Archive for December, 2011

I am very fond of quoting a line by Bill Parcells (who is one of my football heroes and one of the smartest football minds in the business), who once said that the difference between a playoff bound 10-6 team and a non-playoff bound 6-10 team is often just a few points and a few plays that could have been made that weren’t. That may typify the Arizona Cardinals 2012 season.  Most likely the Cardinals will fall in between those 10-6 and 6-10 records, but I can certainly point to four losses where if a play was made at the [...]

For a while there, it looked like a typical San Francisco 49ers kind of victory: no touchdowns but lots of field goals, great punting, good defense, good field position, and no turnovers. However, the Arizona Cardinals had some other ideas, as they came from behind and won a thrilling game, 21-19. Suddenly it’s pretty exciting to be an Arizona Cardinals fan again. Here are 10 observations about the game: 1)      Larry Fitzgerald had a monster performance, with a touchdown catch and a beautiful 53-yard reception where quarterback John Skelton found him in stride with a picture-perfect pass.  And lest [...]

Although San Francisco 49′ers linebacker Patrick Willis has been a thorn in the Arizona Cardinals side during most of these teams meetings, it still doesn’t mean the Cards don’t have anyone else to worry about.  It is that fact that should keep the Cards focused as Willis most likely is out of today’s game at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Despite the 23-9 loss on November 20th to the San Francisco 49′ers, the Arizona Cardinals defense played fairly well.  Unfortunately they were left with poor field position to work with most of the game, especially in the first half when the Cards held the Niners to six field goal attempts, making just three of them.  If not for a poor offensive showing, the Cards might have been right there with a chance to win. Cards quarterback John Skelton’s performance left a lot to be desired, so it sort of overshadowed the defensive effort, that’s how bad the offense was.  The [...]

It was not all that long ago when the Arizona Cardinals would have been considered a favorite in 2012 Super Bowl odds as they barely lost the championship game to the Pittsburgh Steelers in February of 2009. But since the retirement of Kurt Warner as their quarterback, Arizona has lost its identity and its championship form. The winning formula may be coming back for Arizona, as after losing six consecutive games that followed an opening day win, the Cardinals have won 4 of their last 5 including last week’s 19-13 overtime win against the Dallas Cowboys. While the playoffs are [...]

If I would have told you last month when the Arizona Cardinals fell to 1-6 that the Cardinals might still have an outside shot at the playoffs, you probably would have asked me what I was smoking. Well, it’s 5 weeks later, and while I admit the chances are remote, there is still a chance that the Cardinals might secure a wild card spot in the playoffs.  There are a LOT of things that would need to fall into place. First, the Cardinals would have to win all four remaining games.  Three of their remaining games are at home, so it’s [...]

Wow…what a game! It seems the Arizona Cardinals have the Dallas Cowboys’ number in close games, as in the last four years they have beaten them in heartbreaking fashion three consecutive times. Here are ten observations about the thriller on Sunday: 1)      It seems that teams are still keying on throwing at Patrick Peterson, and he was beaten several times by Cowboy receivers.  However, I think he showed why he is going to eventually be an all-pro cornerback when he saved a touchdown by beautifully deflecting a long Tony Romo pass.

At halftime, I talked about making adjustments after not necessarily a bad first half, but a first half with missed opportunities.  I mentioned how the Arizona Cardinals have had a hard time in the past making the proper adjustments at halftime.  Today it turned out to be the exception rather than the rule as the Cards defeated the Dallas Cowboys 19-13 in overtime on a 52-yard pass and catch from Kevin Kolb to LaRod Stephens-Howling.  For those wanting to rip on Kolb, let’s agree he didn’t play very well in the first half.  No doubt.  However, let’s put the waive [...]

It’s all about halftime adjustments.  If it is, then the Arizona Cardinals have a lot of them to make, especially on offense and special teams.  The Dallas Cowboys have not exactly lit the world on fire either in leading 10-3 at halftime.  The Cards and Cowboys defenses have played very well.  The Cowboys have had the luxury of working with short fields in the first half. We know the Cards haven’t been the best at making halftime adjustments so there is a very good chance this game doesn’t get much better in the second half.  When your punter, Dave Zastudil, [...]

The Arizona Cardinals are 4-7.  The Dallas Cowboys are 7-4.  Why is it everywhere I read, people think the Cards have a better chance at winning today than the Cowboys?  Well, probably because of several reasons.  First, the game is at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.  The last couple trips for the Cowboys to the desert have not ended too well for them, including last season’s Christmas stunner 27-26.  Then, well, quarterback Tony Romo doesn’t play very well in December historically.  Then there is the idea the Cards are a better, much better team than their 4-7 record and [...]