Revenge Of The Birds: FanPosts

Ask a Rams fan

2009-11-19T12:28:40Z

What's good, RotBers. I wanted to stop by from Turf Show Times and answer any questions you guys might have ahead of our game this weekend. You guys have a great community here. Andrew's from this morning on who you would grab from the Rams is a great discussion to have.

In any case, hit me up with any questions you have about the Rams. This first year of the Spagnuolo-led Rams has been a tumultuous one, but it certainly has its bright spots and has slowly fostered some optimism among Rams fans for our future. Hit me up.

Potential of Chris "Beanie" Wells

2009-11-18T23:40:58Z

I'm a horrible evaluator of NFL talent and don't follow the Arizona Cardinals all that closely(I'm a Packers fan, see you guys later in the season). I watched Beanie play in college when he was playing my Wisconsin Badgers with the Ohio State Buckeyes but college success doesn't equal NFL success(Ron Dayne, Michael Bennett, Brian Calhoun, etc). I've noticed that he has had a couple of good games these last two weeks and could be emerging as a starter. Any thoughts on what his NFL potential is?

The Future on Defense

2009-11-18T22:09:02Z

One of the upsides of some of the injuries on defense is that we have been able to see some of the younger back ups getting playing time. It has been a mixed bag in my book. I thought it might be worth while to take stock in what we have seen thus far from the young back ups.

Will Davis: I like what I have seen. He is very active on pass rush and seems physical enough to set the edge well. His coverage of backs needs to be improved. Forsett had gained 6 yards before Davis closed on him. That may improve in time but at least for now, he seems to be able to impact the game as much as Berry has traditionally done. 2010 starter? We'll see if they resign Okeafar another year but I think Davis will be in the rotation, especially on 3rd down.

Ali Highsmith: Highsmith is basically a slower, heavier, less athletic version of Adrian Wilson. His special teams impact has declined this year although he isn't bad. He got eaten up in traffic inside, and wiffing twice on open field tackles doesn't look good on a resume either. Teams with any sort of a power running game will target him in the future. More often then not, rather than filling the holes he has been bending back and taking angles like a safety would. The upside to Hayes' injury? We now know that Highsmith can not be the heir-apparent should Dansby walk.

Reggie Walker: I know he is off everyone's radar but from what little I have seen of him on goal line this past game, I like what I have seen. He is around 240 and 6'. He seems to be thumper (like Hayes) which I tend to like in a 3-4 ILB. I would like to see more of him but thus far, he seems to have potential. Is he a future starter... that is probably a stretch.

Rashad Johnson: Ughh... Underwhelming, underachieving, underperforming... any other words that go along with that train of thought? I know it is only his rookie year etc... but he has shown nothing. He looks nervous. The game is still too fast for him and he is worried more about making a mistake than making a play. I havn't seen athleticism either. He was drafted to provide a backup and leverage for contract talks with Rolle but right now he looks to be able to provide neither. I will be honest, (and said so after the draft) I was not a fan of the pick. I wanted the Cards to pick Jasper Brinkley (ILB 250ish 6'4" was picked up a dozen picks later by Vikings) but the Cards had Johnson ranked high. Time will tell but I wouldn't place money on Johnson being an impact player in 2010

Greg Toler: I was also skeptical of Toler in the draft. He was a complete unknown to me, but, unlike in the 3rd round, there weren't other players I would have prefered so his draft didn't bother me. He has shown potential. In the Giants game he looked nervous but he held his own although he wasn't tested much. He has played well on special teams and, unlike R. Johnson, he has made an impact. I think he has potential to replace McFadden in 2011.

Kenny Iwebema: Injuries, tumors, conditioning... it has been a hard year for Kenny. Yet he still has managed to play well on special teams and is effective in rotation on the DL. The draft may bring more competition for DL spots next year but I would bet that Iwebema will be back in 2010 and will provide effective depth.

I left out Ware (who I have come to like and hope they resign) and R. Brown (who I have never been a fan of) simply because they are veterans and will be FA. They are a known package and if they are brought back it will be to fill holes. I am not looking to them to be the promise of the future.

I know we'll do all of this speculation again in the off season but what's your take now?

The future of our OL...

2009-11-18T19:32:37Z

What do you guys see as the future of our OL. I'd like to see:

1) A first round OT taken in next year's draft. We have to upgrade at at least one of the tackle spots and if I had to choose I'd rather it was Gandy that was demoted. He is getting older and just gets abused by the higher quality DE's around the league.

2) Stick with Brown at RT (or maybe move him to LT if Leinart becomes the QB). I know he has been pretty bad most of the time, but I think he fits what our coaching staff wants to do offensively down the road. Even coming out of college, he was touted as a very good run blocker, which is what you want in a non-blindside tackle. He is not a very good pass protector, but if we are going to be more run oriented, we can maybe give him more help than our tackles currently get.

3) I think Sendlein is a pretty good center. To me, center is the most mentally taxing position on the line. As he gains more experience, I feel he will continue to be a middle of the road NFL center, which is probably good enough if we are going to continue spending good money elsewhere.

4) I guess I don't know much about Herman Johnson's development at this point, but I'd like to see him get reps somewhere next year. If he makes it as a tackle, then ammend #1 to drafting a guard. To me, he would make a great road grating guard.

I have to admit that OL analysis is not my strong suit, but I have been thinking about this topic a lot lately and was hoping others could fill in the holes in my plan. To me, OL improvement has to be a priority in the off season, especially if we are moving more towards a more balanced offensive attack. What do you guys think and what would you like to see done to improve?

Former Arizona Cardinal Lance Long a starter in Kansas City?

2009-11-18T07:38:12Z

I just read that due to Dwayne Bowe's four game suspension, Lance Long and Chris Chambers are going to be the starters at wide receiver this week for the Kansas City Chiefs. It seems that Lance taking the job over in Kansas City with Haley was a great move for his career. Now let's see what he can do with it. He had 74 yards against the Jaguars two weeks ago, but quickly came back to Earth last week versus the Raiders. But that was with Bowe still active.

I think this is awesome for Lance. I hope he does well. Did the Cardinals do the right thing with cutting Long?

Wells and Warner lead the Cardinals to victory.

2009-11-18T03:15:54Z

Beanie Wells and Kurt Warner put in stellar second half performances to lead Arizona to a 31-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in Glendale Sunday afternoon. After only gaining 10 yards rushing in the first half, Wells exploded for 75 yards rushing including two touchdown runs of 11 and 13 yards. Wells also caught two passes for 32 yards. Kurt Warrner was 29 of 38 for 340 yards and two touchdowns. Warner's two touchdowns gave him 200 for his career.

Arizona had threattened to take an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter when a pass interference penalty gave the Cardinals a first-and-goal at the six yard line. Seattle's defense stepped up with a huge goal line stand when Tim Hightower was stopped short of the goal line on 4th down. The Seahawk's Marcus Trufant had an end zone interception overturned when it was determined that he did not reestablish his position inbounds when stepped out of bounds prior to his interception.

Seattle took advantange when Matt Hasselbeck found TJ Houshmandzadeh for a 53 yard gain. The drive culminated with a Justin Forsett 11 yard run.

The Seahawks took a 14-0 lead when Hasselback found Jon Carlsson on a 31 yard catch. Facing a 3rd-and-1 from the Cardinals' 31 yard line, the Cardinals were expecting a run play but Carlsson had faked out safety Adrian Wilson and went downfield and scored an easy toughdown.

Arizona answered with a seven play 65 yard drive that ended with a 28 yard touchdown pass from Warner to Steve Breaston to make it a 14-7 ball game.

Both teams then traded field goals and Seattle held a 17-10 halftime lead.

The second half the Arizona Cardinals and Wells took over the game. Arizona tied the game at 17 with a 13 play 82 yard drive that ended with a Wells 11 yard touchdown run. The drive included a 18 yard pass to Breaston and a 15 yard pass to Lerod Stephens-Howling.

After Seattle took a 20-17 lead early in the fouth quarter, Arizona took the lead for good on back-to-back touchdown drives. On the first one Anquan Boldin caught a pass for 37 yards. Wells finished the drive with a 13 yar run. The next possession for the Cardinals scored with a 18 yard touchdown pass from Kurt Warner to Larry Fitzgerald. The drive included a 29 yard run and 23 yard pass by Wells.

Seattle's final two drives were thwarted by interceptions by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Wilson.

Notes:

-Arizona had 122 yards rushing.This is the first time this season that the Cardinals had back-to-back games of 100 yards rushing.

-Kurt Warner two touchdown passes gave him 200 for carrer.

-With Anquan Boldin's eight catches for 108 yards he became the fifth fast player to have over 7,000 carrer passing yards. Larry Fitzergerald can eclipse the same feat this season with 400 more passing yards.

Poll

Sould Wells replace Hightower as starting running back.

WHAT TYPE OF PLAYER WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE KNOWN AS?

2009-11-18T00:02:06Z

When one word defines your style of play

Every one is talking about the dirty play of Nine 0. so i ask you this. In a league filled with double standards and rules put in place to protect the golden children of the NFL. WHAT TYPE OF PLAYER WOULD YOU WANT TO BE DESCRIBED AS. If you are considerd soft you are going to be labeled as some one with no drive no motor. what about being labeled as dirty. to me that means you will do anything in that game to get the edge. when i played football the player that was beating us we hit a little harder if it was a pile up you took your shots. every player in this league will tell you what hapens in a pile up. Hienz ward is one of the dirty players but to every one else he is a pro bowl player he takes cheep shots every chance he gets is he being ridiculed no. THIS IS FOOTBALL IT IS AGGRESIVE IT IS VIOLENT AND IF YOU CANT TAKE IT DONT WATCH DONT PLAY DONT GUDGE.

Darnell Dockett and His "Dirty" Play Isn't Going Away

2009-11-17T21:09:19Z

Like it or not, Dockett's elbow to the throat of Matt Hasselbeck isn't getting swept under the rug. Darren Urban is talking about it at the team's official site, Mike Sando is talking about it on ESPN, Seahawks head coach Jim Mora has sent film to the NFL offices and even Nine-0 referenced the situation via his twitter account.

For anyone who has yet to see video evidence of what we're talking about, you can see it right here.

I think at the very least Dockett will be some kind of slap on the wrist fine but this could be the kind of thing where the league and perhaps more importantly referees start watching him more closely. We all know that Dockett can have a short fuse and he's picked up his share of personal foul penalties over the years. He's also got a reputation for "questionable" behavior at the bottom of a pile (just google Dockett and Earnest Graham or Dockett and Rex Grossman). I really doubt that any kind of suspension could be coming but one can never tell how Roger Goodell will respond. Luckily this didn't happen against Peyton Manning or some other high profile QB in a nationally televised game (like it not, that makes a difference), but this might follow DD around for a while.

Poll

What do you think of Darnell Dockett's elbow to Matt Hasselbeck's throat?

Belichick's Decision

2009-11-17T15:17:47Z

Below is an interesting website that looks at the percentages to determine if Belichick's decision to go for it on 4th and 2 from his 28 was a good move, by the numbers. Of course this doesn't take into account things like: (1) the psyche of the defense, since a lot of the defensive players will consider going for it there a slap in their faces or (2) the chance that the Pats make it on 4th down and still lose (although this is so small it really isn't even worth putting in the calculation).

I've had a pretty heated discussion with a friend at work about the decision. Was just curious what you all think about the move? Put it this way. What would you want Whiz to do if the Cards were in the same situation? Give the ball back to Manning with 2 minutes and 2 timeouts and 70 yards to go, or take control of the game with the 4th down attempt? And does it make a difference if it is regular season of the Super Bowl? I'll share my thoughts after a few of you chime in.

http://belichick-decision.heroku.com/

Around the NFL: Week 10

2009-11-16T22:03:24Z

Something that I've been wanting to start is a recap of the games around the NFL every week. I figure we're always talking about the Cardinals(which is fine) but talking about what else is going on around the league is important too. This week features some very interesting games, particularly the Sunday night game, which I'll talk about first.

Colts 35, Patriots 34 :It was labeled the rivalry of the decade, and rightfully so. The game started off with the Patriots looking like the much better team, going up 31-14 in the fourth quarter. The Patiots offense could not stop the Colts passing attack despite a weak running game. Either way, Manning did his thing and put the Colts in a position to win the game. With 2:23 left, Joseph Addai ran up the middle 4 yards to put the Colts within 6. Tom Brady and their explosive offense couldn't go 10 yards and faced a 4th and 2. Bill Belichick may have made his decision on pure emotions as the Pats went for the game on 4th and 2. Brady threw a quick strike to Kevin Faulk, who bobbled the pass and couldn't convert. The Colts retained the ball at the New England 29 yard line, where Peyton easily marched to the goal line and threw the game winner to Reggie Wayne. It was a gutsy decision by Belichick that we'll be hearing about for a while.

Chargers 31, Eagles 23: This game was big for both teams as both are trying to take the lead in their divisions. The Chargers explosive offense quickly took a commanding 28-9 lead late in the third quarter. The Eagles stormed back to within five, but couldn't slow the Chargers, and notably LaDanian Tomlinson, who had 96 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. Donovan McNabb threw for a career high 450 passing yards in the loss. Brian Westbrook suffered from another concussion, his second in the last month. The Eagles are fortunate the Cowboys lost, while the Chargers have climbed to tie the Broncos for the division lead. They face eath other next week.

Packers 17, Cowboys 7: Another pivotal match up took place in Green Bay, as the NFC East leading Cowboys took on a wild card-hopeful Green Bay Packers team. The Cowboys had been playing great as of late, but were stifled by the Packers defense, Charles Woodson in particular, who had 2 forced fumbles and an interception. The Cowboys were shutout until the end of the game, when Tony Romo threw a 9 yard touchdown to Roy Williams. Aaron Rodgers did what he could behind their depleted offensive line, throwing and running for a touchdown.

Chiefs 16, Raiders 10: We should call this the battle of the basement dwellers, as the inept Raiders battled the falling Chiefs. The Raiders only scored one touchdown, which came on the opening drive. They pulled JaMarcus Russell, who's proving to be the worst draft choice in recent memory. The Chiefs worked with what they had, handing the ball off to Jamaal Charles, who responded with 103 yards and got the Chiefs first rushing touchdown of the year. The game was full of excitement as you can see.

Panthers 28, Falcons 19: I don't want to say the Panthers used the Cardinals as a springboard, but it's starting to appear that way. They've now won 2 out of the last 3 games, and their game plan of passing less has worked. The Panthers continue to run behind DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. In the game, Delhomme was able to effectively run the hurry up, and threw 2 touchdown passes to Steve Smith. Matt Ryan struggled for the most part, especially when Michael Turner went down in the 1st half with what may be a high ankle sprain.

Redskins 27, Broncos 17: The Broncos took on the Redskins in what they thought would be an easy win. It was anything but that as the Redskins challenged the Broncos and won. Kyle Orton threw two early deep touchdown passes to Brandon Marshall before leaving the game with an injury. The Broncos offense sputtered once Chris Simms came into the game, and perhaps the biggest play was the obvious fake field goal, in which the Shaun Suisham threw a 35 yard touchdown pass to Mike Sellers. The Broncos have lost three games in a row.

Bengals 18, Steelers 12: A showdown in the AFC North lived up to the hype. The Bengals surprisingly won the game on defense, while the Steelers struggled to move the ball or score when they were in the red zone. The Bengals are now 5-0 in their division for the first time in franchise history, with only one division game left against the Browns. They've also won five road games in a row, which is also a franchise record.

Titans 41, Bills 17: The Titans won their third straight game, and their upcoming match up against the Cardinals doesn't look as guaranteed as it was a month ago. Chirs Johnson is on his way to a rushing title as he ran for 132 yards for two touchdowns and caught 9 passes for 100 yards. Vince Young is also proving to be more successful at quarterback then Kerrie Collins as all three of the Titans wins have come with Young at quarterback. Meanwhile, the Bills continue to fall as Terrell Owens shouts on the sidelines.

Jaguars 24, Jets 22: David Garrard was the difference yesterday, as he ran and threw for a touchdown. Maurice Jones-Drew also ran in a touchdown, and would have had another if not for taking a knee at the 1 yard line. MJD made a smart play as the Jags were able to drain the rest of the clock and kick the game winner as time expired. The Jets went from starting the season 3-0, to now dropping 4 out of the last 5 games. Mark Sanchez is still experiencing his rookie problems, as he threw two more interceptions.

Vikings 27, Lions 10: This game wasn't the most event-filled game, but it did mark Brett Favre's 300th consecutive start. It also showcased the skills of Adrian Peterson, who ran for 133 yards. The Lions skid now falls at 6 games in a row. Matthew Stafford doesn't look comfortable either, and it's obvious he and Calvin Johnson aren't on the same page. The good news - the Cardinals face the Lions later in the season. The bad news - the Cardinals face the Vikings later in the season.

Dolphins 23, Buccaneers22: Another nail-biter on the day featured two Florida teams. The Dolphins were able to implore their will with the Wildcat, and the Bucs rookie quarterback Josh Freeman gives the Bucs some hope for the future. The Dolphins won by a last second field goal. How much meaning does the game have? Not much unless the Dolphins can get a win this Thursday night.

Saints 28, Rams 23: The Saints took their undefeated record to St. Louis, in a battle with the 1-7 Rams. A blowout seemed inevitable, before Steven Jackson took over with 131 yards and was able to keep the Rams in the game until the end. The Rams secondary may be improving due to the two interceptions that Drew Brees had on the day as well. The Cardinals travel to St. Louis in a game that may be harder then we once thought.

49ers 10, Bears 6: The Thursday night game was one of those good ole defensive battles. The 49ers defense proved just how dominant they could be, but nothing hurt the Bears chances more then Jay Cutler's five interceptions. The 49ers offense on the other hand, wasn't able to move the ball or score(except off turnovers) on a Bears defense that gave up 41 points to the Cardinals. The 49ers head to Green Bay this week, in what will be a very important NFC match up.

Tonight: Ravens vs Browns - This match up doesn't serve much meaning but it is important for the Ravens to get back into the AFC playoff hunt. The Browns look like their heading for another early draft pick next year.
What to watch for: Other then Brady Quinn, there's not a lot to look for on the Browns. Watch for Ray Rice, the running back for the Ravens. He can stay on his feet and explode out of the hole at any given time.

I'm not sure if I'll recap all of the games next time, because as you can see, it takes a lot of writing. It was an event filled week and it sure feels good to have the Cardinals in first place with a 6-3 record. You can also use this post as an open thread for tonight's game if anyone plans on watching. What are your thoughts on week 10?

Post Seahags Randomness

2009-11-16T15:12:05Z

The Cardinals got off to a slow start but once they got the ball rolling, it was all over with. Warner was slinging, Beanie was rumbling and the defense was doing just enough to keep Bad-beck and the Seahawks off balance. Here's some randomness......

51 completions on 70 attempts (72.9%) for 601 yards (8.6 ypa), seven TD's and zero interceptions (131.9 QB rating). What is that you might ask? Well that's Kurt Warner's performance since js10jj went on his little rant about how KW was basically old, washed up and needed to be benched. Considering that those are unbelievable numbers, this proves two things. First and foremost, KW is a ROTB reader (welcome Kurt, we love you) and secondly, js10 is a genuis for inspriring KW to put up beastly numbers.
In case you're wondering who pissed in Beanie's cheerio's during the third quarter, check out this story from Darren Urban. After collecting his 15 yard penalty, he ripped off nearly 70 yards on just nine carries and picked up both of his receptions. Lesson learned, don't piss of Beanie Wells during a game.
Anquan Boldin might never admit it, but that's the best he's looked in at least a month and the extra week of rest was a big reason why. That was the old Q out there yesterday and I'd rather him miss a game or two here to witness him at full strength instead of seeing him limp through game after game. Not to be lost in the glory of another win, Boldin is now the fifth fastest to 7,000 receiving yards (88 games). Congrats Q.
Call me crazy but I think the pass rush is starting to come around. Sure we're talking about the Seahawks and they're terribly injured offensive line but the Cards just keep finding ways to get to the QB. We may not have a stud pass rusher that other team's truly fear but we've got five of six guys who are capable of getting there on any given play. Clark Haggans was the man yesterday registering his first two sack game since September of 2006.Karlos Dansby and Darnell Dockett each had half a sack and the ultimate veteran, Bryan Robinson got his first sack of the season. Guys like Bertrand Berry (who should have had at least half a sack) and Will Davis were bringing pressure off the edges and forcing Hasselbeck to step up into the arms of guys like DD and Haggans. All around solid performance and they did it without two starting linebackers.
Did somebody mention to Antrel Rolle that he's sorta playing for a new contract right now? He's been on fire the past month or so. His past five games have included 25 tackles, six passes defended and three picks and while it may have taken him longer that most of us expected, he's finally starting to look like an upper-tier free safety. He's staying back as the last line of defense, he's reading the eyes of QB's and taking good angles. Rolle could be one of those monster decisions this off season.
Ben Graham should go to the Pro Bowl. There I said it, I'm officially campaigning for a punter. He was booming the ball yesterday and dropped three more inside the 20, including a beautiful 51 yarder that was downed at the one yard line. Graham leads the NFC in average yards per punt (minimum 10 punts), even more than the great Andy Lee, and his net average is third (same minimum). And his cherry on top - no punter in the NFC has dropped more punts inside an opponents' 20 yard line. He'll never make it because he's not a known commodity of we should all go vote for him.
Last but certainly not least, I think this win might be bigger than most of us realize. I think they could have limped through this game and blamed a close loss on missing three starters and falling behind early. Instead though they took the first blow, picked themselves back up and came out swinging. The drive following the Seahawks second TD was HUGE. At that point I thought they had two options....lay down and wait till next week or counter punch. Needless to say they outscored the Hags 31-6 from that point on. Score one for the good guys.

That's all folks. A two game lead in the West with three to play before we travel to San Fran in a game that will hopefully wrap up the division. It's time to get on a roll and start thinking about the post season.

Article that shows we have 2 of the worst 10 O-Linemen in the NFL

2009-11-14T04:21:00Z

I found this article that shows we have 2 of the worst linemen in the NFL (Mike Gnady and Levi Brown). Only Green Bay has more in the top 10 (3). I personally think we should use Q as trade bait to get a new tackle and possibly draft another.

This is the website:http://nfl.fanhouse.com/2009/11/13/between-the-lines-whos-allowing-the-most-sacks/?ncid=txtlnkusspor00000002

Or here it is

Between the Lines: Who's Allowing the Most Sacks?

Posted Nov 13, 2009 10:00AM By JJ Cooper (RSS feed)

Filed Under: 49ers, Chicago Bears, Packers, Panthers, Steelers, NFL Analysis

Email Print Share Text SizeAA A Every week FanHouse looks at some aspect of NFL line play for the weekly Between The Lines feature.

Because of bye weeks, most teams are halfway through their season even as we're getting ready to watch Week 10. The halfway point seems like as good a time as any to roll out complete sacks allowed stats.

These stats were culled by watching each and every sack that has occurred in the NFL this season (with the exception of a couple of minutes of a Redskins-Chiefs game that was lost because of a broadcasting problem). In going back and watching every sack, I timed the time from the snap to the initial hit on the quarterback (then rewound it and timed it a couple of more times to confirm the time) and tried to assign blame to the person responsible for giving up the sack.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm sure a couple of these sacks are assigned to the wrong person. Assigning blame for sacks isn't as cut and dried as adding up rushing yardage--sometimes a blitzer may appear to be one lineman's man, but because of the blitz pickup rules on that particular play, he was actually someone else's assignment. But I do believe those are few and far between, and on most sacks it's pretty easy to figure out who's to blame--he's the offensive lineman shaking his head after the play after his man beat him head-to-head.

If you take the time to add all these sacks up, you'll notice that this list is missing more than 120 sacks. Those are sacks that were blamed on the play call or the quarterback. If a team keeps five in to block against a seven-man blitz and one of those unblocked blitzers hits the quarterback, blame the QB for not getting the ball out or blame the offensive coordinator, but there was nothing the line could do. Also, when a quarterback takes off to try to run after dropping back to pass, it's still charged as a sack if he doesn't get back to the line of scrimmage, but an offensive tackle did his job if he walled off his man, only to see him turn around and run the other way to tackle the QB at the line of scrimmage -- that goes on the quarterback. The same can be said for the rare times that a quarterback just runs out of bounds instead of throwing the ball away (well it's rare for everyone but Seattle's Seneca Wallace, who seems to make it a habit of his).

As you will notice and probably not be surprised to see, a pair of Packers rank among the league's worst. It's worth noting that Green Bay's Allen Barbre lost his starting right tackle job while Daryn Colledge's experiment as the team's fill-in left tackle has also been quickly ended and he was moved inside to the less demanding guard position. San Francisco's Adam Snyder has also lost his job at right tackle although like Colledge he was moved inside to guard.

I've included the median time of each sack to demonstrate that all sacks are not created equal. With seven sacks allowed, Duane Brown seems to be having a bad year for the Texans, but Matt Schaub is not doing him any favors. On five of Brown's sacks, Schaub had 3.5 seconds or more to throw, but his tendency to hold the ball meant that Brown's man eventually got the sack. With Peyton Manning at quarterback, Brown would likely have two sacks allowed at most this year. Carolina's Jordan Gross, on the other hand, wins the award for the big-name offensive lineman having the most problems in pass protection.

See List of Sacks Allowed Sorted by Team

SACKS ALLOWED BY PLAYER
Player	Team	Sacks Allowed	Median Time	Player	Team	Sacks Allowed	Median Time
Adam Snyder	SF	7	2.6	Jerome Harrison	CLE	1.5	1.9
Allen Barbre	GB	7	2.6	Jamaal Jackson	PHI	1.5	2.1
Jordan Gross	CAR	7	2.6	Jason Brown	STL	1.5	2.3
Daryn Colledge	GB	7	2.9	Louis Vasquez	SD	1.5	2.3
Duane Brown	HOU	7	3.6	Geoff Hangartner	BUF	1.5	2.4
Stephon Heyer	WAS	6.5	2.8	Anthony Fasano	MIA	1.5	2.5
Levi Brown	ARI	6	2.8	Chris Snee	NYG	1.5	2.8
T.J. Lang	GB	5	2.4	Logan Mankins	NE	1.5	2.9
Mike Gandy	ARI	5	2.5	D'Brikishaw Ferguson	NYJ	1.5	3.1
Sean Ryan	KC	5	2.6	Dan Koppen	NE	1.5	3.1
Jeff Backus	DET	4.5	2.5	Donald Lee	GB	1.5	3.1
Jermon Bushrod	NO	4.5	2.6	Matt Birk	BAL	1.5	3.3
Mario Henderson	OAK	4.5	2.7	Jon Jansen	DET	1.5	3.9
Jeromey Clary	SD	4.5	2.8	Heath Miller	PIT	1.5	4.2
Max Starks	PIT	4.5	3.7	Chester Pitts	HOU	1	1.6
Julius Jones	SEA	4	2	Cadillac Williams	TB	1	1.8
Lousaka Polite	MIA	4	2.2	Cedric Benson	CIN	1	1.9
Erik Pears	OAK	4	2.4	Kenneth Darby	STL	1	1.9
Jason Peters	PHI	4	2.4	Knowshown Moreno	DEN	1	1.9
Eugene Monroe	JAX	4	2.5	Damion McIntosh	SEA	1	2
Demetrius Bell	BUF	4	2.55	Hank Fraley	CLE	1	2
Marcus McNeil	SD	4	2.55	Chester Taylor	MIN	1	2.1
Wade Smith	KC	4	2.65	Brandon Manumaleuna	SD	1	2.2
Chris Chester	BAL	4	2.7	D'Anthony Batiste	WAS	1	2.2
Gosder Cherilus	DET	4	2.85	Felix Jones	DAL	1	2.2
Alan Faneca	NYJ	4	2.9	Joseph Addai	IND	1	2.2
Jake Long	MIA	4	3	Ladell Betts	WAS	1	2.2
Joe Thomas	CLE	4	3	Reggie Bush	NO	1	2.2
Eben Britton	JAX	4	3.05	Zach Miller	OAK	1	2.2
Flozell Adams	DAL	4	3.05	Jahri Evans	NO	1	2.3
Sam Baker	ATL	4	3.25	Keydrick Vincent	CAR	1	2.3
Bryant McKinnie	MIN	4	3.5	Ryan Lilja	IND	1	2.3
Chris Kemoeatu	PIT	3.5	2.7	Stephen Peterman	DET	1	2.3
Floyd Womack	CLE	3.5	2.7	Steve Vallos	SEA	1	2.3
John St. Clair	CLE	3.5	2.7	Vernon Davis	SF	1	2.3
Jonathan Scott	BUF	3.5	2.7	Corell Buckhalter	DEN	1	2.4
Branden Albert	KC	3.5	2.8	Jeremy Zuttah	TB	1	2.4
Chris Williams	CHI	3.5	3.6	John Gilmore	TB	1	2.4
Chilo Rachal	SF	3	2.1	Kyle Kozier	DAL	1	2.4
Michael Oher	BAL	3	2.2	Marc Colombo	DAL	1	2.4
Anthony Collins	CIN	3	2.3	Mark Mason	WAS	1	2.4
Larry Johnson	KC	3	2.3	Matt Forte	CHI	1	2.4
Kyle Williams	CLE	3	2.5	Matt Stinchcomb	NO	1	2.4
Mike Goff	KC	3	2.5	Scott Mruckowski	SD	1	2.4
Tra Thomas	JAX	3	2.5	Casey Rabach	WAS	1	2.5
Harvey Dahl	ATL	3	2.6	Jeff Faine	TB	1	2.5
Joe Staley	SF	3	2.6	Adam Goldberg	STL	1	2.6
Michael Roos	TEN	3	2.6	Brent Celek	PHI	1	2.6
Mike Sellers	WAS	3	2.6	Damien Woody	NYJ	1	2.6
Tony Pashos	SF	3	2.6	Matt Spaeth	PIT	1	2.6
Jeremy Trueblood	TB	3	2.7	Max Jean-Gilles	PHI	1	2.6
Cooper Carlisle	OAK	3	2.8	Tyson Clabo	ATL	1	2.6
Eric Wood	BUF	3	2.9	Aaron Brown	DET	1	2.7
Jeff Otah	CAR	3	2.9	Brandyn Dombroski	SD	1	2.7
Ray Willis	SEA	3	2.9	Chris Johnson	TEN	1	2.7
Donald Penn	TB	3	3.1	Eric Winston	HOU	1	2.7
Stacy Andrews	PHI	3	3.1	Kevin Smith	DET	1	2.7
Travelle Wharton	CAR	3	3.1	Steve Hutchinson	MIN	1	2.7
Kareem McKenzie	NYG	3	3.3	Tim Hightower	ARI	1	2.7
Rashard Mendenhall	PIT	3	3.3	Ben Grubbs	BAL	1	2.8
Phil Loadholt	MIN	3	3.5	David Bass	SF	1	2.8
Andrew Whitworth	CIN	3	3.6	King Dunlap	PHI	1	2.8
Winston Justice	PHI	3	3.7	Max Unger	SEA	1	2.8
Richie Incognito	STL	2.5	2.3	Michael Bush	OAK	1	2.8
Mike Williams	WAS	2.5	2.5	Omar Gaither	BAL	1	2.8
Kirk Chambers	BUF	2.5	2.55	Roberto Garza	CHI	1	2.8
Justin Hartwig	PIT	2.5	2.7	Russ Hochstein	DEN	1	2.8
Chad Clifton	GB	2.5	3	Andy Alleman	KC	1	2.9
Jon Stinchcomb	NO	2.5	3.2	Maurice Williams	JAX	1	2.9
Ben Hamilton	DEN	2.5	3.4	Brandon Pettigrew	DET	1	3
Chris Samuels	WAS	2.5	3.4	Chad Rinehart	WAS	1	3
Ryan Harris	DEN	2.4	3.35	Jacob Bell	STL	1	3
Jason Smith	STL	2	2.05	Justin Smiley	MIA	1	3
Vernon Carey	MIA	2	2.15	Jake O'Connell	KC	1	3.1
Leonard Davis	DAL	2	2.3	Jason Witten	DAL	1	3.1
Brandon Frye	SEA	2	2.35	Kevin Walter	HOU	1	3.1
Chris Kuper	DEN	2	2.35	LeSean McCoy	PHI	1	3.1
Steven Jackson	STL	2	2.35	Reggie Wells	ARI	1	3.1
Naufahu Tahi	MIN	2	2.5	Cornell Green	OAK	1	3.2
Chris Morris	OAK	2	2.55	Jordan Black	JAX	1	3.2
Fred Davis	WAS	2	2.55	Korey Hall	GB	1	3.2
Nick Kaczur	NE	2	2.55	Kyle Cook	CIN	1	3.2
John Sullivan	MIN	2	2.6	Todd Herremans	PHI	1	3.2
Ryan O'Callagahan	KC	2	2.6	Vince Manuwai	JAX	1	3.2
Charlie Johnson	IND	2	2.65	Brad Butler	BUF	1	3.3
Ronnie Brown	MIA	2	2.65	Carl Nicks	NO	1	3.3
Mike Pollack	IND	2	2.65	Deuce Lutui	ARI	1	3.3
Scott Wells	GB	2	2.65	Gary Russell	OAK	1	3.3
David Diehl	NYG	2	2.7	Tony Stewart	OAK	1	3.3
Frank Gore	SF	2	2.75	Kris Dielman	SD	1	3.4
Donald Thomas	MIA	2	2.8	Ray Rice	BAL	1	3.5
Greg Olsen	CHI	2	2.9	Ryan Kalil	CAR	1	3.5
Jason Spitz	GB	2	2.95	Sebastian Vollmer	NE	1	3.7
Fred Jackson	BUF	2	3	Casey Wiegmann	DEN	1	3.8
Jared Gaither	BAL	2	3	Jeff Saturday	IND	1	3.8
Rich Seubert	NYG	2	3	Chris Spencer	SEA	1	3.9
Ryan Clady	DEN	2	3	Mike Brisiel	HOU	1	4
Alex Barron	STL	2	3.05	Tony Richardson	NYJ	1	4
Stephen Neal	NE	2	3.05	Ryan Grant	GB	1	4.2
Trai Essex	PIT	2	3.05	Derek Fine	BUF	0.5	2.3
Deon Anderson	DAL	2	3.15	Derrick Dockery	WAS	0.5	2.3
Todd Light	NE	2	3.15	Greg Jones	JAX	0.5	2.6
Dennis Roland	CIN	2	3.2	Maurice Jones-Drew	JAX	0.5	2.6
Dominic Raiola	DET	2	3.25	Justin Fargas	OAK	0.5	2.7
Will Heller	DET	2	3.25	Shaun O'Hara	NYG	0.5	2.7
Eric Heitmann	SF	2	3.3	Brian Waters	KC	0.5	3
Garrett Wolfe	CHI	2	3.3	Jake Scott	TEN	0.5	3
Daniel Loper	DET	2	3.4	LaDainian Tomlinson	SD	0.5	3
Khalif Barnes	OAK	2	3.45	Nick Cole	PHI	0.5	3.3
Davin Joseph	TB	2	3.6	Frank Omiyale	CHI	0.5	3.6
Orlando Pace	CHI	2	3.6	Nick Hardwick	SD	0.5	3.8
Kasey Studdard	HOU	2	4

Should DRC play up closer to the line?

2009-11-12T23:56:08Z

I hope this doesn't sound foolish but could someone explain something to me. DRC is extremely athletic and can run with virtually any receiver, why doesn't he press at the line of scrimmage more? It seems like we give up a lot of short passes because he is playing off and they turn into decent gains because he is not the best tackler.

Am I missing something or would this help disrupt those timing routes?

Thanks,

Looking Ahead to the 2010 NFL Draft.

2009-11-13T15:52:09Z

It is just passed mid-season and NFL Mock drafts are starting to come out as team needs start to become obvious. The Cardinals have already shown this season what their biggest problems seem to be, as Bezekira pointed out a little while ago here. So far the biggest problem has been protecting Warner, especially off the tackles. This seems to be the biggest area of need right now. Other areas of need, not in any order, tight end, outside linebacker, inside linebacker (if Karlos Dansby is gone), and defensive tackle. Looking at some of the major sites mock drafts they throw some surprises at you.

One mock draft that I follow every year is by Scouts.com. Their first mock draft has some interesting picks but has some nice guesses that look like they could happen. So lets take a gander at this and analyze the NFC West picks.

The St. Louis Rams get the number one overall pick and no real surprise here that they go with quarterback Sam Bradford. With Mark Bulger not really playing well the past few seasons and being injury prone it makes sense that the Rams go QB here. Bradford has shown that he is a pretty accurate quarterback with a decent arm and has the mobility to move around. The problem with going with Sam Bradford is that he has been injured a lot during his junior year, two same should injuries this year. Despite his injuries Bradford still has a lot of upside here and even though I would personally go with Jake Locker here, I think he is the best QB in the draft, you cannot go wrong with pick.

Grade: B+, they get one of their many needs taken care of here.

Picking 9th overall is the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks have had tons of injury problems on their offensive line and it has shown and that is why Scouts has them taking offensive tackle Trent Williams. Williams is not an elite blocker by any means but he has the ability to become a very good blocker in this league. He gets set quickly in pass blocking and can get blocks against the quicker defensive ends. Williams is much better in run blocking with his footwork but his problem has been the angles he takes to protect. Overall, not a bad pick with the best OT off the board, Russell Okung.

Grade: A, they take care of their biggest need, replacing the aging offensive tackle Walter Jones.

Picking 10th overall is the San Francisco 49ers. With their first pick they take quarterback Jake Locker. Earlier in the year this probably would not have been a surprise with Alex Smith looking like a bust and Shaun Hill just a fill in until they could get someone in the draft. Now this is not looking like a lock as Alex Smith has come out and played pretty good for them. If they could get him some protection he could become something for them. Locker plays for not that great of a program right now in Washington. He does not really have a whole lot of talent around him but yet he has still been able to play well. He has leaded his team to wins over the ranked USC and a very good, ranked, U of A team. He has mobility to move around if he gets in trouble and has a good strong arm. His accuracy is just at 57 % but that can be attributed to not having protection and not the greatest receivers. Put him on a good team like USC and your probably talking about a number 1 overall pick. For the Niners I would have gone with offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga.

Grade: B-, they get a quarterback filled with potential but not there biggest need.

San Francisco has a 2nd 1st round pick which they acquired from Carolina for a second round pick. This pick would be 13 overall and they would use it on defensive tackle Terrance Cody. This pick fills a void on a defensive line that has played pretty well this season. He won't wow you with athleticism but he has a ton of bulk to clog up the middle so that others can get to the QB or stop the run. Like the site says this pick is a reach, I have 5 DT's listed ahead of him but he brings what you want in a tight end, take up as many blockers as you can.

Grade: B, they get a need here with Cody.

The Arizona Cardinals are picking 21st overall. Kind of a surprise here as they take tight end Jermaine Gresham. Gresham has everything the Cards want in a tight end with his speed and bulk. Over the past 2 seasons for Oklahoma he has had 103 catches going for 1468 yards (14.3 yards per catch) and 25 touchdowns. He has the ability to stretch the field and add another weapon to Warner's arsenal. The one problem that he needs to really work on is his blocking. He misses too many assignments and sometimes just seems lost when trying to block. Other than his blocking he has the potential to become one of the better tight ends in the league. Even though Whiz loves him some good tight ends, this still comes as a surprise with other pressing needs. They have bigger needs at offensive tackle and outside linebacker. Now Gresham is more talented than some of the offensive tackles still on the board but I have Sergio Kindle rated higher and he is still on the board. My feeling is that the Cards go with Kindle in this situation. Even if we do not this is not a bad pick.

Grade: B, they get a player in Jermaine Gresham that can help in making this offense a much bigger threat in the passing game.

The Seahawks get a second 1st round pick in which they acquired from Denver for a 2nd round pick in last years draft. They are picking 29th with this pick and they choose Jahvid Best. This guy is a beast of a runner and should bring some instant credibility to a bad running game. He has the athleticism to just tear up a defense and that is exactly what Seattle wants here.

Even though he gets injured during that play, that is just amazing how high he jumped there.

Grade A, they get a very talented back which they needed.

Overall, all the teams get players that seem to have loads of potential and if done right all of them should bring something to their respective teams. How do you guys grade these teams? Do you like the pick the Cards went with? Or do you believe they should have gone with someone else?

Should Warner get the HOOK?

2009-11-04T22:11:16Z

I think that we should give Leinart a shot. Let's face it we just lost to the Panthers. Can it get any worse? I really want to know what all the Cardinal fans think about this situation. We have a young eager QB ready to step in and help the team win, and on the other hand we an old, slow QB that has thrown 11 TD's and 11 INT's with the best receiving core in the NFL! The NFL isn't about making friends or what happend the year before (look what happend with Bledsoe and Brady) it's a business and if a QB isn't performing, it's just like anyone of us not doing our job! Do you get a little slap on the wrist or do you lose your job? Your gone! This preseason and during practice Leinart clearly has shown that he is ready and that's according to Coach Whiz. WHAT DO OUR CARDINAL FANS FEEL SHOULD GO DOWN? Stay with the old guy and watch the ship sink or go with the new guy and see the future?

Places to Watch Cards on Sunday?

2009-11-11T22:23:25Z

Hello fellow cardinal fans!

I'm preparing for a potential sunday seahawks vs. cardinals blackout game.

*******************************************************************************************************************************

And I am wondering if there are any local bars/restaurants with the phoenix metro area, that have found away to avoid local blackouts to the cards game, as most have sunday ticket and that still is afftectd by local blackout???

Any thoughts?

if not looking to spend bare bare bare minumum on a pair of tix, 20 bones a piece if anyone knows where to get such a sweetheart deal, as i once got 3 lower levels last year to the rams for sixty.

Balance is the key to our Offense

2009-11-11T21:53:18Z

I saw this thread on the Cardinals website's message boards, and it shows how important keeping our offense balanced is to winning games.

Thread

"So it is really frustrating being a season ticket holder and watching this team perform on the road and not at home. I thought that there must be a reason so I dove into the stats. Here is what I have found.

The problem is that we abandon the run when we are at home. When we are away we RUN THE BALL. Running = Wins, here are the stats to prove it:

Home Games:

SF: Pass 44 Run 17 RYards 40
We passed the ball 72% of the time

IND: Pass 54 Run 12 RYards 24
We passed the ball 81% of the time

Hou: Pass 38 Run 16 RYards 44
We passed the ball 70% of the time

CAR: Pass 46 Run 17 RYards 94
We passed the ball 73% of the time

Away Games:

Jac: Pass 32 Run 28 RYards 118
We passed the ball 53% of the time

SEA: Pass 43 Run 26 RYards 62
We Passed the ball 62% of the time

NY: Pass 37 Run 26 RYards 107
We passed the ball 58% of the time

CHI: Pass 33 Run 31 RYards 182
We passed the ball 51% of the time

So Basically
at home we are averaging 74% passing to 26% Running
compared to
On the road we are averaging 56% passing to 44% Running

If this doesn’t make the argument for a balanced offense I do not know what does. Whiz comes out and has said that it is because we are losing that we have to pass. However as you can see we should continue to RUN if we are losing because it puts points on the board for us. "

I think the message I quoted says it all, just look at the success we had in games like the ones against the Chicago Bears, New York Giants, and Jacksonville Jaguars.

We have Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston. But that doesn't mean that throwing the ball 70% of the time will work, especially when we have some good running backs like Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells who have been preforming very well when we actually try to run the ball.

I believe that the Cardinals offense will be very successful with Warner spreading the ball around to anyone who gets open, along with Beantower getting enough carries to keep us from being one dimensional. We are also learning to use some formations where it looks like we are going to pass but we run instead, and it is actually succeeding.

Now, the key is actually sticking to the run, and I guarantee that if we do, the Cardinals will be scoring 30 points a game like they were in the Playoffs.

The Cardinals improve to 4-0 on the road with a victory against Chicago.

2009-11-11T03:08:33Z

The Arizona Cardinals improved to 4-0 on the road as they beat the Chicago Bears 41-21 Sunday afternoon in Chicago. The Cardinals are only one of four teams to be still be undefeated on the road this season, Indianapolis, Cincinnati and New Orleans are the others. With the win the Cardinals improve to 5-3 overall and have a two game lead over both the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.

The day started off with the Cardinals scoring touchdowns (all on passes thrown by Kurt Warner) on its first four possessions en route to a commanding 31-7 halftime lead. Arizona rolled up an impressive 320 yards in the first including 131 on the ground while holding Chicago to one touchdown and 191 yards of total offense.

Arizona extended its lead to 34-7 early on in the third quarter when Neil Rackers kicked a 30 yard field goal.

Early in the fourth quarter Chicago scored 14 points to have some hope. First they went 57 yards capped off by a three yard pass from Jay Cutler to Greg Olsen. After an Arizona turnover Cutler and Olsen hooked up again this time from 20 yards away and the Cardinals lead was all of a sudden only 34-21.

Arizona then responded when it capitalized a Chicago turnover into a touchdown pass from Warner to Steve Breaston to stretch the lead back to 20 at 41-21. Chicago did not threaten again. Arizona, for the game, totaled 438 yards of total offense with 182 of those coming on the ground while Chicago had 417 in total offense but only 70 yards on the ground.

Notes:

-The last time The Cardinals won four road games in a single season was 2001 when they finished 4-4 and 7-9 overall. The last time the Cardinals won four straight road games was in 1982.

-This was second time this season that the Cardinals had over 100 yards rushing in a single game. Jacksonville was the other game.

-The last time a Cardinal quarterback threw for five touchdowns was in 1969 two years before Kurt Warner was even born.

Poll

What was the most impressive aspect of the game

Kurt Warner's five touchdown passes?

0 votes

The Cardinals improving to 4-0 on the road this season?

1 votes

The Cardinals rushing for 182 yards?

4 votes

5 votes | Poll has closed

What We Know About the 2009 Cardinals at the Half Way Point

2009-11-09T17:32:42Z

Here are some random thoughts about the 5-3 Arizona Cardinals:

The Cardinals are the best team in the NFC West and it's not exactly a slim margin. They're the only team with a winning record and the only team that's scored more points than they've allowed. Most importantly though, they're the only team that doesn't have questions at the most important position on the field (QB), but more on that in a bit.
While the Cardinals aren't an elite team, that doesn't mean that they season is doomed for failure. Elite teams put forth a consistent winning effort week in and week out despite the quality of their opponent, but at best we're only talking about three or four teams in this league. The Cardinals are one of the "muddled middle" that's capable of beating or losing to just about anyone. Consistency is the goal but for now we're winning more often than not and getting into the post season is the first step.
Kurt Warner is still the same quarterback that he's been for the past decade or so. He's going to have his "dud" games and if his history is any indication, he'll have another four or five turnover game before the season ends. The good news is that he'll also have a handful of games where's he virtually unstoppable. Best in the league? Not even close but he's the best chance that this team has of returning to the promised land and I wouldn't bet against him in a gun fight.
The Cardinals won't ever be mistaken for the Jets or Titans but our league worst rushing attack is improving. The duo of Tim Hightower and Beanie Wells are leading that improvement and it's more than just their 149 yard performance against the Bears. Through the first five games Beanie and Timmy accounted for 292 yards (at 3.4 ypc) but in the past three games they've racked up 311 yards (at 5.0 ypc). The Cards don't have to lead the league in rushing but any success they have on the ground takes pressure off of KW and the passing game.
The defense isn't great but more often than not, it's going to be good enough. They are a better defense when they're playing with a lead and they're going to have their mental lapses that lead to big plays but overall this is an above average defese. With this offense, most of the time, that's going to be good enough to win.

For now that's all. The Cardinals hold a two game lead in the division (if you don't count the tie-breaker with the 49ers) and they've got two very winnable in the upcoming weeks (Hawks and Rams). The West is ours to lose and in a couple weeks we should be talking about playoff positioning.

Two Cardinals Tickets for Sale

2009-11-07T07:38:48Z

Just wanted to ask if any person is interested in 2 tickets for the December 6, 2009 Vikings VS Cardinals game. My girlfriend and me are already going to fly out to Arizona and go to this game. Our friend and her husband were going to come with us because they are Vikings fans and thought it would be fun to see the rivalry. But now due to her being 8 months pregnant in December they are not being allowed to fly. So they wanted me to see if anyone on here would like to get the tickets from us. The seats are at Section 110, Row 39, Seats 9 and 10. We purchased them online back in August and for the two of them they were $398. So they would like to get their money back or pretty close to it. Let me know on here and we can get it worked out. Thanks. (This of course is all based on if they have not sold them here locally before anyone on here gets this post.)