Cards at Falcons----my take

[Catfish]

I was extremely pleased with the play of all three of our units as it was clear to me that BA had his hands all over this game and had his roster ready to play. Before I talk about the good however, I want to get the bad off my chest.

Wisely, I thought, BA removed David Johnson from the game after just one carry. Chancing him to play on this newly installed, not yet proven carpet, was asking for trouble and BA took care of that right away. What I didn't like about it was that DJ's replacement, C. Johnson, was obviously disgruntled that he once again had to carry a rather large amount of the work in a preseason game. His lackluster play, including the fumbles and the dropped pass, were the only really dark spot that I saw from our roster this game. What's more, is that this makes two consecutive games of dismal play from him. I am not a fan of putting oneself ahead of the team but CJ clearly did not wish to be out there on that field and his play stunk up the place--------enough said.

Now for the good----------WELCOME BACK John Brown. Once again he was out there stretching the defense, and scoring TD's. Both passes, (one each from Palmer, and Stanton), were things of beauty. I was mesmerized to see this happen with a team that finished so well last year. Clearly BA had his roster ready to deal with Atlanta, and deal they did.

On Defense, it was great to see our olb's setting a hard edge and turning the play back up inside time after time, where guys like Capi, and Williams, and our DL were there to make the stop quickly and definitively. PP, Bethel and our secondary kept their receivers in check with tight coverage all afternoon.
It was fun seeing the Badger being the Badger again as well. His tip recovery for an interception was much welcomed. I was very pleased with the play of both the offense and defensive units this game.

Special teams were even ok today. They did not give up a lot, and for the most part, kept us in decent field position. We can live with that when compared to last year if that unit continues to improve like they have thus far. Again, hard edges were being set and the play was being turned back inside where the
gunners were able to make clean tackles for little or no gain. I truly enjoyed the feeling that we didn't have to cringe every time that unit took the field.

I really like what Atlanta has done with their new digs, and I believe that they are on to doing what is right by their fans with that new stadium. As they gradually work out the bugs, the fans will become as enamored with their new home just like ours have responded to the nest in Glendale.

All this was good for me to see, as this is as close to a real season game as we will see this off season. BA had his charges ready to play, and play they did. I have a very good feeling about the season now
that I was not sure of when I came back to the fold here on ASFN. I found this performance very re-assuring.

 

[Jetstream Green]

Let's say CJ did not want to be out there, well this is not your local high school rah rah situation and I do not blame him one bit. He is a vet at a position which takes a lot wear and tear and he is at that age where every carry could signal the big drop off if it has not already happened. He is a professional and will play like one when the real season starts and he is called upon and before people say something like "Larry would still be taking the hits in a game which does not count" forget they play different positions. I feel you catfish but for me I see CJ full circle removed from a preseason game and a lot of our guys where not holding onto the ball, it was a team problem last night in my opinion

 

[Mitch]

Great post, Catfish!

Chris Johnson does not look to be in good shape. This is the slowest he's looked in his career. I agree with you about his body language...very little energy and enthusiasm. What ticked me off as much as his fumbles was his going through the motions on the play action passes...as he made no effort to try to make it look like a legit run.

John Brown was such a pleasant surprise. I loved the shot of Darryl Drake hugging him and congratulating him on the bench. There's a lot of love there and it was clear that Brown appreciated his coach's support.

Phil Dawson is crazy good. It felt so weird to not have to feel the Cat Man jitters every extra point and field goal. Cat Man made a lot of good kicks, but man, it always seemed like anything could happen on his kicks.

 

[Mainstreet]

Maybe I look at it differently, but I don't think Chris Johnson should play like he is a lock to make the team.

Johnson has not played well in preseason and he still has something to prove... that he can still play.

 

[Shaggy]

I think CJ got better as the game progressed. He seemed rusty in the first few positions, but after that, he got alot of yrds after contact.

 

[JeffGollin]

I think CJ got better as the game progressed. He seemed rusty in the first few positions, but after that, he got alot of yrds after contact.

That's what I saw.

Only thing is - it might not be enough to save his job.

One other observation. Heading the list of "Who Was That Guy?" backups was the rookie from ECU (Summers). I like his size, pull-away strength and first-step explosiveness. (Catches passes too). Probably PS mtl - if no other team claims him).

 

[NJCardFan]

Let's say CJ did not want to be out there, well this is not your local high school rah rah situation and I do not blame him one bit. He is a vet at a position which takes a lot wear and tear and he is at that age where every carry could signal the big drop off if it has not already happened. He is a professional and will play like one when the real season starts and he is called upon and before people say something like "Larry would still be taking the hits in a game which does not count" forget they play different positions. I feel you catfish but for me I see CJ full circle removed from a preseason game and a lot of our guys where not holding onto the ball, it was a team problem last night in my opinion

While this may be true, he is also trying to make the team. It's obvious his skill level is way down or someone else would have signed him but we did after no other interest was in him. It's like a once starting pitcher trying to make a team at the end of his career and the only spot would be for a middle reliever. You have to put in the effort and from what I saw, CJ's heart definitely was not in the game and should be given his walking papers. This is a they say there's no I in team. Well, there certainly isn't a ME in team.

 

[Jetstream Green]

While this may be true, he is also trying to make the team. It's obvious his skill level is way down or someone else would have signed him but we did after no other interest was in him. It's like a once starting pitcher trying to make a team at the end of his career and the only spot would be for a middle reliever. You have to put in the effort and from what I saw, CJ's heart definitely was not in the game and should be given his walking papers. This is a they say there's no I in team. Well, there certainly isn't a ME in team.

I will say this, I would still rather have CJ than Penny when the real bullets start to fly

 

[NJCardFan]

I will say this, I would still rather have CJ than Penny when the real bullets start to fly

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[Jetstream Green]

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[pmacLean]

......
...... C. Johnson, was obviously disgruntled that he once again had to carry a rather large amount of the work in a preseason game. His lackluster play, including the fumbles and the dropped pass, were the only really dark spot that I saw from our roster this game. What's more, is that this makes two consecutive games of dismal play from him. I am not a fan of putting oneself ahead of the team but CJ clearly did not wish to be out there on that field and his play stunk up the place--------enough said.
..........

and what game were you watching ? I missed the one that was showing CJ all 'disgruntled', guess that was a different channel.

Did he fumble twice, yes he did. What did the powers that be do? bench him ? give up ? no, shortly after they had the QB hand him the ball on TWO plays in a row, each of which was straight up the middle and he got 9 yards on each BECAUSE HE LOOKED GREAT.

Palmer missed some passes in the pre-season, does that make him 'disgruntled' and 'dismal' ?

How some people get the 'hate' on, in message boards, for some players is beyond me, I predict everyone will be spouting some CJ love before this season is over.
And thank the sweet ... everyone seems to be off the 'hate Bethel' train, I was getting pretty sick of that also.

 

[LittleDavis]

I didn't see the "disgruntled" body language from CJ. Who knows what he was thinking. He did look a little rusty and that is to be expected. Humphries whiffed on a block after Johnson had just replaced DJ, the screen was a bad pass, he ran hard to the five and fumbled...that one was close. I actually thought he looked better running than he had previously. he had a couple of nice blocks. I think we are making to much out of this.

 

[Buckybird]

I didn't think CJ looks uninterested either!

Btw that fumble down inside the 10 wasn't a fumble, he was down & they missed it

 

[gimpy]

Well, whether they missed it or not (IDK), he still put it in the ground. . I'm drinking the Kool Aid. , I liked what I saw this game.

Go Cards.

 

[Gandhi]

Catfish, I wanted to thank you for putting in the time and effort to make these threads. I have not seen the game, and because I live in Europe it can sometimes be a bit difficult to get the same feel for the team and the players as you guys in America can. Therefore, I really appreciate how you and others on this board are willing to take the time to share your thoughts. I know that I rarely get to thank you, and I critize myself for that, but please know that I always appreciate reading your posts.

How do you feel about edge rusher Kareem Martin? I have been thrilled to read how he supposedly has stepped up this offseason. Even though Chandler Jones and Markus Golden obviously will get most of the playing time, I think it is extremely important to have someone who can rotate with one of them when needed without the defense taking a huge dropoff. Also, it allows Bettcher to continue running the play where there is a four of the best pass rushers on the field at the same time. Bettcher really liked that formation last season where Alex Okafor and Calais Campbell were the third and fourth player, and maybe it is not completely unrealistic that the formation will be even more effective this season.