Cards work out punter Matt Dodge

[az jam]

Mike Jurecki
PFT reports Cardinals worked out Punter Matt Dodge yesterday. 2010 - 7th round (14th pick) by the New York Giants

 

[Mulli]

Why can't Whiz develop punters?!?!

 

[az jam]

Why can't Whiz develop punters?!?!

I would think that would be the responsibility of Kevin Spencer, Special Teams Coach.

 

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

That is the bonehead who kicked the ball to Desean Jackson in the playoffs when his coach expressly told him to kick it out of bounds...Just get Graham back.

 

[Russ Smith]

You knew something was going to happen here, the problem with Zastudil is every must have punt he's had, he either shanked it or line drived it leading to a good return.

Graham looked like he was declining fast to me, but Zastudil just doesn't seem to handle pressure kicks at all.

 

[RugbyMuffin]

Kick It Out Of Bounds!!!!

 

[ARZCardinals]

Bring back Ben ---what a bone head move that was letting him go.

declining...obviously you didn't watch the preseason...he was DIALED IN. Every punt he pinned on or near the 5. He's not great at punting long distance, but you aren't going to get both.
Where he lacked in distance he could pin them on the sidelines on the long punts.

Go get him

He's still avail.

 

[kerouac9]

You knew something was going to happen here, the problem with Zastudil is every must have punt he's had, he either shanked it or line drived it leading to a good return.

Graham looked like he was declining fast to me, but Zastudil just doesn't seem to handle pressure kicks at all.

Our assistant GM was from Cleveland, and we've been bringing in these Browns castoffs the past couple of years. I wouldn't be surprised to see him take the fall after only two years if personnel continues to be a problem. It's not Graves who is looking to the Cuyahoga river whenever we need a new player.

 

[BigRedRage]

Bring back Graham!

 

[Rivercard]

Bring back Graham!

Totally agree. But that move would be admitting they screwed up in the first place.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Graham wasn't great... or very good... but this guy just stinks and completely chokes under pressure. i mean... he didn't even look better than graham in the pre-season. seems like cutting graham and keeping him was a money move and nothing else... which is pretty sad considering the relative small difference in cost the two guys had.

then again, this is the same team that had glaring weaknesses at a host of positions that we ignored while sitting on 9 million bucks in cap space, so, i guess every dollar counts.

seriously... we're losing these close games over and over again... the margin of error is razor thin... why wouldn't we have tried to get another CB or WR or an OT that was slightly better than what we have? Those positions were FLUSH in FA with solid players as opposed to our either flat out trash or completely unproven, completely unspectacular guys already on the roster.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Totally agree. But that move would be admitting they screwed up in the first place.

which is why I fully expect Bridges to be back on the bench this week if Keith is healthy.

 

[JeffGollin]

Bring back Graham!

Nah gah happen, but I agree.

Of all the things we wanted to improve roster-wise, Graham wasn't even near the top 10.

I always felt that, despite not being perfect, he netted out a "plus" in terms of influencing the outcome of games.

 

[BigRedRage]

which is why I fully expect Bridges to be back on the bench this week if Keith is healthy.

I will punch myself in the face.

Watching Bridges get in fights everywhere and display the mean streak desperatley needed in the OL position I became a fan very quickly.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Graham was very good once we got past the opponents 40...if he had to boom it, it was a disaster. At least he was good at something, as Zastudil is a total disaster.

I know it goes against conventional wisdom, but why not have two punters active? Every team has players active all year that don't ever sniff a snap. From a strategic standpoint, wouldn't it be a better idea to have one punter who is very proficient at pinning opponents deep (Graham) and another that can boom punts long and high?

The fossils that run these teams would probably never consider it, but the difference in field position could account for over 100 yards a game. In a game between two closely matched teams, it could be the difference between losing and winning. I'm constantly annoyed that the Cards are so blase about punting and kicking. They've been awful so far this year, and could have been the difference in at least a couple games this year.

 

[crisper57]

Nah gah happen, but I agree.

Of all the things we wanted to improve roster-wise, Graham wasn't even near the top 10.

I always felt that, despite not being perfect, he netted out a "plus" in terms of influencing the outcome of games.

It happened. Graham is back on the team, per AM 1060.

 

[Alan]

Cards sign Graham.

What was this about not admitting mistakes?

 

[TheCardFan]

Cards sign Graham.

What was this about not admitting mistakes?

Awesome. Maybe being out of the league for a bit will serve as motivation for him to play better.

 

[crisper57]

Awesome. Maybe him being out of the league for a bit will serve as motivation for him to play better.

His leg will be well-rested for the playoff push.

 

[john h]

Totally agree. But that move would be admitting they screwed up in the first place.

Maybe we can tryout that high school kid that kicked a 63yd winning field goal this week in Nevada. Maybe he can punt. Kickers and punters are so important and yet seem to get little notice when putting a team together. Almost after thoughts.

 

[Russ Smith]

I guess we'll find out now if that was the problem with Feely or not.

I'm glad they admitted Zastudil was a problem, just hope Graham has something left.

Last year he had 2 games all year over 40 yards net average, in 09 he did it ELEVEN times and had a net average about 4 yards higher per kick. It was because his hangtime was so much less last year the returns were just bigger as a result.

Hopefully whatever was wrong has been fixed.

 

[LoyaltyisaCurse]

Our assistant GM was from Cleveland, and we've been bringing in these Browns castoffs the past couple of years. I wouldn't be surprised to see him take the fall after only two years if personnel continues to be a problem. It's not Graves who is looking to the Cuyahoga river whenever we need a new player.

This! Why they brought over a GM from a franchise that was a much bigger failure personnel wise than the Cardinals during his tenure to "help" our team is a head scratcher. Notice, Browns personnel has vastlly inmproved since his departure.

 

[TheCardFan]

I guess we'll find out now if that was the problem with Feely or not.

I'm glad they admitted Zastudil was a problem, just hope Graham has something left.

Last year he had 2 games all year over 40 yards net average, in 09 he did it ELEVEN times and had a net average about 4 yards higher per kick. It was because his hangtime was so much less last year the returns were just bigger as a result.

Hopefully whatever was wrong has been fixed.

Sounds like we are keeping Zastudil on the roster (we cut a CB). I am not a fan of two punters (or two K's), so let's hope they lose one after this week.

Rotoworld:
Cardinals re-signed P Ben Graham.
The 37-year-old Graham is needed because Dave Zastudil is dealing with inflammation in his knee, and has struggled. Graham was Arizona's punter last season. He could supplant Zastudil with a strong effort against the Vikings.

 

[Rivercard]

His leg will be well-rested for the playoff push.

lol.

 

[AzStevenCal]

His leg will be well-rested for the playoff push.

LOL.

Steve