Red Hawk
JUST WIN!
Cardinals defense gets mean
1st-round pick Pace draws praise for play at end
Andrew Bagnato
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 24, 2003 12:00 AM
Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis bumped into Chicago Bears assistant Richard Dent before the Cardinals' 27-17 exhibition win Friday night at Sun Devil Stadium. Dent told McGinnis he was impressed by Arizona's defensive line.
"He said, 'Coach, I've been watching your (game) film a lot, and one thing your guys do is come off the ball,' " McGinnis said.
That's high praise from one of the legendary pass rushers in NFL history. The Cardinals staff hopes it will continue when the 2003 regular season kicks off in two weeks.
Disbelieving fans may wonder how the lowly Cards have managed to sweep their first three exhibitions. One reason is they've played three bad teams in games that don't count. But another is a marked improvement in the defensive line.
The unit absorbed a lot of the blame for the Cardinals' 29th-rated defense a year ago. But a new attitude and new faces Calvin Pace and Kenny King have energized the front and have helped the team rebound from the season-ending injury to starting end Kyle Vanden Bosch.
The difference was immediately evident when the Cardinals sacked fleet Chicago quarterback Kordell Stewart twice on the game's first three snaps Friday night.
"That set a tone and sent a message," said linebacker Raynoch Thompson, who registered the first sack.
"I think we've had as many sacks in these three games as we had all of last year," starting defensive end Fred Wakefield said.
Almost. The Cardinals have dropped the quarterback 15 times in the three preseason games. They managed a grand total of 21 sacks last season, 35 fewer than league leader Philadelphia. It was probably no coincidence that Arizona won five games and Philadelphia played in the NFC championship game.
"It was frustrating," Wakefield said. "Everybody was pointing fingers at us."
The difference may be new personnel and a new game plan. Pace has flashed speed the Cards haven't seen on the defensive front since Simeon Rice.
"Nothing's ever perfect," Pace said. "I definitely have some things to work on. But it's a good start."
In the first quarter alone, Pace sacked Stewart, forced an interception by belting Stewart as he threw and caused a fumble. Pace's performance has silenced critics who thought the team wasted a first-round pick on the 6-foot-4, 262-pound Pace.
"Do you like that draft pick now?," a smiling McGinnis asked reporters. "He's got great speed. He's got the perfect temperament for a defensive end. He's a tough guy. He's got a good forklift to him. The first sack he had (against Chicago), he just mashed that tackle clear back into the quarterback. He's not just a finesse-jazz guy.
"He's going to get better and better," McGinnis said. "I absolutely love his mind-set and the way he works. This guy is going to help us."
A fresh scheme also is helping. A year ago, the Cards often deployed a "swim-and-switch" scheme that called for defenders to read the play before making a move, Wakefield said. This year, coaches want the Cards to be more aggressive at the snap.
"The scheme's helping," Wakefield said. "That's something we focused on in camp. Before practice, we do eight 'get-offs,' just sprinting 10 yards. We're trying to work on movement."
One drawback is a tendency to jump at the quarterback's cadence. On Friday night, Pace was drawn offside by Bears quarterback Chris Chandler's snap count.
"It's been hurting us here and there because we're listening to sound a little bit too much trying to get that edge, but we'd much rather have guys coming off the ball than sitting on their heels," Wakefield said.
McGinnis credited defensive line coach Joe Greene and Cory Godette with changing the unit's mind-set. The players say they got the message from the first day of training camp.
"Our coaches talked to us and said they didn't get a lot of push inside (in 2002)," said King, a fifth-round pick from Alabama who has two sacks. "Coach Greene said if you prove you can do that, you're going to be around a long time. We're here to rush that passer, and that's what we're trying to do."
"One reason is they've played three bad teams in games that don't count "
Ever notice they're only bad after they lose to the Cards!
Before the games they're good teams that should beat us by 10 points+
"One drawback is a tendency to jump at the quarterback's cadence. On Friday night, Pace was drawn offside by Bears quarterback Chris Chandler's snap count."
Well guess we should cut Pace over this huge flaw which apparently the only thing Pace did all game!
1st-round pick Pace draws praise for play at end
Andrew Bagnato
The Arizona Republic
Aug. 24, 2003 12:00 AM
Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis bumped into Chicago Bears assistant Richard Dent before the Cardinals' 27-17 exhibition win Friday night at Sun Devil Stadium. Dent told McGinnis he was impressed by Arizona's defensive line.
"He said, 'Coach, I've been watching your (game) film a lot, and one thing your guys do is come off the ball,' " McGinnis said.
That's high praise from one of the legendary pass rushers in NFL history. The Cardinals staff hopes it will continue when the 2003 regular season kicks off in two weeks.
Disbelieving fans may wonder how the lowly Cards have managed to sweep their first three exhibitions. One reason is they've played three bad teams in games that don't count. But another is a marked improvement in the defensive line.
The unit absorbed a lot of the blame for the Cardinals' 29th-rated defense a year ago. But a new attitude and new faces Calvin Pace and Kenny King have energized the front and have helped the team rebound from the season-ending injury to starting end Kyle Vanden Bosch.
The difference was immediately evident when the Cardinals sacked fleet Chicago quarterback Kordell Stewart twice on the game's first three snaps Friday night.
"That set a tone and sent a message," said linebacker Raynoch Thompson, who registered the first sack.
"I think we've had as many sacks in these three games as we had all of last year," starting defensive end Fred Wakefield said.
Almost. The Cardinals have dropped the quarterback 15 times in the three preseason games. They managed a grand total of 21 sacks last season, 35 fewer than league leader Philadelphia. It was probably no coincidence that Arizona won five games and Philadelphia played in the NFC championship game.
"It was frustrating," Wakefield said. "Everybody was pointing fingers at us."
The difference may be new personnel and a new game plan. Pace has flashed speed the Cards haven't seen on the defensive front since Simeon Rice.
"Nothing's ever perfect," Pace said. "I definitely have some things to work on. But it's a good start."
In the first quarter alone, Pace sacked Stewart, forced an interception by belting Stewart as he threw and caused a fumble. Pace's performance has silenced critics who thought the team wasted a first-round pick on the 6-foot-4, 262-pound Pace.
"Do you like that draft pick now?," a smiling McGinnis asked reporters. "He's got great speed. He's got the perfect temperament for a defensive end. He's a tough guy. He's got a good forklift to him. The first sack he had (against Chicago), he just mashed that tackle clear back into the quarterback. He's not just a finesse-jazz guy.
"He's going to get better and better," McGinnis said. "I absolutely love his mind-set and the way he works. This guy is going to help us."
A fresh scheme also is helping. A year ago, the Cards often deployed a "swim-and-switch" scheme that called for defenders to read the play before making a move, Wakefield said. This year, coaches want the Cards to be more aggressive at the snap.
"The scheme's helping," Wakefield said. "That's something we focused on in camp. Before practice, we do eight 'get-offs,' just sprinting 10 yards. We're trying to work on movement."
One drawback is a tendency to jump at the quarterback's cadence. On Friday night, Pace was drawn offside by Bears quarterback Chris Chandler's snap count.
"It's been hurting us here and there because we're listening to sound a little bit too much trying to get that edge, but we'd much rather have guys coming off the ball than sitting on their heels," Wakefield said.
McGinnis credited defensive line coach Joe Greene and Cory Godette with changing the unit's mind-set. The players say they got the message from the first day of training camp.
"Our coaches talked to us and said they didn't get a lot of push inside (in 2002)," said King, a fifth-round pick from Alabama who has two sacks. "Coach Greene said if you prove you can do that, you're going to be around a long time. We're here to rush that passer, and that's what we're trying to do."
"One reason is they've played three bad teams in games that don't count "
Ever notice they're only bad after they lose to the Cards!
Before the games they're good teams that should beat us by 10 points+
"One drawback is a tendency to jump at the quarterback's cadence. On Friday night, Pace was drawn offside by Bears quarterback Chris Chandler's snap count."
Well guess we should cut Pace over this huge flaw which apparently the only thing Pace did all game!
