Thanks for creating thread. I'm a Cards season ticket holder and Arizona Wildcat alumn, so cheer for Gronk whenever he's not playing us!
I'll try to keep it as short as I can. Overall, I think it's clearly an uphill battle for us. I think we have a very, very good defense and I'm curious to see how they look against a clearly elite offense. Our offensive line/passing game held up better than expected last week, so curious to see how they'll look in week 2. I figure you guys don't get very many looks at the Cardinals at all, so going to do a position by position rundown. It's probably a bit of a homer perspective, but I try to be objective where I can be.
QB - Obviously a huge question mark heading into the season. Skelton didn't play bad last week, but left the game with what appeared to be a major leg injury. Turns out it is just a low ankle sprain and he hasn't been ruled out yet. Kolb came in and looked great engineering the game-winning drive in an up tempo drive. My hunch is Skelton won't be able to go -- regardless of QB, I think staying in a more uptempo style is our best bet. If Skelton can't go, the backup would be Ryan Lindley - a rookie 6th round pick from San Diego State who isn't ready for prime time.
RB - We have two talented ones, Beanie Wells and Ryan Williams (Beanie is a bruiser and Ryan can make great cuts - 2nd year guy who missed all of last year). Last week, Seattle stuffed the box and totally shut them down. Given what you guys did to Chris Johnson, I don't have high hopes this week - but there's definitely talent there. Larod Stephens-Howling is a versatile third down back.
WR - Larry is Larry. Everyone always game plans to shut him down, and Seattle did a pretty good job last week. Andre Roberts is our #2, and had a pretty good week last week. Early Doucet is the #3/slot and also made some plays last week. Encouraging from Roberts/Doucet, but both still have a long way to proving they are worthy of the playing time they get. Michael Floyd was our first round pick and had a quiet preseason and first game, but he did make a phenomenal TD catch in the last preseason game and the talent is definitely there, but looks like he'll need some time.
TE - Jeff King and Todd Heap are solid vets and can both block and make plays in the passing game. Heap had a pretty good game last week. Rob Housler is a 2nd year guy in the "new age TE" mold, but the potential hasn't translated on the field yet. He has all of the physical tools though.
OL - The biggest question mark heading into the season. Levi Brown (LT) and Jeremy Bridges (our swing lineman off the bench) were both lost to IR. Starting line is D'Anthony Batiste (veteran journeyman), Daryn Colledge (came over from Pack last year), Lyle Sendlein (solid center), Adam Snyder (came over this offseason from SF - hasn't looked great), and Bobby Massie (rookie 4th round pick out of out of Ole Miss). The line actually held up very well in pass blocking last week allowing only one sack. Run blocking was abysmal, but I think Seattle's defense deserves some credit there. Protecting our QB, no matter which one it is, is an absolute must and continues to be the biggest concern for us.
DL - Starters are all very solid - Darnell Dockett, Dan Williams, and Calais Campbell. They are good making plays while still plugging the gaps required out of DL in a 3-4 scheme. David Carter is very solid off the bench. And we have some veteran depth in Vonnie Holliday and Nick Eason. This is a very, very solid group.
LB - Inside linebacker seems like a strength. Starters Daryl Washington and Paris Lenon combined for 19 tackles and 3 sacks last week. Backups Stewart Bradley (a total bust last year after coming over from Philly) and Reggie Walker had solid preseasons. Sam Acho and O'Brien Schofield, two young pups with some talent, are our pass rushing OLBs. The have the talent but need to prove they can provide a consistent pass rush, and depth at the position is a concern. A very talented, up and coming bunch with D-Wash, Acho, and Schofield.
CB - Patrick Peterson is an emerging star at CB, but needs to figure out the frequent PI calls he tends to get. William Gay came over from Pitt this off season and wasn't great in preseason, but knows the scheme well. Jamell Flemming was our third round pick and is a big, physical corner with a lot of potential. He's the nickel, but tends to play outside with Gay in the slot when in the game. Peterson and Flemming both fit DC Ray Horton's scheme perfectly.
S - Adrian Wilson and Kerry Rhodes are the starters and are solid. Depth is James Sanders (who you all are familiar with) and some young guys in Rashad Johnson and Justin Bethel. The depth is fine in a pinch, but hoping we don't need them to get significant time this year.
Special teams - Kicker Jay Feely is ok (not the strongest leg, but generally accurate), and punter Dave Zastudil has been booming them this preseason after being awful last year. Patrick Peterson on returns is always exciting! Larod Stephens-Howling returns kickoffs -- he has the potential to take it to the house every time, but has been more conservative this year. One potential overlooked area is our ability to block kicks/punts -- Calais Campbell, Patrick Peterson, and Justin Bethel (rookie 6th rounder who blocked several in preseason) are all very, very good at this. I keep my eye on Bethel every opponent punt/FG try -- he's going to get a few this year. Kickoff/punt return protection has been a bit of an issue this year, and Leon Washington broke big kickoff and punt returns that led to 10 of their 16 points last week.
Overall offensive scheme -- An uptempo pace out of the shotgun seems to be when both Skelton and Kolb do their best. Doubt we'll be able to hang with the Pats, but it's probably our best bet. Hoping we can get the running game going this week after it was non-existent last week. Larry will get his share of plays/chances, but having the supporting cast at WR/TE also step up is a must for us. Good pass protection, which as I mentioned was much better than expected last week, will be vital and will sink us if our unproven tackles get abused all game.
Overall defensive scheme -- Horton loves to show a ton of looks and bring pressure from all over the field. We are a pressure defense. The DEs job is to occupy space, but they are also talented playmakers. Acho/Schofield generating an outside pass rush is vital. Secondary is very talented if we can get enough pressure and make their jobs easier. I think this defense is going to be top 10 in the league this year, so as mentioned earlier I am very, very interested how they will look against an elite offense on the road.
If it is a close game and it comes down to special teams, we have the playmakers to turn the game in this area of the game.
If anyone has any specific questions on our team, I'm happy to stick around and answer whatever questions you guys have. Last week was a pleasant surprise when we were home underdogs, so very curious to see how we will look in week two. As I mentioned, it's going to be a very, very uphill climb and pretty much everyone is expecting the loss , but if we play our very best I don't think it is an impossible mission on Sunday.
Good luck and good health to all!!
