Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
What a reverse outcome of a week ago. The Cardinals this week created the turnovers (6 of them to be exact) and scored an array of TDs (6 of them), not FGs. Coaches talk about "cleaning things up" after sloppy games---and while the Cardinals still have some things to clean up, the clean up from last week has left quite a polish on their early ascension into first place in the NFC West.
Watching the Lions on MNF was a help---first of all, it made it clear to the Cardinals that even though the Lions were 0-4, they remain a very talented team, one very capable of beating even the Seahawks in Seattle.
The 4 PM (EST) start was a help to both teams as that's the normal staring time for the Cardinals and with the Lions coming off a short week, it gave them a little extra time to get themselves ready to turn things back in their favor.
Clearly, from the start, the Cardinals' defense appeared well aware of the Lions' offensive tendencies and were able to cash in early on the first of Rashad Johnson's two interceptions. Johnson may not be the fastest FS on the block, but he is mentally tough and knows how to anticipate throws.
Combine Johnson's play with two other Johnny-on-the-spot safeties in Tony Jefferson and Tyrann Mathieu and what you have is a trio of superb, capitalistic playmakers. Jefferson was at the top of his game---landing tough hits and strips on the Detroit RBs and TEs. Mathieu needs to be accounted for at all times, because he has a nose for the ball and a penchant for creating chaos in that backfield off of blitzes.
One gets the sense that the Rams' physical play in the secondary the week before re-energized and motivated the Cardinals' secondary.
Patrick Peterson did a fabulous job on Megatron for the second year in a row, save the two holding penalties, the first of which was iffy, the second of which was unjustified. Peterson remains a little too handsy in his coverage, and one would think he would be given more of a benefit of the doubt by the officials, but that was not the case in this game. However, what was great to see was the adjustment he made on Calvin Johnson when he shunned the hands-on approach to shadow coverage which allowed him to turn his head back to the ball when Johnson did. In doing so, Peterson recorded a textbook interception on an intended back shoulder fade---and he converted it into a 40 yard dash return.
At ILB Kevin Minter and Deone Bucannon are establishing themselves as reliable playmakers, shooting gaps and chasing plays down laterally. They also have been very solid in coverage.
Up front, Calais Campbell at the NT position continues to be an ingenious ploy by young DC James Bettcher. Campbell's size, strength and slither-ability is especially daunting for opposing QBs.
When the Lions abandoned their running game, we saw Bettcher switch into a 4 man front with some timely LB and S blitzes. Corey Redding's textbook read and react interception of a Stafford screen pass, showed not only how great it is to have veterans like Redding in the rotation, but how well Bettcher and the defense is trying to address what has been a perennial weakness---screen pass coverage.
Rodney Gunter was especially active in the middle and Josh Mauro made a superb play diving in for Abdullah's fumble and ripping it away from him. However, the Cardinals need to defend the off-tackle plays better as rookie Zach Zenner beat them on several good runs.
The best edge rusher on this day was Markus Golden, who created pressures on his outside rush---and while he was steered wide of the target, he made his presence felt.
Alex Okafor was not having one of his better games and seemed a little out of sorts, especially missing an easy tackle on a swing pass when he tried to tackle too high. Alas, he injured a calf and is now awaiting MRI results back in AZ. This is tough news for the Cardinals, who have not been getting any real pressures from LaMarr Woodley. Kareem Martin and Josh Mauro will likely get more edge rushes from the nickel but they would appear to be too heavy to play in space as 34 OLBs. Could Shaq Riddick be brought into the fold this week?
A suggestion from my post last week was to try Sean Weatherspoon at OLB---which now seems like a given. Another answer could be Alani Fua, who saw some solid action at ILB in the 4th quarter and showed good chasing speed.
Steve Keim may have to try to make a trade---and one willing participant may be the Kansas City Chiefs, who have just lost RB Jamaal Charles. While it would be tough to give up RB Andre Ellington, could he land the Cardinals Tamba Hali or Dee Ford? Hali's salary was all in a $5M signing bonus and thus all it would cost the Cardinals this year is about $680K. Ford broke a rib in pre-season, but he is healthy again and his pro-rated salary for this year would be around $720K and his salaries for 2016 and 2017 are in the $1.5M range per.
There are no OLBers on the Cardinals' PS.
Tough break for ST LB Kenny Demens, who was off to a good start this year. If Keim promotes from within, PS ILB Gabe Martin is the next man up.
As for the the offense---it was tough to imagine going two consecutive 3 and outs after the defense got them the ball. On the first series, BA tested the interior of the Lions' line, decimated by the loss of starters Ngata and Walker---but what makes the Lions tough in the middle is their propensity to run blitz up the A and B gaps, which is what Chris Johnson was met with twice in a row.
After going 2 for -1 yards, it was tough to imagine that Johnson's next 9 carries would result in 107 yards. And then a 3 carry 63 yard performance from Andre Ellington. on top of two solid rush TDs from rookie David Johnson. The adjustment BA made was running away from the inside run blitzes through the C and D gaps.
Gotta love the way Chris Johnson maintains his balance and lunges forward after solid contact on his carries. Love too his nose for daylight and how he kicks into that added gear in the open field. Ellington can learn a lot from him in these regards and it looks like he already has.
David Johnson's power has been a superb surprise. He hit those TD runs hard and finished them off with bang.
On the second three and out, Carson Palmer picked up where he left off the week before by sailing a couple of passes---but, on the third series he settled down beautifully and threw two picture perfect strikes to TE Darren Fells, the second of which was the best TE red zone seam TD we have seen in years.
The epitome of Palmer's performance came on the masterful 99 yard drive where he dropped the deep sideline go to a streaking John Brown "in the basket." Then, Palmer's TD pass to Brown on the post/cross pattern was on the money.
The play of WR Larry Fitzgerald continues to be an inspiration---not only that he caught a league leading 6th TD, but how about the blocks he threw to spring Johnson and Ellington---plus, the ball he caught in traffic while surrounded by three DBs was classic Fitz, and he even tried to drag the DBs into the end zone.
Play call of the day by the FOX crew? Calling the WR screen to John Brown a "Smoke Screen"!
The offensive line had a big day---but they also know they have to clean up their interior protection on twists and A gap blitzes. As much as BA puts Carson Palmer in a "zero" formation (0 backs), the guards and center need to know their assignments and switches pre-snap and be able to execute them. Twice in this game in particular, Iupati didn't switch on a T/E twist and Ziggy Ansah came at Palmer untouched, and on another occasion ILB Josh Bynes came right through Sendlein's and Cooper's A cap untouched at was at Palmer with a second of catching the snap. These interior mistakes were magnified last week versus the Rams and remain a high priority moving ahead.
The special teams were solid, save a couple of poor punts by Drew Butler, which would seem inexcusable when punting in a dome. He was saved on a third short punt when the ball hit the turf and got a good bounce.
Chandler Catanzaro's kickoff were better this week, which showed progress.
Patrick Peterson is starting to look comfortable as the punt returner.
Brittan Golden was solid on his one punt return and he made a nice tackle in punt coverage.
Justin Bethel was the ace on STs again and his blitz in the second half on defense was impressive.
So---the team is spending the week at the Greenbrier in West Virginia---and Carson Palmer was emphatic that the team would not be using the spa because it is a business trip---but, as long as they practice hard and keep their impressive film study on track, there's nothing wrong with the players and coaches hitting the spa or the golf course in their free time. This team has earned the right to carpe the diem.
There is no question that the team knows how much this upcoming game in Pittsburgh means to BA. BA will likely downplay it---but everyone knows what beating the Steelers at Heinz Field would feel like for BA. One can imagine his saying something to the effect of "reports of my retirement have been grossly exaggerated."
Watching the Lions on MNF was a help---first of all, it made it clear to the Cardinals that even though the Lions were 0-4, they remain a very talented team, one very capable of beating even the Seahawks in Seattle.
The 4 PM (EST) start was a help to both teams as that's the normal staring time for the Cardinals and with the Lions coming off a short week, it gave them a little extra time to get themselves ready to turn things back in their favor.
Clearly, from the start, the Cardinals' defense appeared well aware of the Lions' offensive tendencies and were able to cash in early on the first of Rashad Johnson's two interceptions. Johnson may not be the fastest FS on the block, but he is mentally tough and knows how to anticipate throws.
Combine Johnson's play with two other Johnny-on-the-spot safeties in Tony Jefferson and Tyrann Mathieu and what you have is a trio of superb, capitalistic playmakers. Jefferson was at the top of his game---landing tough hits and strips on the Detroit RBs and TEs. Mathieu needs to be accounted for at all times, because he has a nose for the ball and a penchant for creating chaos in that backfield off of blitzes.
One gets the sense that the Rams' physical play in the secondary the week before re-energized and motivated the Cardinals' secondary.
Patrick Peterson did a fabulous job on Megatron for the second year in a row, save the two holding penalties, the first of which was iffy, the second of which was unjustified. Peterson remains a little too handsy in his coverage, and one would think he would be given more of a benefit of the doubt by the officials, but that was not the case in this game. However, what was great to see was the adjustment he made on Calvin Johnson when he shunned the hands-on approach to shadow coverage which allowed him to turn his head back to the ball when Johnson did. In doing so, Peterson recorded a textbook interception on an intended back shoulder fade---and he converted it into a 40 yard dash return.
At ILB Kevin Minter and Deone Bucannon are establishing themselves as reliable playmakers, shooting gaps and chasing plays down laterally. They also have been very solid in coverage.
Up front, Calais Campbell at the NT position continues to be an ingenious ploy by young DC James Bettcher. Campbell's size, strength and slither-ability is especially daunting for opposing QBs.
When the Lions abandoned their running game, we saw Bettcher switch into a 4 man front with some timely LB and S blitzes. Corey Redding's textbook read and react interception of a Stafford screen pass, showed not only how great it is to have veterans like Redding in the rotation, but how well Bettcher and the defense is trying to address what has been a perennial weakness---screen pass coverage.
Rodney Gunter was especially active in the middle and Josh Mauro made a superb play diving in for Abdullah's fumble and ripping it away from him. However, the Cardinals need to defend the off-tackle plays better as rookie Zach Zenner beat them on several good runs.
The best edge rusher on this day was Markus Golden, who created pressures on his outside rush---and while he was steered wide of the target, he made his presence felt.
Alex Okafor was not having one of his better games and seemed a little out of sorts, especially missing an easy tackle on a swing pass when he tried to tackle too high. Alas, he injured a calf and is now awaiting MRI results back in AZ. This is tough news for the Cardinals, who have not been getting any real pressures from LaMarr Woodley. Kareem Martin and Josh Mauro will likely get more edge rushes from the nickel but they would appear to be too heavy to play in space as 34 OLBs. Could Shaq Riddick be brought into the fold this week?
A suggestion from my post last week was to try Sean Weatherspoon at OLB---which now seems like a given. Another answer could be Alani Fua, who saw some solid action at ILB in the 4th quarter and showed good chasing speed.
Steve Keim may have to try to make a trade---and one willing participant may be the Kansas City Chiefs, who have just lost RB Jamaal Charles. While it would be tough to give up RB Andre Ellington, could he land the Cardinals Tamba Hali or Dee Ford? Hali's salary was all in a $5M signing bonus and thus all it would cost the Cardinals this year is about $680K. Ford broke a rib in pre-season, but he is healthy again and his pro-rated salary for this year would be around $720K and his salaries for 2016 and 2017 are in the $1.5M range per.
There are no OLBers on the Cardinals' PS.
Tough break for ST LB Kenny Demens, who was off to a good start this year. If Keim promotes from within, PS ILB Gabe Martin is the next man up.
As for the the offense---it was tough to imagine going two consecutive 3 and outs after the defense got them the ball. On the first series, BA tested the interior of the Lions' line, decimated by the loss of starters Ngata and Walker---but what makes the Lions tough in the middle is their propensity to run blitz up the A and B gaps, which is what Chris Johnson was met with twice in a row.
After going 2 for -1 yards, it was tough to imagine that Johnson's next 9 carries would result in 107 yards. And then a 3 carry 63 yard performance from Andre Ellington. on top of two solid rush TDs from rookie David Johnson. The adjustment BA made was running away from the inside run blitzes through the C and D gaps.
Gotta love the way Chris Johnson maintains his balance and lunges forward after solid contact on his carries. Love too his nose for daylight and how he kicks into that added gear in the open field. Ellington can learn a lot from him in these regards and it looks like he already has.
David Johnson's power has been a superb surprise. He hit those TD runs hard and finished them off with bang.
On the second three and out, Carson Palmer picked up where he left off the week before by sailing a couple of passes---but, on the third series he settled down beautifully and threw two picture perfect strikes to TE Darren Fells, the second of which was the best TE red zone seam TD we have seen in years.
The epitome of Palmer's performance came on the masterful 99 yard drive where he dropped the deep sideline go to a streaking John Brown "in the basket." Then, Palmer's TD pass to Brown on the post/cross pattern was on the money.
The play of WR Larry Fitzgerald continues to be an inspiration---not only that he caught a league leading 6th TD, but how about the blocks he threw to spring Johnson and Ellington---plus, the ball he caught in traffic while surrounded by three DBs was classic Fitz, and he even tried to drag the DBs into the end zone.
Play call of the day by the FOX crew? Calling the WR screen to John Brown a "Smoke Screen"!
The offensive line had a big day---but they also know they have to clean up their interior protection on twists and A gap blitzes. As much as BA puts Carson Palmer in a "zero" formation (0 backs), the guards and center need to know their assignments and switches pre-snap and be able to execute them. Twice in this game in particular, Iupati didn't switch on a T/E twist and Ziggy Ansah came at Palmer untouched, and on another occasion ILB Josh Bynes came right through Sendlein's and Cooper's A cap untouched at was at Palmer with a second of catching the snap. These interior mistakes were magnified last week versus the Rams and remain a high priority moving ahead.
The special teams were solid, save a couple of poor punts by Drew Butler, which would seem inexcusable when punting in a dome. He was saved on a third short punt when the ball hit the turf and got a good bounce.
Chandler Catanzaro's kickoff were better this week, which showed progress.
Patrick Peterson is starting to look comfortable as the punt returner.
Brittan Golden was solid on his one punt return and he made a nice tackle in punt coverage.
Justin Bethel was the ace on STs again and his blitz in the second half on defense was impressive.
So---the team is spending the week at the Greenbrier in West Virginia---and Carson Palmer was emphatic that the team would not be using the spa because it is a business trip---but, as long as they practice hard and keep their impressive film study on track, there's nothing wrong with the players and coaches hitting the spa or the golf course in their free time. This team has earned the right to carpe the diem.
There is no question that the team knows how much this upcoming game in Pittsburgh means to BA. BA will likely downplay it---but everyone knows what beating the Steelers at Heinz Field would feel like for BA. One can imagine his saying something to the effect of "reports of my retirement have been grossly exaggerated."
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