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Mini Camp Review
by: Dave Pasch
Whether it's a Sunday during the regular season, or organized team activity during mini-camp, I just love watching football. Especially when there are this many side stories. Having watched the last three mini-camps (including the rookie session last week), I have a pretty good feel for what to expect come training camp in six weeks. Here are some of my observations from this week.
OFFENSE
WR Bryan Gilmore:
The Cardinals aren't going to be afraid to "spin it downfield", as Dave McGinnis likes to say. They wanted to throw the deep ball more often last season, but Jake Plummer's struggles, the injuries to the wide receiving corps, and Rich Olson's apparent lack of confidence in Plummer kept Arizona from doing that. The Cardinals may be raw at wide receiver in 2003, but they are fast, and they have a quarterback who can get it to them downfield. I've seen Jeff Blake make throws in a handful of practices that I never saw from Plummer all of last season. Blake reads defenses well, makes quick decisions, has a great arm, and a quick release.
Wide receiver Brian Gilmore isn't 100 percent recovered from his broken ankle, but he should be by training camp. Gilmore still runs better than a lot receivers that are 100 percent. Guys like Gilmore, Jason McAddley, and Bryant Johnson can really stretch the field, and I think Anquan Boldin and Larry Foster can be two very effective slot receivers.
I've seen more throws to the tight end. Plummer had trouble reading the whole field and often times didn't go through his progressions, and instead either just picked his primary receiver regardless of single or double coverage or just ran. Blake is very patient and maybe that's why it seems like Freddie Jones is getting more passes. Earlier in the week, Blake hit Jones down the seam with a pass not too many guys can complete. It was over the linebacker, and inside the safety on a rope. Jones scored a touchdown on the play. Undrafted rookie tight end Lorenzo Diamond (Auburn) has made some impressive plays and could make a push for a roster spot in training camp.
Teams will probably start the season looking to stop the Cardinals running game, so if Arizona can throw the ball, that could open some even bigger holes for Emmitt Smith and Marcel Shipp. The offensive line is banged up right now, but should be at full strength come training camp. Newcomer Frank Garcia looks solid and will be good at either center or guard. I also like the idea of Pete Kendall at center, but it's too early to tell whether that's a realistic possibility. Fullback James Hodgins is more athletic than I originally thought. He weighs about 275, but will be a threat catching the ball out of the backfield.
DEFENSE
Safety Dexter Jackson:
The starting members of the secondary look very solid. Duane Starks is healthy and making plays in practice. David Barrett put on a little weight and plays even more physically than he did last year, when he was one of the more physical cornerbacks in the league. Safety Dexter Jackson can really fly and closes on the ball very quickly. I love Kwamie Lassiter, but Jackson is a definite upgrade. Jackson and Adrian Wilson could be one of the better safety tandems in the NFL. Wilson is up to about 225 lbs and can still cover receivers as well, if not better, than anyone on the team. New defensive backs coach Ron Milus is doing a lot of teaching and I think we'll see a more disciplined Adrian Wilson this season.
James Darling was a great pick up in the off-season. Darling is tough and he runs pretty well. He can cover running backs and will mix it up against the run. He gives the Cardinals good depth at linebacker, and could help on special teams. Ray Thompson picked up where he left off at the end of last season. Thompson was in the backfield a lot this week. Levar Fisher gained weight, and the knee which gave him a lot of trouble last season hasn't hindered him so far. Hopefully it will hold up, because Fisher is a little bit of a bigger version of Ray Thompson.
Kyle Vanden Bosch put on some weight, but hasn't lost his quickness, nor his motor of course. KVB has been playing both right and left defensive end and has been getting up field from both sides. Wendell Bryant looks in much better shape than he did last season, and the fact that I know he will be at training camp this year, makes me feel better about his chances to actually contribute. I think both players will benefit from an emphasis on hitting one gap, and beating the man in front of you, instead of playing gap control, and a "read and react" style.
SPECIAL TEAMS
RB/KR Josh Scobey, who spent last season on injured reserve with a bad thumb, could help the Cardinals upgrade their special teams. Scobey can return kicks, plus he could be a "gunner" on the punt team, and play on kickoff coverage because of his 4.4 speed. He has terrific straight line speed, and is shiftier than a lot of people said he was when he came out of Kansas State. Kicker Tim Duncan worked as hard in the off-season as anybody, and it shows. He is booming kickoffs, and is also angling them well toward the sidelines. Bill Gramatica is also kicking well, and remember, he had nearly 10 touchbacks as a rookie before injuring his knee. Kickoffs were one of the Cardinals biggest problems last year.
If you have any questions, or comments about this column, you can post them on our message board at Azcardinals.com, and I will respond.
Mini Camp Review
by: Dave Pasch
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Whether it's a Sunday during the regular season, or organized team activity during mini-camp, I just love watching football. Especially when there are this many side stories. Having watched the last three mini-camps (including the rookie session last week), I have a pretty good feel for what to expect come training camp in six weeks. Here are some of my observations from this week.
OFFENSE
WR Bryan Gilmore:
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The Cardinals aren't going to be afraid to "spin it downfield", as Dave McGinnis likes to say. They wanted to throw the deep ball more often last season, but Jake Plummer's struggles, the injuries to the wide receiving corps, and Rich Olson's apparent lack of confidence in Plummer kept Arizona from doing that. The Cardinals may be raw at wide receiver in 2003, but they are fast, and they have a quarterback who can get it to them downfield. I've seen Jeff Blake make throws in a handful of practices that I never saw from Plummer all of last season. Blake reads defenses well, makes quick decisions, has a great arm, and a quick release.
Wide receiver Brian Gilmore isn't 100 percent recovered from his broken ankle, but he should be by training camp. Gilmore still runs better than a lot receivers that are 100 percent. Guys like Gilmore, Jason McAddley, and Bryant Johnson can really stretch the field, and I think Anquan Boldin and Larry Foster can be two very effective slot receivers.
I've seen more throws to the tight end. Plummer had trouble reading the whole field and often times didn't go through his progressions, and instead either just picked his primary receiver regardless of single or double coverage or just ran. Blake is very patient and maybe that's why it seems like Freddie Jones is getting more passes. Earlier in the week, Blake hit Jones down the seam with a pass not too many guys can complete. It was over the linebacker, and inside the safety on a rope. Jones scored a touchdown on the play. Undrafted rookie tight end Lorenzo Diamond (Auburn) has made some impressive plays and could make a push for a roster spot in training camp.
Teams will probably start the season looking to stop the Cardinals running game, so if Arizona can throw the ball, that could open some even bigger holes for Emmitt Smith and Marcel Shipp. The offensive line is banged up right now, but should be at full strength come training camp. Newcomer Frank Garcia looks solid and will be good at either center or guard. I also like the idea of Pete Kendall at center, but it's too early to tell whether that's a realistic possibility. Fullback James Hodgins is more athletic than I originally thought. He weighs about 275, but will be a threat catching the ball out of the backfield.
DEFENSE
Safety Dexter Jackson:
You must be registered for see images
The starting members of the secondary look very solid. Duane Starks is healthy and making plays in practice. David Barrett put on a little weight and plays even more physically than he did last year, when he was one of the more physical cornerbacks in the league. Safety Dexter Jackson can really fly and closes on the ball very quickly. I love Kwamie Lassiter, but Jackson is a definite upgrade. Jackson and Adrian Wilson could be one of the better safety tandems in the NFL. Wilson is up to about 225 lbs and can still cover receivers as well, if not better, than anyone on the team. New defensive backs coach Ron Milus is doing a lot of teaching and I think we'll see a more disciplined Adrian Wilson this season.
James Darling was a great pick up in the off-season. Darling is tough and he runs pretty well. He can cover running backs and will mix it up against the run. He gives the Cardinals good depth at linebacker, and could help on special teams. Ray Thompson picked up where he left off at the end of last season. Thompson was in the backfield a lot this week. Levar Fisher gained weight, and the knee which gave him a lot of trouble last season hasn't hindered him so far. Hopefully it will hold up, because Fisher is a little bit of a bigger version of Ray Thompson.
Kyle Vanden Bosch put on some weight, but hasn't lost his quickness, nor his motor of course. KVB has been playing both right and left defensive end and has been getting up field from both sides. Wendell Bryant looks in much better shape than he did last season, and the fact that I know he will be at training camp this year, makes me feel better about his chances to actually contribute. I think both players will benefit from an emphasis on hitting one gap, and beating the man in front of you, instead of playing gap control, and a "read and react" style.
SPECIAL TEAMS
RB/KR Josh Scobey, who spent last season on injured reserve with a bad thumb, could help the Cardinals upgrade their special teams. Scobey can return kicks, plus he could be a "gunner" on the punt team, and play on kickoff coverage because of his 4.4 speed. He has terrific straight line speed, and is shiftier than a lot of people said he was when he came out of Kansas State. Kicker Tim Duncan worked as hard in the off-season as anybody, and it shows. He is booming kickoffs, and is also angling them well toward the sidelines. Bill Gramatica is also kicking well, and remember, he had nearly 10 touchbacks as a rookie before injuring his knee. Kickoffs were one of the Cardinals biggest problems last year.
If you have any questions, or comments about this column, you can post them on our message board at Azcardinals.com, and I will respond.
