Granted the article is PR from the Cardinals office, but there are some good points in there, especially regarding coaching philosophy. [FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Seth Polansky
azcardinals.com
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It took a little time for it to come around, but the end of the 2006 season showed how good Arizona's offensive line could be. And now the news gets even better. With the addition of a couple key free agents and a successful recent history to go on, even more improved is the way to describe the state of the line right now before the draft even takes place.[/FONT]
Oh yeah … the team now has offensive line coach Russ Grimm.
Some decisions have already been written down in pencil. One was putting Oliver Ross as the first-team left tackle for right now. It was an easy choice as he has a history with Grimm and head coach Ken Whisenhunt from back in Pittsburgh. Grimm was quick to point out Ross isn't necessarily going to be the opening-day starter or anything like that just yet. But what that does is it puts someone in the slot and creates an opportunity for other players to try and earn it from him. Competition creates improvement and eventually starting nods.
It also creates a good starting point for where the rest of the line is going to take shape. The signing of free agent Mike Gandy allows for some movement along the line and to see where everyone is comfortable. Ross can go from the left side to the right side, Gandy could come in, Reggie Wells could have a breather, and all is right with the world at that point.
But it doesn't stop there. Since Gandy can also play guard, he could very well line up on the left side with Ross and have Milford Brown, a 12-game starter from last season, come in when need be. Wells is a natural guard and can spell Deuce Lutui from time to time on the right side. And if that's the case, then maybe it's a right tackle and not a left tackle the Cardinals would covet in the draft. If they covet one at all.
Texas' Justin Blalock, who played a little bit of right tackle in college, is very capable of playing that spot in the NFL if he isn't converted into a guard. And Ryan Harris, who was on the right side before a switch later in his Notre Dame career, might be a guy worth looking at if he falls to the third round. Other players down the line with tools and upside to play right tackle are Wyoming's Chase Johnson, Fresno State's Chris Denman and Purdue's Mike Otto. Not only were they RTs through their college careers, but they could also be sleepers in the second day of the draft. However, it's all about whether or not they are going to be on the top of the team's board at that point.
As long as the guy can play tackle it doesn't matter which side he is on if there is a position coach to mentor him into a right-side starter. That's where Grimm comes in. He's a no-nonsense coach that has produced several Pro Bowlers and an All-Pro in his six years with the Steelers.
An advantage to having this setup is that the opponents' No. 1 defensive end usually lines up against Arizona's left tackle. You could see veterans Ross and Gandy on the left side, an increased use of a blocking tight end, and as a result half of the defensive line could be neutralized. Then the left-handed Matt Leinart should have clear vision and lanes. That allows a developing right side of the line to not have to face the worst part of the rush every time. Other teams could switch assignments, but that would be playing right into Arizona's hands.
"Obviously both tackles are going to be critical," Grimm mentioned. "(The defense) can switch it over, but then again, they're putting more people out of position. You can always slide the line one way, chip with tight ends, chip with backs. You can to mix it up a little bit."
Gandy was a 16-game starter in 2006 for the Bills, with nine of those at guard, and brings instant respectability to the position. If he and Ross are there together on the left side, then 12 years of combined NFL experience will surely be enough. Grimm and the rest of the coaches will figure that out in the team's minicamps through the spring. Here's hoping they don't make the Cards' defensive linemen on that side look bad in practice.
"Right now there isn't anything etched in stone," Grimm said. "You hope to keep people at one position but obviously they are going to have to learn more than one. The first minicamp will give us an idea of what we really have as far as athletic ability and who needs to move where. It's going to be a feeling-out process."
With enough guys to fill out a lineup sheet right now, the team is in a good situation leading up to the draft. There has been plenty of speculation about the top two offensive tackles available, Joe Thomas and Levi Brown, and if Arizona could land either of them with the fifth overall pick. While they would look great in Cardinal red, nothing would be guaranteed about their success. A seventh-round find could end up being just as good as a first-round phenom. And that rings true with any position. Cardinals Hall of Fame tight end Jackie Smith was a 10th-round pick in 1963. Even Grimm, who was a finalist for the Hall of Fame this year, was drafted in the third round back in 1981.
Grimm sees this draft class of tackles very deep for the first time in a while. Usually he notices a few with high grades and then a thicker pool of guys in the middle rounds. But not this year. First-day pickups could number in the double digits just for the tackle position without getting to the guards. And while these guys are attractive prospects, Grimm knows he can't have them all. But he's hoping at least one of them is going to be the best player available when the Cardinals' picks come around.
"You tend to want to be selfish, but you have to realize it affects the whole football team," said Grimm. "I'd like to take them with all six picks, but you can't do that. You just sit there on draft day, know you've done all your research and homework on them, and put grades on them. Rod (Graves) and his staff do a good job and go down through it and rank the players, and we just go from there."
The players Grimm has talked to since the offseason conditioning program started have been positive about the change in philosophy about running the ball on a grander scale. Edgerrin James is positive about running the ball on a grander scale. James has made it known he wants his carries and he will most likely get them. Three yards and a cloud of dust for the linemen; 10 yards and a first down for James.
"I think everybody wants to (pound the ball more). All linemen would rather run the ball than sit back and pass protect," Grimm added. "Just meeting with some of the guys, they are excited about it. The 'want to' is there. It's whether or not when we put the pads on and see what we have and go from there. To make it to this level there are no bad players."
That's what Whisenhunt has been saying all along. The pieces are here -- it's just a matter of making them all fit together. And for the offensive line, those guys just want a piece of opposing defenses.
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