ARI@DAL: Heroes and Goats

[kerouac9]

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1. Andre Ellington, RB. Andre Ellington put in an absolutely studly performance yesterday. Because Ellington's yards are all-purpose, and because the Cards' offense isn't necessarily explosive, and because he doesn't score enough touchdowns, Ellington isn't going to get the MVP consideration he deserves.

2. Tyrann Mathieu, S. Welcome back, Honey Badger. My favorite play from Mathieu yesterday didn't even show up on that stat sheet--his attempted strip of Jason Witten following a reception was vintage Mathieu.

3. Deone Bucannon, S. There's no reason that Bucannon won't spend a ton of time on this list going forward. He can step up his game in the pass rush and probably continue to develop as a zone defender, but Jason Witten didn't do much yesterday, and Bucannon is a huge part in that. Oh, and there was a pretty nails play on 4th and 1.

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1. John Carlson, TE. Something's wrong with how we scout tight ends or how we coach them once they're here. Based on the storied history of Bruce Arians utilizing tight ends and the much-less-storied history of the Cardinals acquiring tight ends, I'm going to point the finger at the front office.

2. Michael Floyd, WR. Michael Floyd is my boy, but he's got to stop ending up on this list. A fumble when the game is still in doubt is unacceptable.

3. Robert Hughes, RB. Hughes made a terrible, terrible mental error on the opening kickoff somehow forgetting that the ball is live after 10 yards. He doesn't bring much of anything to to table, and if you don't bring anything to the table, and the Cards have a great win, and you're not Jim Dray, you're going to end up at the bottom of this list.

 

[Mulli]

Good stuff

 

[MrYeahBut]

Carlson ain't Jim Dray either.

 

[NJCardFan]

Is there a reason why you left Fanaika off your goat list? He was terrible yesterday.

 

[Cardiac]

Can't have more Goats than hero's when you win the game decisively. I'll add the entire Dline to the hero's list so NJCardfan can add Fanaika.

 

[BigRedRage]

Id say Larson but I only noticed him once. It was a real bad one but still just one.

 

[Mulli]

I love that standards for OL play are getting higher. We have seen worse than Fanaika.

 

[NJCardFan]

I love that standards for OL play are getting higher. We have seen worse than Fanaika.

True but yesterday he had me seeing shades of Brandon Keith. I hadn't seen a player get turned around that badly so consistently then Keith.

 

[Mulli]

True but yesterday he had me seeing shades of Brandon Keith. I hadn't seen a player get turned around that badly so consistently then Keith.

Ouch.

 

[bg7brd]

Dan Williams stood out yesterday.

 

[Mulli]

Dan Williams stood out yesterday.

Yes!!!

 

[AZCrazy]

Regarding Fanaika and Larsen, and even Sendlein, it's best if we don't continue to populate our interior O Line with UDFA's. The answer to this problem has to come from Cooper.

 

[BigRedRage]

Dan Williams stood out yesterday.

without playing 50% of the snaps too.

 

[GuernseyCard]

Dumpster Dan "Hero".

John Brown "Goat"

 

[desertdawg]

Bethel was a pimp, he almost got the first FG too.

 

[kerouac9]

Is there a reason why you left Fanaika off your goat list? He was terrible yesterday.

I dunno. I guess I don't see where that's coming from. Ellington had room to run between the tackles, and the sack that Palmer gave up came from Ted Larsen being absolutely gob-smacked by a pretty simple stunt.

 

[Chopper0080]

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1. Andre Ellington, RB. Andre Ellington put in an absolutely studly performance yesterday. Because Ellington's yards are all-purpose, and because the Cards' offense isn't necessarily explosive, and because he doesn't score enough touchdowns, Ellington isn't going to get the MVP consideration he deserves.

2. Tyrann Mathieu, S. Welcome back, Honey Badger. My favorite play from Mathieu yesterday didn't even show up on that stat sheet--his attempted strip of Jason Witten following a reception was vintage Mathieu.

3. Deone Bucannon, S. There's no reason that Bucannon won't spend a ton of time on this list going forward. He can step up his game in the pass rush and probably continue to develop as a zone defender, but Jason Witten didn't do much yesterday, and Bucannon is a huge part in that. Oh, and there was a pretty nails play on 4th and 1.

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1. John Carlson, TE. Something's wrong with how we scout tight ends or how we coach them once they're here. Based on the storied history of Bruce Arians utilizing tight ends and the much-less-storied history of the Cardinals acquiring tight ends, I'm going to point the finger at the front office.

2. Michael Floyd, WR. Michael Floyd is my boy, but he's got to stop ending up on this list. A fumble when the game is still in doubt is unacceptable.

3. Robert Hughes, RB. Hughes made a terrible, terrible mental error on the opening kickoff somehow forgetting that the ball is live after 10 yards. He doesn't bring much of anything to to table, and if you don't bring anything to the table, and the Cards have a great win, and you're not Jim Dray, you're going to end up at the bottom of this list.

Yesterday was our secondary's best game IMO. They did so much as a unit, and it was really impressive. Our lack of linebacking talent is totally being hidden by the great player we are getting from our defensive line and defensive secondary.

Re: Carlson...this is what makes me so disappointed in Niklas. The opportunity is there for Niklas to be a force on this team without catching a ton of passes, and playing into his strengths but he hasn't. Ugh. Carlson isn't a terrible player, but he isn't what this offense needs either.

Re: Floyd...too many mistakes for a 3 year player with his talent. Not much else needs to be said. It wouldn't shock me if he is dealing with an injury that is more than just in-season wear and tear. He is a better player than this.

 

[Cbus cardsfan]

I dunno. I guess I don't see where that's coming from. Ellington had room to run between the tackles, and the sack that Palmer gave up came from Ted Larsen being absolutely gob-smacked by a pretty simple stunt.

I agree that the run blocking was very good yesterday and people tend to judge OL play by pass pro only.

 

[Iceman]

Fitz catch and YAC was huge momentum booster too. PP should be on the list for Hero too. He basically zeroed out Bryant except for that garbage TD at the end.

 

[jmt]

Dan Williams stood out yesterday.

And Stinson made a great tackle on Weeden before the big 4th down stop by Buchannon. Carlson just stinks - like all of our TE's in recent memory.

 

[CardLogic]

Re: Floyd...too many mistakes for a 3 year player with his talent. Not much else needs to be said. It wouldn't shock me if he is dealing with an injury that is more than just in-season wear and tear. He is a better player than this.

You might be onto something Chopper. In an article on the Cardinals:

As Fitzgerald spoke he noticed Floyd, who was dressing at an adjacent locker, struggling to get his left arm into a blazer -- and stopped in mid-sentence. "Here you go," Fitzgerald told the third-year player, pulling back the sleeve so that Brown's (mistake by the author) slightly bent arm could slide inside.
Was this a case of a savvy veteran helping an injured teammate through a painful dressing session?
"Nah, no injury," Floyd said, smiling. "We just help each other out."

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap30...inals-culture-shift-has-team-among-nfls-elite

So who knows??

 

[juza76]

i hope niklas learn fast the playbook and get better cause seeing carlson and housler on the field is frustating

 

[juza76]

I agree that the run blocking was very good yesterday and people tend to judge OL play by pass pro only.

we are not able to run in the middle,the stats were good cause of ellington speed make him run outside the corner
2 guards plays very mediocre at best
i dont know why cooper shouldnt be the starter
not much help from tigh end too.hope niklas step up

 

[splitsecond]

Between Fanaika and Larsen yesterday I thought for sure we would see more Cooper out there. When Larsen gave up that big sack early in the game I thought he was a goner.

Totally agree on Robert Hughes. I am not sure what he brings, aside from some good blocking ability from time to time. Mostly it drives me nuts if I am not watching close enough and think Palmer has just dumped it off to Ellington, and then realize after no YAC that it was his stouter doppelganger instead. It's like instant disappointment.

 

[kerouac9]

Between Fanaika and Larsen yesterday I thought for sure we would see more Cooper out there. When Larsen gave up that big sack early in the game I thought he was a goner.

Totally agree on Robert Hughes. I am not sure what he brings, aside from some good blocking ability from time to time. Mostly it drives me nuts if I am not watching close enough and think Palmer has just dumped it off to Ellington, and then realize after no YAC that it was his stouter doppelganger instead. It's like instant disappointment.

Aikman was all over "Ellington" for the brain-fart on the opening kickoff. Announcers are dumb.