from a personal standpoint, in and out of the huddle, the plays, it all came a lot smoother to me today,” he said. “Obviously there were a couple of throws that I would like to have back. Those plays need to be made. That’s me, too.”

Against the Steelers, Kolb was 18 of 34 for 272 yards and two scores, with one interception.

The pick came after Arizona took the opening kickoff.

On first down from the Cardinals 27, Kolb threw to rookie tight end Rob Housler. The ball bounced off Housler’s helmet into the arms of the Steelers’ Ryan Clark, who returned the interception 10 yards to the Arizona 31.

Five plays later, Roethlisberger threw 12 yards to a wide open Miller for the touchdown.

Arizona running back Beanie Wells rushed for 42 yards before leaving the game in the second quarter with a sprained right knee. Pittsburgh wide receiver Hines Ward was carted off in the second half with an ankle injury.

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Make it five straight losses for the Arizona Cardinals.

The Cardinals fell behind early and could never quite catch up in a 32-20 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Arizona’s Kevin Kolb had another uneven performance at quarterback, although he insists things are getting better as the team faces a rough part of the schedule that has the Cards playing four of their next five on the road, beginning at Baltimore next Sunday.

The Cardinals have lost 10 road games in a row dating to last season’s opener at St. Louis.

“We are moving in the right direction. We believe, in the future, we are going to be something special,” Kolb said. “That future can be one week, that future can be one year. Whatever it is, we feel like we have a lot of key components here to do some special things.”

That optimism may be warranted, but it didn’t jibe with much of what was on display against the Steelers.

Ben Roethlisberger threw for 361 yards and three touchdowns, including a 95-yarder to Mike Wallace, the longest pass play in Steelers history.

“You know he can run by you,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said, “but he still finds a way to do it.”

Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt had studied tape of Wallace outracing one defender after another.

“We knew that was coming,” he said. “We did everything we could to prevent that.”

To no avail.

“You put it out there for a guy like that and you start smiling,” Roethlisberger said, “because you know he is not going to get caught.”

Roethlisberger, 26 of 39 for 361 yards, also had TD passes of 12 yards to Heath Miller and 4 yards to Emmanuel Sanders in the first game between the teams since Pittsburgh’s 27-23 thriller over the Cardinals in the 2009 Super Bowl.

Kolb threw a pair of touchdown passes for Arizona (1-5), his first in three games, but missed several open receivers and, with a blitzing LaMarr Woodley in his face, drew an intentional grounding call in the Cardinals’ end zone for a safety.

“When you lose five in a row, it’s tough,” Whisenhunt said. “Everybody wants to point to one thing but we have had chances to make plays to change games, and we are not getting that done. Whether it’s a missed tackle, a missed assignment, a lot of things are going on, but we did fight. We did have a chance in the second half.”

Pittsburgh (5-2) won its third straight and improved to 2-2 on the road.

Shaun Suisham kicked field goals of 41, 42 and 39 yards for the Steelers.

The big play from Roethlisberger to Wallace, cheered on by a crowd that included a generous and boisterous bunch of Steelers fans, came in the second quarter after an Arizona drive stalled at the Steelers 39 and Dave Zastudil’s 30-yard punt pinned Pittsburgh on its 9-yard line. A false start pushed it back to the Steelers 5.

On the next play, Roethlisberger dropped back into the Pittsburgh end zone and lofted a pass down the sideline toward Wallace, who had beaten cornerback Richard Marshall.

Wallace caught the ball in stride, breaking free of a pair of would-be tacklers along the way, and raced to the end zone for the score that made it 14-0 with 8:09 left in the half.

He said he was not the No. 1 receiver on the play, but was trying to clear things out for Miller underneath.

“Their guy jumped outside and let me get inside,” he said. “The safety was in the middle of the field so I just threw my hand up.”

And the ball landed perfectly in his fingertips.

“A play like that kind of deflates them I would hope. I hope it takes a lot of out them, but they kept playing,” Wallace said.

The previous longest pass play was 90 yards, first set by Terry Bradshaw to Mark Malone against Seattle in 1981, then matched by Bubby Brister to Dwight Stone against Denver in 1990 and Kordell Stewart to Bobby Shaw against Baltimore in 2001.

It was the second-longest play from scrimmage for the Pittsburgh franchise. Only Bobby Gage’s 97-yard run against Chicago in 1949 was longer.

Down 17-7 at the half, the Cardinals cut the lead to 17-14 with 9:26 left in the third quarter when Kolb threw short over the middle to LaRod Stephens-Howling and the 5-foot-7 back outran defenders on a 73-yard touchdown play.

Pittsburgh scored the next 15 points.

The Steelers rolled for 445 yards in a successful warmup to next Sunday’s home showdown against New England.

The Cardinals have lost 10 straight road games, their past win at St. Louis in the 2010 season opener.

Arizona was coming off a bye week and Kolb had talked about how good the practices had been.

“I feel from a personal standpoint, in and out of the huddle, the plays, it all came a lot smoother to me today,” he said. “Obviously there were a couple of throws that I would like to have back. Those plays need to be made. That’s me, too.”

Against the Steelers, Kolb was 18 of 34 for 272 yards and two scores, with one interception.

The pick came after Arizona took the opening kickoff.

On first down from the Cardinals 27, Kolb threw to rookie tight end Rob Housler. The ball bounced off Housler’s helmet

Arizona’s Kevin Kolb had another uneven performance at quarterback, although he insists things are getting better as the team faces a rough part of the schedule that has the Cards playing four of their next five on the road, beginning at Baltimore next Sunday.

The Cardinals have lost 10 road games in a row dating to last season’s opener at St. Louis.

“We are moving in the right direction. We believe, in the future, we are going to be something special,” Kolb said. “That future can be one week, that future can be one year. Whatever it is, we feel like we have a lot of key components here to do some special things.”

That optimism may be warranted, but it didn’t jibe with much of what was on display against the Steelers.

Ben Roethlisberger threw for 361 yards and three touchdowns, including a 95-yarder to Mike Wallace, the longest pass play in Steelers history.

“You know he can run by you,” Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said, “but he still finds a way to do it.”

Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt had studied tape of Wallace outracing one defender after another.

“We knew that was coming,” he said. “We did everything we could to prevent that.”

To no avail.

“You put it out there for a guy like that and you start smiling,” Roethlisberger said, “because you know he is not going to get caught.”

Roethlisberger, 26 of 39 for 361 yards, also had TD passes of 12 yards to Heath Miller and 4 yards to Emmanuel Sanders in the first game between the teams since Pittsburgh’s 27-23 thriller over the Cardinals in the 2009 Super Bowl.

Kolb threw a pair of touchdown passes for Arizona (1-5), his first in three games, but missed several open receivers and, with a blitzing LaMarr Woodley in his face, drew an intentional grounding call in the Cardinals’ end zone for a safety.

“When you lose five in a row, it’s tough,” Whisenhunt said. “Everybody wants to point to one thing but we have had chances to make plays to change games, and we are not getting that done. Whether it’s a missed tackle, a missed assignment, a lot of things are going on, but we did fight. We did have a chance in the second half.”

Pittsburgh (5-2) won its third straight and improved to 2-2 on the road.

Shaun Suisham kicked field goals of 41, 42 and 39 yards for the Steelers.

The big play from Roethlisberger to Wallace, cheered on by a crowd that included a generous and boisterous bunch of Steelers fans, came in the second quarter after an Arizona drive stalled at the Steelers 39 and Dave Zastudil’s 30-yard punt pinned Pittsburgh on its 9-yard line. A false start pushed it back to the Steelers 5.

On the next play, Roethlisberger dropped back into the Pittsburgh end zone and lofted a pass down the sideline toward Wallace, who had beaten cornerback Richard Marshall.

Wallace caught the ball in stride, breaking free of a pair of would-be tacklers along the way, and raced to the end zone for the score that made it 14-0 with 8:09 left in the half.