Are Arians, Palmer and Cardinals really for real?

After working his magic with Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts a year ago, Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians is up to his old tricks, this time resurrecting the career of former Pro Bowl caliber veteran Carson Palmer – and simultaneously, the near-future hopes of a Cardinals’ franchise desperate to get back into legitimate Super Bowl title contention ever since the beloved Kurt Warner hung up his cleats.

Arians has helped Palmer get back to near-elite status as he ranks ninth in passing heading into the Cardinals’ huge Week 17 regular season finale against San Francisco. While Palmer has thrown 21 interceptions to go along with his 22 TD passes, he has managed to give the Cardinals a chance to win far more often than not, which is exactly what they’ve done.