azdad1978
Championship!!!!
Slow start compounds struggles for Cards
Kent Somers
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 14, 2005 12:00 AM
DETROIT - At 2-6, time was not the Cardinals' ally as they embarked on the second half of the season Sunday. Yet, they started their afternoon's work with all the urgency of a teenager being told to take out the garbage.
By halftime against the Lions, they had committed seven mostly silly penalties, missed numerous tackles, yielded a safety and trailed 19-3. In the second half, the Cardinals kept things interesting, depending on how easily you're entertained, and lost by a respectable 29-21 score at Ford Field.
"I guess when you spot somebody 30 minutes, it's tough to battle back in this league, no matter who you are playing," Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner said. "I don't think we played anywhere close to where we need to play or can play in the first half."
It was, however, a replica of how they've been playing, and that was good enough to lose to the Lions (4-5).
There was a stunning lack of discipline, judging by the number of penalties and the amount of trash talking. The running game produced nothing but anguish and two points for the opponent. The passing game produced plenty of completions and yards but only one touchdown.
And the defense made the struggling Lions' running game look like Denver's (157 yards on 32 carries) and somehow transformed Joey Harrington into Joe Montana.
Harrington, who entered the game with the lowest quarterback rating in the NFL, completed 22 of 32 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns, all to receiver Roy Williams.
"We had chances to make plays," middle linebacker James Darling said. "It's tough when you got just one guy trying to bring down a good running back. We need to get more people to the ball, people getting off blocks, people running harder. It's hard for one guy to make tackles in this league."
It would help, too, if they played better coming out of the locker room. Detroit became the sixth Cardinals opponent to open the game with a touchdown drive.
"We're probably relying too much on the call," coach Dennis Green said of his defense's lapses. "Defense is a game where you actually have to whip the man in front of you."
The Lions' starting defensive tackles, Shaun Rogers and Dan "Big Daddy" Wilkinson, did just that most of the game. They continually beat the Cardinals' interior linemen, disrupting the run game and putting pressure on Warner.
That was evident on the Cardinals' second possession of the game, which started at their 2. Somehow, Wilkinson was left unblocked and tackled fullback Obafemi Ayanbadejo in the end zone, giving Detroit a 9-0 lead with 2:46 left in the first quarter.
"Boy, 'Big Daddy' looked quick on that one, didn't he?" Detroit coach Steve Mariucci asked.
It helped that he was barely touched.
Nick Leckey and Alex Stepanovich could provide no explanation because the Cardinals' offensive linemen are not talking to some reporters. The linemen think some reporters have been too critical of their performance this season, even though the team entered the game ranked 31st in the league in rushing.
After the safety, the Cardinals rushed the ball just 13 more times.
"You make them one-dimensional," Mariucci said. "If they get behind, they wing it because they're good at it. That was the case a little bit today."
While the offense was struggling, the defense had no answer for Williams, who had missed most of the past four games with a strained thigh muscle.
He looked healthy Sunday, catching seven passes for 117 yards. Safety Adrian Wilson wasn't surprised.
"They have special shots for that," he said. "He's a good player. He won the matchups. You expect good players to step up."
Too many of the Cardinals' best players are either hurt, or not stepping up. They played Sunday without receiver Anquan Boldin (knee) and defensive end Bertrand Berry (pectoral).
Right guard Reggie Wells suffered a fracture and dislocated ankle in the first quarter. Outside linebacker Karlos Dansby went out in the first half with a groin pull.
Warner tried to bring the Cardinals back in the second half, throwing for 255 of his 359 yards, and the offense scored 18 points.
But Detroit answered almost every Cardinals score with one of its own.
"I think that's been our problem all year," Green said. "When we have to have a stop, that's when we play probably our worst defense."
Offense
The Cardinals still can't run the ball. The first goal of any running game should be to avoid negative plays, and the Cardinals season has been full of them. Detroit's defensive tackles dominated the game, sometimes overpowering Nick Leckey and Alex Stepanovich. That run game could get worse, if you can imagine, now that left guard Reggie Wells is out for the year after suffering a dislocated and fractured left ankle. He'll be replaced by Adam Haayer. That means the team's three interior line positions have changed in each of the past three weeks. Quarterback Kurt Warner did a nice job managing the game Sunday, and is adept at getting to his second and third reads.
Defense
The tackling skills of this team are terrible. All year, the players have missed tackles, and as coach Dennis Green noted, it was never worse than Sunday against Detroit. The Lions have struggled running the ball all year, but they looked great against the Cardinals. Kevin Jones gained 81 yards on 14 carries, often breaking tackles at the line of scrimmage. The Cardinals too often were arm tackling, or looking for the knockout blow instead of just wrapping up the ball carrier and bringing him down. To compensate for the absence of right end Bertrand Berry, coaches moved left end Chike Okeafor all around on the line. He played decently, but the Cardinals had just one sack, by linebacker James Darling.
Special teams
Neil Rackers is more than just a kicker, he's an athlete, too. Rackers made two key tackles on kickoffs Sunday, showing surprising speed. He's pretty good at his main job, too. He made both of his field goals, a 51-yarder and 28-yarder, to give him 28 consecutive successful attempts this season.
Punter Scott Player is one of the steadiest performers in the league. Three of his punts were downed inside the 20. The return teams, however, produced almost nothing. - Kent Somers
View from the Press Box
Quick, know anyone who delivers a great pregame locker room speech? The Cardinals could use one. Six times this season opponents have scored on the opening possession. Coach Dennis Green blames it on players relying too much on scheme. Those schemes, however, will work if the Cardinals become better tacklers. Those schemes had them in position to make plays but they whiffed too many times. - Kent Somers
Kent Somers
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 14, 2005 12:00 AM
DETROIT - At 2-6, time was not the Cardinals' ally as they embarked on the second half of the season Sunday. Yet, they started their afternoon's work with all the urgency of a teenager being told to take out the garbage.
By halftime against the Lions, they had committed seven mostly silly penalties, missed numerous tackles, yielded a safety and trailed 19-3. In the second half, the Cardinals kept things interesting, depending on how easily you're entertained, and lost by a respectable 29-21 score at Ford Field.
"I guess when you spot somebody 30 minutes, it's tough to battle back in this league, no matter who you are playing," Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner said. "I don't think we played anywhere close to where we need to play or can play in the first half."
It was, however, a replica of how they've been playing, and that was good enough to lose to the Lions (4-5).
There was a stunning lack of discipline, judging by the number of penalties and the amount of trash talking. The running game produced nothing but anguish and two points for the opponent. The passing game produced plenty of completions and yards but only one touchdown.
And the defense made the struggling Lions' running game look like Denver's (157 yards on 32 carries) and somehow transformed Joey Harrington into Joe Montana.
Harrington, who entered the game with the lowest quarterback rating in the NFL, completed 22 of 32 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns, all to receiver Roy Williams.
"We had chances to make plays," middle linebacker James Darling said. "It's tough when you got just one guy trying to bring down a good running back. We need to get more people to the ball, people getting off blocks, people running harder. It's hard for one guy to make tackles in this league."
It would help, too, if they played better coming out of the locker room. Detroit became the sixth Cardinals opponent to open the game with a touchdown drive.
"We're probably relying too much on the call," coach Dennis Green said of his defense's lapses. "Defense is a game where you actually have to whip the man in front of you."
The Lions' starting defensive tackles, Shaun Rogers and Dan "Big Daddy" Wilkinson, did just that most of the game. They continually beat the Cardinals' interior linemen, disrupting the run game and putting pressure on Warner.
That was evident on the Cardinals' second possession of the game, which started at their 2. Somehow, Wilkinson was left unblocked and tackled fullback Obafemi Ayanbadejo in the end zone, giving Detroit a 9-0 lead with 2:46 left in the first quarter.
"Boy, 'Big Daddy' looked quick on that one, didn't he?" Detroit coach Steve Mariucci asked.
It helped that he was barely touched.
Nick Leckey and Alex Stepanovich could provide no explanation because the Cardinals' offensive linemen are not talking to some reporters. The linemen think some reporters have been too critical of their performance this season, even though the team entered the game ranked 31st in the league in rushing.
After the safety, the Cardinals rushed the ball just 13 more times.
"You make them one-dimensional," Mariucci said. "If they get behind, they wing it because they're good at it. That was the case a little bit today."
While the offense was struggling, the defense had no answer for Williams, who had missed most of the past four games with a strained thigh muscle.
He looked healthy Sunday, catching seven passes for 117 yards. Safety Adrian Wilson wasn't surprised.
"They have special shots for that," he said. "He's a good player. He won the matchups. You expect good players to step up."
Too many of the Cardinals' best players are either hurt, or not stepping up. They played Sunday without receiver Anquan Boldin (knee) and defensive end Bertrand Berry (pectoral).
Right guard Reggie Wells suffered a fracture and dislocated ankle in the first quarter. Outside linebacker Karlos Dansby went out in the first half with a groin pull.
Warner tried to bring the Cardinals back in the second half, throwing for 255 of his 359 yards, and the offense scored 18 points.
But Detroit answered almost every Cardinals score with one of its own.
"I think that's been our problem all year," Green said. "When we have to have a stop, that's when we play probably our worst defense."
Offense
The Cardinals still can't run the ball. The first goal of any running game should be to avoid negative plays, and the Cardinals season has been full of them. Detroit's defensive tackles dominated the game, sometimes overpowering Nick Leckey and Alex Stepanovich. That run game could get worse, if you can imagine, now that left guard Reggie Wells is out for the year after suffering a dislocated and fractured left ankle. He'll be replaced by Adam Haayer. That means the team's three interior line positions have changed in each of the past three weeks. Quarterback Kurt Warner did a nice job managing the game Sunday, and is adept at getting to his second and third reads.
Defense
The tackling skills of this team are terrible. All year, the players have missed tackles, and as coach Dennis Green noted, it was never worse than Sunday against Detroit. The Lions have struggled running the ball all year, but they looked great against the Cardinals. Kevin Jones gained 81 yards on 14 carries, often breaking tackles at the line of scrimmage. The Cardinals too often were arm tackling, or looking for the knockout blow instead of just wrapping up the ball carrier and bringing him down. To compensate for the absence of right end Bertrand Berry, coaches moved left end Chike Okeafor all around on the line. He played decently, but the Cardinals had just one sack, by linebacker James Darling.
Special teams
Neil Rackers is more than just a kicker, he's an athlete, too. Rackers made two key tackles on kickoffs Sunday, showing surprising speed. He's pretty good at his main job, too. He made both of his field goals, a 51-yarder and 28-yarder, to give him 28 consecutive successful attempts this season.
Punter Scott Player is one of the steadiest performers in the league. Three of his punts were downed inside the 20. The return teams, however, produced almost nothing. - Kent Somers
View from the Press Box
Quick, know anyone who delivers a great pregame locker room speech? The Cardinals could use one. Six times this season opponents have scored on the opening possession. Coach Dennis Green blames it on players relying too much on scheme. Those schemes, however, will work if the Cardinals become better tacklers. Those schemes had them in position to make plays but they whiffed too many times. - Kent Somers
