The Cardinals hadn't even made it over to the Vikings' practice facility Thursday when news of the Isaiah Simmons trade broke. They had just returned to the team hotel a stone's throw from the practice fields when the news of the Josh Jones trade came down (although they probably had a hint when Jones was not at practice.)

In between, the weather was cooler and the practice was much better.

(That doesn't even include the deal for QB Josh Dobbs, but one thing at a time.)

The Cardinals promised they would bounce back from a workout they universally were disappointed with on Wednesday, and they did. Even if it had stayed hot, they knew that worrying about the weather was pointless and coaches challenged them to up their game. In a time when guys are fighting for their jobs, seeing two former draft picks -- a first and a third -- get traded had to grab attention.

But whether it was the deals or challenges from Jonathan Gannon and the coaches, it worked.

It wasn't all perfect, but the Vikings are a good team and competing was the crucial part.

"One of the coaches told me it was the D.J. Humphries effect," Humphries joked, having arrived late Wednesday afternoon after the birth of his child.

"We were challenged," linebacker Zaven Collins said. "We let some outside factors affect us that we shouldn't have. ... I think we responded really well."

The trades were the big news of the day, especially how the Dobbs deal might impact the QB room. Clayton Tune got some first-team reps at QB on Thursday. What does that mean, exactly? Hard to tell, now that the Cardinals traded for Dobbs, who knows OC Drew Petzing from Cleveland. It could just mean the Cardinals want a veteran presence to go with Tune in case McCoy gets banged up. Perhaps David Blough is not what they seek. All this has to be sorted out in a matter of days, and we still have Saturday's game.

But there were shining moments, from Leki Fotu and Greg Dortch and Tune and L.J. Collier among others. A better day, and work worthy of the trip.