My Cardinals scouting report

[the butch]

PFF has Doug Baldwin as the highest rated slot receiver. The runner up? Larry Fitzgerald. It's no secret that we have struggled against the slot all year, and even more so with Bene and Peanut going down. Idk exactly how it will play out, but hopefully we have put in work to limit Fitzgerald. We have seen enough teams work out of the slot, that we should at least know where to be, now we just need to execute it. 

[Beast Mode]

17 hours ago, Semaj said:

Why can't there be more Seahawk fans like you Beast mode?  I want to despise the entire fan base but I just can't because of your rational and polite post.  By the way, whats your take on how they will deal with Cam's duel threat capabilities? 

Well that is definitely a wrinkle to the game, and where facing Seattle twice a year probably helps out in their game prep for a mobile weapon like Cam.

I'm guessing their gameplan to attack you defensively will be very similar to how they've played Seattle on defense the past few years.  That always hasn't been a good thing though for Arizona, as their uber aggressive style of play can leave them ripe for some huge chunk plays.. the kind that just break an entire defenses spirit. 

Russell Wilson is one of a kind in his ability to pull some magic out of his backside and hit a 30 yard completion on a play that should have been an 8 yard sack.. and nothing against Cam, but I don't see him doing it as much as Russ does.  However, one thing that I noticed on Sunday is that with a healthy Stewart out there .. they were much more dedicated to the zone-read plays than I remember them being in prior match-ups.  (at least as far as Seahawks-Panthers is concerned)

I bring this up, because Seattle has used the zone-read exceptionally well against Arizona in prior match-ups.  I can see Cam having a lot of the same success that Wilson has had in previous match-ups. 

To me the most important players on offense this weekend will be your unheralded guys because Patrick Peterson is good enough to take away Ted Ginn for a good chunk of the game.  You're going to need a Devin Funchess, a Philly Brown, a Jerricho Cotchery type secondary player to get things going.  Cam and J-Stew hurting Arizona in the running game sure would do a lot to help that cause. 

[Beast Mode]

13 hours ago, B.BERSIN said:

Thanks Beast Mode, one question here, how's their OL? Do we have an edge over them?

The Cardinals OL is stronger on Palmer's blind side with Veldheer and Iupati manning down that side.  However the other side of the line is far less imposing.. Sendlein is a veteran center, but I think Short and Lotulelei will have an advantage on that side of the ball.  Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril gave Arizona pure hell in Week 17, I expect Short and Johnson to do the same.  Short is honestly probably the most important player on that side of the ball Sunday .. if he can consistently get into the Cardinals backfield and force Palmer to slide around in the pocket, that's where the ugly Carson Palmer rears his head usually.  

When Seattle played Arizona up at CenturyLink, Palmer completely shredded our pass defense until Iupati left with an injury.  After that it was open season up the middle of the Cardinals line and the Seahawks briefly erased a big Cards lead before giving it up again at the end.  But the comeback was predicated on getting pressure up the middle.  In the Week 17 rematch, the Seahawks were far better at a consistent pass rush, and the Cardinals offense was a mess as a result. 

 

[Beast Mode]

6 hours ago, Dick the Butcher said:

PFF has Doug Baldwin as the highest rated slot receiver. The runner up? Larry Fitzgerald. It's no secret that we have struggled against the slot all year, and even more so with Bene and Peanut going down. Idk exactly how it will play out, but hopefully we have put in work to limit Fitzgerald. We have seen enough teams work out of the slot, that we should at least know where to be, now we just need to execute it. 

I loathe PFF but they got this right.  Fitzgerald is unreal working out of the slot.  He was already one of the best route runners ever when he was split out wide, but Arians moving him to work the slot was brilliant and revitalized his career.  Like I mentioned earlier, Arians did this same thing with Hines Ward towards the end of his career and Ward shined in that role. 

Fitzgerald is a much better all around WR than Hines (with a far less punchable face too) but he will be a pain in the back side if you give Palmer time to find him.