Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
QB---Palmer not in sync, second week in a row, but his last throw of the night was picture perfect. Stanton---unimpressive. Lindley---making small strides.
RB---Mendenhall explosive, but hurts knee. Alfonso Smith could be the starter---ran very well tonight, showed better vision too. Taylor and Ellington were productive. So was Ryan Williams---but it would be surprising if he could garner any trade interest. Wouldn't be shocked if BA kept all 5.
TE---Has to be the worst TE unit in the NFL. Not one of them is even average.
T---The team has to try Massie at LT. He's more athletic than Levi and Potter. Coaches will probably stick with Levi and give him some help---but you can't give him help every play. The LT situation remains shaky at best. RT not so much, as Winston looks solid, not great, but solid.
G---Man losing Cooper who already was becoming the best lineman is tough. Broken fibulas usually require 10-12 weeks immobilization, then rehab. Rachal has looked bad all pre-season. Colledge is playing hurt, a la Adam Snyder. Colledge probably shouldn't be playing right now. Fanaika should get his chance---but he is very inexperienced. The hope could be pushing Earl Watford faster than what the coaches would have wanted---but he's got the physciality the Cardinals need. Brandon Moore recently signed with the Cowboys but then decided to retire---wonder if SK could persuade him to join the Cardinals. Kelemete? Might be cut regardless. Mike Gibson may be worth a look.
C---Sendlein has been good this pre-season. Gibson's versatility, plus Cooper's injury, may have opened a roster spot for him.
WR---Fitz, Floyd and Roberts all had some good moments, despite all the setbacks. Didn't see Mike Thomas, but he's going to make the team because of his experience. Hawkins showed up again. Juron Brown? Was he even thrown to? Kerry Taylor? Once? Twice maybe?
Without decent TEs---unless BA&SK make a magical trade, BA is going to have to play to the strength of his personnel---which would mean fewer 2 TE sets and more 3-4 WR sets.
NT---Doesn't look good for Dan Williams that he's still hobbling. No depth behind him either. David Carter and Ronald Talley are not NTs.
DE---All the talk about Dockett and Campbell being turned loose is thus far invisible, and actually one has to wonder whether Bowles scheme is sound, especially for stopping the run. Big worry there, in addition to not having a reliable NT. Talley has been a nice surprise---but his penalty was stupid. Rucker had the one nice pressure.
LB---Brinkley played very well---he delivered some loud hits and generally was around the ball. He's more athletic than he gets credit for. Perhpas with Minter playing well, the coaches could kove Brinkley to SOLB, where Acho looks too slow to play the position effectively. The Chargers did the Cardinals a favor because they exploited the Cardinals slow edge players with their RBs in the passing game. Something needs to be done. Alexander is active on the weak side. Surprised we haven't seen more playing time for Okafor. Abraham remains the nickel RDE in passing situations. Matt Shaughnessy was excellent on the TEX stunts and in playing physical versus the run. He's one of the best 11 defenders on the team. This kid Kenny Rowe looks good late in the games---wish they would try him earlier in games. Dansby looks rusty and he still bear hugs for tackles.
CB---Peterson grabs and holds almost every play and now Powers on the other side. These guys need to mirror and keep their eye on the ball. Fleming made some plays which was nice to see. Didn't see much PT for Bethel---but BA knows he's already made the team because of STs and has said so. McCann with a very good ST tackle---I like that kid. Arenas was proably being held back a little because of his broken finger, but he is going to be a big part of this defense as should Cason, who was playing late into the 4th quarter...not sure why.
S---Rashad Johnson obviously was flat-out awful in this game---starting with penalties, the A-Dub-esque token thump (not wrap at all) on the goalline for the Chargers' first TD. And then the fumbling debacle. Hopefully Johnson will rectify his situation asap. Bell was solid again. But the real star in Mathieu who rushes the edge better than any player on the roster---at his diminutive size no less! Amaya got beat badly but caught back up to make an ankle tackle, albeit 40 yards down the field. Any sign of Tony Jefferson? This team needs deep cover safety options in the nickel and dime packages, especially when they want to move Mathieu up to the slot/edge.
ST---boy Kevin Spencer got his revenge with a blocked punt, a blocked FG and a very good return from rookie WR Allen. Carpenter never got to kickoff. Feely did and struggled---but had an extra point kick. Reggie Walker remains a very good ST player---but seems to be sitting on the bubble. Arenas, Thomas and Ellington are added return options---to join in the deepest mix of return men in Cardinals' history!
While things appear much bleaker after looking up the past two weeks, this bad loss might be perfect timing in generating a more clear fix-it list. Number one---get more physical and aggressive up front on both sides of the ball. Wolfley was right on the money with his comments there.
RB---Mendenhall explosive, but hurts knee. Alfonso Smith could be the starter---ran very well tonight, showed better vision too. Taylor and Ellington were productive. So was Ryan Williams---but it would be surprising if he could garner any trade interest. Wouldn't be shocked if BA kept all 5.
TE---Has to be the worst TE unit in the NFL. Not one of them is even average.
T---The team has to try Massie at LT. He's more athletic than Levi and Potter. Coaches will probably stick with Levi and give him some help---but you can't give him help every play. The LT situation remains shaky at best. RT not so much, as Winston looks solid, not great, but solid.
G---Man losing Cooper who already was becoming the best lineman is tough. Broken fibulas usually require 10-12 weeks immobilization, then rehab. Rachal has looked bad all pre-season. Colledge is playing hurt, a la Adam Snyder. Colledge probably shouldn't be playing right now. Fanaika should get his chance---but he is very inexperienced. The hope could be pushing Earl Watford faster than what the coaches would have wanted---but he's got the physciality the Cardinals need. Brandon Moore recently signed with the Cowboys but then decided to retire---wonder if SK could persuade him to join the Cardinals. Kelemete? Might be cut regardless. Mike Gibson may be worth a look.
C---Sendlein has been good this pre-season. Gibson's versatility, plus Cooper's injury, may have opened a roster spot for him.
WR---Fitz, Floyd and Roberts all had some good moments, despite all the setbacks. Didn't see Mike Thomas, but he's going to make the team because of his experience. Hawkins showed up again. Juron Brown? Was he even thrown to? Kerry Taylor? Once? Twice maybe?
Without decent TEs---unless BA&SK make a magical trade, BA is going to have to play to the strength of his personnel---which would mean fewer 2 TE sets and more 3-4 WR sets.
NT---Doesn't look good for Dan Williams that he's still hobbling. No depth behind him either. David Carter and Ronald Talley are not NTs.
DE---All the talk about Dockett and Campbell being turned loose is thus far invisible, and actually one has to wonder whether Bowles scheme is sound, especially for stopping the run. Big worry there, in addition to not having a reliable NT. Talley has been a nice surprise---but his penalty was stupid. Rucker had the one nice pressure.
LB---Brinkley played very well---he delivered some loud hits and generally was around the ball. He's more athletic than he gets credit for. Perhpas with Minter playing well, the coaches could kove Brinkley to SOLB, where Acho looks too slow to play the position effectively. The Chargers did the Cardinals a favor because they exploited the Cardinals slow edge players with their RBs in the passing game. Something needs to be done. Alexander is active on the weak side. Surprised we haven't seen more playing time for Okafor. Abraham remains the nickel RDE in passing situations. Matt Shaughnessy was excellent on the TEX stunts and in playing physical versus the run. He's one of the best 11 defenders on the team. This kid Kenny Rowe looks good late in the games---wish they would try him earlier in games. Dansby looks rusty and he still bear hugs for tackles.
CB---Peterson grabs and holds almost every play and now Powers on the other side. These guys need to mirror and keep their eye on the ball. Fleming made some plays which was nice to see. Didn't see much PT for Bethel---but BA knows he's already made the team because of STs and has said so. McCann with a very good ST tackle---I like that kid. Arenas was proably being held back a little because of his broken finger, but he is going to be a big part of this defense as should Cason, who was playing late into the 4th quarter...not sure why.
S---Rashad Johnson obviously was flat-out awful in this game---starting with penalties, the A-Dub-esque token thump (not wrap at all) on the goalline for the Chargers' first TD. And then the fumbling debacle. Hopefully Johnson will rectify his situation asap. Bell was solid again. But the real star in Mathieu who rushes the edge better than any player on the roster---at his diminutive size no less! Amaya got beat badly but caught back up to make an ankle tackle, albeit 40 yards down the field. Any sign of Tony Jefferson? This team needs deep cover safety options in the nickel and dime packages, especially when they want to move Mathieu up to the slot/edge.
ST---boy Kevin Spencer got his revenge with a blocked punt, a blocked FG and a very good return from rookie WR Allen. Carpenter never got to kickoff. Feely did and struggled---but had an extra point kick. Reggie Walker remains a very good ST player---but seems to be sitting on the bubble. Arenas, Thomas and Ellington are added return options---to join in the deepest mix of return men in Cardinals' history!
While things appear much bleaker after looking up the past two weeks, this bad loss might be perfect timing in generating a more clear fix-it list. Number one---get more physical and aggressive up front on both sides of the ball. Wolfley was right on the money with his comments there.
