Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
Defense:
* Solid stopping the run---Minter was good, Calais came on late, but there should have been more tackles from the defensive line. But they did a good job of keeping the LBs free. Jefferson and Bucannon are both strong at forcing the run.
* Many of us were saying all week that one of James Bettcher's biggest tasks was defending the Saints' package of screens and RB swing, quick out and wheel patterns---especially because teams will look at the Cardinals' lack of speed at LB and want to isolate the RB in space versus one of the LBs. So---to give up so many wide open RB runs via those options was a huge concern. Not sure how well prepared Bettcher had the team on that key part of the Saints' offense because it seemed that whenever Bettcher went into blitz mode, Brees audible into the perfect call, be it the screen or swing pass....which leads to another concern---if the Saints can know exactly when the Cardinals are blitzing in week one, Bettch had better assemble better disguises.
* Now----here's the good news: down the stretch, Bettch made key adjustments because we now saw Minter trailing and sticking to Ingram. That was key because it forced Brees to hold onto the ball longer and to have to shift his focus downfield, where the Cardinals' coverage was so good at times that Alex Okafor got two coverage sacks. Kudos to messes Peterson, Mathieu, Powers and Johnson (save the poor angle he took on the first play (intermediate post route) of the second half.
* Minter was around the ball all day and could have had double digit tackles...and he could in games to come if he learns to run through the ballcarrier. He tends to stop his feet too soon, kind of like sitting in a breakdown position and making the RB commit one side or another---but, Minter was still too stuck in his breakdown to make the tackle. later in the game he was running through the ball carrier better, like the strong tackle he made on the RB in the flat that Bucannon finished off with a bang.
* Tyrann Mathieu is such a joy to watch when he is playing with his inimitable energy and anticipation. He has to be one of the smartest and toughest small Cardinal CBs ever. He's the best tackler on the team---he's as good a cover guy as anyone because he completely understandings cushion, leverage, breaking at the right time on the ball---and he's the best blitzer: not only does he get to the QB in a hurry, he still has the body control to jump up on a dime with an arm up in the passing lane---man, look at how close Kareem Martin was to picking off the second deflection Matthieu had on Brees. Funny, but the one tackle he missed was on the one TD the Saints scored. But---how about Mathieu's recovery speed chasing WRs (not his) from behind in this game? Incredible---that he even has that extra gear.
* Markus Golden's hustle plays were outstanding. He is flat-out balling to the whistle every play. Plus, he got one of the rare back end of the pocket pressures on Brees.
* Very disappointed in the pass rush---not much inside pressure at all, which is key versus smaller QBs like Brees. The edge guys, Okafor and Golden were aggressive but too often when their first move was taken away they didn't have quick and aggressive counters.
* Rashad Johnson's interception was a great play, especially in how low the ball was deflected and in light of the "nine fingers!" If you watch his catch closely you an actually see the waving of the missing finger of his glove, which makes it all the more remarkable how he caught that ball.
* BTW---what the Cardinals aren't doing is blowing up the screens, which means when the pass is in the air the LB assigned to the RB has to try to split the blockers and race to the catch...even if he misses, the one to two second delay that causes for the RB buys time for heavy pursuit to arrive. If the LB is late or can't split the blockers then he has to blow up the lead blocker and take him down like a tree so that the immediate protection is wiped out and other now have a clear shot at the RB. Minter in time should be good at this. We didn't see much of Weatherspoon, but, when healthy and fired up, he was a master of this for the Falcons. Bucannon can learn and be good at this too, as could Fua if and when he gets some PT.
* Overall, the defense bended but didn't break, which for facing Sean Payton and Drew Bress with a new rookie DC, we'll take. But, there was way too much confusion on defense and too many late calls---which is exactly why one worries about a DC who has never done this at any level before. Which worries me because if and when the defense falters Bettcher will undoubtedly get the scrutiny and the blame---which can become a crutch for the players. Bettcher did make some good adjustments after the easy, long, wide open swing pass that nearly went the 65 yard distance.
Offense:
* The conundrum BA has is trying to run the ball and somehow keep Carson Palmer in rhythm at the same time. As we saw, run on 1st-run on 2nd-and throw on 3rd didn't work well in this game. It's tough on the QB---puts a lot of pressure on him.
* The run blocking was adequate, which for having two starters out was acceptable. Cooper was very good pulling, but not good at getting to the LB off the snap on isolation plays. Sometimes, I wish the coaches would simplify the blocking scheme---simple x blocks (quick traps)---simple overloads---simple down block isolations---BUT this is exactly why running without a FB has its limitations, is that you don't typically get quick hard-nosed blocks on the ILBs, which makes it easy for the ILB to get a straight shots at the RB (as rookie ILB Stephone Anthony did several times yesterday).
* Boy---just loved seeing A.Q. Shipley line up at FB in the goal-line and hammer open the crease for Ellington. I think that Ellington is an I back---he needs a traditional FB to wipe out the first sign of color (opposing jersey) and give the RB the chance to spring a good run from there.
* If it were me, and I've been saying this all pre-season, I would use Ellington strictly in the slot and design a package of plays for him designed to get him the ball in space: jet sweeps, quick hitch screens, quick, skinny posts like he had for the huge gainer in the 1st pre-season game, quick outs, quick out an ups, dig routes, drag routes---where he can catch the ball and be off to the races. Sending him into the middle of NFL defenses is like send a rabbit into a coyote den. He's trapped and can't use his greatest assets: his speed and quickness.
* Man the catch Michael Floyd made on the first drive was impressive because it was darted in there through traffic and because of his hand injury---that ball had hot steam on it.
* Speaking of hot steam, how about Palmer's opening passes to John Brown and later on to Fitz---thrown out of a cannon right in stride.
* Where Palmer needs to improve is on his deep passes---primarily because he a second or two late on them, which negates the speed of the WRs.
* On the deep corner pass where Fitz was wide open, the timing was disrupted because Fitz took one step too many selling the post---but that extra step sold the post so well that Fitz was miles open after he turned for the corner. Palmer and Fitz will get the timing down and probably stick with the extra step sell on the post because of how well it worked.
* The RB "hide" pass to David Johnson was executed to pure perfection. What a thing of beauty. The nifty fake to Smoke on the reverse, the sliding toward toe top left of the pocket by Palmer, his quick shoulder turn---to a wide-open passing lane to a wide open RB, and then Fitz' good position to be enough of a deterrent, blocking-wise to spring Johnson---similar to the way Jermaine Gresham was enough of a deterrent to spring Darren Fells for a big gainer on what was yet another perfectly executed play---that and Fells' out pass TD on a rope by Palmer. Those three plays don't get any prettier than that. Credit BA and the receivers for taking pride in their blocking roles.
* BA and Palmer settle on a Top 30 play list each week, catered to Palmer's comfort and liking. And we know some of the plays that BA and Palmer didn't run---such as their patented RB wheel route---look for David Johnson to run that play this week or sometime soon. And I think we are going to see Jaron Brown hit pay dirt on a deep go sometime soon. That play is one they have been honing in practice for two years now.
Special Teams:
* The answer to the 12 men of the field penalty which led to the Saints' one TD drive is to in that situation keep the defense on the field, because you want to take away the fake punt at all costs in that situation---if they pin the ball deep, fine.
* BA should have called a timeout once he saw that the Saints were sending in their punter, even if it was following the Saints' timeout. BA still had two timeouts. BA is usually pretty alert about calling timeouts in moments of confusion.
* Still can't believe Sean Payton punted the ball on 4th and 6, down by 5. Down by 3, maybe, with 2 minutes left and two timeouts. maybe. Down by 5 and with Drew Brees at QB and a young defense? A total head-scratcher, but not as bad as Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning doing the one thing that could cost them the win which was to stop the clock on 3rd and goal.
* Catanzaro, Butler and Leach were all clutch when the Cardinals needed them most.
* Solid stopping the run---Minter was good, Calais came on late, but there should have been more tackles from the defensive line. But they did a good job of keeping the LBs free. Jefferson and Bucannon are both strong at forcing the run.
* Many of us were saying all week that one of James Bettcher's biggest tasks was defending the Saints' package of screens and RB swing, quick out and wheel patterns---especially because teams will look at the Cardinals' lack of speed at LB and want to isolate the RB in space versus one of the LBs. So---to give up so many wide open RB runs via those options was a huge concern. Not sure how well prepared Bettcher had the team on that key part of the Saints' offense because it seemed that whenever Bettcher went into blitz mode, Brees audible into the perfect call, be it the screen or swing pass....which leads to another concern---if the Saints can know exactly when the Cardinals are blitzing in week one, Bettch had better assemble better disguises.
* Now----here's the good news: down the stretch, Bettch made key adjustments because we now saw Minter trailing and sticking to Ingram. That was key because it forced Brees to hold onto the ball longer and to have to shift his focus downfield, where the Cardinals' coverage was so good at times that Alex Okafor got two coverage sacks. Kudos to messes Peterson, Mathieu, Powers and Johnson (save the poor angle he took on the first play (intermediate post route) of the second half.
* Minter was around the ball all day and could have had double digit tackles...and he could in games to come if he learns to run through the ballcarrier. He tends to stop his feet too soon, kind of like sitting in a breakdown position and making the RB commit one side or another---but, Minter was still too stuck in his breakdown to make the tackle. later in the game he was running through the ball carrier better, like the strong tackle he made on the RB in the flat that Bucannon finished off with a bang.
* Tyrann Mathieu is such a joy to watch when he is playing with his inimitable energy and anticipation. He has to be one of the smartest and toughest small Cardinal CBs ever. He's the best tackler on the team---he's as good a cover guy as anyone because he completely understandings cushion, leverage, breaking at the right time on the ball---and he's the best blitzer: not only does he get to the QB in a hurry, he still has the body control to jump up on a dime with an arm up in the passing lane---man, look at how close Kareem Martin was to picking off the second deflection Matthieu had on Brees. Funny, but the one tackle he missed was on the one TD the Saints scored. But---how about Mathieu's recovery speed chasing WRs (not his) from behind in this game? Incredible---that he even has that extra gear.
* Markus Golden's hustle plays were outstanding. He is flat-out balling to the whistle every play. Plus, he got one of the rare back end of the pocket pressures on Brees.
* Very disappointed in the pass rush---not much inside pressure at all, which is key versus smaller QBs like Brees. The edge guys, Okafor and Golden were aggressive but too often when their first move was taken away they didn't have quick and aggressive counters.
* Rashad Johnson's interception was a great play, especially in how low the ball was deflected and in light of the "nine fingers!" If you watch his catch closely you an actually see the waving of the missing finger of his glove, which makes it all the more remarkable how he caught that ball.
* BTW---what the Cardinals aren't doing is blowing up the screens, which means when the pass is in the air the LB assigned to the RB has to try to split the blockers and race to the catch...even if he misses, the one to two second delay that causes for the RB buys time for heavy pursuit to arrive. If the LB is late or can't split the blockers then he has to blow up the lead blocker and take him down like a tree so that the immediate protection is wiped out and other now have a clear shot at the RB. Minter in time should be good at this. We didn't see much of Weatherspoon, but, when healthy and fired up, he was a master of this for the Falcons. Bucannon can learn and be good at this too, as could Fua if and when he gets some PT.
* Overall, the defense bended but didn't break, which for facing Sean Payton and Drew Bress with a new rookie DC, we'll take. But, there was way too much confusion on defense and too many late calls---which is exactly why one worries about a DC who has never done this at any level before. Which worries me because if and when the defense falters Bettcher will undoubtedly get the scrutiny and the blame---which can become a crutch for the players. Bettcher did make some good adjustments after the easy, long, wide open swing pass that nearly went the 65 yard distance.
Offense:
* The conundrum BA has is trying to run the ball and somehow keep Carson Palmer in rhythm at the same time. As we saw, run on 1st-run on 2nd-and throw on 3rd didn't work well in this game. It's tough on the QB---puts a lot of pressure on him.
* The run blocking was adequate, which for having two starters out was acceptable. Cooper was very good pulling, but not good at getting to the LB off the snap on isolation plays. Sometimes, I wish the coaches would simplify the blocking scheme---simple x blocks (quick traps)---simple overloads---simple down block isolations---BUT this is exactly why running without a FB has its limitations, is that you don't typically get quick hard-nosed blocks on the ILBs, which makes it easy for the ILB to get a straight shots at the RB (as rookie ILB Stephone Anthony did several times yesterday).
* Boy---just loved seeing A.Q. Shipley line up at FB in the goal-line and hammer open the crease for Ellington. I think that Ellington is an I back---he needs a traditional FB to wipe out the first sign of color (opposing jersey) and give the RB the chance to spring a good run from there.
* If it were me, and I've been saying this all pre-season, I would use Ellington strictly in the slot and design a package of plays for him designed to get him the ball in space: jet sweeps, quick hitch screens, quick, skinny posts like he had for the huge gainer in the 1st pre-season game, quick outs, quick out an ups, dig routes, drag routes---where he can catch the ball and be off to the races. Sending him into the middle of NFL defenses is like send a rabbit into a coyote den. He's trapped and can't use his greatest assets: his speed and quickness.
* Man the catch Michael Floyd made on the first drive was impressive because it was darted in there through traffic and because of his hand injury---that ball had hot steam on it.
* Speaking of hot steam, how about Palmer's opening passes to John Brown and later on to Fitz---thrown out of a cannon right in stride.
* Where Palmer needs to improve is on his deep passes---primarily because he a second or two late on them, which negates the speed of the WRs.
* On the deep corner pass where Fitz was wide open, the timing was disrupted because Fitz took one step too many selling the post---but that extra step sold the post so well that Fitz was miles open after he turned for the corner. Palmer and Fitz will get the timing down and probably stick with the extra step sell on the post because of how well it worked.
* The RB "hide" pass to David Johnson was executed to pure perfection. What a thing of beauty. The nifty fake to Smoke on the reverse, the sliding toward toe top left of the pocket by Palmer, his quick shoulder turn---to a wide-open passing lane to a wide open RB, and then Fitz' good position to be enough of a deterrent, blocking-wise to spring Johnson---similar to the way Jermaine Gresham was enough of a deterrent to spring Darren Fells for a big gainer on what was yet another perfectly executed play---that and Fells' out pass TD on a rope by Palmer. Those three plays don't get any prettier than that. Credit BA and the receivers for taking pride in their blocking roles.
* BA and Palmer settle on a Top 30 play list each week, catered to Palmer's comfort and liking. And we know some of the plays that BA and Palmer didn't run---such as their patented RB wheel route---look for David Johnson to run that play this week or sometime soon. And I think we are going to see Jaron Brown hit pay dirt on a deep go sometime soon. That play is one they have been honing in practice for two years now.
Special Teams:
* The answer to the 12 men of the field penalty which led to the Saints' one TD drive is to in that situation keep the defense on the field, because you want to take away the fake punt at all costs in that situation---if they pin the ball deep, fine.
* BA should have called a timeout once he saw that the Saints were sending in their punter, even if it was following the Saints' timeout. BA still had two timeouts. BA is usually pretty alert about calling timeouts in moments of confusion.
* Still can't believe Sean Payton punted the ball on 4th and 6, down by 5. Down by 3, maybe, with 2 minutes left and two timeouts. maybe. Down by 5 and with Drew Brees at QB and a young defense? A total head-scratcher, but not as bad as Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning doing the one thing that could cost them the win which was to stop the clock on 3rd and goal.
* Catanzaro, Butler and Leach were all clutch when the Cardinals needed them most.
