Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
With all the speculation that Steve Keim seems intent on drafting one-year FS T.J. Green with the #29 pick in this draft, Keim would be drafting a player who has not played CB in college, This, if true, this would be an experiment that realistically would take Green and the coaches a couple of years to develop, if ever at all. To think that the coaches can just take a good athlete and turn him into a legit NFL press CB from scratch is borderline arrogant. They have had three years to try to turn Justin Bethel into a starting caliber CB and that experiment is still a work in progress, despite the fact that BA has avowed that Bethel has as much natural ability as Patrick Peterson.
If drafting T.J. Green is Steve Keim's answer to questionable 1st round picks in 2 of his first 3 drafts, wow. Just wow. Years of scouting amounting to zeroing in---at the last minute---on a player who hadn't even played defense until this year---on top of which if you watch this kid try to tackle, he rarely squares up and winds up diving a single shoulder or mostly arm tackling---which, if you go and watch established 3-4 years DBs like Keanu Neal and Karl Joseph who not only square up and make big-time tackles, their passion for the game ignites everyone around them. To draft T.J. Green in front of players like Neal and Joseph would be a complete scouting debacle.
It's like all they did was go to the Combine and pick put the tallest, fastest DB and projected him to press CB, even though he's never played it.
The Cardinals have been getting tougher, both physically and mentally---but they still are not in the same league of toughness as Seattle and Carolina, two teams that beat the snot out of the Cardinals late last season and took so much of the luster of a great season away from them.
If Keim doesn't recognize the need to take this team's toughness up another notch, then just how legit will the Cardinals be as Super Bowl contenders? In fact, once the Rams get their QB situation settled---they could leapfrog the Cardinals if Keim doesn't take this roster to the next level. The Vikings are getting tougher---they have been grooming that culture under Mike Zimmer.
The Cardinals still have certain players who clearly shy away from contact---and when other teams see this they bristle with confidence. For example, the Cardinals for the last two years have had punt returners who clearly are timid and play timid. Why does Ted Ginn play timid for the Cardinals and then return punts like a man for the Panthers? Why do the Cardinals tolerate anything less than all-out effort and toughness?
if Steve Keim doesn't draft for toughness---what does that say?
It says in part they are trying to win by out-finessing teams.
Word was last spring that D.J.Humphries' body type was a real problem. How can that even happen for a first round draft pick?
The one tough guy Keim has drafted in the first round, Deion Bucannon, has made a huge impact at a position of need. Yes, they had to groom him to play WILB, but in certain sense that position is not too different from playing strong safety. But the key was going in that Bucannon had a well established reputation for playing super tough. He sticks his nose in there and plays tough.
I have yet to warm up to ESPN's Josh Weinfuss as ESPN's NFL Nation Cardinals' Insider---but he made a pick for the Cardinals last night that was far more reasonable than T.J. Green. LSU LB Deion Jones gets after it---he is a baller. He plays to his 4.38 speed. T.J. Green runs a 4.36, but he appears lost on tape at times---partly because as a former WR converting to FS, he was learning a new position and partly because he hasn't developed defensive instincts and proper techniques---and it's quite a gamble to believe he ever will. isn't it? A gamble worth a 1st round pick? "C'mon, man."
Let's not forget that on top of looking completely intimidated by the Panthers in the NFCCG, there were only 4 Cardinals who stood up and played tough: RB David Johnson, SS Tony Jefferson, LB Kevin Minter and P Drew Butler.
Where was Pro Bowl DE Calais Campbell in this game? Pro Bowl CB Patrick Peterson? Pro Bowl QB Carson Palmer? Even WR Larry Fitzgerald was not himself.
How in the world can Steve Keim justify a $15.2M cap hit for DE Calais Campbell? What does that say about accountability? When you watch his half-arsed effort in the NFCCG, how in the world can he be given a mulligan, when quite frankly his motor went on idle for several games during the season, to the point where BA had to call him out.
The Campbell situation needs to be addressed one way or another. Otherwise, it says to players that they can get the big contract and then underachieve, even in the most important game.
Now---the great news Steve Keim had added toughness to the roster this off-season in trading for DE Chandler Jones and in signing RG Evan Mathis and S Tyvon Branch (who has the size a speed and experience to play press coverage on taller WRs and TEs).
Thus---will Steve Keim take his drafting up a notch this year and shun reaching for experimental players in lieu of drafting self-starters who have displayed great passion, toughness and leadership in college?
Simply put, the Cardinals need tougher blockers on offense, tougher tacklers on defense and finally tougher ST players. The bar for toughness has been set in the NFL and in the NFC. The Cardinals are in a prime position to reach and even exceed that standard. This draft can help get them over the hump. Get'r done, Steve Keim!
If drafting T.J. Green is Steve Keim's answer to questionable 1st round picks in 2 of his first 3 drafts, wow. Just wow. Years of scouting amounting to zeroing in---at the last minute---on a player who hadn't even played defense until this year---on top of which if you watch this kid try to tackle, he rarely squares up and winds up diving a single shoulder or mostly arm tackling---which, if you go and watch established 3-4 years DBs like Keanu Neal and Karl Joseph who not only square up and make big-time tackles, their passion for the game ignites everyone around them. To draft T.J. Green in front of players like Neal and Joseph would be a complete scouting debacle.
It's like all they did was go to the Combine and pick put the tallest, fastest DB and projected him to press CB, even though he's never played it.
The Cardinals have been getting tougher, both physically and mentally---but they still are not in the same league of toughness as Seattle and Carolina, two teams that beat the snot out of the Cardinals late last season and took so much of the luster of a great season away from them.
If Keim doesn't recognize the need to take this team's toughness up another notch, then just how legit will the Cardinals be as Super Bowl contenders? In fact, once the Rams get their QB situation settled---they could leapfrog the Cardinals if Keim doesn't take this roster to the next level. The Vikings are getting tougher---they have been grooming that culture under Mike Zimmer.
The Cardinals still have certain players who clearly shy away from contact---and when other teams see this they bristle with confidence. For example, the Cardinals for the last two years have had punt returners who clearly are timid and play timid. Why does Ted Ginn play timid for the Cardinals and then return punts like a man for the Panthers? Why do the Cardinals tolerate anything less than all-out effort and toughness?
if Steve Keim doesn't draft for toughness---what does that say?
It says in part they are trying to win by out-finessing teams.
Word was last spring that D.J.Humphries' body type was a real problem. How can that even happen for a first round draft pick?
The one tough guy Keim has drafted in the first round, Deion Bucannon, has made a huge impact at a position of need. Yes, they had to groom him to play WILB, but in certain sense that position is not too different from playing strong safety. But the key was going in that Bucannon had a well established reputation for playing super tough. He sticks his nose in there and plays tough.
I have yet to warm up to ESPN's Josh Weinfuss as ESPN's NFL Nation Cardinals' Insider---but he made a pick for the Cardinals last night that was far more reasonable than T.J. Green. LSU LB Deion Jones gets after it---he is a baller. He plays to his 4.38 speed. T.J. Green runs a 4.36, but he appears lost on tape at times---partly because as a former WR converting to FS, he was learning a new position and partly because he hasn't developed defensive instincts and proper techniques---and it's quite a gamble to believe he ever will. isn't it? A gamble worth a 1st round pick? "C'mon, man."
Let's not forget that on top of looking completely intimidated by the Panthers in the NFCCG, there were only 4 Cardinals who stood up and played tough: RB David Johnson, SS Tony Jefferson, LB Kevin Minter and P Drew Butler.
Where was Pro Bowl DE Calais Campbell in this game? Pro Bowl CB Patrick Peterson? Pro Bowl QB Carson Palmer? Even WR Larry Fitzgerald was not himself.
How in the world can Steve Keim justify a $15.2M cap hit for DE Calais Campbell? What does that say about accountability? When you watch his half-arsed effort in the NFCCG, how in the world can he be given a mulligan, when quite frankly his motor went on idle for several games during the season, to the point where BA had to call him out.
The Campbell situation needs to be addressed one way or another. Otherwise, it says to players that they can get the big contract and then underachieve, even in the most important game.
Now---the great news Steve Keim had added toughness to the roster this off-season in trading for DE Chandler Jones and in signing RG Evan Mathis and S Tyvon Branch (who has the size a speed and experience to play press coverage on taller WRs and TEs).
Thus---will Steve Keim take his drafting up a notch this year and shun reaching for experimental players in lieu of drafting self-starters who have displayed great passion, toughness and leadership in college?
Simply put, the Cardinals need tougher blockers on offense, tougher tacklers on defense and finally tougher ST players. The bar for toughness has been set in the NFL and in the NFC. The Cardinals are in a prime position to reach and even exceed that standard. This draft can help get them over the hump. Get'r done, Steve Keim!
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