6-20-12: Arizona Cardinals Bird Droppings - Offseason Stuff

Time for todays links, including something on the QB competition, and a very stupid comment from Drew Brees who has just gotten more and more annoying to me since he won the Super Bowl.

QBs Deal With Competition Situation
Kolb, Skelton have battled just once previous at most important position

Word From the Birds Blog | For what it’s worth in June, offensive edition
Welcome to Part II of Offseason Lineup Guessing, where speculating is sport. While we already tackled the defense, the offense is today’s target. Again, these are just my thoughts on who will be in the starting lineup Sept. 9 against the Seahawks. So much can change between then and now, with injuries or great/poor play in training camp. So before I sign off for a while for vacation, here we go:

Arizona Cardinals cornerback Jamell Fleming makes an impression*
No, the asterisk in the headline is not a typo (though, I'm certainly capable of that). It's there because any evaluations of players made based on practices in shorts and helmets should come with a warning. Coach Ken Whisenhunt repeated a similar refrain throughout voluntary practices and the three-day minicamp. But when asked about cornerback Jamell Fleming, the team's third-round pick, Whisenhunt acknowledged that the kid looked pretty darn good playing in shorts and a helmet.

Cardinals should celebrate passionate fans - ArizonaSports.com
If there's one thing the Kevin Kolb/John Skelton QB controversy has taught us, it's that Arizona Cardinals fans are a fickle bunch. And, as someone who grew up a Cardinals fan and suffered the annual abuse that came with the jerseys and hats, it's much better to be "fickle" than "non-existent". When news came out about how some at the Cardinals Fan Fest last week booed Kevin Kolb after some errant passes, opinions were mixed. Some bashed the fans for piling on a QB in a practice. Others said Kolb deserved every bit of animosity, because the high-priced Kolb has been a high- priced disappointment thus far. Lost in all of it was the fact that by voicing their displeasure, right or wrong, the fans showed they cared. It's a relatively new development for the Arizona Cardinals, and it's one that should be celebrated, not criticized.

Mailbag: QB competition under review - NFC West Blog - ESPN
Paul from San Francisco passes along a link to one of the "Secret Superstar" pieces from Pro Football Focus, this one analyzing Arizona Cardinals nose tackle David Carter.

Arizona Sports News:

2B Aaron Hill's bat remains hot, but Arizona Diamondbacks fall in slugfest to Seattle Mariners
A day later, the accomplishment hadn't turned stale but instead of basking in the satisfaction of completing the first cycle of his Major League career, Diamondbacks second baseman Aaron Hill's attention had already shifted to the next game. "It's fun to have but the good thing about baseball, whether you have a good day or bad day, you wake up the next day and do it all over again," Hill said. The feat -- a single in the first, triple in the third, double in the fifth and a home run in the seventh for the fifth cycle in franchise history -- was definitely memorable, and Hill was able to snag the home-run ball, which was turned in by a fan. But the impact of the performance could hold greater significance if it acts as a catalyst for an up-and-down Diamondbacks offense searching for a consistent rhythm. "You sure hope so," manager Kirk Gibson said. "Whenever you score runs like that, it helps relax the team." It certainly had a role in Monday's seven-run outburst against the Seattle Mariners, and the offense was just as potent on Tuesday but it wasn't enough as the Diamondbacks fell 12-9 in 10 innings in front of 21,568 at Chase Field.

NFL News:

What West has to show for putting it on line - NFC West Blog - ESPN
NFC West teams have loaded up on offensive linemen over the past several seasons. They used first-round choices for Joe Staley, Mike Iupati, Anthony Davis, Jason Smith, Levi Brown, Russell Okung and James Carpenter since 2007. Only the AFC North (eight) and NFC North (seven) have used as many first-round choices for offensive linemen over the same span. It was a little concerning, then, to see only one NFC West player on Matt Williamson's list Insider of 15 offensive linemen with the brightest long-term futures.

Drew Brees Compares Bounty Scandal To Search For WMDs In Iraq - From Our Editors - SBNation.com
Just when it seemed the sniping over the league's case in the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal had taken every angle imaginable, quarterback Drew Brees decided to chime in late on Monday night, posting a tweet that compared the NFL's alleged bounty evidence to the hunt for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. It was not well received by the public.

Minnesota Vikings WR Percy Harvin 'Not Happy' And May Holdout - SBNation.com
Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Percy Harvin was at his team's minicamp this week, but he might not be there when training camp rolls around at the end of July. Harvin told reporters on Tuesday that he was "not happy with a couple situations." Though Harvin did not elaborate on the issues, he said things needed to be resolved before he would report to training camp on July 26.

Miami Dolphins Using David Garrard As Their Starting QB In Minicamp - SBNation.com
The Miami Dolphins continue to do strange things with their quarterbacks. Less than two months after selecting Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tannehill in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft, the Dolphins are using David Garrard, their offseason free agent pickup, as the team's starting quarterback in minicamp. Matt Moore is with the second team, and Tannehill is working with the third string.