By Nick Shook
Around The NFL Writer
Read full post on NFL.com

Josh Rosen had to wait until Sammy Sleeves completed his one drive before Rosen got his first crack at NFL competition.

He didn’t set the world on fire in the Cardinals‘ 24-17 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. But he showed some small signs Saturday that he might have a productive career in his future.

Playing with the second-string linemen for the majority of his stint, Rosen was subjected to constant pressure, but rarely crumbled. The rookie felt and evaded pressure, escaping the pocket before resetting and completing his best pass of the night, a 21-yard strike to tight end Gabe Holmes.

Rosen also stood tall in the pocket late in the first quarter, releasing while getting slammed and completing his first pass as a Cardinal to Christian Kirk.

Frankly, it seemed as though those years spent under duress at UCLA benefited him in his first game as a professional. Sure, Rosen missed a target here and there, but he also completed multiple passes on plays that began with poor snaps from backup center Daniel Munyer and ended with Rosen getting hit, or grabbed by someone wearing a different-colored jersey.

Through it all, he remained unshaken, even trusting his arm a little too much on an attempt to Kirk between three defenders. His final line — 6 for 13, 41 yards — is unmemorable and the highlights are few, but the small details that bode well for quarterbacks are there. Line him up behind the starting offensive line and arm him with Larry Fitzgerald and Co., and a better result likely awaits.

In the meantime, we’ll wait with anticipation for more preseason tape.