Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
The Cardinals did themselves proudly in Atlanta. Certainly their three turnovers and array of penalties and missed tackles are something they are going to need to clean up, but for the most part, the Cardinals donned the look of a big play team. Their highlight reel consists of (1) Honey Badger's diving interception off a tipped pass influenced by Karlos Dansby; (2) Carson Palmer's pylon strike TD to John Brown; (3) Markus Golden's strip sack and Chandler Jones' recovery; (4) Drew Stanton's left end zone TD to John Brown; (5) Phil Dawson's 54 yard FG; (6) Cap Capi's 1 1/2 sacks and alert coverage of the bootleg hidden TE drag; (7) Blaine Gabbert's 20 yard strike to Carlos Agudosi; (8) James Summer's bounce out sprint and diving reach under the pylon TD.
Following their disappointing performance at home versus the Bears, the Cardinals' fairly one-sided victory at Atlanta (2016 NFC Champions) in the opening of their brand new state-of-the-art stadium has to feel very encouraging. Not sure if anyone expected a game like this, particularly since BA reminded the troops that the Cardinals have gotten blasted in Atlanta the last two times.
Even though, yes, this is a meaningless pre-season game and the Cardinals did make their fair share of miscues, the positives the Cardinals can take from this game are meaningful.
What made me especially proud last night was how organized the Cardinals looked whether it was the 1st stringers, the 2nd stringers or the 3rd stringers. The planning that BA and his coaches did during the week was very effective. The Cardinals came to Atlanta with a plan and purpose and for the most part they can feel very good about the results.
BA deserves a lot of credit for his handling of the veterans, especially during a very long training camp. Carson Palmer says he feels fresh and it showed last night. Keeping David Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald on a low snap count was prudent. Like BA said, "they'll thank me in November."
Yes, I have expressed doubts and worries about BA's ego and his minimal pass and run protections...but I still appreciate all the good things he does. BA is one of the best teachers in the NFL. He is also one of the best play callers.
Kudos to BA and new QB coach Byron Leftwich because all three QBs are playing as well as ever.
Kudos to James Bettcher, Kevin Ross and Nick Rapone because when locked into their proper assignments the Cardinals' secondary is covering as well as ever.
The other very encouraging sign of this training camp has been the swift development of the team's 2nd year players within the system:
* DT Robert Nkemdiche is now showing flashes on domination...none of which he showed last year.
* CB Brandon Williams is now showing confidence in his stride for stride, look back for the ball coverage.
* G Evan Boehm is looking very solid as the starting RG.
* C/G Cole Toner has learned the center position and played well and is now the swing C/G.
* FS Harlan Miller is growing more confident as a middle of the field playmaker.
* T/G John Wetzel is the valuable 6th man of the offensive line.
* DE Olsen Pierre appears ready to join the defensive line rotation.
* CB Ronald Zamort was turning heads in camp with his sticky coverage before his injury.
* LB Scooby Wright has made strides at ILB and is a stud on STs.
* LB Cap Capi is emerging as one of the best edge players on the team and is a legit roster candidate.
* TE Hakeem Valles is a good, solid STs player and an improved blocker at TE.
* T Ulrich John has been playing well at 2nd team RT and is roster worthy.
These players are still young and are going to make their share of mistakes (as all young players must)...but they are showing that their learning curves and their desires are strong.
The success the coaches have had in developing these players is all the more reason why the Cardinals should be patient with all of their draft picks and best UCFAs this year.
Clearly, the Cardinals are making significant strides in their player development. How cool was it to see the Cardinals' 1st, 2nd and 3rd stringers outplay the Falcons'? This was a big step forward.
Following their disappointing performance at home versus the Bears, the Cardinals' fairly one-sided victory at Atlanta (2016 NFC Champions) in the opening of their brand new state-of-the-art stadium has to feel very encouraging. Not sure if anyone expected a game like this, particularly since BA reminded the troops that the Cardinals have gotten blasted in Atlanta the last two times.
Even though, yes, this is a meaningless pre-season game and the Cardinals did make their fair share of miscues, the positives the Cardinals can take from this game are meaningful.
What made me especially proud last night was how organized the Cardinals looked whether it was the 1st stringers, the 2nd stringers or the 3rd stringers. The planning that BA and his coaches did during the week was very effective. The Cardinals came to Atlanta with a plan and purpose and for the most part they can feel very good about the results.
BA deserves a lot of credit for his handling of the veterans, especially during a very long training camp. Carson Palmer says he feels fresh and it showed last night. Keeping David Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald on a low snap count was prudent. Like BA said, "they'll thank me in November."
Yes, I have expressed doubts and worries about BA's ego and his minimal pass and run protections...but I still appreciate all the good things he does. BA is one of the best teachers in the NFL. He is also one of the best play callers.
Kudos to BA and new QB coach Byron Leftwich because all three QBs are playing as well as ever.
Kudos to James Bettcher, Kevin Ross and Nick Rapone because when locked into their proper assignments the Cardinals' secondary is covering as well as ever.
The other very encouraging sign of this training camp has been the swift development of the team's 2nd year players within the system:
* DT Robert Nkemdiche is now showing flashes on domination...none of which he showed last year.
* CB Brandon Williams is now showing confidence in his stride for stride, look back for the ball coverage.
* G Evan Boehm is looking very solid as the starting RG.
* C/G Cole Toner has learned the center position and played well and is now the swing C/G.
* FS Harlan Miller is growing more confident as a middle of the field playmaker.
* T/G John Wetzel is the valuable 6th man of the offensive line.
* DE Olsen Pierre appears ready to join the defensive line rotation.
* CB Ronald Zamort was turning heads in camp with his sticky coverage before his injury.
* LB Scooby Wright has made strides at ILB and is a stud on STs.
* LB Cap Capi is emerging as one of the best edge players on the team and is a legit roster candidate.
* TE Hakeem Valles is a good, solid STs player and an improved blocker at TE.
* T Ulrich John has been playing well at 2nd team RT and is roster worthy.
These players are still young and are going to make their share of mistakes (as all young players must)...but they are showing that their learning curves and their desires are strong.
The success the coaches have had in developing these players is all the more reason why the Cardinals should be patient with all of their draft picks and best UCFAs this year.
Clearly, the Cardinals are making significant strides in their player development. How cool was it to see the Cardinals' 1st, 2nd and 3rd stringers outplay the Falcons'? This was a big step forward.
