Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
When Coach Ken Whisenhunt told the media prior to the team's first pre-season game versus the Steelers that he hadn't watched the Super Bowl tape (that it would be too painful)...on the one hand, one could understand the painful part, but on the other hand, it is ultimately his responsibility to patch the leaks if he had big plans to get the Cardinals' Super Bowl ship sailing smoothly in the right direction again.
Those who watched the tape were painfully reminded of those leaks...but hopeful in the organization's efforts to repair them for the upcoming season.
What the whole nation saw was:
(1) The Cardinals' offensive tackles were being asked to block two of the more prolific pass rushers in the NFL without the comfort of any immediate help. The Super Bowl ended in a sack with LaMarr Woodley draped all over Kurt Warner while RT Levi Brown stood helplessly nearby. And, what no one will ever know is what might have happened if Warner was able to heave that last pass up in the air for the hottest WR on the planet. Heck, Brett Farve was able to pull off a miracle finish yesterday throwing to a WR he didn't even know was in the game. One never ever knows.
(2) The Cardinals porous pass defense after taking the lead with 2:37 left...breakdowns everywhere, missed assignments, slip ups, etc. Yet another painful reminder that the Cardinals led the league in pass TDs allowed.
(3) In the final 2:37, the Cardinals did not muster even a remote semblance of a pass rush. In fact, their DEs were being swallowed up by the Steeler tackles to the point where they were merely stopped in their tracks.
So here the Cardinals are one year later following an embarrassing 31-10 loss and the same Super Bowl leaks look even wider than ever before:
(1) Any casual football fan would most assuredly concede that LT Mike Gandy would have a near impossible task of blocking DE Dwight Freeney one-on-one. Yet, inexplicably, Gandy was asked to play on an island versus Freeney and Freeney had a field day. The casual fan would also have been concerned about RT Levi Brown's chances of holding his own versus DE Robert Mathis. Brown was relegated most of the night to his island as well, and Mathis took full advantage. Freeney and mathis likely saw the Super Bowl and they certainly saw the 49er game in which DEs Justin Smith and Parys Haralson were the difference makers in that game. In short, for Freeney and Mathis the thought of being left on islands with Gandy and Brown in front of a national TV audience must have had them drooling.
The irony is...the one time the Cardinals chipped Mathis with WR Jerheme Urban (who clearly thwarted Mathis' all-important first step and actually surprised Mathis), Brown was able to stop Mathis in his tracks and Kurt Warner was able to throw a 17 yard strike over the middle to WR Steve Breaston.
The other irony is that when the Cardinals lined up an extra blocker to Freeney's side, like they did with FB Dan Kreider, on a key first and ten, Kreider ran right past Freeney on a pass route, and Freeney blew up the play for a thunderous sack and a 7 yard loss...which basically blew up any chance of a drive.
(2) Porous pass defense? The defense itself gave up over 500 yards, 380 of it in the air. Missed assignments? Galore. How about rookie RB Donald Brown taking a three yard pass and running untouched for 75 yards? Watch too on that play the lame effort Adrian Wilson made in reacting to the play. How about CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie playing peek-a-boo guessing games with Peyton Manning and getting torched with relative ease? How about never jamming TE Dallas Clark at the line of scrimmage and allowing him a free release toward a LB in Karlos Dansby who did a hop step in his direction, which threw his feet off-balance and left him utterly incapable of offering any sembalnce of decent coverage on Clark? Surely Wilson, DRC, and Dansby weren't coached to make such lame efforts. But, one has to ask, if the schemes were smarter and more aggressive what the outcomes would have been. For starters, if you don't jam Clark, you are asking to lose.
Note too that the one big secondary addition in the off-season CB Bryant McFadden was not only pathetic supporting the run or quick passes to his side, never once making a statement tackle or hit, but that his cushion on Reggie Wayne was somewhere between Tempe and Scottsdale. Which begs another question. For this game, why wasn't DRC assigned to Wayne and McFadden assigned to Garcon? One might say that as poorly as DRC played Garcon it wouldn't have mattered...but, if the preparation was more intense and precise and the discipline of aggressive, fundamental cover play demanded, the Cardinals might have had a chance.
(3) No semblance of a pass rush? None. Especially from the edges. It's almost comical to think of the Cardinals edge rushers (Berry, Okeafor and Haggans) versus the Colts' (Freeney, Mathis and Johnson). This is like comparing the Washington Generals to the Harlem Globetrotters.
The thing is: the Cardinals CHOSE to keep Okeafor and re-sign Berry and Haggans. This was apparently the best they could do. That and adding two rookies, neither of whom was a top 50 pick in the draft and neither of whom has even cracked the lineup in a rotational role (Brown being lost for the season and Davis being relegated, like 1st round RB, Beanie Wells, to riding the pine).
Some still argue that there was a paucity of free agent pass rushers. This is true. Some still argue that there was a paucity of pass rushers in the draft...which is debatable especially seeing as the fastest and quickest off the edge of them all, DE Everette Brown slid all the way to #43.
But, the reality is, the Cardinals were in a position to make some things happen...could they have improved the pass rush by dealing Anquan Boldin? It's quite possible they could have. Sure, no one really wants to lose Boldin, but, with Steve Breaston on board, the Cardinals had the luxury of patching some of the leaks if they had chosen to.
As for the offensive line issues...wouldn't it have been prudent to add an upgrade at LT? We still don't know what Levi Brown would look like on the left side. Sure, it wouldn't appear that he would play better on the left side, but there is something to be said about players playing to the sides that make them most comfortable. it's quite possible that Brown's drop-step with the left foot, which he was accustomed to making for years prior to getting switched to RT by the Cardinals, is far quicker and stronger, which would allow him to set his base faster, and generate the kind of balance and punching position a good LT needs. The thing is: we don't know. Brown hasn't played there in even a pre-season game.
The lack of understanding on the Cardinals coaches' part is particularly disconcerting because the thinking process that includes leaving subpar pass protecting tackles on an island, protecting an immobile 38 year old QB who can still play lights-out if he has the time---is a recipe for disaster.
The other lack of planning occured within the numerous and sundry coaching changes. OK--Whiz took back the play calling assignment. he has a Super Bowl ring as an OC (play caller), although the Steelers' offense in that game was almost pathetic...save a couple of effective trick plays...but, in Whiz's defense, he was working with a young inexperienced, but talented QB.
But...Kurt Warner needs an OC to lock heads with...that became readily evident when Todd Haley took over the play calling about mid-season two years ago and the Cardinal offense then started to average a superb 28 ppg. The problem is Ken Whisenhunt can't afford the time that Warner needs, because Whiz also has to run the team. The other problem is that no other coach on the staff seems to have as much or as strong an understanding of the offense as Warner...so pairing Warner with someone less knowledgeable of the system would seem token at best.
And with regard to hiring LB coach Bill Davis from within as DC...what this defense really needed was a fresh, new approach and a sense of confidence from a well established 3-4 coach from one of the better 3-4 systems. Look what Mike Nolan is doing in Denver. The Cardinals should have been able to land someone more high profile and not have to promote a position coach (which feels like hiring the JV coach to some players...the familiarity is just too great).
Now, to be fair to Bill Davis, the Cardinals' personnel staff didn't do him many favors at all this off-season, especially in giving him some edge rushers and better cover CBs and cover safeties. Davis has been handcuffed right off the bat by a lack of the proper personnel. Plus, decision like holding onto an injured Matt Ware who isn't a strong cover safety in the defense anyway, and who hasn't played the last two weeks, while the Cardinals have needed some help in the secondary, is more than a tad mind-boggling. And when one considers the lack of safeties last night prevented the Cardinals from rushing their best pass rusher, Adrian Wilson, in an effort to somehow someway harrass Peyton Manning...which was really the Cardinals only real hope was getting pressure on him.
How about the Cardinals finally accepting a need for change and doing something bold, like move Wilson to WOLB and have him rush that edge like a madman every play? And flip-flop him to the left side occasionally as the Colts did with Freeney last night.
What Whiz said is he's going back to basics and fundamentals...which is smart in many ways, but likley means no real changes will be made. And, if the Cardinals don't make a bold move like signing T Levi Jones...Whiz's options at this point are pretty slim...but...would it hurt to hold a two day audition at the tackle spots, including trying Reggie Wells there? Wells is the most agile and quick-footed lineman on the squad, and sliding Gandy or Brown down to guard might generate an overall improvement.
At the very least, if the Cardinals aren't chipping DEs from here on in, this stubborness to change will have reached epic proportions. We fans have been clamoring for this for over a year now. Just can't understand why such a simple and logical adjustment has been so routinely ignored.
Those who watched the tape were painfully reminded of those leaks...but hopeful in the organization's efforts to repair them for the upcoming season.
What the whole nation saw was:
(1) The Cardinals' offensive tackles were being asked to block two of the more prolific pass rushers in the NFL without the comfort of any immediate help. The Super Bowl ended in a sack with LaMarr Woodley draped all over Kurt Warner while RT Levi Brown stood helplessly nearby. And, what no one will ever know is what might have happened if Warner was able to heave that last pass up in the air for the hottest WR on the planet. Heck, Brett Farve was able to pull off a miracle finish yesterday throwing to a WR he didn't even know was in the game. One never ever knows.
(2) The Cardinals porous pass defense after taking the lead with 2:37 left...breakdowns everywhere, missed assignments, slip ups, etc. Yet another painful reminder that the Cardinals led the league in pass TDs allowed.
(3) In the final 2:37, the Cardinals did not muster even a remote semblance of a pass rush. In fact, their DEs were being swallowed up by the Steeler tackles to the point where they were merely stopped in their tracks.
So here the Cardinals are one year later following an embarrassing 31-10 loss and the same Super Bowl leaks look even wider than ever before:
(1) Any casual football fan would most assuredly concede that LT Mike Gandy would have a near impossible task of blocking DE Dwight Freeney one-on-one. Yet, inexplicably, Gandy was asked to play on an island versus Freeney and Freeney had a field day. The casual fan would also have been concerned about RT Levi Brown's chances of holding his own versus DE Robert Mathis. Brown was relegated most of the night to his island as well, and Mathis took full advantage. Freeney and mathis likely saw the Super Bowl and they certainly saw the 49er game in which DEs Justin Smith and Parys Haralson were the difference makers in that game. In short, for Freeney and Mathis the thought of being left on islands with Gandy and Brown in front of a national TV audience must have had them drooling.
The irony is...the one time the Cardinals chipped Mathis with WR Jerheme Urban (who clearly thwarted Mathis' all-important first step and actually surprised Mathis), Brown was able to stop Mathis in his tracks and Kurt Warner was able to throw a 17 yard strike over the middle to WR Steve Breaston.
The other irony is that when the Cardinals lined up an extra blocker to Freeney's side, like they did with FB Dan Kreider, on a key first and ten, Kreider ran right past Freeney on a pass route, and Freeney blew up the play for a thunderous sack and a 7 yard loss...which basically blew up any chance of a drive.
(2) Porous pass defense? The defense itself gave up over 500 yards, 380 of it in the air. Missed assignments? Galore. How about rookie RB Donald Brown taking a three yard pass and running untouched for 75 yards? Watch too on that play the lame effort Adrian Wilson made in reacting to the play. How about CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie playing peek-a-boo guessing games with Peyton Manning and getting torched with relative ease? How about never jamming TE Dallas Clark at the line of scrimmage and allowing him a free release toward a LB in Karlos Dansby who did a hop step in his direction, which threw his feet off-balance and left him utterly incapable of offering any sembalnce of decent coverage on Clark? Surely Wilson, DRC, and Dansby weren't coached to make such lame efforts. But, one has to ask, if the schemes were smarter and more aggressive what the outcomes would have been. For starters, if you don't jam Clark, you are asking to lose.
Note too that the one big secondary addition in the off-season CB Bryant McFadden was not only pathetic supporting the run or quick passes to his side, never once making a statement tackle or hit, but that his cushion on Reggie Wayne was somewhere between Tempe and Scottsdale. Which begs another question. For this game, why wasn't DRC assigned to Wayne and McFadden assigned to Garcon? One might say that as poorly as DRC played Garcon it wouldn't have mattered...but, if the preparation was more intense and precise and the discipline of aggressive, fundamental cover play demanded, the Cardinals might have had a chance.
(3) No semblance of a pass rush? None. Especially from the edges. It's almost comical to think of the Cardinals edge rushers (Berry, Okeafor and Haggans) versus the Colts' (Freeney, Mathis and Johnson). This is like comparing the Washington Generals to the Harlem Globetrotters.
The thing is: the Cardinals CHOSE to keep Okeafor and re-sign Berry and Haggans. This was apparently the best they could do. That and adding two rookies, neither of whom was a top 50 pick in the draft and neither of whom has even cracked the lineup in a rotational role (Brown being lost for the season and Davis being relegated, like 1st round RB, Beanie Wells, to riding the pine).
Some still argue that there was a paucity of free agent pass rushers. This is true. Some still argue that there was a paucity of pass rushers in the draft...which is debatable especially seeing as the fastest and quickest off the edge of them all, DE Everette Brown slid all the way to #43.
But, the reality is, the Cardinals were in a position to make some things happen...could they have improved the pass rush by dealing Anquan Boldin? It's quite possible they could have. Sure, no one really wants to lose Boldin, but, with Steve Breaston on board, the Cardinals had the luxury of patching some of the leaks if they had chosen to.
As for the offensive line issues...wouldn't it have been prudent to add an upgrade at LT? We still don't know what Levi Brown would look like on the left side. Sure, it wouldn't appear that he would play better on the left side, but there is something to be said about players playing to the sides that make them most comfortable. it's quite possible that Brown's drop-step with the left foot, which he was accustomed to making for years prior to getting switched to RT by the Cardinals, is far quicker and stronger, which would allow him to set his base faster, and generate the kind of balance and punching position a good LT needs. The thing is: we don't know. Brown hasn't played there in even a pre-season game.
The lack of understanding on the Cardinals coaches' part is particularly disconcerting because the thinking process that includes leaving subpar pass protecting tackles on an island, protecting an immobile 38 year old QB who can still play lights-out if he has the time---is a recipe for disaster.
The other lack of planning occured within the numerous and sundry coaching changes. OK--Whiz took back the play calling assignment. he has a Super Bowl ring as an OC (play caller), although the Steelers' offense in that game was almost pathetic...save a couple of effective trick plays...but, in Whiz's defense, he was working with a young inexperienced, but talented QB.
But...Kurt Warner needs an OC to lock heads with...that became readily evident when Todd Haley took over the play calling about mid-season two years ago and the Cardinal offense then started to average a superb 28 ppg. The problem is Ken Whisenhunt can't afford the time that Warner needs, because Whiz also has to run the team. The other problem is that no other coach on the staff seems to have as much or as strong an understanding of the offense as Warner...so pairing Warner with someone less knowledgeable of the system would seem token at best.
And with regard to hiring LB coach Bill Davis from within as DC...what this defense really needed was a fresh, new approach and a sense of confidence from a well established 3-4 coach from one of the better 3-4 systems. Look what Mike Nolan is doing in Denver. The Cardinals should have been able to land someone more high profile and not have to promote a position coach (which feels like hiring the JV coach to some players...the familiarity is just too great).
Now, to be fair to Bill Davis, the Cardinals' personnel staff didn't do him many favors at all this off-season, especially in giving him some edge rushers and better cover CBs and cover safeties. Davis has been handcuffed right off the bat by a lack of the proper personnel. Plus, decision like holding onto an injured Matt Ware who isn't a strong cover safety in the defense anyway, and who hasn't played the last two weeks, while the Cardinals have needed some help in the secondary, is more than a tad mind-boggling. And when one considers the lack of safeties last night prevented the Cardinals from rushing their best pass rusher, Adrian Wilson, in an effort to somehow someway harrass Peyton Manning...which was really the Cardinals only real hope was getting pressure on him.
How about the Cardinals finally accepting a need for change and doing something bold, like move Wilson to WOLB and have him rush that edge like a madman every play? And flip-flop him to the left side occasionally as the Colts did with Freeney last night.
What Whiz said is he's going back to basics and fundamentals...which is smart in many ways, but likley means no real changes will be made. And, if the Cardinals don't make a bold move like signing T Levi Jones...Whiz's options at this point are pretty slim...but...would it hurt to hold a two day audition at the tackle spots, including trying Reggie Wells there? Wells is the most agile and quick-footed lineman on the squad, and sliding Gandy or Brown down to guard might generate an overall improvement.
At the very least, if the Cardinals aren't chipping DEs from here on in, this stubborness to change will have reached epic proportions. We fans have been clamoring for this for over a year now. Just can't understand why such a simple and logical adjustment has been so routinely ignored.
