Nobody was surprised when Dave McGinnis came into the exhibition season with a defense that blitzed. Doug Flutie, the San Diego Chargers' mobile quarterback, deepened his retreats and ran around to avoid the Cardinals' aggressive pursuit.

Though blitzing in the preseason opener is unusual for most teams, it's business as usual for the Cardinals. They have no choice. Without a dominating defensive line, McGinnis knows the only way to survive is to rush linebackers, safeties or corners. Moving to the NFC West, which features the St. Louis Rams, San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks, McGinnis needs to use the preseason to test out his only way to apply pressure to the quarterback.

	Expect Boston to draw constant double-teams this year.

"We don't have a dominating pass-rusher," McGinnis said. "We don't have anybody right now where people are going to say that this is the guy that we've got to block. We don't have a guy that has 19 sacks in his pocket. What we have to do is get seven guys to have four or five sacks apiece, and then we have a chance."

It's still remarkable that the Cardinals finished 7-9 with a defense that recorded only 19 sacks last season. Only eight of those came from the defensive line.

McGinnis managed things well. He tried to use more of a ball-control offense to eat up the clock and force opponents to drive the long field to score. McGinnis fought off injuries on the line that led him to starting two undrafted free agents at defensive end.

McGinnis knows the cards are stacked against him this year, but he loves the fight. He'll keep shuffling his deck for linemen with the hopes of finding a winning combination, but at some point, he needs a little luck. First, ownership has to settle the holdout of first-round draft choice Wendell Bryant, a quick lineman who could play tackle or end. Unfortunately, no settlement appears to be in the near future. When you coach the Cardinals, you are used to first-round choices not arriving until the week or two before the regular-season opener.

"We are going to play seven or eight guys on the line," McGinnis said. "I'm not as worried if we can keep the guys healthy. What killed us last year was when we lost Kyle Vanden Bosch and Marcus Bell. Barron Tanner and Russell Davis played the whole year inside at tackle."

The juggling act already has started. Vanden Bosch has bounced back from his 2001 knee injury, but McGinnis wants to be protective of him during the preseason. Bryant, projected to be a tackle, is out. Andy Bowers and Mao Tosi are injured. During the exhibition victory Saturday over the Chargers, defensive end Alton Moore suffered damaged knee ligaments and could be out for some time.

What makes matters worse is that there is no rest for the weary Cardinals defensive linemen. Down to about nine healthy linemen, they face the daily chore of going against one of the biggest and most physical offensive lines in football. Right guard Leonard Davis is 6-foot-6, 376 pounds, right tackle Anthony Clement, though trimmed down, is 6-8, 318, and left tackle L.J. Shelton is 6-6, 335.

"In a way, it's good for them because those guys can learn plenty going against us," Davis said. "It's good for them when they play a big line like the Cowboys. But I try to beat them up sometimes."

As if being a Cardinals defensive linemen isn't hard enough. Still, the strength of the Cardinals is on offense. McGinnis and owner Bill Bidwill put money in three positions -- quarterback, wide receiver and offensive line. Those players form the core of the franchise, and they pose plenty of problems for defenses.

Take the combination of Jake Plummer to David Boston. Two plays into the exhibition season, Plummer decided he wanted to try a play-action pass to Boston, a freak who has sprinter speed in a 237-pound body. Chargers free safety Jason Perry failed to roll over to the side of cornerback Ryan McNeil and Boston burned him by more than 20 yards for a 66-yard touchdown.

Boston caught 98 passes for 1,598 yards last season, and could be even more dangerous this year. To prevent teams from rolling a safety to Boston's side of the field, the Cardinals signed former Chargers tight end Freddie Jones, a 271-pounder who can get downfield.

	“	We don't have a dominating pass-rusher. We don't have anybody right now where people are going to say that this is the guy that we've got to block. ... What we have to do is get seven guys to have four or five sacks apiece, and then we have a chance. ”
		— Coach Dave McGinnis

"If defenses play cover two to my side and the safety comes to my side, that leaves the middle open and Freddie Jones can make the catch. When they roll the coverage up, they can't stop the slant. They can roll and take away some pass routes, but our coaches do a good job of moving me around, and that helps me a lot."

Boston and Plummer have grown tighter over the past year. They condition together. They work on pass routes during the offseason. They also share another bond -- they are in their contract years, becoming free agents after the season. If the Plummer-Boston combination is becoming one of the scariest in the NFL, paying Plummer and Boston will be even scarier to Cardinals ownership.

"I don't know what to expect because I have never played out a whole contract," Plummer said. "If it's worked out in the middle of the year or whenever, that's fine. Maybe they want to see how the year is going. If I continue to show improvement, I think they like me here and they want me here. I like coach Mac. I want to play for him. I just want to play ball."

Figure that the Cardinals will try to reach a contract extension with Plummer by mid-season and then be forced to franchise Boston if they can't get a deal done by February.

Plummer is excited about the offense. At 27, his once skinny body is starting to fill out. His upper body is a little beefier and he's added more leg strength to give him more power into this throws. Having a tight end with Pro Bowl pass-catching ability isn't going to hurt either.

"I don't think I had one tight end who caught more than about 37 or 38 passes in one year," Plummer said. "It's going to help. It will help us in the red zone having a big body type of receiver who can use his body to get open in those tight areas. I believe you have to have two really good tight ends to play with in this league. We added Steve Bush last year who is good. You can bring in two tight end sets on goal line and we have two good guys who can do it."

The most pressured player on the team is halfback Thomas Jones, a former first-round draft choice waiting for his first good season. As a rookie, Jones struggled because he danced too much before hitting the holes. Last year, he didn't fit in sharing the job with Michael Pittman, who left for Tampa Bay after the season.

Now, the job is his, but he has to produce.

"It's kinda hard for anybody to get into a groove when you don't know when you are going to get into a game," Jones said.

Jones has gained only 753 yards on 224 carries, roughly seven carries a game. "You can't gain 1,500 yards on only six carries a game," Jones said.

But if he doesn't start putting numbers leading to a 1,000-yard season and improving a 3.4-yard per carry average, Jones could be replaced by Marcel Shipp by midseason.

Overall, though, McGinnis knows he has a team on the rise, but he faces tough odds in his new division.

"In the NFL now, it's more where teams are in the stage of their development," McGinnis said. "Mike Martz has three years into his system. Steve (Mariucci) is four years into his. Mike (Holmgren) is four years into his. I'm about 18 months into mine. The teams in the division are two years ahead of us."

But if he plays his cards right, McGinnis could be an interesting team to watch.

John Clayton is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.