CBS Cards Team Report April 8th

BigRedArk

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Here is the latest from CBS on the Cards. I found DG's comments on rushing the ball in the notes and quotes part interesting.


Cardinals report: Strategy and personnel April 8, 2006
The Sports Xchange
Strategy and personnel · Inside slant · Notes, quotes




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The team has moved to bolster its depth by re-signing five players, including restricted free agent Kenny King. Though he missed the past two seasons following wrist surgeries, King, a fifth-round pick in 2003, is expected to be a strong contender to win a defensive tackle position.

K Nick Novak, C Shawn Lynch, DT Langston Moore and DT Tim Bulman, all exclusive rights free agents, signed for one year each.

Novak filled in for injured Pro Bowl K Neil Rackers on Dec. 2 and made three field goals.

Moore started a game after being claimed from Cincinnati. Bulman also started a game after injuries cut into the team's defensive-line depth.

--The team has begun its 14-week off-season strength and conditioning program.

Among the first through the door: veteran safety Robert Griffith, who was believed to be considering retirement. He would enter his 13th season if he returns. TEAM NEEDS

1. Offensive line: The Cardinals now have RB Edgerrin James and QB Kurt Warner to protect. They have some linemen on the roster that should be performing at a higher level -- Leonard Davis, Oliver Ross, Elton Brown, Alex Stepanovich. They upgraded at G with the signing early in free agency of Milford Brown. Injuries stymied Ross and Stepanovich, and Brown was a rookie. Davis hasn't emerged as a premier left tackle and could move back inside to guard. But the bottom line is the Cardinals need to improve not only the chemistry but also the talent in order to ignite a rushing game that couldn't convert on third-and-2, couldn't punch the ball into the end zone in goal-to-go situations and had the second-worst rushing average since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.

2. Defensive tackle: The team quickly signed DT Kendrick Clancy in free agency, but it needs more. Russell Davis, a longtime starter, is an unrestricted free agent and is shopping. Seattle is interested. This is a team that can't have too many run stoppers. It has attempted to use quick, undersized players inside for years. Darnell Dockett has shown playmaking ability but might be better suited to play end. Depth became a critical issue at these spots when injuries took a toll as the season wore on.

3. Cornerback: The Cardinals haven't had a formidable pair in recent memory. Antrel Rolle, last season's first-round pick, missed 11 games to a knee injury. It remains to be seen if he is the player the Cardinals believe he is. Fellow 2005 rookie Eric Green saw spot-starting duty, largely because other players were injured, but he, too, has upside to his game and could develop into a serviceable starter. The problem with both players is the "could."

FRANCHISE PLAYER
None.

TRANSITION PLAYER
None.

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
OT Ian Allen; FB Jarrod Baxter; C Billy Conaty; OG Adam Haayer; RB James Jackson; TE Teyo Johnson; DT Ross Kolodziej; FB Harold Morrow; RB J.R. Redmond; WR/KR Reggie Swinton; DE R-Kal Truluck; CB Raymond Walls.

RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
LB Gerald Hayes.

EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS
DE Antonio Smith.

PLAYERS RE-SIGNED: RB Damien Anderson; FB Obafemi Ayanbadejo; OT Jeremy Bridges; DT Tim Bulman; CB Dyshod Carter; S Aaron Francisco; LB Isaac Keys; DT Kenny King; OL Shawn Lynch; DE Langston Moore; PK Nick Novak; DE Anton Palepoi; QB Kurt Warner; CB Robert Tate; OG Reggie Wells.

PLAYERS ACQUIRED
OG Milford Brown; DT Kendrick Clancy; RB Edgerrin James.

PLAYERS LOST
DT Russell Davis; S Quentin Harris; QB Josh McCown.

Copyright (C) 2006 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.


Cardinals report: Inside slant April 8, 2006
The Sports Xchange
Inside slant · Notes, quotes · Strategy and personnel




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It's like the old joke about the man who goes to see the doctor and tells him, "It hurts when I do this." Advises the doc, "Then don't do that."

So it was with the Cardinals rushing attack last season, statistically the second-worst since the 1970 NFL-AFL merger.

That helps explain the free-agent signing of running back Edgerrin James.

When it comes to rushing the football in 2006, the Cardinals are hoping it no longer hurts when they do that.

At the recent NFL meetings, coach Dennis Green waxed on about the difference a running game might make for the Big Red's offense, complementing what statistically was the league's most potent passing game.

Of course, it should be noted that even though the Cards rolled up big passing yardage against defenses that knew it was coming, they still couldn't put the ball in the end zone.

Even though Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin each had more catches than the previous club record, Green acknowledged that he was uncomfortable flinging it to them so much.

"It's very difficult to stay with the run as much as you should and as much as you want to if you feel you can have so much more success throwing the ball," Green said. "You're probably not right, but it just appears that way because you've got two pretty good receivers. I think now we'll give the running game the kind of commitment it should have.

"Edgerrin James was so much a part of the Colts' success. If he got 20 carries, he normally got 100 yards. If he got 100 yards, they normally won. It just breaks down the defense. It puts them in a situation where they have to pick their poison. Do you want to stop Fitzgerald and Boldin? Do you have somebody that can do that? Or do you have to stop Edgerrin James running the football? It's the classic, you jab when they respond, then you counterpunch it. We hope to be very good at that."

Green acknowledged that the Cardinals have some work to do in rebuilding their offensive line to give James, Fitzgerald, Boldin and Kurt Warner a chance to create a prolific, balanced offense. The signing of free-agent guard Milford Brown was a start. The Cardinals are expected to draft an offensive lineman on the first day, possibly even in the first round at No. 10, depending upon who is left.

Widespread injuries up front also prevented some players who were viewed as underachievers from reaching their potential, according to the Cardinals coach. And, Green said, the staff did them no favors by too quickly calling plays away from the run. There has to be commitment and repetition the build a strong ground game.

Never did the Cardinals try to pound the ball.

"We've got a line that is anxious to get back and play again," Green said. "They feel, and I agree with them, that they're a lot better than what they had a chance to show. We had a lot of injuries. We'll be quite a bit better up front.

"Some of it was the running and some of it was the play-calling. I said right from the start we were maybe too aggressive in abandoning the run for the pass. And I'm pass-happy, no doubt about that. But I know that you've got to have balance with the run to have success."

James, too, should help make the line better.

"There aren't going to be many people who think the Colts have Hall of Fame offensive linemen," Green said. "But your style of running, how you set the blocks up and how they take away from the aggressiveness of the pass (rush), I think it makes all the difference in the world."

Copyright (C) 2006 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.


Cardinals report: Notes, quotes April 8, 2006
The Sports Xchange
Notes, quotes · Inside slant · Strategy and personnel




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--The giddiness of the Cardinals' first Arizona schedule front-loaded with home games gave way this week to news of the passing of Marshall Goldberg, one of the greatest running backs in college football history before he joined the Cardinals. He was 88.

He played for the Chicago Cardinals from 1939-42 and from 1946-48. In between stints he was a Navy SEAL in World War II. Goldberg was All-Pro six times.

Goldberg is best remembered for his interception against the Philadelphia Eagles that clinched the Cardinals' only NFL championship, in 1947. The Cardinals retired his No. 99.

--RB Roger Robinson keeps carrying on in NFL Europe. After opening with back-to-back 100-yard rushing games, Robinson came within five yards of making it three in a row with 95 yards on 14 carries, including a 66-yard touchdown run on the third play of the game, for Frankfurt.

Robinson, who played in college at Northern Arizona, leads NFL Europe in rushing after three weeks with 348 rushing yards on 63 carries.

--Among recent interested visitors to view progress on construction of the new Cardinals Stadium was world-renowned architect Peter Eisenman, who played a key role in its design.

"Every time I come, there is always something new and it is just getting closer and closer to what it is going to be," Eisenman said. "I'm really impressed.

"This is the first time I have seen the outside with all of the panels in place and it looks great. Since there has never been a stadium like this before, I didn't know how well the material would work the curves, but you can hardly tell they are straight panels. I think the exterior panel really looks great."

During his tour, the video boards were being tested with a clip of the stadium roof lift.

"You look at the scoreboards and it is amazing how crisp they are," Eisenman said. "I've been on this project since 1997. The past nine years of my life have been put into this stadium, so finally seeing it go up is like seeing a baby who was crawling and not speaking develop into something that is talking and walking. It is just great and it is going to be very exciting to be here on August 12th. There is no doubt about that."

--How well are ticket sales going for the new stadium?

Evidently well enough that the team has bagged the old Flex Pack trick, which essentially was half of a season ticket that included home games selected by the fans.

--G Rolando Cantu, the only Mexican national playing in the NFL, and several teammates, serving as extras, shot a Gatorade commercial aimed at the Hispanic community at the team's Tempe, Ariz., training facility.

"We wanted to recognize and celebrate Rolando since he is the first professional athlete to come through the Mexican collegiate system and enter the NFL," Gatorade Senior Marketing Manager Dan Hickle said. "His story is very inspirational to many others who have great dreams of doing things here in the United States."

The commercial is running on Telemundo, Telefutura, Univision, GolTV, and Azteca America networks.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"This is the reward. This is the dessert. This is what you get when you've got an outstanding stadium. Now you can function like all the other 31 teams in the National Football League. In fact, you can function better than they can." - Cardinals coach Dennis Green, on the Cardinals' opening the season at home and having four of their first six games at home for the first time since they moved to the desert in 1988

Copyright (C) 2006 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.
 
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RON_IN_OC

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2. Defensive tackle: The team quickly signed DT Kendrick Clancy in free agency, but it needs more. Russell Davis, a longtime starter, is an unrestricted free agent and is shopping. Seattle is interested. This is a team that can't have too many run stoppers. It has attempted to use quick, undersized players inside for years. Darnell Dockett has shown playmaking ability but might be better suited to play end. Depth became a critical issue at these spots when injuries took a toll as the season wore on.

Ummmm...I can't believe this article is dated April 8th. They really need to figure out that R Davis already signed with Seattle.
 

BigRedRage

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usa today has a draft issue out that talks about him being a need to sign guy too
 

stewdog1

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I don't know why Davis was allowed to walk. He just became an Icon on my Madden team.
 

Duckjake

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Among the first through the door: veteran safety Robert Griffith, who was believed to be considering retirement. He would enter his 13th season if he returns. TEAM NEEDS

Who else do we have at Free Safety? Quentin Harris? Could Shazor move from SS to FS?
 

ajcardfan

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Duckjake said:
Who else do we have at Free Safety? Quentin Harris? Could Shazor move from SS to FS?

Quentin Harris is gone. He signed with the Giants.
Shazor is barely a SS, much less a FS.

Free Safety is the GLARING need on our defense right now.
 

joeshmo

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Duckjake said:
Who else do we have at Free Safety? Quentin Harris? Could Shazor move from SS to FS?

Fransisco is the FS backup and Shazor is the SS backup as of right now.
 

earthsci

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joeshmo said:
Fransisco is the FS backup and Shazor is the SS backup as of right now.
BigDavis75 said:
That's awful.
I know that I'm being ignorant but can't you move CBs to S pretty easily?
 

Duckjake

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earthsci said:
I know that I'm being ignorant but can't you move CBs to S pretty easily?

Don't you need your safeties to be taller than the CB's?

Michael Huff looks better all the time.
 

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