ROTB Roundtable: Biggest Factor, Area of Concern, and Levi Brown

Luckily, the ROTB Writing Staff was here to take on three of these.

Don't forget to answer the questions yourself in the comments below!

1) What do you think was the biggest factor in the loss to the Rams on Sunday?

Khodder: The poor performance of the pass coverage unit, the secondary and inside linebackers in particular. We could get away with the poor play of Levi, we could get away with the stupid decisions of Arenas on kickoffs and even the fumble that he coughed up that we were lucky enough to recover. We could not get away with the fact that the Rams were able to pass the ball around with ease. They were able to abuse our safeties and inside backers with the play of Jared Cook, they were able to avoid throwing at Peterson because of the play of those in the secondary around him.

Shaun Church: Jay Feely's miss from 50 yards to end the first half can be pointed to, as the Cardinals lost by that same margin. But the lack of a pass rush killed them Sunday. Sam Bradford was not sacked, and the ferocious combination of Calais Campbell and Darnell Dockett notched just one QB hit and two hurries -- wait, that was all Campbell.

D.L. Parsons: The pass rush (or lack of it). Where was John Abraham? Where was Darnell Dockett? Bradford's uniform was so clean, it looked as if he never was touched. poor play calling by the DC. Let's not see a repeat of his abysmal playcalling while in Philly...

Jesse Reynolds: The LBs, they did a poor job in coverage and poor job in getting to the passer. Without Washington this unit is below average.

Jess Root: The game should have been a won. Like 2011, you can look at the defense for the one sustained drive and then the offense for putting up zero points in the final quarter. It was almost exactly like the start of the 2011 season.

AndyStandsUp: Too many mistakes for a very winnable game. Largest factor was the difference between the trenches - Rams won, Cards lost.

Alex Mann: The biggest factor would be Levi Brown and the lack of consistent a defense. Defensively they showed they can be special, but when the quarterback has 5+ seconds to throw the ball the secondary is going to allow a catch. The inability to cover the TE was also a big factor in the loss, allowing Cook to run over us.

Robert Norman: Jared Cook. He finished with 7 Rec, 141 Yards. Next highest total after Cook? Tavon Austin - 6 Rec, 41 Yards. Once upon a time, Karlos Dansby would have been able to contain him but now he's on the wrong side of 30, covering a type of TE that didn't exist when he came into the league. This is going to be a problem until Washington comes back.

2) What was your biggest area of concern with the Cardinals play?

Khodder: The same place as question one, but two fold. The play of the secondary and the game planning and

schematics of the secondary. I will have to have a better look at the coverages and coverage shells that were shown when the coaches film becomes available on gamepass but it looked like the coverages we played were too soft, the gameplan around how to stop Jared Cook was non-existant and the overall quality of play in the secondary looked poor. However this is jut a preliminary view which could change once the coaches film has been watched. It also must be noted that the play of Darnell Dockett is a big concern, it is not a surprise, but the way he is being paid he needs top produce.

Shaun Church: Although one might expect my answer to this question to look something like, "See above answer," I do believe the pass rush has potential to be adequate the more Abraham plays. The real problem right now is Feely. The team will not bring in a kicker to compete with Feely, and that could come back to bite them. Feely's wide-right miss from inside a dome Sunday is proof he cannot be trusted.

Kickalicious is available. Perhaps it's time to bring in a young kicker.

D.L. Parsons: Levi Brown. He continually needs help facing speed rushers. Which means he's going to need help every passing play in every game Keeping a back in or TE next to him will tip off the play. It also limits the play calling options. Time to get Massie trained up...

Jesse Reynolds: Defense. The Rams are not a prolific offense, if not for a miraculous forced fumble by Mathieu and a tipped pass for an INT it could have been a blow out. The Rams only punted twice.

Jess Root: Where do we start? The pass rush? Levi Brown? The matchup with fast tight ends? the missed kick? The lack of fourth quarter points? The untimely drive allowed by the defense? The stat sheet says that the Cards probably should have won, but there are plenty of things to fix.

AndyStandsUp: Despite the gloom and doom, not that bad of a contest. Acho not being a factor and Okafor inactive and Abrahams only having 20 snaps for a team needing a pass rush threat - "disappointing, yes. Discouraging, no."

Alex Mann: Pass rush by far, with Feely taking second place. The inability to get pressure in Bradford's face for much of the game cost the secondary. I can count on one hand how many pressures I saw on Bradford in the game... Two. There could be more, but I recall one play where he was forced to scramble, and fumbled, and another play where Dansby blew through the hole causing Bradford to throw the ball quickly.

Feely with his inconsistencies continues and his missed kick was the differential in the game.

Robert Norman: The pass rush is going to hurt this team all year long. Even though the pass coverage was quite good, Bradford had more than enough time to hit an open man. After bringing in so many new players it's disheartening to see them still have the same results.

3) Do you think Levi Brown should remain the starter at Left Tackle, or do you have any other ideas on who should replace him?

Khodder: Yes. We have no better options now. Winston and Massie are RT's. Potter is not an option and if Bradley Sowell has to step on the field at tackle this season we are going to need help from a higher power if Carson Palmer is going to remain healthy.

Shaun Church: No, Brown should not remain the starter at left tackle. But who would replace him? Nate Potter was beaten soundly by backups all preseason, and Bobby Massie has yet to practice on the blind side since OTAs. Jared Gaither is still out there and is just 27 years old. But with his history of back problems, he cannot be trusted as a long-term option despite playing very well at times throughout his six-year career.

D.L. Parsons: No. It's deja vu' all over again. Get Massie trained up. Or Sowell. Or find someone on the street.

Jesse Reynolds: What else can we do? Potter looked bad against two's this preseason and Massie has never played LT. I think Brown joins a growing list of players in their last year as a Cardinal (Dockett, Feely, and Brown).

Jess Root: here isn't much to do. He is the guy and is the best at the position on the roster. You have to play through that.

AndyStandsUp: Cards, for at least this season are married to BEAT. And most people know how wedding vows go - 'til death do us part". Yet most people believe that 50% of all marriages end in divorce, so there's that.

Alex Mann: Unfortunately he's all we have. Sowell made the transition to LT today, as Potter shifts inside to guard. Arians said Sowell is a great developmental player, so we will see if he can turn that potential into actual talent. It's similar to last season for example. Massie was our best RT, and while he struggled he turned it on late in the year. We shall see if Brown does the same.

Robert Norman: Of course he should remain the starter. Look, I know Levi Brown is a below LT, but let's not get carried away. He has always struggled against quick DE's like Robert Quinn. And while the problem is that the NFC West has some very good defensive ends there just isn't much for the team to do at this stage.