Catfish
Registered
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2006
- Posts
- 4,551
- Reaction score
- 64
If one was to wonder if a win like the Cards win today had value, one has to look no further than the face of Drew Stanton on the sideline as the game wound down. There was Stanton, towel in hand, frequently taking it to wipe his eyes as his emotions overwhelmed him, and his fellow players, one by one, came to his side to congratulate him on the job he performed today. This win was truly worth waiting for!!!!!
Always the backup QB, Stanton had to wonder if he really belonged in the NFL. He had spent years getting ready, yet never quite seemed to shake the bakcup tag. Even when Bruce Arians came to him early last year and told him that he was BA's starting QB, he must have had questions about his ability, especially when the Cardinals went out and traded for Carson Palmer right afterward. Then there was the win in New York against the Giants, but still he was more than likely not convinced at that point. Everyone, Arians included, was still talking about Palmer getting ready for the 'Niners. I am glad that Arians put that to rest Thursday after practice-----naming Stanton as the starter despite what went on with Palmer the remainder of the weekend.
Much of what overwhelmed Stanton after his last offensive series today, had to be due to all that wonder and frustration at never really getting a chance to go on the BIG stage, and lead his team against someone like the mighty 'Niners. There must have been tons of chips being brushed off his shoulders by his teammates as they came to congratulate him one after another. The hug he received from Arians himself, just as he came off the field for the last time, had to be the catalyst that pulled the plug on all the emotion that came welling up and out of Stanton's very being. Arians had said something to him when he gave him the hug. I wonder if it wasn't something like, (I told you I would start you, and now you know that meant it)?
Finally, this game exemplified the 'Next Man Up' philosophy preferred by Arians. Each player, exemplified the poise, the toughness, the willingness to stick it out, and the intelligence not to let things go to their heads as the game wore on, and the 'Niners began to slowly but surely crumble before them. Each player wearing the black today, played 'good enough' for the Cardinals to make a statement win on the grass in their nest. That statement was, "You can't come into our house and expect to walk out without paying the price". This was truly worth waiting for.
Always the backup QB, Stanton had to wonder if he really belonged in the NFL. He had spent years getting ready, yet never quite seemed to shake the bakcup tag. Even when Bruce Arians came to him early last year and told him that he was BA's starting QB, he must have had questions about his ability, especially when the Cardinals went out and traded for Carson Palmer right afterward. Then there was the win in New York against the Giants, but still he was more than likely not convinced at that point. Everyone, Arians included, was still talking about Palmer getting ready for the 'Niners. I am glad that Arians put that to rest Thursday after practice-----naming Stanton as the starter despite what went on with Palmer the remainder of the weekend.
Much of what overwhelmed Stanton after his last offensive series today, had to be due to all that wonder and frustration at never really getting a chance to go on the BIG stage, and lead his team against someone like the mighty 'Niners. There must have been tons of chips being brushed off his shoulders by his teammates as they came to congratulate him one after another. The hug he received from Arians himself, just as he came off the field for the last time, had to be the catalyst that pulled the plug on all the emotion that came welling up and out of Stanton's very being. Arians had said something to him when he gave him the hug. I wonder if it wasn't something like, (I told you I would start you, and now you know that meant it)?
Finally, this game exemplified the 'Next Man Up' philosophy preferred by Arians. Each player, exemplified the poise, the toughness, the willingness to stick it out, and the intelligence not to let things go to their heads as the game wore on, and the 'Niners began to slowly but surely crumble before them. Each player wearing the black today, played 'good enough' for the Cardinals to make a statement win on the grass in their nest. That statement was, "You can't come into our house and expect to walk out without paying the price". This was truly worth waiting for.
