Head coach Ken Whisenhunt recently sat down with Bickley and MJ on XTRA 910 and gave some of his thoughts on where the Arizona Cardinals are currently at and where they could be headed for this NFL season. Sportsradiointerviews.com was kind enough to make a transcript of the interview, so click the link if you would like to read it.
After the jump, I'll take some quotes from the talk Whiz had and give you some of my impressions.
When describing the buzz that surrounds the team, Coach Whiz was pretty sincere, obviously trying to keep and even keel. It really sounds like the Arizona Cardinals are due for a season that could very well resemble that of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Do not be surprised if this team comes out of the doldrums of last place and leapfrogs it's way into the top seed, all while going unnoticed.
When talking about Kevin Kolb, Whisenhunt had this to say:
"His strengths: his abilities to handle this information and process it. ... That provides leadership in itself, being able to process the plays and understand what we're trying to get done. He's got a quick delivery, he's accurate with his throws, he showed some mobility in the game the other day. ... I just really like the total package."
The faith that Coach is showing in him is tremendous, let's just hope he can deliver as promised.
The most intriguing question of the interview came when asked about the Cardinals' interest in Randy Moss. This was Whisenhunt's quote:
"I think we'd have to cross that bridge if we ever seriously considered that. You hear a lot of different things about what he was like. ... To be quite honest with you, I haven't looked at any tape of what he did in Tennessee. That would be the most important determining factor ... do you still think he can contribute?"
It seems to me that any sort of outside wide receiver, let alone Moss, is completely off the radar. Coach Whiz is practically nauseated every time he hears a question about what the team will be doing at the #2 wide receiver spot, as he has continuously reiterated that the team will be looking internally for a young receiver to fill that role. Expect either Andre Roberts or Early Doucet to take the reigns left behind by the departure of Steve Breaston.
Outside of that, it does not sound like the coaching staff is even going to consider keeping a fourth quarterback on the roster. This training camp will be the end of the road for either Max Hall or Richard Bartel, the two QBs fighting for one roster spot.
Whiz likes the progression of Patrick Peterson, but as usual, he is not willing to fork over the starting job to him just yet. The competition for the two starting cornerback roles is fierce and I think that is what Whisenhunt wanted all along; he wanted guys to work for what they want and carry that in to the regular season.
As far as play-calling goes, I am sure that the Cardinals will be running the ball more this year, but the offense will still probably feature the pass more often than not. Whisenhunt:
"Would I like to be 50-50 (run vs. pass plays)? Sure. I think anybody would like to be 50-50. In today's NFL, is it skewed a little bit more toward the passing game? Yeah, it is."
Ryan Williams and Beanie Wells will be a large part of the offense, make no mistake, but Larry Fitzgerald will still be getting his fair share of touches.
Don't forget to check out the Cardinals take on the Green Bay Packers this Friday night from Lambeau Field. The game starts at 5:00 PM PST and can be seen locally on ABC-15 or heard on 92.3 FM.