Off-season needs article on front page

[Skkorpion]

http://arizonasportsfans.com/storypage.php?Story_ID=627&Category=cardinals

 

[kerouac9]

Great article, Gary. I'm excited to see your defenseive overview. That being said, I really, really doubt that Dennis Green isn't going to use that #1 pick on a playmaker. People on the board have pointed out that Green has used first rounders on offensive linemen before, but it's never, ever been his top pick.

 

[arthurracoon]

 

[joeshmo]

Davey has to many years in the legue to be put on the practice squad. He is not eligible.

 

[WildBB]

Great article, Harry. I'm excited to see your defenseive overview. That being said, I really, really doubt that Dennis Green isn't going to use that #1 pick on a playmaker. People on the board have pointed out that Green has used first rounders on offensive linemen before, but it's never, ever been his top pick.

Gary Jones wrote the article.

Anyway , it was a very comprehensive look at what awaits the Cards this offseason. Your observations about the offensive line are very valid. Moving Ross to RG or LG and playing Brown at LG or moving him to RG might indeed be the best path to take there. I didn't see Wells much at center so I can't say there. Step seems OK, though we need more push up the middlle though. Step might give that better than Wells. That leaves RT - Some say Wells' best position would be takle. I think that's where he started out at. Right now all this line may need is rearranging and better depth. Maybe another (different) starter, so Wells is the main b/u. Huthinson would be my pick to spend the $$$$$$$$$$$$$ on this offseason. Remember that's been the Cards' MO the last few years. Getting one high profile FA. I think it should be him 1st and a b/u QB 2nd.
Wild Out.

 

[Snakester]

Gary Jones wrote the article.

Anyway , it was a very comprehensive look at what awaits the Cards this offseason. Your observations about the offensive line are very valid. Moving Ross to RG or LG and playing Brown at LG or moving him to RG might indeed be the best path to take there. I didn't see Wells much at center so I can't say there. Step seems OK, though we need more push up the middlle though. Step might give that better than Wells. That leaves RT - Some say Wells' best position would be takle. I think that's where he started out at. Right now all this line may need is rearranging and better depth. Maybe another (different) starter, so Wells is the main b/u. Huthinson would be my pick to spend the $$$$$$$$$$$$$ on this offseason. Remember that's been the Cards' MO the last few years. Getting one high profile FA. I think it should be him 1st and a b/u QB 2nd.
Wild Out.

With the amount of money the Cards have to spend I think there is a good chance that they will sign one big time free agent on offense and defense.

 

[kerouac9]

Gary Jones wrote the article.

Anyway , it was a very comprehensive look at what awaits the Cards this offseason. Your observations about the offensive line are very valid. Moving Ross to RG or LG and playing Brown at LG or moving him to RG might indeed be the best path to take there. I didn't see Wells much at center so I can't say there. Step seems OK, though we need more push up the middlle though. Step might give that better than Wells. That leaves RT - Some say Wells' best position would be takle. I think that's where he started out at. Right now all this line may need is rearranging and better depth. Maybe another (different) starter, so Wells is the main b/u. Huthinson would be my pick to spend the $$$$$$$$$$$$$ on this offseason. Remember that's been the Cards' MO the last few years. Getting one high profile FA. I think it should be him 1st and a b/u QB 2nd.
Wild Out.

Well, that explains the fetishistic focus on the offensive line. I thought that if Harry was being this obsessive, it must be a problem. Now that I understand it's Gary, then I'm less concerned.

Reggie Wells stinks. If he can't play guard, get him off the team. He's a below-average tackle (Despite what Mitch might say), and he's an even belower-average guard who makes Leonard Davis look worse every Sunday. There's no reason to make him the starting center in order to make Mac/Graves other kind of good draft pick look better. Leckey and Step are fine at the position. The assertion that either lacks the size to play OC at this level is unfounded.

 

[Snakester]

Great article, Gary. I'm excited to see your defenseive overview. That being said, I really, really doubt that Dennis Green isn't going to use that #1 pick on a playmaker. People on the board have pointed out that Green has used first rounders on offensive linemen before, but it's never, ever been his top pick.

You may very well be right. Picking Winston Justice at ten was the best player available that I could find in both the draft and free agency to put in our RT spot.

Because this draft is so strong in offensive linemen, I can see us taking a Lendale White and then an o-lineman in the second as well. It really all depends on what we do in free agency. If the Cards decide to sign a guy like Jeff Backus to play RT then they could go RB or even Defense. With guys like Chad Greenway, Micheal Huff, Tamba Hali and Haloti Ngata sitting there, going defense would be very tempting as well.

 

[Redsz]

Personally, I think Nick Leckey is the best centre on this team. He hardly misses a block and is underated around here. From my POV, he should be the starter in 06'. Team him up with Brown and Ross at G and you will have a decent interior.

Gotta admit, I'm warming up to Justice. But I still wonder if 10 is too high for him. And like you mentioned, there is a good chance a good tackle falls into the 2nd round.

 

[kerouac9]

You may very well be right. Picking Winston Justice at ten was the best player available that I could find in both the draft and free agency to put in our RT spot.

Because this draft is so strong in offensive linemen, I can see us taking a Lendale White and then an o-lineman in the second as well. It really all depends on what we do in free agency. If the Cards decide to sign a guy like Jeff Backus to play RT then they could go RB or even Defense. With guys like Chad Greenway, Micheal Huff, Tamba Hali and Haloti Ngata sitting there, going defense would be very tempting as well.

That pre-supposes that (1) we need to upgrade the RT position and (2) that Winston Justice or a free agent would present an immediate upgrade. I disagree with both points.

The first one is mainly because we have a player in Ross who has played the position for good running teams at a playoff level, and who has been practicing with the personnel next to him for a full season now. You seem to forget that continuity and coaching are as--if not more--important to success along the offensive line as talent/personnel. I don't believe that we have a talent problem at right tackle when the coaching has been so bad and Ross has had to worry about a rookie RG next to him most of the season.

For the second point, rookie offensive linemen rarely make an impact, regardless of their draft status. Highly-touted Robert Gallery hasn't done anything of note in two seasons. I've posted the list before, but only Levi Jones has proved a big success among the first-round OTs in the past several years developing into solid starters. The Cardinals have to compete for a playoff spot this season, both in order to keep the lights on in the Glendale Stadium for another year as well as to keep Denny Green's job. Putting a rookie in at the position or even a mid-tier free agent would represent a serious step back, not a step forward.

 

[Snakester]

Personally, I think Nick Leckey is the best centre on this team. He hardly misses a block and is underated around here. From my POV, he should be the starter in 06'. Team him up with Brown and Ross at G and you will have a decent interior.

Gotta admit, I'm warming up to Justice. But I still wonder if 10 is too high for him. And like you mentioned, there is a good chance a good tackle falls into the 2nd round.

I have him going in the top 15 so ten could be a little high, but I don't think that he is a reach at ten.

I like Nick Leckey as well and I think he did a good job for us. I was just looking at Wells being a better athlete and being bigger (6-4 320). I was thinking Wells would be able to give us a better push up the middle. The way I like to see an offensive line is power up the middle. I would love to have three guys the size of Big runblocking up the middle at the guard and center position. The tackles can be smaller as long as they are good at pass protection.

 

[WildBB]

With the amount of money the Cards have to spend I think there is a good chance that they will sign one big time free agent on offense and defense.

Sure - a Safety or a NT would be a good start. maybe another cover corner to upgrade that position and move Rolle to FS possibly.

We do need a b/u QB for Warner though.

 

[kerouac9]

I have him going in the top 15 so ten could be a little high, but I don't think that he is a reach at ten.

I like Nick Leckey as well and I think he did a good job for us. I was just looking at Wells being a better athlete and being bigger (6-4 320). I was thinking Wells would be able to give us a better push up the middle. The way I like to see an offensive line is power up the middle. I would love to have three guys the size of Big runblocking up the middle at the guard and center position. The tackles can be smaller as long as they are good at pass protection.

But Wells stank as a run blocker against faster, lighter DEs. There's no reason to think that he'd suddenly be able to open holes against DTs that are equally fast only weigh 30-50 lbs more.

Wells is an okay third-stringer for maybe all five spots along the offensive line, but he has no place being a starter in the NFL.

 

[WildBB]

Well, that explains the fetishistic focus on the offensive line. I thought that if Harry was being this obsessive, it must be a problem. Now that I understand it's Gary, then I'm less concerned.

Reggie Wells stinks. If he can't play guard, get him off the team. He's a below-average tackle (Despite what Mitch might say), and he's an even belower-average guard who makes Leonard Davis look worse every Sunday. There's no reason to make him the starting center in order to make Mac/Graves other kind of good draft pick look better. Leckey and Step are fine at the position. The assertion that either lacks the size to play OC at this level is unfounded.

Thats why I think Hutchinson next to Davis would give us a line along the LS on par with Seattle's. Then we only have the RT spot to worry about. Drafting Winston Justice wouldn't be bad if LenDale is gone somehow. Otherwise we have to address that need early (2nd round).

 

[Snakester]

That pre-supposes that (1) we need to upgrade the RT position and (2) that Winston Justice or a free agent would present an immediate upgrade. I disagree with both points.

The first one is mainly because we have a player in Ross who has played the position for good running teams at a playoff level, and who has been practicing with the personnel next to him for a full season now. You seem to forget that continuity and coaching are as--if not more--important to success along the offensive line as talent/personnel. I don't believe that we have a talent problem at right tackle when the coaching has been so bad and Ross has had to worry about a rookie RG next to him most of the season.

For the second point, rookie offensive linemen rarely make an impact, regardless of their draft status. Highly-touted Robert Gallery hasn't done anything of note in two seasons. I've posted the list before, but only Levi Jones has proved a big success among the first-round OTs in the past several years developing into solid starters. The Cardinals have to compete for a playoff spot this season, both in order to keep the lights on in the Glendale Stadium for another year as well as to keep Denny Green's job. Putting a rookie in at the position or even a mid-tier free agent would represent a serious step back, not a step forward.

You make very good points about continuity and coaching and I do agree with you on those points. Where I do disagree is Oliver Ross being a quality RT. Those things can help, but he looks like Anthony Clement out there. When he goes against a good speed rusher he looks like he is impersonating a Matador. He just doesn't have the feet to mirror and slide his opponents past the QB. He also gets beat on double moves too easily. He did get better at that towards the end of the season, but I just don't see him being a very good pass protector.

On the second point, if we could sign a Jon Ogden or Walter Jones type in free agency I would love to have them. The problem is there isn't one. I'm with you that I would love to have an experienced lineman over a rookie, just not Ross.

 

[Snakester]

But Wells stank as a run blocker against faster, lighter DEs. There's no reason to think that he'd suddenly be able to open holes against DTs that are equally fast only weigh 30-50 lbs more.

Wells is an okay third-stringer for maybe all five spots along the offensive line, but he has no place being a starter in the NFL.

I'm not saying he would knock back guys like Sam Adams, all I'm saying is that he is bigger and stronger than Leckey or Stepanovich and would get a little more push than they could. Plus I think he is a better pass protector than they are.

 

[spanky1]

I'm not saying he would knock back guys like Sam Adams, all I'm saying is that he is bigger and stronger than Leckey or Stepanovich and would get a little more push than they could. Plus I think he is a better pass protector than they are.

Let's look at the size issue re: Wells, Stephanovich and Leckey. You'll be a little surprised.

a)Wells: 6'4"/320
b)Step: 6'4"/305
c)Leckey: 6'4"/300

In terms of strength, we are in no position to rate because we simply have no way to gauge this. Both Step and Leckey were accomplished Div 1 wrestlers and you can't be a wrestler without being very very strong. Wells is more athletic (so people say, but based on what I can't be sure).

A Center doesn't have to be 320+ lbs. Indeed, many of the good ones are in the 295-305 range......which is exactly where our two fit.

Like fine wines, Centers mature over time and with experience. To suggest that either are no good is simply wrong. Both players are entering their third year and each has had starting experience at Center for one year.

We'll see a marked improvement in each this year. Unless LeCharles Bently can be snagged in the off season, I see no reason to write these two off.

 

[john h]

With the amount of money the Cards have to spend I think there is a good chance that they will sign one big time free agent on offense and defense.

One always has to wonder just how much of our CAP money we will spend? We are still the Cardinals. You would think with a new stadium we would spend most of it but the Bidwills have a lot of money to pay out. Saving money on players may be good for the Bidwills but in no way helps us as fans. Time will tell. Seems like every year we start by talking about all the CAP money we have available and then nothing really big happens.

 

[CardLogic]

An excellent and thorough article, Gary.

I think the Cardinals OL can only be better this coming season, simply because it can't get any worse! Between injuries, which were a crucial factor, poor coaching, and poor play the 2005 OL was just horrendous.

One can not help but to have serious concerns regarding Oliver Ross' abilities after watching his play last season... Hopefully, the coaching staff has a plan to address the OL deficiencies caused by other than injuries last season.

There are so many different ways that improvement may be approached that it is difficult to guess what the staff will focus on; personnel, coaching, consistency, discipline, etc.

I have to assume that there will be improvement in the play of the OL in the 2006 season! What the focus of that improvement will be is hard to guess.

 

[Snakester]

Let's look at the size issue re: Wells, Stephanovich and Leckey. You'll be a little surprised.

a)Wells: 6'4"/320
b)Step: 6'4"/305
c)Leckey: 6'4"/300

In terms of strength, we are in no position to rate because we simply have no way to gauge this. Both Step and Leckey were accomplished Div 1 wrestlers and you can't be a wrestler without being very very strong. Wells is more athletic (so people say, but based on what I can't be sure).

A Center doesn't have to be 320+ lbs. Indeed, many of the good ones are in the 295-305 range......which is exactly where our two fit.

Like fine wines, Centers mature over time and with experience. To suggest that either are no good is simply wrong. Both players are entering their third year and each has had starting experience at Center for one year.

We'll see a marked improvement in each this year. Unless LeCharles Bently can be snagged in the off season, I see no reason to write these two off.

I wasn't so much as writing those two off as I was wanting to find a spot for Wells. I think he is stronger and a better pass protector than they are. I agree that they will get better with every year of experience. Really all three can play center and its a good thing that we have all of them because of how many injuries we seem to get.

I would rather have a road grader type at left guard than a walloff and position blocker like Wells. I would like to see all three compete for the center position in camp and let the best man win.

 

[Snakester]

One always has to wonder just how much of our CAP money we will spend? We are still the Cardinals. You would think with a new stadium we would spend most of it but the Bidwills have a lot of money to pay out. Saving money on players may be good for the Bidwills but in no way helps us as fans. Time will tell. Seems like every year we start by talking about all the CAP money we have available and then nothing really big happens.

That is so true. Last year I think we kept about six million going into the season. We ended up giving that money to Neil Rackers which I think was a good investment. My thinking on this year is we didn't have a good year and because of that the Cardinals brass will want to do something big to draw in the fans to the new stadium. Just having a new stadium and air conditioning will add at least another five thousand fans per game, but how much more of a draw would signing a guy like Edgerrin James bring in. I think signing a big time player like that and another one on defense would do wonders for getting the fans excited again and wanting to come to the games. Because we are going into the new stadium next season I think the Cardinals will do something big to bring in the crowds.

 

[Snakester]

An excellent and thorough article, Gary.

I think the Cardinals OL can only be better this coming season, simply because it can't get any worse! Between injuries, which were a crucial factor, poor coaching, and poor play the 2005 OL was just horrendous.

One can not help but to have serious concerns regarding Oliver Ross' abilities after watching his play last season... Hopefully, the coaching staff has a plan to address the OL deficiencies caused by other than injuries last season.

There are so many different ways that improvement may be approached that it is difficult to guess what the staff will focus on; personnel, coaching, consistency, discipline, etc.

I have to assume that there will be improvement in the play of the OL in the 2006 season! What the focus of that improvement will be is hard to guess.

I think the line will perform better regardless. Guys like Elton Brown and Nick Leckey will have more experience and with our new and experienced offensive like coach, I think they will receive much better coaching, plus we had a ridiculous amount of injuries. I can't see us getting that many injuries two years in a row.

 

[john h]

An excellent and thorough article, Gary.

I think the Cardinals OL can only be better this coming season, simply because it can't get any worse! Between injuries, which were a crucial factor, poor coaching, and poor play the 2005 OL was just horrendous.

One can not help but to have serious concerns regarding Oliver Ross' abilities after watching his play last season... Hopefully, the coaching staff has a plan to address the OL deficiencies caused by other than injuries last season.

There are so many different ways that improvement may be approached that it is difficult to guess what the staff will focus on; personnel, coaching, consistency, discipline, etc.

I have to assume that there will be improvement in the play of the OL in the 2006 season! What the focus of that improvement will be is hard to guess.

Not to say we will or should not do anything with the OL but we will in fact be better on the OL even if we do nothing. We were the worst and there is only one way to go. A good question is if we develop a decent OL do we have the runners to make it function? I think not and we had better add a runner. I think Green and associates are gifted enough to recognize this and wil either draft a RB or sing a FA RB. A great start is we now have an experience OL coach. He will have the savvy to at least put in some good info to Green come draft day or the signing of FA. This guy has been around for a long time and should have extreme knowledge of existing players.

 

[Captain Matt]

A correction.....

"The offense also struggled with many injuries. Kurt Warner was hurt twice during the season and the offensive line was a revolving door of players. The Cardinals started the season with their fourth center starting game one. RT Oliver Ross was injured early on and struggled to get both healthy and to play well when he did."

What I think he meant to say was, " The offense also struggled with many injuries. Kurt Warner was hurt twice during the season because Oliver Ross was a revolving door for a lot of defensive players. Thank goodness he was injured early on and struggled to get healthy."

But that's just my opinion.... LOL....

 

[BigRedRage]

Great article