Mitch
Crawled Through 5 FB Fields
Zone Run Blocking:
The Cardinals "tackle zone" run plays are TFLs (tackles for loss) waiting to happen. The basic problems are personnel and technique. The Cardinals' offensive line is slow and not very athletic, particularly the center (Shipley is only good in a phone booth, he can't run) and the two guards. They have trouble versus quicker defensive tackles and ends. Their strength is in playing straight on power football with clear inside gap responsibilities and running quick traps by doubling the DT to one side and pulling the guard to trap the first threat, or if the play side is sealed off, lead up the A to B gap hole.
But the problem in the power game is that the guards or center rarely get to the second level to block the ILBers...which means the ILBers typically have free shots at the RB. The Cardinals try to side block the ILBers with Fitz or with the flanker in motion, but the ILBers know it's coming and they typically slip underneath the blocks keeping a clear path to the RB.
This is exactly why the Cardinals would be wise to use a fullback (or an H-back that they can motion to the hole) so that they can run straight-on block isolations on the ILBers. Trying to block ILBers with WRs is not a great idea.
Shotgun Passes to David Johnson:
The one touch David Johnson got in the game was a bread and butter play the Cardinals are going to use very frequently. They've been running it a lot in practice. Johnson lines up to the weak side of the defense next to Palmer in the shotgun. Then he runs an option route -- meaning he runs opposite of where the LB is shading him. If the LB is shading to the inside, he runs an out route away from him --- if the LB is favoring the out pass, he runs an inside route or a skinny post.
It's this one play that is going to make teams play a lot of zone or zone-man combinations versus the Cardinals. The reason is, there aren't many LBers in the NFL who can cover David Johnson one-on-one. By playing zone, teams can provide immediate help to the outside or inside.
What this means is --- this is very good news for Fitz and the Cardinals' TEs. Fitz is a pro's pro at finding and sitting in the soft spots of zones. Gresham and Momah are good at it too.
What it also means is that the Cardinals should try to develop another one of their WRs as a slot WR. The best candidates on the current roster for that, imo, are Jaron Brown and Jeremy Ross. Speedsters John Brown and J.J. Nelson won't be able to withstand the pounding of catching the ball in traffic.
The Hard Count:
It was great to see Drew Stanton employ a hard count...something that has been glaringly missing from the Cardinals' game plans on offense. It worked 2 out of 3 times...and led to the "free play" TD pass from Stanton to Brown. The one time it didn't work was when John Wetzel had a false start. That's the worry. But, hopefully the Cardinals' offensive line will have the discipline to execute hard counts, because snapping the ball on one 95% of the time gives the defense a distinct advantage.
The RB Screens and WR Bubble Screens:
The good news is that the offensive linemen are selling the plays well and slipping to the perimeter well.
The bad news is that the offensive linemen stand around too long, rather than just picking and taking out the first threat. And too often they let the inside pursuit pass right by them.
This slows down the RB or WR to the point where they either run quickly out of bounds or get a late start cutting inside where all the help is coming from.
In this game, Chris Johnson dropped what looked to be a very well set up screen and Jaron Brown in scraping for extra yards took a wallop from a charging ILB which could have knocked Brown out (thank goodness he wasn't), but the tackle jarred the ball loose and fortunately Brown was ruled down by contact. Still, if the offensive linemen whiff on those blocks and the WR can't catch and go quickly, those plays are going to hurt.
The 3-5 Step Passing Game:
Carson Palmer was at his very best in his 3-5 step passes in this game. This could have had to do with the fact that BA was calling the game, which Palmer is most used to and most comfortable with. BA criticized Palmer for holding on to the ball too long versus the Bears and clearly this week the emphasis was to clean that up. Mission accomplished, as all 3 QBs were very decisive and clean with their throws. The Falcons were playing mostly off coverage, so that helped. But when they did try to get a bump or early stick on the WRs that's when Palmer and Stanton threw the fades to John Brown.
Perhaps Palmer's best timed and most accurate pass of the night was the 3rd and long conversion he made to the outside of J.J. Nelson with a Falcon's CB draped on Nelson's inside. That conversion led to the Cardinals first TD drive.
Stanton's best pass, other than the TD to Brown, was the drop back strike he had to TE Jermaine Gresham up the right hash marks.
Gabbert's best drop back pass was the 22 yard laser he threw from near his own goal-line to Carlos Agudosi. That pass was the epitome of what scouts call an "NFL throw."
Gabbert's Mobility:
It was great to see BA run a bootleg for Gabbert on the first play...which Gabbert executed well but under threw the pass to the TE. It looked as if Gabbert was expecting a shallower route from the TE, which may account for the low throw. But that play is a good one for Gabbert.
Fortunately, Gabbert dodge a knee injury when he was rolled on by Cole Toner's man. He limped around for a while afterward. But, on the next drive, Gabbert kept the drive alive by escaping the pocket and bolting up the left sideline for a first down. A few plays later, RB James Summers scored on his dive to the pylon.
A Tip of the Cap
Watching the tape a second time was a real treat when it came to studying OLB Cap Capi. Cap put on a 34 OLB clinic out there in every facet of OLB play.
First of all, not only did he and Kareem Martin set a very hard edge on their sides, when the Falcons ran to Cap's side, not only did he force the run inside, which is his primary job, he also made the tackles or assisted in the tackles. One of those hard tackles on the Falcons' big RB Brian Hill, forced Hill out of the game.
Secondly --- and this is what was so exceptionally impressive --- with the Falcons marching toward the end zone, they called a "submarine boot" which is a very popular misdirection pass in the NFL today, where the o-line pretends to run a zone running play to one side, but the QB bootlegs while the play-side TE sneaks across the formation into the weak side flat. If you watch Cap on the play, he immediately stayed home, which is his job, then he picked up the TE and took away the pass option which caused the QB to throw the ball away. This is EXACTLY the kind of role discipline the Cardinals' defense needs more of. It would have been an easy wide-open TD had Cap not stayed at home.
Thirdly, Cap's "dip and rip" move in his pass rush was textbook. He looked a lot like Markus Golden who dipped and ripped his way to the strip sack earlier in the game. Cap's pressure was relentless. He was teeing off every pass play. Two sacks and a handful of other pressures. Plus, he's got a bull rush aspect and a spin move to his game...he's not just a one trick pony.
Low on Toner This Week
We saw why BA and HG like John Wetzel as the 6th man and first G or T in. Wetzel's size and strength at the point of attack is superior to Toner's. Wetzel got beat a couple of times on inside penetration on the zone running plays, which he needs to correct and should correct. But, Toner got beaten on 2-3 bull rushes by the Falcons' DT Derrick Shelby (who is a good interior pass rusher), one of which led to a sack on Gabbert and another led to Gabbert getting rolled up from the side.
One would expect Toner to be further along at this point. The good news is that he has fared well in his primary focus this training camp as the backup center --- and having someone as athletic and smart as Toner in the pivot could bode well for his and the team's future. But they are playing him at guard so that he can be one of the 2 swing players on game day. Hopefully, Toner bounces back this week with a stronger performance, otherwise it might behoove the coaches to keep Tony Bergstrom, who has been solid at guard and center --- which creates the potential for the Cardinals having to waive Dorian Johnson or Will Holden, a scenario which the team is likely trying to avoid.
Or --- could the team keep Bergstrom and waive Toner? That would be tough. Toner's only in his second year and he has shown versatility and up until this past week has garnered good blocking ratings. Bergstrom is a journeyman veteran on a one year deal.
Special Teams Preparation
In looking at the special teams lineups against the Falcons, especially in the first half, it appeared as if Amos Jones used a number of players who do not figure to make the 53 man roster. It also was curious to see Tyrann Mathieu used as a gunner on the kickoff coverage team. What would be very wise this week is to go with special team lineups that likely will be the ones in the first game versus the Lions. Those special team units need coordination and continuity asap.
What could be a worry as well, is BA's suggestion that they might claim a punter off waivers, in which case Phil Dawson would have to groom a new holder for the first game. It appears that Dawson is comfortable with Matt Wile as his holder. Wile was superb on kickoffs this week and his punts have greater hang-time than Richie Leone's, while the yardage is pretty similar. Both punters have missed on a couple of punts. Not sure, however, if it is worth it for the Cardinals to make a waiver wire claim heading into the first game. Wile was pretty solid last year and certainly was an upgrade.
The Cardinals "tackle zone" run plays are TFLs (tackles for loss) waiting to happen. The basic problems are personnel and technique. The Cardinals' offensive line is slow and not very athletic, particularly the center (Shipley is only good in a phone booth, he can't run) and the two guards. They have trouble versus quicker defensive tackles and ends. Their strength is in playing straight on power football with clear inside gap responsibilities and running quick traps by doubling the DT to one side and pulling the guard to trap the first threat, or if the play side is sealed off, lead up the A to B gap hole.
But the problem in the power game is that the guards or center rarely get to the second level to block the ILBers...which means the ILBers typically have free shots at the RB. The Cardinals try to side block the ILBers with Fitz or with the flanker in motion, but the ILBers know it's coming and they typically slip underneath the blocks keeping a clear path to the RB.
This is exactly why the Cardinals would be wise to use a fullback (or an H-back that they can motion to the hole) so that they can run straight-on block isolations on the ILBers. Trying to block ILBers with WRs is not a great idea.
Shotgun Passes to David Johnson:
The one touch David Johnson got in the game was a bread and butter play the Cardinals are going to use very frequently. They've been running it a lot in practice. Johnson lines up to the weak side of the defense next to Palmer in the shotgun. Then he runs an option route -- meaning he runs opposite of where the LB is shading him. If the LB is shading to the inside, he runs an out route away from him --- if the LB is favoring the out pass, he runs an inside route or a skinny post.
It's this one play that is going to make teams play a lot of zone or zone-man combinations versus the Cardinals. The reason is, there aren't many LBers in the NFL who can cover David Johnson one-on-one. By playing zone, teams can provide immediate help to the outside or inside.
What this means is --- this is very good news for Fitz and the Cardinals' TEs. Fitz is a pro's pro at finding and sitting in the soft spots of zones. Gresham and Momah are good at it too.
What it also means is that the Cardinals should try to develop another one of their WRs as a slot WR. The best candidates on the current roster for that, imo, are Jaron Brown and Jeremy Ross. Speedsters John Brown and J.J. Nelson won't be able to withstand the pounding of catching the ball in traffic.
The Hard Count:
It was great to see Drew Stanton employ a hard count...something that has been glaringly missing from the Cardinals' game plans on offense. It worked 2 out of 3 times...and led to the "free play" TD pass from Stanton to Brown. The one time it didn't work was when John Wetzel had a false start. That's the worry. But, hopefully the Cardinals' offensive line will have the discipline to execute hard counts, because snapping the ball on one 95% of the time gives the defense a distinct advantage.
The RB Screens and WR Bubble Screens:
The good news is that the offensive linemen are selling the plays well and slipping to the perimeter well.
The bad news is that the offensive linemen stand around too long, rather than just picking and taking out the first threat. And too often they let the inside pursuit pass right by them.
This slows down the RB or WR to the point where they either run quickly out of bounds or get a late start cutting inside where all the help is coming from.
In this game, Chris Johnson dropped what looked to be a very well set up screen and Jaron Brown in scraping for extra yards took a wallop from a charging ILB which could have knocked Brown out (thank goodness he wasn't), but the tackle jarred the ball loose and fortunately Brown was ruled down by contact. Still, if the offensive linemen whiff on those blocks and the WR can't catch and go quickly, those plays are going to hurt.
The 3-5 Step Passing Game:
Carson Palmer was at his very best in his 3-5 step passes in this game. This could have had to do with the fact that BA was calling the game, which Palmer is most used to and most comfortable with. BA criticized Palmer for holding on to the ball too long versus the Bears and clearly this week the emphasis was to clean that up. Mission accomplished, as all 3 QBs were very decisive and clean with their throws. The Falcons were playing mostly off coverage, so that helped. But when they did try to get a bump or early stick on the WRs that's when Palmer and Stanton threw the fades to John Brown.
Perhaps Palmer's best timed and most accurate pass of the night was the 3rd and long conversion he made to the outside of J.J. Nelson with a Falcon's CB draped on Nelson's inside. That conversion led to the Cardinals first TD drive.
Stanton's best pass, other than the TD to Brown, was the drop back strike he had to TE Jermaine Gresham up the right hash marks.
Gabbert's best drop back pass was the 22 yard laser he threw from near his own goal-line to Carlos Agudosi. That pass was the epitome of what scouts call an "NFL throw."
Gabbert's Mobility:
It was great to see BA run a bootleg for Gabbert on the first play...which Gabbert executed well but under threw the pass to the TE. It looked as if Gabbert was expecting a shallower route from the TE, which may account for the low throw. But that play is a good one for Gabbert.
Fortunately, Gabbert dodge a knee injury when he was rolled on by Cole Toner's man. He limped around for a while afterward. But, on the next drive, Gabbert kept the drive alive by escaping the pocket and bolting up the left sideline for a first down. A few plays later, RB James Summers scored on his dive to the pylon.
A Tip of the Cap
Watching the tape a second time was a real treat when it came to studying OLB Cap Capi. Cap put on a 34 OLB clinic out there in every facet of OLB play.
First of all, not only did he and Kareem Martin set a very hard edge on their sides, when the Falcons ran to Cap's side, not only did he force the run inside, which is his primary job, he also made the tackles or assisted in the tackles. One of those hard tackles on the Falcons' big RB Brian Hill, forced Hill out of the game.
Secondly --- and this is what was so exceptionally impressive --- with the Falcons marching toward the end zone, they called a "submarine boot" which is a very popular misdirection pass in the NFL today, where the o-line pretends to run a zone running play to one side, but the QB bootlegs while the play-side TE sneaks across the formation into the weak side flat. If you watch Cap on the play, he immediately stayed home, which is his job, then he picked up the TE and took away the pass option which caused the QB to throw the ball away. This is EXACTLY the kind of role discipline the Cardinals' defense needs more of. It would have been an easy wide-open TD had Cap not stayed at home.
Thirdly, Cap's "dip and rip" move in his pass rush was textbook. He looked a lot like Markus Golden who dipped and ripped his way to the strip sack earlier in the game. Cap's pressure was relentless. He was teeing off every pass play. Two sacks and a handful of other pressures. Plus, he's got a bull rush aspect and a spin move to his game...he's not just a one trick pony.
Low on Toner This Week
We saw why BA and HG like John Wetzel as the 6th man and first G or T in. Wetzel's size and strength at the point of attack is superior to Toner's. Wetzel got beat a couple of times on inside penetration on the zone running plays, which he needs to correct and should correct. But, Toner got beaten on 2-3 bull rushes by the Falcons' DT Derrick Shelby (who is a good interior pass rusher), one of which led to a sack on Gabbert and another led to Gabbert getting rolled up from the side.
One would expect Toner to be further along at this point. The good news is that he has fared well in his primary focus this training camp as the backup center --- and having someone as athletic and smart as Toner in the pivot could bode well for his and the team's future. But they are playing him at guard so that he can be one of the 2 swing players on game day. Hopefully, Toner bounces back this week with a stronger performance, otherwise it might behoove the coaches to keep Tony Bergstrom, who has been solid at guard and center --- which creates the potential for the Cardinals having to waive Dorian Johnson or Will Holden, a scenario which the team is likely trying to avoid.
Or --- could the team keep Bergstrom and waive Toner? That would be tough. Toner's only in his second year and he has shown versatility and up until this past week has garnered good blocking ratings. Bergstrom is a journeyman veteran on a one year deal.
Special Teams Preparation
In looking at the special teams lineups against the Falcons, especially in the first half, it appeared as if Amos Jones used a number of players who do not figure to make the 53 man roster. It also was curious to see Tyrann Mathieu used as a gunner on the kickoff coverage team. What would be very wise this week is to go with special team lineups that likely will be the ones in the first game versus the Lions. Those special team units need coordination and continuity asap.
What could be a worry as well, is BA's suggestion that they might claim a punter off waivers, in which case Phil Dawson would have to groom a new holder for the first game. It appears that Dawson is comfortable with Matt Wile as his holder. Wile was superb on kickoffs this week and his punts have greater hang-time than Richie Leone's, while the yardage is pretty similar. Both punters have missed on a couple of punts. Not sure, however, if it is worth it for the Cardinals to make a waiver wire claim heading into the first game. Wile was pretty solid last year and certainly was an upgrade.
