Figuring Out Where Cards Went Wrong in '05

[HardBall]

By Gerard Gallagher, NFL Analyst
(Sports Network) - The Arizona Cardinals finished their season with a 17-13 loss to the Indianapolis bench on Sunday, putting the final losing stamp on a campaign that began with promise in training camp but quickly devolved into a typical Cardinals season.
What went wrong along the way for the 5-11 Cardinals? And what is next?

THE YEAR IN REVIEW
Some things worked for the Cardinals this season, like their kicking and aerial games.
First, Neil Rackers developed into one of the best placekickers in the NFL, booting two more field goals in Sunday's game to give him a league-record 40 for the season, which eclipsed the old mark of 39 set by Miami's Olindo Mare in 1999 and matched by Jeff Wilkins of St. Louis in 2003.
It's a nice accomplishment for Rackers, but one that shines a light on Arizona's glaring inability to score touchdowns. The Cardinals finished with just 26 total touchdowns, which was two fewer than Seattle's Shaun Alexander scored by himself in a record-setting season.
Not that the Cards don't have weapons.
They do -- in wide receivers Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin, who finished fourth and fifth in receiving yards with similar 1,409 and 1,402 totals, respectively. These guys are a scary, physical combo when they're both healthy, probably the best 1-2 punch at wideout in the entire NFL.
Better as a unit than Harrison-Wayne in Indy. Now if they only had Peyton Manning hitting them on post patterns.
Which brings up one of the biggest problems for Arizona this season: the lack of a steady presence at quarterback.
Veteran Kurt Warner finished eighth in the NFC in passing yards and had a respectable QB rating of 85.8 in just 10 starts. But he proved once again that he is prone to injuries, leaving his status for next season uncertain.
Josh McCown was less successful in his nine games, which included six starts while Warner was injured. He ended with nine touchdown passes, 11 interceptions, and a passer rating below 75.
The Cardinals also lacked any kind of an efficient running attack and finished the season dead last in the NFL in rushing offense.
In 15 games Marcel Shipp started 11 times, ending the season with 451 yards on 157 carries for a paltry 2.9 yards-per average. He didn't score a touchdown, and hasn't done so since rushing for all of his six career TDs in 2002.
Shipp's rookie backfield mate J.J. Arrington looked a little bit better in our opinion. But the numbers still weren't there: 370 yards on 112 attempts for a 3.3 yards-per average. He did score twice, though, accounting for Arizona's only rushing touchdowns of the season.
The Cardinals defense showed flashes of inspiration along the way and finished fifth in the NFC in yards allowed per game. But they also surrendered more than 24 points per game.

OFFSEASON PREVIEW
The Cardinals have already let go of their offensive line and special teams coaches, the beginning of what should be a shakeup in the desert as the team moves forward into an expensive new stadium next season.
After failing to win consecutive games all season and ending with a record one game worse than head coach Dennis Green's first year with the team in 2004, the Cardinals players can't afford to take their offseason lightly.
And neither can the team's powers that be, who have a responsibility to field a team in 2006 worthy of the fans who will be shelling out a fortune to see the new stadium.
They need to:
- Decide who will lead the team behind center next season. Is Warner their guy, or should they use the draft to select a QB of the future?
- Choose between Shipp and Arrington, or look elsewhere for a starting running back. It has become pretty clear that Shipp doesn't have what it takes to be a No. 1 back in the NFL, so maybe Arrington deserves a shot to become the permanent starter in 2006.
- Take advantage of the head coaching purge taking place across the league right now. Hire one -- or two or three -- of the recently-offed coaches to fill vacancies on the staff.
- Don't make the mistake of standing pat. Take advantage of the fact that fans will be showing up next year...even if it's just to get a look at the new digs.

01/03 15:47:49 ET

 

[slanidrac16]

I'll say it again. Our biggest mistake was going into this season with a lack of depth and experience along the offensive line.

 

[conraddobler]

I'll say it again. Our biggest mistake was going into this season with a lack of depth and experience along the offensive line.

Well it's currently the elephant sitting in the room, let's hope everyone who matters in the organization realizes it and works to fix it the right way.

Whatever anyone thinks of Green, he can be pragmatic when forced to. I'd say they'll have to fix it. There's no hiding it or wishing it away anymore.

 

[D-Dogg]

I have a question for the Shipp lovers and JJ haters...how do you reconcile JJ having better numbers than Marcel?

JJ should have got more carries...he's the better back and with regular carries would have proven this, IMO. I'm still fine with this guy, and hope he seriously improves in his sophomore campaign.

 

[Pariah]

I have a question for the Shipp lovers and JJ haters...how do you reconcile JJ having better numbers than Marcel?

What's there to reconcile? It's not a friggin religion or a life-code or anything. Shipp didn't produce. No way around it.

But, to say that Arrington wuold have gotten better with more carries is stretching it, too, IMO. Maybe his avergae would have gone up a little, but he had some opportunity and didn't really cash in. I still think he'll be a really good 3rd down/change of pace type of back in the NFL. Maybe a spot-starter for the when the main guy goes down. But, I don't think he's ever going to be what we all hoped he was going to be when we drafted him and heard he was Marshal Faulk-like in camp. I hope I'm wrong, though.

 

[conraddobler]

I have a question for the Shipp lovers and JJ haters...how do you reconcile JJ having better numbers than Marcel?

JJ should have got more carries...he's the better back and with regular carries would have proven this, IMO. I'm still fine with this guy, and hope he seriously improves in his sophomore campaign.

Well I don't qualify, because I don't love Shipp or hate JJ and I agree JJ is the better back.

JJ is not my favorite type of back, Larry Johnson of the Chiefs is. Now that's a prototype NFL RB.

Big Strong and fast, with enough moves to make you miss and the perfect attitude, mad as hell all the time. He's perfect and if you stood him beside JJ you'd see why I am not a fan of the JJ type RB's.

Shipp has all the heart in the world but if you compared him to Johnson he's woefully slow.

JJ isn't slow, he's fast, he's just not powerful so as of now Shipp is our insanely cheap imitation of Johnson and JJ is our imitation of Tiki Barber.

JJ will be a good back in the NFL, he won't ever dominate, he's not tough enough to do that, but he will make people pay given holes to run through.

 

[D-Dogg]

I agree with conrad basically.

However, there is a contingent on this board that is so pro-shipp that they are anti-JJ. I want to know what they think of JJ being the better crappy back. Just a question...not a religion, Pariah...just a question.

I'm admittedly not a big fan of Shipp..I think he's a hard runner with minimal skills. I think JJ is a fast runner with a lot of skills, but needs a lot of room to operate. I think he's the far better back, but he needs the space to show it. I think he has been shell shocked in his rookie year, from his first carry and stick by Roy Williams on. He did better as the season wore on, and Shipp did worse as the season wore on. That's my main knock on Marcel...he takes hits hard, doesn't know how to make the tacklers slide off a'la Emmitt, and ends up dinged up..not on IR, but enough to slow him down as the season wears on. And he is allergic to the endzone for some unknown reason.

I just remember a lot of "Shipp is the Man, JJ sucks" rhetoric early on. I wonder where those people stand now.

I think JJ will be a good, 1000 yard back with a good Oline and 20 carries a game to get in rythm and to pop a few big gainers. He hasn't shown it yet, but he has shown promise.

 

[JeffGollin]

You don't have to be a rocket science to pinpoint where we went wrong.

- Offensive Line

- Return Teams

- Coverage Teams

- Penalties

- Turnover Ratio

Note - I believe there is a relationship between penalties and the low number of running plays called. When teams constantly start out 1st & 15 or 1st & 20 (because some bozo couldn't remember the snap count), you're not going to call a lot of running plays.

There is also a relationship between negative turnovers and a low running attempt number. When teams constantly play from behind, the clock eventually becomes their enemy and they tend to pass more than they run.

That plus the fact that when your run blocking sucks, you tend to avoid dialing up more runnng plays.

 

[Dr. Jones]

We also need to open our pocketbook to our coaching staff. We need experience in our core-teaching positions. Not inexperienced guys who come cheap and "might" succeed.

O- Coordinator? Norv Turner, Mike Tice (Line Coach & Snazzy title), Mooch, Mike freaking Martz?

D-Coordinator? Dom Capers.

I think I remember hearing somewhere that Denny's salary was a huge part of our coaching budget. Maybe it's time to widen our belt and welcome in some higher priced talent.

Just one guys opinion.

 

[duckfallas]

None of those guys are going to sign on with a coach going into his critical 3rd year. They will have better options elesewhere.

The Cardinals coordinators are doing fine. It was Rowen's first season and his unit improved throughout the year.

 

[Pariah]

I just remember a lot of "Shipp is the Man, JJ sucks" rhetoric early on. I wonder where those people stand now.

I don't. I remember a lot of "Shipp is the better back right now in their careers," and then that turned into a lot of, "clearly Arrington is the better back--he should be getting more, if not all, of the carries."

It's been "reconciled" by either saying Arrinton is better or that we need to bring in a new back.

 

[Dr. Jones]

None of those guys are going to sign on with a coach going into his critical 3rd year. They will have better options elesewhere.

The Cardinals coordinators are doing fine. It was Rowen's first season and his unit improved throughout the year.

If Rowan was calling the plays last year I don't think he was doing fine. There were quite a few posts dedicated to his wacky playcalling on the goal line. His 4th down decisions were pretty crappy also.

The best plays of the season were created by Anquan. Everything else looked like cookie-cutter offense. I guess he was smart enough to know where to throw the ball. Other than that.... I wasn't impressed.

 

[Duckjake]

You don't have to be a rocket science to pinpoint where we went wrong.

- Offensive Line

- Return Teams

- Coverage Teams

- Penalties

- Turnover Ratio

Note - I believe there is a relationship between penalties and the low number of running plays called. When teams constantly start out 1st & 15 or 1st & 20 (because some bozo couldn't remember the snap count), you're not going to call a lot of running plays.

There is also a relationship between negative turnovers and a low running attempt number. When teams constantly play from behind, the clock eventually becomes their enemy and they tend to pass more than they run.

That plus the fact that when your run blocking sucks, you tend to avoid dialing up more runnng plays.

I'd put more blame on two areas. Giving up TD's on the opponents opening drive and failure to score TD's. Instead of tied the Cards would be down 7-3.
The entire blame for failure to score inside the 10 can't be placed on the Oline as the play calling was also very suspect in many of those situations.

The Oline has been addressed every year since I can remember with little success.

Coleman,Dye,Shelton,Clements,Davis,Gruttadoria,Kendall,Ross,Leckey,Step,
and Brown. Turnover not turnovers has killed the Cards. I think more guys have started a game on the offensive line since the move to Arizona than there are season ticket holders.

The false start penalties are a very real area of concern. It's not just Davis. The Cards had 3 more Sunday while LD was out.

 

[duckfallas]

If Rowan was calling the plays last year I don't think he was doing fine. There were quite a few posts dedicated to his wacky playcalling on the goal line. His 4th down decisions were pretty crappy also.

The best plays of the season were created by Anquan. Everything else looked like cookie-cutter offense. I guess he was smart enough to know where to throw the ball. Other than that.... I wasn't impressed.

You must not have been around for the Trestman days. I think Rowen was a big part of Fitz and Boldin setting that record and the passing game getting on track. I wouldn't replace him. You need continuity at that position.

I'll agree with you on the goal line playcalling. It appeared the more difficulty the Cards had scoring a rushing TD, the more they tried to pound one home to prove that they could score that way. All the while ignoring their two biggest weapons in Fitz and Boldin.

 

[Dr. Jones]

You must not have been around for the Trestman days. :grin: I think Rowen was a big part of Fitz and Boldin setting that record and the passing game getting on track. I wouldn't replace him. You need continuity at that position.

I'll agree with you on the goal line playcalling. It appeared the more difficulty the Cards had scoring a rushing TD, the more they tried to pound one home to prove that they could score that way. All the while ignoring their two biggest weapons in Fitz and Boldin.

I think the WR's success was more a combination of their skill and our ineptitude in the running game. This was also compounded by playing from behind all the time. Denny likes to run first, pass second.

I will agree with the continuity aspect though. Changing all the time does take it's toll.

And for the record.... I think Rowan is better than Trestman.

 

[Russ Smith]

I have a question for the Shipp lovers and JJ haters...how do you reconcile JJ having better numbers than Marcel?

JJ should have got more carries...he's the better back and with regular carries would have proven this, IMO. I'm still fine with this guy, and hope he seriously improves in his sophomore campaign.

I like JJ too but the obvious counter is maybe JJ had a higher average because of the way we used him, as more of a specialized play type RB? Most of his big gains were on that misdirection pitch play that gets him outside at full speed where he just makes one guy miss and he's into the secondary. He was effective at that, but just lining up and running, Shipp was more effective.

I think it's likely JJ would have gotten into a groove and done better if he'd gotten more carries, but it's also possible his average would have gone down because you can't run trick plays over and over and this year we showed no ability whatsoever to just line up and run the ball. When we did, the only RB who had any success at it, save the SF game, was Shipp because he can get a yard when there's no hole there and JJ couldn't.

I think JJ will be a good player, I think he'll learn from this year he's certainly not the first rookie RB to be accused of not liking contact, but he's got to win his teammates over now because I guarantee you many of them are wondering if he's tough enough.

If the OL is improved I think JJ will show next year why he was a 2nd round pick, if the OL sucks again, I think it won't matter who we have at RB.

 

[D-Dogg]

I don't. I remember a lot of "Shipp is the better back right now in their careers," and then that turned into a lot of, "clearly Arrington is the better back--he should be getting more, if not all, of the carries."

It's been "reconciled" by either saying Arrinton is better or that we need to bring in a new back.

Nope, there first was "Shipp is great" and "JJ is a bust" (pre-season banter), then "Shipp is the better back for this line" (which I touted at one point, incorrectly), then "maybe JJ is better", then "JJ is a wuss", then pretty much acceptance that our running game really really really sucks.

The way you think Pariah is not the way everyone else thinks. I listened on the radio yesterday to Gambo crap all over JJ, and this is a guy I've never heard badmouth "the tugboat" even though he's just as crap.

 

[Pariah]

The way you think Pariah is not the way everyone else thinks.

Trust me, that's been painfully obvious to me for years!

 

[D-Dogg]

Trust me, that's been painfully obvious to me for years!

Let's just hope that the Cards think like you and me on draft day...goooooooo Cutler!