After getting the ball rolling with four key match-ups yesterday, Fooch, at Niners Nation, and myself sit down and look at the final four match-ups facing the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers. These were a bit tougher for me but let me know what you think:

Matchup #5: 49ers Defensive front 7 vs. Cardinals OL (rushing)

Fooch: Advantage: 49ers - While the Cardinals performed well in rushing against the 49ers, the 49ers front 7 has been dramatically improved.  The addition of Justin Smith at OLB and defensive end gives the team a nasty presence now that Bryant Young is retired.  Manny Lawson played in the opener, but was out for the second SF-AZ matchup and he is an integral part of their run defense.  Patrick Willis has a full year under his belt and should only improve.  The one drawback is that Aubrayo Franklin is consistently getting pushed around at the nose tackle position, making it more difficult for the linebackers to make plays.  However, the 49ers will be able to rotate enough guys into the defensive line to cover for that deficiency.  While Michael Lewis plays strong safety, he is excellent in the running game and provides some second level support to the linebackers if they miss a tackle.

CG: Advantage: Cardinals - The Cardinals actually ran the ball decently against the Niners last year totaling 257 yards on 62 carries last year just over 4.1 yards per carry, which is better than they did against the rest of the league. They've also worked tirelessly this offseason to improve the running game and are even going to incorporate some zone blocking schemes to better suit Edgerrin James' running style. The Niners run defense took some shots last year and ended up ranking 22nd in the league but they only allowed 3.8 yards per attempt. With the Niners front seven being fresh and the Cardinals offensive line looking solid so far, I'd really like to call this match-up a 'push,' but I won't take the easy way out. I'll give the Cardinals a slight edge with the one-two punch of James and Hightower.

Match-up #6: Cardinals defensive front 7 vs. 49ers OL (rushing)

Fooch: Advantage: 49ers - I will be honest and admit I don't know a whole heck of a lot about the Cardinals.  The injuries to the defensive line are certainly not something you want when you're facing a running back like Frank Gore.  Gore has slimmed down as he expects to carry a Marshall Faulk type of rushing/receiving role.  The 49ers offensive line was a weakness for much of last year, but Gore was still able to surpass 1,100 rushing yards.  The line has gotten younger and healthier and while Gore may not reach his 2007 goal of 2,000 yards, he will be the engine of this offense.  I'd expect the 2007 offensive line issues to be an anomaly and the 2006 excellence to return.

CG: Advantage: 49ers - The Cardinals defense might have had some faults in 2007 but the front seven was solid against the run. They gave up less than 100 yards per game and finished 9th in league in run defense, but they do have some question marks heading into Sunday. The biggest question mark is at the biggest position in a 3-4 defense, nose tackle. Gabe Watson, last years starter, has already been ruled out for the game and primary backup Alan Branch is questionable at best right now. He hasn't practiced since injuring his ankle in the final preseason game and he'll have to get healthier if he wants to suit up against the Niners. That leaves the nose tackle position to veteran Bryan Robinson, who was signed in the offseason to backup the nose and defensive end positions. He's a consummate professional but he's not a true nose tackle and if he has to play the entire game, he could get pushed around pretty badly by the fourth quarter. If he's the only nose tackle that's available, I'd expect them to go with more four man fronts to try and give him some help. I'd love to take the Cardinals here but there are too many question marks at this point to vote against Frank Gore, who's averaged 4.5 yards per carry against the Cardinals throughout his career.

The final two match-ups after the jump.....

Continue reading this post »

Ok, so we all know that if Edge were to retire today, he most certainly would never be elected to the Hall of Fame. The bigger question though is how close is he. I was surprised when I looked at the career stats for running backs and saw how high James was in most of the categories. Granted stats alone won't tell you the whole story but it's definitely a starting point.

With that being said, we'll look at where he is heading into the 2008, where he could be after the 2008 season, and where he could be after 2009 when he'll be a free agent. In order to set the table, I'll assume that James will stay healthy and be as productive as he's been during his two seasons in Arizona meaning he'll get 1,200 yards rushing, 200 yards receiving and 6 total touchdowns in 2008. Just for the sake of being conservative based on his age and the possibility of the Cardinals attempting to groom a replacement, lets assume that he gets only 1,000 yards rushing, 100 yards receiving and 4 total touchdowns. Those might be overly optimistic projections in the eyes of some but an improved and stable offensive line and appropriate play calling should make those numbers easily attainable.

First, ranking thirteenth on the all-time rushing list is impressive enough and if memory serves every back ahead of him on that list who is eligible is already in the Hall of Fame. If we add 1,200 yards to that total, Edge would jump to seventh on the list and if we project two seasons out, Edge would rank 5th with just over 13,800 yards rushing. He'd also be within arms reach of Curtis Martin at fourth who would be just under 300 yards ahead of him. Obviously the Chargers' LaDainian Tomlinson is going to pass Edge at some point in the future, but other than LT the next back who has any realistic shot of jumping into the top ten is Washington's Clinton Portis. He's currently has 7,715 yards at 26 years old. Still though, it's very conceivable that James could rank in the top 5 in terms of rushing yards before his career ends and that alone might be enough to get him in.

Edge is obviously helped out in this department the gaudy receiving stats that he put up in Indy, but he's still an above average back out of the backfield. If we project James to get about 1,400 yards from scrimmage during 2008, he would jump to 10th on the all-time list, and just inches (well actually 26 yards) from the former Cowboy, Tony Dorsett, in ninth. If we look past the 2009 season and project another 1,100 yards, Edge would then rank eighth all time, less than 100 yards behind former Jet and Patriot, Curtis Martin. He'd also be less than 300 yards behind former Raider and Chief Marcus Allen for 6th all-time.

Continue reading this post »