Mr. Chong
10-30-2007, 01:50 PM
Introduction & First time bringing it to the dinner table.
(Note: I wrote this about a week ago, but due to problems with the Administration on this board getting me access to post, I haven’t been able to post it. This was primarily written form a point of view of when we were going into the bye week.)
What’s happnin’ everyone? Just wanted to introduce myself before I started posting stuff up on this forum, which I must say I’m pretty impressed with. Everyone seems to contribute meaningful information and their point of views, brining them to the table and everyone else seems to feed off another which makes the chemistry surrounding this board good.
I’m a die hard Cardinals fan. Born and raised on the West Side of Phoenix, we had a party the night it was confirmed the stadium, (which I live down the street from), came to our side of town. As a fan, I am pleased with the moves we’ve made in recent years with the organization in the personnel and the type of players we are bringing to the team. On that note though, I want to express that I wasn’t too happy about the organization cutting all ties off with Dennis Green. His play calling was highly questionable; however it remains evident that the guy knew his players and who he was drafting. He brought quality players to this organization through the draft and in my opinion, should have at least remained with the Cards as an advisor or some sort of player personnel overseer. The majority of the young roster that Coach Wise has to work with now is a result of Green’s knack for picking and choosing amongst the future stars of the NFL.
Going into the bye week and halfway through the season, we’re still under .500, which isn’t uncommon for all of us Cards fans. Some wagon riders who joined our team in the beginning of the season in hopes of a good one, have already abandoned ship in the face of the Cards present adversities. With Leinart’s season ending injury, Warner’s elbow issue, and Boldin’s lingering hip ailment, and… wait… that’s it?
Of course that’s it, we only have a total of 4 players that are out indefinitely, and the rest of our young and future star studded players are still here, ready to take on our division in which we are currently ranked 2nd. Playoffs hopes are still high and I am confident we can make them, even with Tim Rattay who is an AZ football product himself, at the helm operating the offense.
Rattay, a journeyman, has spent time on the West Coast having played six seasons with the 49ers and Bucs, meaning he’s no stranger to being a member on teams with struggling records.
“Struggling teams? Yeah, the Bucs and 49ers aren’t the best teams to have on your resume.”
However, I don’t believe Rattay has ever been in such a great situation as the one he is in now. He is at home, where he was raised after his family moved here from Ohio, and he gets to play in front of his friends and family. He has a great team surrounding him with proven players such as Fitz, Boldin, and Edge who’ve all been to the Pro Bowl (1, 2, and 4 respectively.) Not to mention he has talented reserve receivers in Johnson and B-Dogg (Breaston), who do their thing when they get the rock in their hands. With our O-line doing the best I have ever seen in the past some-odd years, he has the time to get the ball out to his playmakers. He just needs reps in practice, knowledge of the playbook, and familiarity with his receivers. I know Rattay can hold it down and represent Arizona with this opportunity he’s been given. Not to mention he has Warner, a former Pro-Bowler and NFL MVP himself, to learn from alongside with Leinart.
While I’m speaking of QB’s, my heart goes out to Leinart. He doesn’t need any words of encouragement, (not that he’ll see this post anyhow), he comes from a champion caliber program, he’s a winner, and he has the most important thing that’s intangible in this league- HEART. He’ll bounce back and be ready to go next season, where hopefully we’ll make some excellent moves and only add to the great team that’s surrounding him now. Take the time to soak up knowledge, watch with unwavering vigilance, and enjoy your teammate’s progressive strides Leinart.
Also, what happened to Shane Boyd? He played solid for us during the preseason, seeing action in all games. I know he played against 2nd and 3rd stringers, however, the way he played on the field was impressive. In the short times he saw action and out of all four preseason games, he went for 27/53 for 264 yards, 2 TD’s and 2 INT’s. He was full of intangibles as well- he was aware of where he was on the field and not to mention mobile, scrambling on 12 attempts for 112 yards and a lone TD. I would have liked to see him get some action in a regular season game before Rattay after the injuries to Warner and Leinart. Or maybe a Rattay and Boyd combination could have worked on the roster rather than having signed Hasselbeck. Doesn’t help that his older brother plays in the same division either- conflict of interest maybe?
The big uglies up front are doing an excellent job protecting our QB and pushing the defense back in helping our run game. They’ve only given up 8 sacks half way into the season which is a breath of fresh air in comparison with the previous years. In comparison with one of the league elites, the New England Patriots have given up 7. It’s a comforting thought that our line is playing with that type of caliber. Our NFL rankings speak for our line as well. Currently the Cards are 14th in PPG with 21, 12th in yards with 337 yards per game, 9th in passing with 233.9, and 18th in rushing with 103.1. So as a team, we’re just like our record, though a little below .500 and falling within the upper half of the league as far as stats. Once we get more consistency at the QB position, these numbers should improve. I expect that during this bye week, Coach Wise will focus on improving the run-game, and get the ball in Edge’s hands more.
I like what we’ve done with the line in terms of personnel. We brought in some experienced vets and allowed our younger players an opportunity to contribute to their team. One young player I want to comment on is not 1st round pick Levi Brown, but undrafted free-agent rookie Lyle Sendlein. In the five games he has played for us this season, he’s done an exceptionally surprising job for being an undrafted rookie and playing at Center when his number is called. He plays solid, filling in for Al Johnson. In the five games he has played in (SF, SEA, BAL, STL, and WAS) the offense has averaged 108 yards rushing per game, 252 yards passing per game, and the offense has netted 360.6 yards per game. Not saying that he’s the sole reason for these stats, the offensive line as a whole is doing an excellent job. I’m just really impressed with the way the undrafted rookie plays and how the offense does with him in the lineup.
Did I forget to mention he’s an AZ homegrown product as well? Sendlein attended Chaparral HS in Scottsdale, and comes from a pedigreed university in Texas. (Whose recently drafted players all seem to be transitioning well into the NFL. Shout out to V.Y., do ya thing playa, screw that Madden curse. Champions aren’t superstitious.)
The only knock on our offensive line is we need to get the run established more, and the biggest concern is penalties on our linemen. It seems every time we get into a nice rhythm, or get a nice drive going, we get a penalty. It’s not even our line sometimes though, like the penalty we got during the Baltimore game I think- illegal block on the kicking team? We just need to focus more and keep our mistakes minimal as Coach has preached. The line has to be tired of attending sermons. I predict them to hone their technique and timing this bye week to help limit those penalties.
Our run game has improved since the years prior, though not as much as I expected with Coach having come from Pittsburgh. As stated before, we rank 18th, which is in the upper bottom half of the league in rushing. Our backs are solid; they have been even before we got the Edge. It’s just been the offensive line in years prior and our run play calling. Arrington broke Marcus Allen’s Pac-10 record for crying out loud, he’s a solid back- just young, inexperienced, and didn’t get a chance behind the weak line in the years before. I’m no coach and I’m sure Coach knows what he’s doing, I just wanted to make the opinion that Edge needs to be fed the ball more. I know when we get in those 3rd and short situations, the opposing teams keys in on Edge (if he’s even ion the field, and I’m sure Coach is trying to take advantage of that fact by trying to get the ball out to the wide-outs in hopes of netting a big play. However, it hasn’t been that effective, and I think we should just let Edge do his thing. Give him the ball in those situations. Give him an opportunity to make those plays for his team. Give him a chance to silence doubters about why we went after him when he became available in free-agency and paid him all that money for (which we could have picked up a couple of solid offensive linemen for, but that’s ok.) Edge is a BEAST when he finds daylight.
Our receivers are the envy of the league in my opinion. They are all young, talented, and provide mismatches anytime and anywhere they line up. This speaks volumes of our general managing as an organization wholly.
Has anyone even mentioned Leonard Pope… ever? When the TE was drafted out of Georgia last year I was ecstatic. We’ve always needed a TE with Popes ability, athleticism, and talent. Now Edge is a beast in open field, but this guy is a MONSTER. 6’ 8”? 258 pounds? And the guy can run with speed comparable to San Diego’s big play making TE Gates!? Let’s try and get him more involved in the game plan. He’s already averaging 10.6 yards per catch with only 9 receptions on the year and has 2 TD’s. Get the ball in his hands, stretch the middle of the field; and let’s see him truck defensive backs.
I don’t think any introduction is needed for Fitz or Boldin. They are both playing well and doing their things when they get the ball in their hands. I know Fitz has had relapses lately and for the first time in his career, but he’ll smoothen out by the end of the year. He’s holding it down, 46 rec. 642 yards, averaging 14.0 yards per catch and with one lone TD. On the other hand, I don’t think we’re getting the ball into Boldin’s hands enough and in the right situations. I am going to use a fellow forum user’s quote and say: “GET THE BALL TO BOLDIN”. It’s also, and coincidentally, a chant my colleagues and I have developed this season while watching the games, in frustration at the lack of Q’s touches. The guy is a playmaker and it’s debatable which receiver is better, Fitz or Boldin. His stats are amazing- 30 rec. 315 yards and 5 TD’s, averaging 10.5 yards per catch.
Bryant Johnson is also playing awesome when he gets his chance to get his hands on the rock- 21 rec. 229 yards and averaging 10.9 yards a game. I believe he can start for any team in the league if it wasn’t for the two guys in front of him. Hopefully we can keep him after the season- but if he keeps putting up these types numbers throughout the year, it might be hard to retain him when his contract expires. I don’t think we have to worry about getting another slot receiver in the future though, because we’ve already made the right steps in filling the spot.
Special teamer and reserve receiver Steve Breaston out of the Big House (Michigan) is the unsung hero this far into the season as far as I’m concerned. He is a future play maker himself, and just needs a little more help from his teammates on his returns. In college when I watched him play, I was always waiting for something spectacular to happen when he was receiving a pass from Henne, (Mich.’s QB), and rarely was I let down. On every return it seems all he needs is “that” one block or two to take it to the house. Our return game has significantly improved since he joined the Cards, giving the Cards better field position. We’ve had good field position all year. He’ll see limited time this year on the field as a receiver because of the 3 guys who are ahead of him on the depth chart, but it’s unquestioned that he’ll get his fair share of chances to make plays while being the PR and KR. His experiences on special teams will only help him when he gets onto the field on 3rd and longs.
Our offense is solid. In the off-season, we only need to ADD quality players to our offensive side of the ball.
That sums up this… report, lol. I’ll have one up for the defensive side of the ball as well for you guys to comment on. Hopefully I’ve given everyone some good food for thought.
(Note: I wrote this about a week ago, but due to problems with the Administration on this board getting me access to post, I haven’t been able to post it. This was primarily written form a point of view of when we were going into the bye week.)
What’s happnin’ everyone? Just wanted to introduce myself before I started posting stuff up on this forum, which I must say I’m pretty impressed with. Everyone seems to contribute meaningful information and their point of views, brining them to the table and everyone else seems to feed off another which makes the chemistry surrounding this board good.
I’m a die hard Cardinals fan. Born and raised on the West Side of Phoenix, we had a party the night it was confirmed the stadium, (which I live down the street from), came to our side of town. As a fan, I am pleased with the moves we’ve made in recent years with the organization in the personnel and the type of players we are bringing to the team. On that note though, I want to express that I wasn’t too happy about the organization cutting all ties off with Dennis Green. His play calling was highly questionable; however it remains evident that the guy knew his players and who he was drafting. He brought quality players to this organization through the draft and in my opinion, should have at least remained with the Cards as an advisor or some sort of player personnel overseer. The majority of the young roster that Coach Wise has to work with now is a result of Green’s knack for picking and choosing amongst the future stars of the NFL.
Going into the bye week and halfway through the season, we’re still under .500, which isn’t uncommon for all of us Cards fans. Some wagon riders who joined our team in the beginning of the season in hopes of a good one, have already abandoned ship in the face of the Cards present adversities. With Leinart’s season ending injury, Warner’s elbow issue, and Boldin’s lingering hip ailment, and… wait… that’s it?
Of course that’s it, we only have a total of 4 players that are out indefinitely, and the rest of our young and future star studded players are still here, ready to take on our division in which we are currently ranked 2nd. Playoffs hopes are still high and I am confident we can make them, even with Tim Rattay who is an AZ football product himself, at the helm operating the offense.
Rattay, a journeyman, has spent time on the West Coast having played six seasons with the 49ers and Bucs, meaning he’s no stranger to being a member on teams with struggling records.
“Struggling teams? Yeah, the Bucs and 49ers aren’t the best teams to have on your resume.”
However, I don’t believe Rattay has ever been in such a great situation as the one he is in now. He is at home, where he was raised after his family moved here from Ohio, and he gets to play in front of his friends and family. He has a great team surrounding him with proven players such as Fitz, Boldin, and Edge who’ve all been to the Pro Bowl (1, 2, and 4 respectively.) Not to mention he has talented reserve receivers in Johnson and B-Dogg (Breaston), who do their thing when they get the rock in their hands. With our O-line doing the best I have ever seen in the past some-odd years, he has the time to get the ball out to his playmakers. He just needs reps in practice, knowledge of the playbook, and familiarity with his receivers. I know Rattay can hold it down and represent Arizona with this opportunity he’s been given. Not to mention he has Warner, a former Pro-Bowler and NFL MVP himself, to learn from alongside with Leinart.
While I’m speaking of QB’s, my heart goes out to Leinart. He doesn’t need any words of encouragement, (not that he’ll see this post anyhow), he comes from a champion caliber program, he’s a winner, and he has the most important thing that’s intangible in this league- HEART. He’ll bounce back and be ready to go next season, where hopefully we’ll make some excellent moves and only add to the great team that’s surrounding him now. Take the time to soak up knowledge, watch with unwavering vigilance, and enjoy your teammate’s progressive strides Leinart.
Also, what happened to Shane Boyd? He played solid for us during the preseason, seeing action in all games. I know he played against 2nd and 3rd stringers, however, the way he played on the field was impressive. In the short times he saw action and out of all four preseason games, he went for 27/53 for 264 yards, 2 TD’s and 2 INT’s. He was full of intangibles as well- he was aware of where he was on the field and not to mention mobile, scrambling on 12 attempts for 112 yards and a lone TD. I would have liked to see him get some action in a regular season game before Rattay after the injuries to Warner and Leinart. Or maybe a Rattay and Boyd combination could have worked on the roster rather than having signed Hasselbeck. Doesn’t help that his older brother plays in the same division either- conflict of interest maybe?
The big uglies up front are doing an excellent job protecting our QB and pushing the defense back in helping our run game. They’ve only given up 8 sacks half way into the season which is a breath of fresh air in comparison with the previous years. In comparison with one of the league elites, the New England Patriots have given up 7. It’s a comforting thought that our line is playing with that type of caliber. Our NFL rankings speak for our line as well. Currently the Cards are 14th in PPG with 21, 12th in yards with 337 yards per game, 9th in passing with 233.9, and 18th in rushing with 103.1. So as a team, we’re just like our record, though a little below .500 and falling within the upper half of the league as far as stats. Once we get more consistency at the QB position, these numbers should improve. I expect that during this bye week, Coach Wise will focus on improving the run-game, and get the ball in Edge’s hands more.
I like what we’ve done with the line in terms of personnel. We brought in some experienced vets and allowed our younger players an opportunity to contribute to their team. One young player I want to comment on is not 1st round pick Levi Brown, but undrafted free-agent rookie Lyle Sendlein. In the five games he has played for us this season, he’s done an exceptionally surprising job for being an undrafted rookie and playing at Center when his number is called. He plays solid, filling in for Al Johnson. In the five games he has played in (SF, SEA, BAL, STL, and WAS) the offense has averaged 108 yards rushing per game, 252 yards passing per game, and the offense has netted 360.6 yards per game. Not saying that he’s the sole reason for these stats, the offensive line as a whole is doing an excellent job. I’m just really impressed with the way the undrafted rookie plays and how the offense does with him in the lineup.
Did I forget to mention he’s an AZ homegrown product as well? Sendlein attended Chaparral HS in Scottsdale, and comes from a pedigreed university in Texas. (Whose recently drafted players all seem to be transitioning well into the NFL. Shout out to V.Y., do ya thing playa, screw that Madden curse. Champions aren’t superstitious.)
The only knock on our offensive line is we need to get the run established more, and the biggest concern is penalties on our linemen. It seems every time we get into a nice rhythm, or get a nice drive going, we get a penalty. It’s not even our line sometimes though, like the penalty we got during the Baltimore game I think- illegal block on the kicking team? We just need to focus more and keep our mistakes minimal as Coach has preached. The line has to be tired of attending sermons. I predict them to hone their technique and timing this bye week to help limit those penalties.
Our run game has improved since the years prior, though not as much as I expected with Coach having come from Pittsburgh. As stated before, we rank 18th, which is in the upper bottom half of the league in rushing. Our backs are solid; they have been even before we got the Edge. It’s just been the offensive line in years prior and our run play calling. Arrington broke Marcus Allen’s Pac-10 record for crying out loud, he’s a solid back- just young, inexperienced, and didn’t get a chance behind the weak line in the years before. I’m no coach and I’m sure Coach knows what he’s doing, I just wanted to make the opinion that Edge needs to be fed the ball more. I know when we get in those 3rd and short situations, the opposing teams keys in on Edge (if he’s even ion the field, and I’m sure Coach is trying to take advantage of that fact by trying to get the ball out to the wide-outs in hopes of netting a big play. However, it hasn’t been that effective, and I think we should just let Edge do his thing. Give him the ball in those situations. Give him an opportunity to make those plays for his team. Give him a chance to silence doubters about why we went after him when he became available in free-agency and paid him all that money for (which we could have picked up a couple of solid offensive linemen for, but that’s ok.) Edge is a BEAST when he finds daylight.
Our receivers are the envy of the league in my opinion. They are all young, talented, and provide mismatches anytime and anywhere they line up. This speaks volumes of our general managing as an organization wholly.
Has anyone even mentioned Leonard Pope… ever? When the TE was drafted out of Georgia last year I was ecstatic. We’ve always needed a TE with Popes ability, athleticism, and talent. Now Edge is a beast in open field, but this guy is a MONSTER. 6’ 8”? 258 pounds? And the guy can run with speed comparable to San Diego’s big play making TE Gates!? Let’s try and get him more involved in the game plan. He’s already averaging 10.6 yards per catch with only 9 receptions on the year and has 2 TD’s. Get the ball in his hands, stretch the middle of the field; and let’s see him truck defensive backs.
I don’t think any introduction is needed for Fitz or Boldin. They are both playing well and doing their things when they get the ball in their hands. I know Fitz has had relapses lately and for the first time in his career, but he’ll smoothen out by the end of the year. He’s holding it down, 46 rec. 642 yards, averaging 14.0 yards per catch and with one lone TD. On the other hand, I don’t think we’re getting the ball into Boldin’s hands enough and in the right situations. I am going to use a fellow forum user’s quote and say: “GET THE BALL TO BOLDIN”. It’s also, and coincidentally, a chant my colleagues and I have developed this season while watching the games, in frustration at the lack of Q’s touches. The guy is a playmaker and it’s debatable which receiver is better, Fitz or Boldin. His stats are amazing- 30 rec. 315 yards and 5 TD’s, averaging 10.5 yards per catch.
Bryant Johnson is also playing awesome when he gets his chance to get his hands on the rock- 21 rec. 229 yards and averaging 10.9 yards a game. I believe he can start for any team in the league if it wasn’t for the two guys in front of him. Hopefully we can keep him after the season- but if he keeps putting up these types numbers throughout the year, it might be hard to retain him when his contract expires. I don’t think we have to worry about getting another slot receiver in the future though, because we’ve already made the right steps in filling the spot.
Special teamer and reserve receiver Steve Breaston out of the Big House (Michigan) is the unsung hero this far into the season as far as I’m concerned. He is a future play maker himself, and just needs a little more help from his teammates on his returns. In college when I watched him play, I was always waiting for something spectacular to happen when he was receiving a pass from Henne, (Mich.’s QB), and rarely was I let down. On every return it seems all he needs is “that” one block or two to take it to the house. Our return game has significantly improved since he joined the Cards, giving the Cards better field position. We’ve had good field position all year. He’ll see limited time this year on the field as a receiver because of the 3 guys who are ahead of him on the depth chart, but it’s unquestioned that he’ll get his fair share of chances to make plays while being the PR and KR. His experiences on special teams will only help him when he gets onto the field on 3rd and longs.
Our offense is solid. In the off-season, we only need to ADD quality players to our offensive side of the ball.
That sums up this… report, lol. I’ll have one up for the defensive side of the ball as well for you guys to comment on. Hopefully I’ve given everyone some good food for thought.