Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
The Cardinals can thank the Packers and their excellent coaches, Mike McCarthy and Dom Capers in particular, for showing them the blueprint of how you beat the Cardinals.
On defense, you overload the edge, blitz a linebacker up the middle and drop off a couple of linemen into the hot zones, and you will get to Kurt Warner. You get to Warner and you will create turnovers. When the Cardinals don't win the turnover battle, they lose. Period.
On offense, you attack the deep middle, because the Cardinals still have no concept of how to use a free safety. You also run a variety of misdirection plays, reverses, bootlegs and waggles, because the Cardinals still have little concept of edge contain. You also instruct your QB to take off whenever he sees an opening, because the Cardinals will over-commit their DEs on the pass rush, and their NT is slow to react in the middle.
What has to be the team's biggest concern at this point is fixing a defense that is in total disarray and is poorly conceived, especially from a personnel standpoint. Antrel Rolle is a SS posing as a FS. He plays his best in the box and intermediate areas of the defense. Same with the All-Pro SS Adrian Wilson. Why Aaron Francisco is still being asked to play nickel FS is a mind boggler. Like Rolle and Wilson, Francisco is a box and intermediate player, not a player suited to play in large open spaces.
If I were Bill Davis, I would cater the defense to the personnel by running a hybrid of sorts. The first thing I would do is insert Rashad Johnson at FS and instruct him to play the deep ball on every play, no exceptions. Keep the ball in front of you. Johnson has the discipline and smarts to do that.
Next, I would move Antrel Rolle up to strong side safety, and slide Adrian Wilson into a rover/monster role.
Up front I would offer a mix of 5 and 4 man fronts depending on down and distance. This part Davis has already accomplished. But, at times I would slide Gerald Hayes directly into the middle in order to move Karlos Dansby into areas where he can attack the line of scrimmage and rush the QB.
We need another FS to join Rashad Johnson for the Cover 2 FS. I would be tempted to try Greg Toler in that role because of Toler's speed. Otherwise, the Cardinals need to acquire another FS because Aaron Francisco, Matt Ware and Keith Lewis are not fast enough, disciplined enough or instinctive enough to play the position.
If you want to see how the FS position is played, the Packers offered the Cardinals a blueprint on that as well. Both Nick Collins and Anthony Smith put on a clinic last night. Jarret Bush also looked good to me and he might not make the Packers' roster. What the Packer FSs do is they keep the plays in front of them, they anticipate where the ball is going, make clean breaks on the ball, and hammer any WR who catches the ball in front of them. That's the job, and they do it extremely well. They also covered well for CB Charles Woodson when Dom Capers elected to send him off the edge until the Cardinals adjusted. Guess what? The Cardinals never adjusted.
On offense, this is the first thing to address and clean up...the Cardinals cannot for another year leave the edges so vulnerable...if it means keeping two RBs in the backfield at times...if it means chipping the edge rushers with the slot WR or TE...if it means running 2 TE sets...the Cardinals MUST start countering for edge pressue. Every opponent knows...you get to Warner, you beat the Cardinals.
What's most encouraging about last night's game is the emergence of what looks to be a much stronger running game, led by Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells...and complimented nicely by the speedy LaRon Stephens-Howling. What was also most encouraging was the play of QB Matt Leinart. That was the best Leinart has looked since the infamous MNF game versus the Bears. The thing is...Matt Leinart has learned to step up into the pocket and step into his throws...and as we saw, when he does that his ball doesn't sail or drift. At times last night his control was pinpoint. How about the fade pass to the left corner to Early Doucet that could have won the game? Can that pass be thrown any better or more accurately? Same as the pass a couple of plays earlier in the right corner to Lance Long. Left corner---right corner, both passes thrown on the money, honey!
What the Cardinals should do is play Leinart for the first three quarters at Denver and let him take this week's success into a game versus a team's starters. Leinart needs more reps with the starting lineup and there's no sense in playing Kurt Warner in this next game. Give him two weeks to prepare for the 49ers...start the game prep now, not next week....kind of like how you send your starting pitcher off to the next game site a day in advance during the MLB playoffs. Get Warner ready.
Speaking of Warner, he needs the next two weeks to get his head straight. This is the first time in years he's been the #1 starter from the get-go going into the regular season. He looks a tad complacent right now...just a tad. He needs a kick in the butt. This is where the team misses Todd Haley.
But...Warner is always hungry to put up big numbers...and is extremely self-motivated in that regard, which is why we can expect to see a hungry Warner run out of the tunnel on game one. Right now Warner needs to build that hunger back up and he has two weeks to do so.
Now for this week's roster considerations with some notes.
QB (3): Warner; Leinart; St. Pierre. Play Leinart in quarters 1, 2 and 3 versus Denver and BSP, if his back is better, in quarter 4. Otherwise play Tyler Palko in quarter 4. Sign Palko to the PS.
RB (4): Hightower; Wells; Wright; Stephens-Howling. All four of these RBs had very good nights. Hightower is running with authority. Wells has such nifty feet for a big RB, wow. When was the last time we saw such sharp cuts to make defenders miss? That 20 yard TD run was a work of art. How about Wright on those screen passes? Great stuff. And LSH made the most of his kickoff returns...his last one was his best as he was able to turn the corner with a nice little burst. Nice burst too on his sweep. Hope he's OK...man he took a shot. This kid seems very tough, so it's likely he will bounce right back.
FB (1): Kreider. Best ST player and best blocker of the bunch. Tim Castille is the best receiver but is not needed in that role with all the other options the Cardinals have. Maiu'a is a load...dang I love the block he made to spring Wells for his second TD. Sign this kid to the PS.
WR (6): Fitzgerald; Boldin; Breaston; Urban; Doucet; Morey. Fitz looked great...but he should play only the first quater at Denver. Same with Boldin and Breaston...one quarter at the most, if at all. Urban sure gets open, doesn't he? He's slippery...but as he showed again last night, he needs more polish, especially for doing the little things, like tucking the ball in after the catch and working his way back to the ball on underthrown passes. Doucet had an up and down night...but he looked a lot like Q on the WR screen...and his game is starting to come around. Morey showed great hands last night and he could contribute if called upon. Lance Long had a tough night and needs a tremendous bounce back game to make the roster. His hands are usually very good, but last night he dropped an easy pass over the middle, although he may have heard footsteps because those Packer LB and Ss were clobbering people out there. And he dropped a punt...his first punt return was nifty, though. And he dropped the TD when the ball hit the turf...but on that play he showed incredibly nifty footwork. I really like this kid and I hope he sticks...but last night did not help his cause. He may be pressing. Can we blame him?
TE (3): Pope; Becht; Byrd. Pope was decent not great. Becht was the best blocker without question last night...he is emerging in his role...and Byrd had one of the very best catches and runs of the night on a great double move out and up the seam. This kid is too gifted a receiver to let go. Like Lance Long, Stephen Spach had a rough night, dropping an easy pass, jumping off-sides and then getting flagged for holding. The team shouldn't have to worry about him getting claimed off waivers, and the they should be able to re-sign him later in the season if and when he is needed. By then he may be at full strength...like another player with a knee issue, T Elliot Vallejo.
OL (8): Gandy; Wells; Sendlein; Lutui, L. Brown, Keith, Johnson, Fowler. The offensive line needs a great week to straighten out its pass protection and to continue to make strides in the running game. Not sure if Gandy was hurt, but Oliver Ross came in for him while the starters were still in there. Ross played better this week and is improving...as did C Ben Claxton in the running game...but when Melvin Fowler came in he made some great blocks on the two screens to Jason Wright. Herman Johnson and Brandon Keith were solid once again. The question is can Johnson play backup LT as well as RT? Or...would the Cardinals switch Levi Brown over to LT and have Johnson play RT if Gandy goes out? Those questions will be answered if Ross makes the roster.
NT (3): Robinson; Branch; Watson. Robinson has been very solid and right now is definitely the best of the three. Branch is coming around little by little. Interesting that they used him as a rush DT in the 4 man rush. He didn't excel in that role, and it would seem Calais Campbell would be a better choice, but Branch's versatility is an asset. Gabe Watson, IMO, put himself in jeopardy of not making the roster with his poor performance last night. On the first Packer TD to FB Ryan Kuhn, Watson was playing NT in the goal-line defense and literally got blow off the ball back into the end zone. This should NEVER happen. As a NT you are instructed to dive underneath the chin of the center to clog the middle. That's your only job. Then this happened again a couple of times when he played on the regular defense in the second half. For a man with his size and strength to be blow backward like he was on roller skates means something is wrong with him.
DE (3): Dockett; Campbell; Iwebema. The Packer coaches knew how to play off of DD's aggressiveness as they waggled on him a few times. Just the same he had a good game and was around the ball a lot. CC had a very nice sack in the third quarter. KI has been very good on STs and solid at his backup position. Branch is the other backup here as well.
ILB (4): Hayes; Dansby; Togafau; Walker. Hayes and Dansby seem quicker to the ball this year and in great shape. Didn't see much of Togafau last night but he's been productive and more physical of late. Reggie Walker made what was perhaps the best textbook goal-line tackle we have seen in ages, and the way he's come on the last two weeks, this kid is making the roster! Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!
OLB (4): Haggans; Okeafor; Davis; Hobson; TBD. Haggans had his best game of the pre-season. Okeafor needs to apply beter pressure and is capable of it. Davis had a great sack. This kid is pretty dang good, and he's solid versus the run too. Hobson was applying decent pressure from his spot. Bertrand Berry is getting stopped in his tracks on his half-hearted rush the way he was in the Super Bowl. It looks like he's lost his fight, he just hasn't been the same player, and not even close. We really need another edge rusher. This is imperative. Not too sure David Holloway is that answer.
CB (5): Rodgers-Cromartie; McFadden; Adams; Toler, TBD. DRC is awesome to watch...that leaping play be made on the first deep pass was superb. But, as we saw in the Super Bowl, he goes through mental lapses where he does not react quickly to his man or the ball or the situation. The long TD he gave up to Jordy Nelson may have been a blown assignment, seeing as there was no FS in the middle (untreal, right? has anything really changed in this defense? can we please get a REAL defense?)...but if it wasn't, DRC got abused by an a average WR. The TD to TE Greg Jennings looked like a push off---hey if they called that silly one arm push by Fitz a penalty, the two hand push by Jennings should have been a given...but, IMO, neither should have been called because the contact in both cases was slight at best. DRC should have battled Jennings better on the play, no question about it. Again, he got caught napping a little. He probably figured the TE out there was a decoy. On the other side, McFadden got beat pretty badly and does not look sharp yet. We really haven't seen much of him to know for sure what we have over there. Ralph Brown came in quickly for him and, IMO, played his way off the roster with that inexcusable performance. Pop Warner kids could make a greater effort tackling and show far better form that Brown did. What Bill Davis should say to his entire defense is: "if you don't tackle, you don't play." Michael Adams would have made those tackles and would have stuck people doing it. Greg Toler is getting better each day. The Cardinals need to add another CB.
S (5): Wilson; Rolle; Francisco; Johnson; TBD. Rolle needs to be moved up. Wilson remains the rover/monster (and please AW stop jumping off-sides on 3rd down conversion attempts). Francisco can back both of them up. Get him away from FS for good. Start Johnson at FS and have him protect the deep pass every play. And sign a FS to play beside Johnson in the nickel cover 2.
ST (3): Rackers; Graham; Leach. Is Rackers the best on-sides kicker ever? Certainly in Cardinals' history. He's unreal. Good kickoffs last night too. Graham and Leach are playing very very well.
On defense, you overload the edge, blitz a linebacker up the middle and drop off a couple of linemen into the hot zones, and you will get to Kurt Warner. You get to Warner and you will create turnovers. When the Cardinals don't win the turnover battle, they lose. Period.
On offense, you attack the deep middle, because the Cardinals still have no concept of how to use a free safety. You also run a variety of misdirection plays, reverses, bootlegs and waggles, because the Cardinals still have little concept of edge contain. You also instruct your QB to take off whenever he sees an opening, because the Cardinals will over-commit their DEs on the pass rush, and their NT is slow to react in the middle.
What has to be the team's biggest concern at this point is fixing a defense that is in total disarray and is poorly conceived, especially from a personnel standpoint. Antrel Rolle is a SS posing as a FS. He plays his best in the box and intermediate areas of the defense. Same with the All-Pro SS Adrian Wilson. Why Aaron Francisco is still being asked to play nickel FS is a mind boggler. Like Rolle and Wilson, Francisco is a box and intermediate player, not a player suited to play in large open spaces.
If I were Bill Davis, I would cater the defense to the personnel by running a hybrid of sorts. The first thing I would do is insert Rashad Johnson at FS and instruct him to play the deep ball on every play, no exceptions. Keep the ball in front of you. Johnson has the discipline and smarts to do that.
Next, I would move Antrel Rolle up to strong side safety, and slide Adrian Wilson into a rover/monster role.
Up front I would offer a mix of 5 and 4 man fronts depending on down and distance. This part Davis has already accomplished. But, at times I would slide Gerald Hayes directly into the middle in order to move Karlos Dansby into areas where he can attack the line of scrimmage and rush the QB.
We need another FS to join Rashad Johnson for the Cover 2 FS. I would be tempted to try Greg Toler in that role because of Toler's speed. Otherwise, the Cardinals need to acquire another FS because Aaron Francisco, Matt Ware and Keith Lewis are not fast enough, disciplined enough or instinctive enough to play the position.
If you want to see how the FS position is played, the Packers offered the Cardinals a blueprint on that as well. Both Nick Collins and Anthony Smith put on a clinic last night. Jarret Bush also looked good to me and he might not make the Packers' roster. What the Packer FSs do is they keep the plays in front of them, they anticipate where the ball is going, make clean breaks on the ball, and hammer any WR who catches the ball in front of them. That's the job, and they do it extremely well. They also covered well for CB Charles Woodson when Dom Capers elected to send him off the edge until the Cardinals adjusted. Guess what? The Cardinals never adjusted.
On offense, this is the first thing to address and clean up...the Cardinals cannot for another year leave the edges so vulnerable...if it means keeping two RBs in the backfield at times...if it means chipping the edge rushers with the slot WR or TE...if it means running 2 TE sets...the Cardinals MUST start countering for edge pressue. Every opponent knows...you get to Warner, you beat the Cardinals.
What's most encouraging about last night's game is the emergence of what looks to be a much stronger running game, led by Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells...and complimented nicely by the speedy LaRon Stephens-Howling. What was also most encouraging was the play of QB Matt Leinart. That was the best Leinart has looked since the infamous MNF game versus the Bears. The thing is...Matt Leinart has learned to step up into the pocket and step into his throws...and as we saw, when he does that his ball doesn't sail or drift. At times last night his control was pinpoint. How about the fade pass to the left corner to Early Doucet that could have won the game? Can that pass be thrown any better or more accurately? Same as the pass a couple of plays earlier in the right corner to Lance Long. Left corner---right corner, both passes thrown on the money, honey!
What the Cardinals should do is play Leinart for the first three quarters at Denver and let him take this week's success into a game versus a team's starters. Leinart needs more reps with the starting lineup and there's no sense in playing Kurt Warner in this next game. Give him two weeks to prepare for the 49ers...start the game prep now, not next week....kind of like how you send your starting pitcher off to the next game site a day in advance during the MLB playoffs. Get Warner ready.
Speaking of Warner, he needs the next two weeks to get his head straight. This is the first time in years he's been the #1 starter from the get-go going into the regular season. He looks a tad complacent right now...just a tad. He needs a kick in the butt. This is where the team misses Todd Haley.
But...Warner is always hungry to put up big numbers...and is extremely self-motivated in that regard, which is why we can expect to see a hungry Warner run out of the tunnel on game one. Right now Warner needs to build that hunger back up and he has two weeks to do so.
Now for this week's roster considerations with some notes.
QB (3): Warner; Leinart; St. Pierre. Play Leinart in quarters 1, 2 and 3 versus Denver and BSP, if his back is better, in quarter 4. Otherwise play Tyler Palko in quarter 4. Sign Palko to the PS.
RB (4): Hightower; Wells; Wright; Stephens-Howling. All four of these RBs had very good nights. Hightower is running with authority. Wells has such nifty feet for a big RB, wow. When was the last time we saw such sharp cuts to make defenders miss? That 20 yard TD run was a work of art. How about Wright on those screen passes? Great stuff. And LSH made the most of his kickoff returns...his last one was his best as he was able to turn the corner with a nice little burst. Nice burst too on his sweep. Hope he's OK...man he took a shot. This kid seems very tough, so it's likely he will bounce right back.
FB (1): Kreider. Best ST player and best blocker of the bunch. Tim Castille is the best receiver but is not needed in that role with all the other options the Cardinals have. Maiu'a is a load...dang I love the block he made to spring Wells for his second TD. Sign this kid to the PS.
WR (6): Fitzgerald; Boldin; Breaston; Urban; Doucet; Morey. Fitz looked great...but he should play only the first quater at Denver. Same with Boldin and Breaston...one quarter at the most, if at all. Urban sure gets open, doesn't he? He's slippery...but as he showed again last night, he needs more polish, especially for doing the little things, like tucking the ball in after the catch and working his way back to the ball on underthrown passes. Doucet had an up and down night...but he looked a lot like Q on the WR screen...and his game is starting to come around. Morey showed great hands last night and he could contribute if called upon. Lance Long had a tough night and needs a tremendous bounce back game to make the roster. His hands are usually very good, but last night he dropped an easy pass over the middle, although he may have heard footsteps because those Packer LB and Ss were clobbering people out there. And he dropped a punt...his first punt return was nifty, though. And he dropped the TD when the ball hit the turf...but on that play he showed incredibly nifty footwork. I really like this kid and I hope he sticks...but last night did not help his cause. He may be pressing. Can we blame him?
TE (3): Pope; Becht; Byrd. Pope was decent not great. Becht was the best blocker without question last night...he is emerging in his role...and Byrd had one of the very best catches and runs of the night on a great double move out and up the seam. This kid is too gifted a receiver to let go. Like Lance Long, Stephen Spach had a rough night, dropping an easy pass, jumping off-sides and then getting flagged for holding. The team shouldn't have to worry about him getting claimed off waivers, and the they should be able to re-sign him later in the season if and when he is needed. By then he may be at full strength...like another player with a knee issue, T Elliot Vallejo.
OL (8): Gandy; Wells; Sendlein; Lutui, L. Brown, Keith, Johnson, Fowler. The offensive line needs a great week to straighten out its pass protection and to continue to make strides in the running game. Not sure if Gandy was hurt, but Oliver Ross came in for him while the starters were still in there. Ross played better this week and is improving...as did C Ben Claxton in the running game...but when Melvin Fowler came in he made some great blocks on the two screens to Jason Wright. Herman Johnson and Brandon Keith were solid once again. The question is can Johnson play backup LT as well as RT? Or...would the Cardinals switch Levi Brown over to LT and have Johnson play RT if Gandy goes out? Those questions will be answered if Ross makes the roster.
NT (3): Robinson; Branch; Watson. Robinson has been very solid and right now is definitely the best of the three. Branch is coming around little by little. Interesting that they used him as a rush DT in the 4 man rush. He didn't excel in that role, and it would seem Calais Campbell would be a better choice, but Branch's versatility is an asset. Gabe Watson, IMO, put himself in jeopardy of not making the roster with his poor performance last night. On the first Packer TD to FB Ryan Kuhn, Watson was playing NT in the goal-line defense and literally got blow off the ball back into the end zone. This should NEVER happen. As a NT you are instructed to dive underneath the chin of the center to clog the middle. That's your only job. Then this happened again a couple of times when he played on the regular defense in the second half. For a man with his size and strength to be blow backward like he was on roller skates means something is wrong with him.
DE (3): Dockett; Campbell; Iwebema. The Packer coaches knew how to play off of DD's aggressiveness as they waggled on him a few times. Just the same he had a good game and was around the ball a lot. CC had a very nice sack in the third quarter. KI has been very good on STs and solid at his backup position. Branch is the other backup here as well.
ILB (4): Hayes; Dansby; Togafau; Walker. Hayes and Dansby seem quicker to the ball this year and in great shape. Didn't see much of Togafau last night but he's been productive and more physical of late. Reggie Walker made what was perhaps the best textbook goal-line tackle we have seen in ages, and the way he's come on the last two weeks, this kid is making the roster! Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!
OLB (4): Haggans; Okeafor; Davis; Hobson; TBD. Haggans had his best game of the pre-season. Okeafor needs to apply beter pressure and is capable of it. Davis had a great sack. This kid is pretty dang good, and he's solid versus the run too. Hobson was applying decent pressure from his spot. Bertrand Berry is getting stopped in his tracks on his half-hearted rush the way he was in the Super Bowl. It looks like he's lost his fight, he just hasn't been the same player, and not even close. We really need another edge rusher. This is imperative. Not too sure David Holloway is that answer.
CB (5): Rodgers-Cromartie; McFadden; Adams; Toler, TBD. DRC is awesome to watch...that leaping play be made on the first deep pass was superb. But, as we saw in the Super Bowl, he goes through mental lapses where he does not react quickly to his man or the ball or the situation. The long TD he gave up to Jordy Nelson may have been a blown assignment, seeing as there was no FS in the middle (untreal, right? has anything really changed in this defense? can we please get a REAL defense?)...but if it wasn't, DRC got abused by an a average WR. The TD to TE Greg Jennings looked like a push off---hey if they called that silly one arm push by Fitz a penalty, the two hand push by Jennings should have been a given...but, IMO, neither should have been called because the contact in both cases was slight at best. DRC should have battled Jennings better on the play, no question about it. Again, he got caught napping a little. He probably figured the TE out there was a decoy. On the other side, McFadden got beat pretty badly and does not look sharp yet. We really haven't seen much of him to know for sure what we have over there. Ralph Brown came in quickly for him and, IMO, played his way off the roster with that inexcusable performance. Pop Warner kids could make a greater effort tackling and show far better form that Brown did. What Bill Davis should say to his entire defense is: "if you don't tackle, you don't play." Michael Adams would have made those tackles and would have stuck people doing it. Greg Toler is getting better each day. The Cardinals need to add another CB.
S (5): Wilson; Rolle; Francisco; Johnson; TBD. Rolle needs to be moved up. Wilson remains the rover/monster (and please AW stop jumping off-sides on 3rd down conversion attempts). Francisco can back both of them up. Get him away from FS for good. Start Johnson at FS and have him protect the deep pass every play. And sign a FS to play beside Johnson in the nickel cover 2.
ST (3): Rackers; Graham; Leach. Is Rackers the best on-sides kicker ever? Certainly in Cardinals' history. He's unreal. Good kickoffs last night too. Graham and Leach are playing very very well.
