(My Sportsbook) - The Cardinals' future is in limbo as Dave McGinnis winds down the 2003 campaign in Arizona. Sunday's tilt versus Minnesota could be the final game on the sidelines for the fiery head coach, who could be fired by management for his failure to get the program more wins than losses.
"We're going to fight hard just like we have for the past 16 weeks," McGinnis said. "We've prepared as hard for this game as we have for any, and we'd like to win just as much as [Minnesota] even though we're eliminated from playoff contention."
Arizona, which has lost seven straight games, wrapped up its road schedule last week with a 28-10 loss in Seattle. The Cards finished 0-8 on the road this season.
Rookie wide receiver Anquan Boldin is one of the few bright spots on Arizona's three-win team. Boldin was named to the NFC Pro Bowl squad, becoming the only rookie to do so this year. He put an exclamation point on his fantastic freshman campaign with a 10-catch, 122-yard performance against the Seahawks last week.
"For us, we just want to end the season on a good note," Boldin said. "I think everybody's pretty upbeat. I think everybody's looking forward to it, to the challenge of playing against Minnesota. I mean we really do want to win for coach McGinnis. For me, I don't want to see him leave so we're going to go out there and play for him this week as we do every week."
Boldin's 96 receptions set a new NFL rookie record, surpassing New England's Terry Glenn's 90 catches in 1996.
"I expected to have some success this season and I expected to contribute to my team but I never imaged having the type of season I'm having right now," admitted Boldin, who was overlooked in the draft and fell to the 22nd pick of the second round.
The Cardinals also have a glimmer of hope for the future because of the play of QB Josh McCown. The Sam Houston State product has played extensively over the past three games, and he's impressed the coaching staff with his ability.
McCown had his best game as a pro last week against Seattle. He completed 25- of-40 passes (62.5 percent) for 274 yards and a touchdown. Even though McCown was sacked eight times last week, he didn't throw an interception en route to a 91.0 passer rating.
COACH SPEAK: "The Vikings are a [dang] good football team," McGinnis said. "There's a reason that they are where they are. There's a reason they were able to win six in a row to start the season, there's a reason they've been able to bounce back, there's a reason they're ranked the No. 1 offense in the league, there's a reason they're sitting in the position they are sitting in, preparing to play to get into the postseason tournament."
