RonF
Per Ardua Ad Astra
It's just one man's opinion but I do like the emphasis on drafting defense. When you are strong on defense you don't normally have to score a bunch of points.
"The start of the NFL season is just 160 days away and the question for the Arizona Cardinals isn't who's playing quarterback but will they be able to field a team. As the second week of free agency winds down fans no longer are worrying about how the Cardinals will spend the $35 million they have available for free agents, rather if they will spend enough to reach the minimum salary requirements of the NFL, which is $65 million.
Yes, the Arizona Cardinals are in trouble again. There have been many low points in the team's 15 years in the desert but this may be the lowest. The club lost its two best players without getting anything in return. More players like Frank Sanders, Kwamie Lassiter, MarTay Jenkins and Russell Davis are hoping to get out and the only way a free agent is coming here is if he is either desperate or vastly overpaid. The redbirds have over the past several weeks found a way to bring 'laughingstock of the league' to a new level. And yet they continue to ask fans for patience. Kind of hypocritical, wouldn't you say, when the team wants its season ticket renewal money and isn't willing to let the fans see how the team shapes out before requiring that money.
You don't need to look into a crystal ball to see more empty seats, record-low attendances and double-digit losses in the Cardinals near future. Heck I'm sure that if things don't change real soon there will be some experts picking the Cardinals to go winless in 2003.
While the Cardinals lack an experienced quarterback, a No. 1 wide receiver, pass rusher, linebacker, center, as well as help in the secondary, what they really lack is a plan. A simple long-term plan geared towards success a few years down the road. Based on the free agents they are going after it appears the Cardinals are attempting to patch a few leaks here and there, and that just won't work.
So while Rod Graves and the Bidwills preach patience, I'll preach plan. And since no one in the organization wants to put one together, I'll take the initiative. So here goes.
Since there are so many holes in this ship it is going to be impossible to fix this thing in one year. So forget about mixing and matching players on offense and defense. Work one side of the ball. And that will be defense.
Forget about Kordell Stewart, Emmitt Smith, James Hodgins, Curtis Conway and any other offensive free agent who will cost more then $1.5 million. Go into the season with Josh McCown as the starter on offense and grab a cheap veteran backup like Todd Collins, Neil O'Donnell, Charlie Batch or Shaun King. Don't waste your time on Smith, he will definitely fill seats at Sun Devil Stadium but this team is going to be so bad for the next two years that even Smith in his prime couldn't help this team win games. And besides, if he comes here it's as a starter and at Marcel Shipp's expense. Play MarTay Jenkins (if he stays), Kevin Kasper and Bryan Gilmore at the wide receiver spot. The offense will be bad, no doubt. They will struggle, turn the ball over and fail to put many touchdowns on the board. So use the year to evaluate the players you have and if McCown doesn't show any promise and a No. 1 wideout doesn't emerge then use the 2004 free agency period and draft to address the offensive needs.
Now, the defense. Match whatever offer linebacker Rosevelt Colvin gets from Detroit by $2 million or $3 million. Make him an offer he can't refuse. Colvin is a heck of a player and a building block for this defense. Convince defensive end Chike Okeafor to come to the desert by topping any offer he may get to return to San Francisco. Take the decision out of his hand by overpaying him. Same goes for Vonnie Holliday. You have $35 million to spend and just saved $7 million a year by not signing David Boston. So spend a few extra million to get Colvin, Okeafor and Holliday as the anchors on defense. Do a similar deal with free safety Dexter Jackson, the Super Bowl MVP from Tampa Bay. By concentrating solely on defense there is no reason that Arizona can't add four or five new players to the mix.
Now the hard part - the draft. Under no circumstances should you break from the plan. Stay the course even if it means passing on a franchise quarterback like Byron Leftwich of Marshall or speedy receiver Andre Johnson of Miami. Go with either defensive end Jimmy Kennedy of Penn State or shutdown corner Terrence Newman of Kansas State. One of them will be there at number six. Go defense again in the second round. Look for a safety like Mike Doss of Ohio State or a cover-corner in this round if you don't get Newman. In the third round add the best available linebacker and in the fourth round grab the best available defensive player regardless of position. With picks 5 through 7 and any extra compensatory picks concentrate on special teams and offense.
By following this plan Arizona may not score many points, but they will be stacked defensively and defense is what wins in this league. Just ask previous Super Bowl winners Tampa Bay, New England and Baltimore. The Cardinals tried this plan a few years ago with Andre Wadsworth, Simeon Rice, Mark Smith and Eric Swann and they failed. Injuries and egos were the reason why. But just because it didn't work a few years ago, doesn't mean you can't try again. Head Coach Dave McGinnis is a defense guy and by loading him up with talent and depth he may just find a way to make the Cardinals' defense miserable to play against. At the very least the Cardinals will have a strength from which to build.
As for the offense, they'll have another top five pick next year, possibly No. 1 overall, and plenty of money to spend on free agents. Remember this is a two to three-year plan. The offensive linemen are young and will continue to grow as long as the Cardinals brass keeps them together. That line is a good foundation to build an offense around. Once the defense is solid, the Cardinals can go after the skill position offensive players and a veteran quarterback to run the show should McCown fail. Remember McCown, a third-round pick, was the fourth quarterback taken in last year's draft and considered to be an eventual starter.
This plan is not foolproof. The organization still has to draft the right players and convince the free agents to follow the money. But it is one man's thoughts on how the Cardinals should proceed in turning this ship around. And it's a heck of a lot more than anything we've heard out of Cardinals' camp, where based on the happenings of the last two weeks serious doubts mount as to whether they know what the word "plan" means..."
"The start of the NFL season is just 160 days away and the question for the Arizona Cardinals isn't who's playing quarterback but will they be able to field a team. As the second week of free agency winds down fans no longer are worrying about how the Cardinals will spend the $35 million they have available for free agents, rather if they will spend enough to reach the minimum salary requirements of the NFL, which is $65 million.
Yes, the Arizona Cardinals are in trouble again. There have been many low points in the team's 15 years in the desert but this may be the lowest. The club lost its two best players without getting anything in return. More players like Frank Sanders, Kwamie Lassiter, MarTay Jenkins and Russell Davis are hoping to get out and the only way a free agent is coming here is if he is either desperate or vastly overpaid. The redbirds have over the past several weeks found a way to bring 'laughingstock of the league' to a new level. And yet they continue to ask fans for patience. Kind of hypocritical, wouldn't you say, when the team wants its season ticket renewal money and isn't willing to let the fans see how the team shapes out before requiring that money.
You don't need to look into a crystal ball to see more empty seats, record-low attendances and double-digit losses in the Cardinals near future. Heck I'm sure that if things don't change real soon there will be some experts picking the Cardinals to go winless in 2003.
While the Cardinals lack an experienced quarterback, a No. 1 wide receiver, pass rusher, linebacker, center, as well as help in the secondary, what they really lack is a plan. A simple long-term plan geared towards success a few years down the road. Based on the free agents they are going after it appears the Cardinals are attempting to patch a few leaks here and there, and that just won't work.
So while Rod Graves and the Bidwills preach patience, I'll preach plan. And since no one in the organization wants to put one together, I'll take the initiative. So here goes.
Since there are so many holes in this ship it is going to be impossible to fix this thing in one year. So forget about mixing and matching players on offense and defense. Work one side of the ball. And that will be defense.
Forget about Kordell Stewart, Emmitt Smith, James Hodgins, Curtis Conway and any other offensive free agent who will cost more then $1.5 million. Go into the season with Josh McCown as the starter on offense and grab a cheap veteran backup like Todd Collins, Neil O'Donnell, Charlie Batch or Shaun King. Don't waste your time on Smith, he will definitely fill seats at Sun Devil Stadium but this team is going to be so bad for the next two years that even Smith in his prime couldn't help this team win games. And besides, if he comes here it's as a starter and at Marcel Shipp's expense. Play MarTay Jenkins (if he stays), Kevin Kasper and Bryan Gilmore at the wide receiver spot. The offense will be bad, no doubt. They will struggle, turn the ball over and fail to put many touchdowns on the board. So use the year to evaluate the players you have and if McCown doesn't show any promise and a No. 1 wideout doesn't emerge then use the 2004 free agency period and draft to address the offensive needs.
Now, the defense. Match whatever offer linebacker Rosevelt Colvin gets from Detroit by $2 million or $3 million. Make him an offer he can't refuse. Colvin is a heck of a player and a building block for this defense. Convince defensive end Chike Okeafor to come to the desert by topping any offer he may get to return to San Francisco. Take the decision out of his hand by overpaying him. Same goes for Vonnie Holliday. You have $35 million to spend and just saved $7 million a year by not signing David Boston. So spend a few extra million to get Colvin, Okeafor and Holliday as the anchors on defense. Do a similar deal with free safety Dexter Jackson, the Super Bowl MVP from Tampa Bay. By concentrating solely on defense there is no reason that Arizona can't add four or five new players to the mix.
Now the hard part - the draft. Under no circumstances should you break from the plan. Stay the course even if it means passing on a franchise quarterback like Byron Leftwich of Marshall or speedy receiver Andre Johnson of Miami. Go with either defensive end Jimmy Kennedy of Penn State or shutdown corner Terrence Newman of Kansas State. One of them will be there at number six. Go defense again in the second round. Look for a safety like Mike Doss of Ohio State or a cover-corner in this round if you don't get Newman. In the third round add the best available linebacker and in the fourth round grab the best available defensive player regardless of position. With picks 5 through 7 and any extra compensatory picks concentrate on special teams and offense.
By following this plan Arizona may not score many points, but they will be stacked defensively and defense is what wins in this league. Just ask previous Super Bowl winners Tampa Bay, New England and Baltimore. The Cardinals tried this plan a few years ago with Andre Wadsworth, Simeon Rice, Mark Smith and Eric Swann and they failed. Injuries and egos were the reason why. But just because it didn't work a few years ago, doesn't mean you can't try again. Head Coach Dave McGinnis is a defense guy and by loading him up with talent and depth he may just find a way to make the Cardinals' defense miserable to play against. At the very least the Cardinals will have a strength from which to build.
As for the offense, they'll have another top five pick next year, possibly No. 1 overall, and plenty of money to spend on free agents. Remember this is a two to three-year plan. The offensive linemen are young and will continue to grow as long as the Cardinals brass keeps them together. That line is a good foundation to build an offense around. Once the defense is solid, the Cardinals can go after the skill position offensive players and a veteran quarterback to run the show should McCown fail. Remember McCown, a third-round pick, was the fourth quarterback taken in last year's draft and considered to be an eventual starter.
This plan is not foolproof. The organization still has to draft the right players and convince the free agents to follow the money. But it is one man's thoughts on how the Cardinals should proceed in turning this ship around. And it's a heck of a lot more than anything we've heard out of Cardinals' camp, where based on the happenings of the last two weeks serious doubts mount as to whether they know what the word "plan" means..."
