Statistical Look At The Arizona Cardinals Offense vs St. Louis Rams

by Andrew602 on Sep 16, 2010 2:33 PM MDT

ST. LOUIS - SEPTEMBER 12: Derek Anderson #3 of the Arizona Cardinals passes against the St. Louis Rams during the NFL season opener at the Edward Jones Dome on September 12 2010 in St. Louis Missouri. The Cardinals beat the Rams 17-13. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

Before we completely move on to the Arizona Cardinals second regular season game against the Atlanta Falcons this Sunday, I wanted to take a look at some of the Cardinals offensive drives in their victory over the Rams. As we all know, the offense struggled -- and that's putting it mildly. Anderson wasn't on the same page as Larry Fitzgerald and the offensive line had trouble blocking the Rams defensive unit. The four fumbles on offense also put an end to several drives. So statistically, how did the offense vary on scoring drives to none-scoring drives?

I'll use the first drive of the game as an example, mainly to show how productive Anderson began.

Plays	Yards	TOP	QB	C/A	Yards	TD
8	57	4:10	Anderson	4/4	52	0

Obviously this drive resulted in the first turnover of the game -- a Tim Hightower fumble -- but as you can see, the offense was driving right off the bat. Anderson didn't miss a pass, including an 18-yard pass to Larry Fitzgerald. It seemed that no one was going to stop the offense from scoring. Momentum certainly exists in the NFL, and it was lost with this opening drive. Next let's take a look at the first score of the game:

Plays	Yards	TOP	QB	C/A	Yards	TD
10	52	4:01	Anderson	3/5	40	0

In the Cardinals first scoring drive, Anderson led the Cardinals offense down field completing 3 of 5 passes. The offense couldn't convert a key third down and settled for a Jay Feely field goal. As you can see, each of the last drives were similar in terms of yards and time of possession. The next table illustrates the Cardinals first touchdown of the game:

Plays	Yards	TOP	RB	C	YPC	TD
5	76	2:34	Hightower/LSH	5	15.2	1

This drive turned out to be one of the best rushing drives that I've seen from the Cardinals in the last 6+ seasons. It may sound extreme, but between Tim Hightower and LaRod Stephens-Howling, four runs were over 15 yards and the final run was for a touchdown. Derek Anderson didn't need to throw the ball. If the Cardinals can put together runs like this all season, the offense will be in better shape. The final drive we'll look at is the Cardinals final score of the game:

Plays	Yards	TOP	QB	C/A	Yards	TD
7	86	3:56	Anderson	6/8	101	1

Anderson, who struggled to put together a string of throws all game, was on the money for the Cardinals last scoring drive. Yes, if you are adding the numbers, they don't make sense. The Cardinals drive was 86-yards but they also committed two penalties resulting in the additional 15-yards. Anderson's final throw was the touchdown pass to Larry in the endzone.

Take it for what you want, but the Cardinals offense was firing on all cylinders when Derek Anderson and the running game were on point. If we subtract the drives above from the overall stats, then we are left with the following:

Plays	Yards	TOP	QB	C/A	Yards	TD
34	107	13:08	Anderson	9/24	104	0

If the Cardinals offense is going to succeed against the Atlanta Falcons, Anderson's accuracy is the key to victory.

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Excellent

use of the numbers to explain what was evident while watching the game – Accuracy is imperative from your QB!

I would have to agree that the runs for LaSH and Hightower on the scoring drive were non-Cardinal-like! In the years I’ve been following the team those runs have been almost non-existent. I would never expect 3 or 4 of them in a single drive…or barely in a single season, honestly. Exciting stuff! Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea to let Garrison Hearst to go after all…

by SCCards on Sep 16, 2010 5:11 PM MDT reply actions

The thing about Derek Anderson

Is that he knows what his problems are, and he’ll admit them on TV. He admitted that he has some accuracy problems, and he even said, “I’ll watch some of those plays tomorrow, and I’ll be sick”. That shows a QB that’s willing to fix his problems and mistakes.

Also, when asked about how Fitz and him would play, DA said, “We’ll be good”. That gives me a lot of confidence that they’re going to have a lot better chemistry for this week. I think DA and Fitz will be the perfect duo.

I really like DA, and so do his teammates. Staying in the game even after getting hit numerous times has made his teammates respect him a lot more. I’m really looking forward to this weeks game.

Go Cardinals!

by Skii on Sep 16, 2010 6:47 PM MDT reply actions

It also

shows a QB that at least for now is willing to take 100% blame for his inaccuracy in that game instead placing some of that blame on a broken WR corps and Offensive Line. Leinart could learn something from this guy when it comes to pointing fingers.

by AZSEAfan on Sep 16, 2010 9:50 PM MDT up reply actions

DA

I’m a die hard Browns fan, always have been and always will be,one of the things that has impressed me so far is his maturity, he seems to be a better, stronger leader. He’s openly and genuinely taking responsibility for his mistakes. Another thing that has impressed me is his toughness, not just physical but his mental toughness as well. The thing that happened in during the preseason with him and Lienert no doubt brought back ugly memories from his days in Cleveland yet he was able to stay focused on the task at hand. Something else that stood out was the way he was able to overcome his mid game meltdown. Usually once that meltdown started it was all down hill from there but he fought back and led the team down field for the win. Maybe it was that brutal hit he took to the chest that woke him up, I don’t know but whatever it was, something clicked and he settled back down. Unlike most Browns fans I firmly believe DA is a better qb than what he was in Cleveland and he’s only going to get better. In my humble opinion, I believe DA is in a much better place now than where he was in the past. His coaches believe in him and his teammates believe in him. For the first time in his career he can finally play the game of football without being forced to worry about the other guy waiting to take his place. DA isn’t prefect, he’s a gunslinger with a gunslingers mentality, he’s going to make you jump up and down for joy and he’s gonna make you want to throw your cold bottle of beer through the tv screen, it’s the nature of the beast, the Cards could have done a lot worse. I wish DA and the Cards the best of luck this year and if you folks don’t mind I think I might like to hitch a ride on this wagon and adopt the Cards as my team to follow in the NFC.

by Steve n NC on Sep 16, 2010 7:30 PM MDT reply actions 3 recs