Another positive Cardinals article

[zuchini]

Folks, this is the best one yet. That I've read anyway. Goosebump city, baby.

This one's for you, Skkorp.

http://mvn.com/outsider/2009/06/nfl-crystal-ball-the-2009-arizona-cardinals-will-be-even-better.html

 

[AZ Native]

Folks, this is the best one yet. That I've read anyway. Goosebump city, baby.

http://mvn.com/outsider/2009/06/nfl-crystal-ball-the-2009-arizona-cardinals-will-be-even-better.html

Whis will make this a better team this year.

 

[slanidrac16]

I got goosebumps!

 

[az1965]

The defensive line is loaded with names like Dockett, Branch, Watson, Campbell, Berry, and Iwebema. That's the strength of the team

Huh?? Did I miss anything???

Dockett - slightly above average
Branch - soon to be cut, a huge bust
Watson - has done nothing yet
Campbell - has done nothing yet
Berry - half season wonder, either he is injured half the season or gassed out
Iwebema - has done nothing yet

Yeah, I can see the strength oozing...

 

[TigToad]

I think you're a bit harsh.

Dockett - just short of pro-bowl caliber.
Branch - okay, yeah, bust (I still hope though)
Watson - a solid starter when healthy
Campbell - Potential
Berry - Strong veteran presence, does not hurt the team when on the field in any way
Iwebema - isn't being asked to start

Huh?? Did I miss anything???

Dockett - slightly above average
Branch - soon to be cut, a huge bust
Watson - has done nothing yet
Campbell - has done nothing yet
Berry - half season wonder, either he is injured half the season or gassed out
Iwebema - has done nothing yet

Yeah, I can see the strength oozing...

 

[az1965]

Yeah, but he is claiming they are the strength of the team... that is a bit too much on the other side. Potential doesn't win games.

 

[lauraw]

Great article!!

 

[Perfectionist]

Yeah, but he is claiming they are the strength of the team... that is a bit too much on the other side. Potential doesn't win games.

Very true. But I still have to pinch myself to make sure this is about our Cardinals!

 

[Garthshort]

Dockett, Iwebema, Campbell, and Watson should be better this year. Berry and Branch are big question marks. With KW's emphasis on Special Teams, Sean Morey is a LOCK to make the team. He's a two time ST Pro Bowler. On paper the Cards look to be at least a couple of games better. JMO.

 

[JeffGollin]

Actually, you could make the case that every player on our roster represents a questionmark - even guys like Fitz, Q, A-Dub, DRC or Dansby; because you never know whether the Injury Gods will continue to smile on most of our guys.

That said - I think Campbell showed more than just potential - both on special teams and in rotation. And Iwebema demonstrated last year that at the very least, he's solid as a rotational backup.

Actually, Dockett has demonstrated at times that he can play at a far above average level. He just has to do it more consistently.

Berry's durability and gas in the proverbial tank must be in question, but to dismiss him as a "half-season wonder" is overly critical because the upside is that it's not outside the realm of possibility that he could make it thru the entire year and wind up with 12 sacks.

Watson - when healthy - has done more than "nothing" & is valuable as a space-eater. Remaining questionmark is his knee (the freakiest thing to ever happen a knee since the StL Cardinals' Vince Coleman got eaten by the tarp).

This summer is make or break for Branch. I wouldn't write him off quite yet (you hope the light bulb will go on for someone with so much physical ability) but the "future is now" & clock is clearly ticking.

To sum up - I'm leery of off-season prognostications - mainly because there are too many hard-to-predict factors regarding each player and the ability of everyone on a defensive, offensive or ST unit to mesh and play well together. An interesting exercise might be to compare (a) what the experts are saying in June with (b) what the team looks like coming out of training camp and the preseason and (c) what we're like at the end of the regular season.

 

[cardsfanmd]

I know I'll be blasted for this but I am really starting to believe Branch is going to explode onto the scene at some point this year. Whether he blows people away in camp or gets on the field due to i-----, I think he'll be more than efective when he gets there. He must have had the most craptastic attitude ever because the coaching staff really hated him. His play definitely warranted more PT IMO. Hopefully he has gotten his act together, if not I say stop stalling, send the message and cut his @$$.

For the record, Watson is much better than "has done nothing yet" or "a solid starter". There are only a handle of guys in the league capable of plugging into the middle of a 3-4 and being successful and when healthy, he is one of them. If you take the time to look, his stats are eerily similar to those of all-world NT Casey Hampton.

On the flip side, I must have been watching different games from the rest of the board last year because Campbell doesn't excite me nearly as much as everyone else. I still maintain that he's better suited as a 4-3 DE or UT and just doesn't seem stout enough at the point of attack to play DE in a 3-4. What I saw when watching him last year was a guy with tremendous hustle who made plays 4-10yds past the LOS after getting blown off the ball at the snap. I really love his attitude and tenacity on the field and his STs play is great, I just kinda feel like, to a lesser extent, we're sticking the squared peg in the circular hole again (Pace, Rolle). In the end, Mike Wright would have been a great signing this offseason IMO.

 

[CardLogic]

Gabe Watson will dominate the middle this season! Mark it down. Possibly the most underrated player on the Cardinals (by the average fan, that is).

Branch is on his last chance season.

 

[az1965]

Gabe Watson will dominate the middle this season! Mark it down. Possibly the most underrated player on the Cardinals (by the average fan, that is).

I really hope so... our DL will depend on it.

I still hold to my comment that DL is _not_ the strength of the team but its weakest link.

 

[az1965]

Actually, you could make the case that every player on our roster represents a questionmark - even guys like Fitz, Q, A-Dub, DRC or Dansby; because you never know whether the Injury Gods will continue to smile on most of our guys.

Obviously, all this analysis is assuming everyone is healthy.

That said - I think Campbell showed more than just potential - both on special teams and in rotation. And Iwebema demonstrated last year that at the very least, he's solid as a rotational backup

.

Again, that is good... and I hope they will make strong contributions, but they do not right now make the DL a strength, the original point. They may in the future.

Actually, Dockett has demonstrated at times that he can play at a far above average level. He just has to do it more consistently

.

Agree. He has demonstrated too much immaturity and inconsistency.

Berry's durability and gas in the proverbial tank must be in question, but to dismiss him as a "half-season wonder" is overly critical because the upside is that it's not outside the realm of possibility that he could make it thru the entire year and wind up with 12 sacks

.

I seriosly doubt it. 12 sacks? Come on. Last year was his full season after 3 injury plagued half seasons. He was doing great first half of the season but then clearly ran out of gas in the 2nd half and playoffs. I remember 2-3 occassions where he just gave up chasing the QB and just stood there. One of that occassion was in the NFC championship game where McNabb had all the time in the world to throw deep while he just stood there.

Watson - when healthy - has done more than "nothing" & is valuable as a space-eater. Remaining questionmark is his knee (the freakiest thing to ever happen a knee since the StL Cardinals' Vince Coleman got eaten by the tarp

).

We really good one season from him. There is still too much to prove. He did nothing last year. Again, that is potential. Let's wait and see.

This summer is make or break for Branch. I wouldn't write him off quite yet (you hope the light bulb will go on for someone with so much physical ability) but the "future is now" & clock is clearly ticking

.

We will see. Don't be surprised if he gets the knife.

Again, most your comments point to "potential".

 

[MadCardDisease]

I think our D-Line is somewhat of a question mark.

Dockett is a solid starter.

Watson is solid if he can stay healthy.

Beyond that we really don't know what to expect. Campbell and Iwebema showed flashes last year when they saw the field. What happens now that Campbell will be a starter? Can he hold up against the run for an entire game?

Brach is a huge disappointment for me. This is his make or break training camp. If he doesn't show up with fire in his eyes he could be an early cut. I think the potential is there. The effort just hasn't been seen from him yet.

Berry will give you all that he has. However he will have a few young guys cutting into his playing time. I think we can get another solid year out of Berry if he can stay healthy. Whether he can stay healthy or not is the question.

 

[john h]

Whis will make this a better team this year.

You really have to do a lot of searching to find positive articles about our team. We are what we are.

 

[Jetstream Green]

The positive article is no longer available if you hit the link, and the statement provided pretty much sums up being a fan of the Cards with the current QB and OT problems.

"Not Found
We respect your curiosity! But, what you are looking is not present here. Don't be disappointed, keep the spirits high, keep learning, keep finding! Curiosity is good, first step towards innovation."

LOL!

 

[Syracusecards]

What happened to Laura W and CardsFanMd?

 

[Mulli]

What happened to Laura W and CardsFanMd?

It was the same person.

 

[Mulli]

And this is a strange bump

 

[PortlandCardFan]

And this is a strange bump

Tumor?

 

[Mulli]

You must be registered for see images

 

[john h]

I think you're a bit harsh.

Dockett - just short of pro-bowl caliber.
Branch - okay, yeah, bust (I still hope though)
Watson - a solid starter when healthy
Campbell - Potential
Berry - Strong veteran presence, does not hurt the team when on the field in any way
Iwebema - isn't being asked to start

I think Campbell is more than just potential. He is shown that he is the real deal and maybe the best pass blocker in the NFL. I thought resigning him was a great move and a necessary one.

 

[Mulli]

I think Campbell is more than just potential. He is shown that he is the real deal and maybe the best pass blocker in the NFL. I thought resigning him was a great move and a necessary one.

John H, you are quoting a post from 2009!

 

[john h]

I think our D-Line is somewhat of a question mark.

Dockett is a solid starter.

Watson is solid if he can stay healthy.

Beyond that we really don't know what to expect. Campbell and Iwebema showed flashes last year when they saw the field. What happens now that Campbell will be a starter? Can he hold up against the run for an entire game?

Brach is a huge disappointment for me. This is his make or break training camp. If he doesn't show up with fire in his eyes he could be an early cut. I think the potential is there. The effort just hasn't been seen from him yet.

Berry will give you all that he has. However he will have a few young guys cutting into his playing time. I think we can get another solid year out of Berry if he can stay healthy. Whether he can stay healthy or not is the question.

Winning those last 8 or so games I thought was largely a result of a good defense last year. Am I wrong on that? If they were that good last year against some good teams why would we expect them to be worse this year? I think our DB situation has actually improved over last year. In the end it will be the QB who decides the fate of this team. Not the DL. It is the QB who decide the fate of most NFL teams and the QB is always the most important position on any team. Some teams out there have better backups than we will start and we would do well to sign or get one who may be dropped. I would even sign Vince Young at this point. I really do not think both our #1 and#2 QB will make it through the season without injury.