Cardinals wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Floyd and Jaron Brown, along with their teammates, were 7-1 on the road last season.
BUFFALO – The road last year worked well for the Cardinals.
En route to the most wins in franchise history (13) was a stellar 7-1 record outside of Arizona. The only loss was a disappointing defeat in Pittsburgh. Yes, the Cards visit a winless Bills team that may be desperate, but "we are just as desperate," wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said.
"We are a team that feels can travel anywhere and play well," Fitzgerald added. "Our game travels, but we have to prove
that again this year."
What the Cardinals (1-1) do on the road isn't anything special, which is the biggest reason they have success.
"I don't really think there was that kind of thought into it, other than, you go to a place and you want to win," moneybacker Deone Bucannon said of the Cards' 2015 road wins. "We approach every opportunity with that winning mentality."
The Cardinals have made efforts to combat things like an early start time (the game kicks off at 10 a.m. Arizona time). Coach Bruce Arians has moved practice up during the day so his players are already used to going that early.
The team also flew out Friday to give them a day to get acclimated with the time and surroundings.
What they'll find Sunday is a team reeling not only from two losses but also a change in offensive coordinators. The Bills, who haven't played since a loss to the Jets a week ago Thursday, let Greg Roman go and promoted Anthony Lynn.
"We've been beat (by) six points in both games," Bills coach Rex Ryan said. "I get it. It's not where we wanted to be, but
there's a lot of football left to be played, win, lose, or draw."
The Bills are without suspended defensive tackle Marcell Dareus, and star wide receiver Sammy Watkins may not play with a foot injury that has troubled him for weeks.
"You can tell that foot is really, really bothering him," said Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson, who figures to cover Watkins if he plays.
The Cardinals believe the Bills will get back to running the football more often with LeSean McCoy. Defensively, the Cardinals feel better about themselves after a defensive effort that held the Buccaneers to seven points last game.
The offense put 33 points on the board, but much of the week was spent talking about slow starts and missed opportunities. The Bills were torched by the Jets, who had nearly 500 yards of offense the last game. A fast start this week would behoove the Cards on multiple levels.
"I don't think, in the first two games, we've been unprepared for a (defensive) look," Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer said. "It just comes down to execution and being efficient. We haven't been efficient enough in those first couple drives of the game to go down and score."
