The Arizona Cardinals Report by Phoenix49ers

Phoenix49ers · 2014-08-26T12:03:30-07:00

Being that I'm actually in Phoenix and get to hear about all the latest news on the Cardinals, whether I want to or not, here's a brief Cliff Notes summary on their team so far. 1. The secondary is looking to be a lot better. Patrick Peterson has a big new contract and teammates and coaches have been praising him for his improvement out on the field. For the first time in his NFL career he's being restricted to only playing on defense. Antonio Cromartie has been solid as a new addition and a starter from last year, Jerraud Powers, has been having a heck of a training camp and preseason as the nickel corner. Deone Bucannon, the Cards first rounder has been up and down, he'll likely be somewhat penalty prone for his hitting but he's certainly done well in upping the intimidation factor for the defense. Very much similar to Dashon Goldson in positive and negative ways. Tyrann Mathieu has returned from injury and there's an outside chance that he plays in the final preseason game as well. Overall they have a pretty good looking secondary. 2. John Brown appears to be legit. The rookie receiver from Pittsburg State has drawn praise from coaches, teammates and media. He's has had some terrific preseason performances including an amazing diving grab for a touchdown in the last game versus the Bengals. Incredibly explosive, he's a true deep threat but it remains to be seen whether or not his performances will carry through into the regular season. 3. Their ILB situation is screwed. Kevin Minter is dealing with a pectoral tear that has kept him out of games and practices at various times and Larry Foote is way up there in years. Gone are Karlos Dansby(FA) and Daryl Washington(suspension), key contributors that played a huge role in the defense playing as well as it did last season. A wounded Minter and an aging Foote are a massive downgrade from the guys they are replacing. Throw in the loss of Darnell Dockett, whose performance can be mostly offset by Frostee Rucker but not his leadership on the field and the Cards could have some struggles defending the run. 4. The offensive line has improved substantially. They've strongly upgraded at left tackle with the signing of Jared Veldheer(thanks Oakland) and Bobby Massie has really locked down the right tackle spot as well. The major question is Jonathan Cooper, the early first rounder from last season who has struggled with a turf toe injury and questions about his effort level and dedication. There seems to be questions as to his toughness and whether or not he has been malingering. In anycase, he has not provided the impact that one might expect from a guard that was chosen with one of the first ten picks of the draft. 5. Andre Ellington has buffed up. Bruce's cousin looks to take over the starting role at RB and Bruce Arians has been promising a lot of touches for the second year RB who averaged 5.5 yards a carry during his rookie season. He looks ready to take on the bigger role, if the OL continues to play well, he'll be primed for a big season, even playing in the NFC West. His speed and quickness are outstanding and he is a threat as both a runner and as a receiver out of the backfield.

Aug 26, 2014 at 12:08 PM

crabman82
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yeah, but will they be dethroned?

Aug 26, 2014 at 12:48 PM

English
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Good work Phoenix. Where do the locals see them going? Personally if I was a supporter I would be hard pressed to be too optimistic this year.0

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:02 PM

lazy
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Surprisingly the Arizona Defense looked good against Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati offense.

However, I have them going 4-12 for the season.

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:15 PM

Tman
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Nice work Phoenix!

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:19 PM

Dr_Bill_Walsh
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Just beat Seattle twice, other than that IDGAF about them.

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:27 PM

ChipDouglas510
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List updated

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:28 PM

ChipDouglas510
RIP ChipDouglas510
Posts: 19,157

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:42 PM

Phoenix49ers
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Originally posted by English:
Good work Phoenix. Where do the locals see them going? Personally if I was a supporter I would be hard pressed to be too optimistic this year.0

Competing for the playoffs. They see the offense taking a huge step forward with both Andre Ellington and Michael Floyd being dominant. People are worried about the losses of Dansby and Washington but optimistic that the improvements in the secondary will make a major difference.

Aug 26, 2014 at 1:43 PM

Phoenix49ers
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Originally posted by lazy:
Surprisingly the Arizona Defense looked good against Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati offense.

However, I have them going 4-12 for the season.

Yeah that's not going to happen. They have too much talent on both sides of the ball to finish that poorly...barring injury or a complete Jake Delhomme-like meltdown for Carson Palmer. From where I'm standing, I see a team that should win between 7 and 9 games this season.

Aug 26, 2014 at 2:54 PM

#10

SofaKing
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Where is there pass-rush going to come from? I know DC Todd Bowles is very aggressive and creative with blitz packages. Not having Dansby and Washington to roam the field and create havoc is going to hurt, and there best edge rusher is a 36 year old John Abraham. Not sure if he can match last year's 11.5 sacks.

Aug 26, 2014 at 3:44 PM

#11

Phoenix49ers
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Originally posted by SofaKing:
Where is there pass-rush going to come from? I know DC Todd Bowles is very aggressive and creative with blitz packages. Not having Dansby and Washington to roam the field and create havoc is going to hurt, and there best edge rusher is a 36 year old John Abraham. Not sure if he can match last year's 11.5 sacks.

A few key injured guys from last year are back, such as Sam Acho and Alex Okafor. Plus Calais Campbell is still around and has made his presence felt continually. Its certainly an area with some questions but Acho has looked pretty good from everything I've seen and heard. Kareem Martin, a rookie DL has also done well at times, he still has issues with maintaining containment and seems to quit on plays at times but he's made a largely positive impression in training camp and should be nice depth for them.

[ Edited by Phoenix49ers on Aug 26, 2014 at 3:45 PM ]

Aug 26, 2014 at 3:45 PM

#12

Shalynch
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Still have Carson Palmer

Aug 26, 2014 at 3:57 PM

#13

SofaKing
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Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by SofaKing:
Where is there pass-rush going to come from? I know DC Todd Bowles is very aggressive and creative with blitz packages. Not having Dansby and Washington to roam the field and create havoc is going to hurt, and there best edge rusher is a 36 year old John Abraham. Not sure if he can match last year's 11.5 sacks.

A few key injured guys from last year are back, such as Sam Acho and Alex Okafor. Plus Calais Campbell is still around and has made his presence felt continually. Its certainly an area with some questions but Acho has looked pretty good from everything I've seen and heard. Kareem Martin, a rookie DL has also done well at times, he still has issues with maintaining containment and seems to quit on plays at times but he's made a largely positive impression in training camp and should be nice depth for them.

Forgot about Acho. Pretty good player when he was healthy. I liked Kareem Martin coming out of the draft, we'll see what he does. Campbell is a stud.

Secondary is improved, but I'm not quite a believer in their Front 7 anymore. I think there will be a significant drop off, particularly in run defense where they were so good last year.

Their offense could be really explosive. Seems like Ellington is going to have a huge year, and John Brown looks very good. O-line should be better, even with Cooper struggling. But like all Carson Palmer led offenses, they're probably going to commit a lot of turnovers.

Aug 26, 2014 at 5:38 PM

#14

SofaKing
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Coach Bruce Arians believes third-round WR John Brown could play up to 60 percent of the Cardinals' offensive snaps.

Looks like they're going to be running a ton of 3 WR sets. They have the makings of a very explosive offense. Floyd, Fitzgerald, Brown, Ellington... probably more home-run potential than either the Hawks or 49ers.