ESPN.com - NFL - Take 2: Cardinals vs. Dolphins Friday, November 5, 2004
Scouts Inc.
Tuesday, our scouts filed their advance advance scouting report on this
week's matchup between the Cardinals and Dolphins. Now they're back with a
second look.
Miami OLB Junior Seau was placed on injured reserve after tearing his
pectoral muscle in Monday night's loss to the Jets. As a result, Eddie
Moore, who is in his second year, will move into the starting lineup at
strong-side backer while Morlon Greenwood will assume the vacant spot on
the weak side. The loss of Seau further weakens the Dolphin's ability to
stop the run, so expect SS Sammy Knight to be heavily involved near the
line of scrimmage. This will put pressure on DCs Sam Madison, Patrick
Surtain and Reggie Howard to hold up in man coverage working against the
Cardinals three-receiver sets. Miami's undersized front seven was exposed
by the Jets last week, but it may be able to prevent Arizona from having
similar success on the ground with Knight providing support.
WR Bryant Johnson has made steady progress over the last three weeks, and
he is starting to emerge as the player Arizona thought it was getting when
it made him a first-round pick in 2003. His development coupled with the
return of Anquan Boldin should improve an Arizona passing attack that has
averaged just 158.0 yards per game. The Cardinals now have the ability to
spread the field with Johnson, Boldin and rookie Larry Fitzgerald. Their
multiple-receiver sets should create seams in the running game and create
more room for TE Freddie Jones over the middle of the field. With Knight
figuring to play near the line of scrimmage and Moore being inexperienced
in coverage, look for Jones to have a big day catching the football.
One of the reasons why the Jets were able to rush for 275 yards against
Miami was missed tackles. The injuries to DTs Tim Bowens and Larry Chester
also played a role but the Dolphins had a number of opportunities to make
stops at the line of scrimmage and simply failed to wrap up. That trend
will have to change if Miami hopes to win this game. While RB Emmitt Smith
may not be explosive at this point of his career, he can put the Arizona
offense in manageable third-down situations if the Dolphins continue to
miss tackles.
Arizona offensive coordinator Alex Wood wants to set up the passing game
with a strong ground attack. However, he'll need a strong effort from his
interior linemen, as MLB Zach Thomas has tremendous range. OC Alex
Stepanovich along with guards Reggie Wells and Jeremy Bridges will be
responsible for tandem blocking DTs Jeff Zgonina and Bryan Robinson up to
Thomas. They must also do a good job communicating with one another in
order to cut Thomas off at the second level.
It's Boldin's ability to create yards after the catch using his tremendous
quickness, change of direction skills and size to shake or run over
defenders downfield that makes him so special. With the Dolphins figuring
to play mostly man schemes against Arizona, it will be important for
Madison, Surtain and Howard to keep Boldin in front of them. One way the
Cardinals will try to help Boldin is releasing him on crossing routes that
are designed to run away from the defense. If QB Josh McCown can hit
Boldin in-stride, Arizona could make some big plays.
QB Jay Fiedler will continue to start for Miami, but don't be surprised to
see A.J. Feeley get some reps if he gets off to a bad start. The Dolphins
are ranked dead last in the league in scoring offense (12.5 ppg), and they
won't hesitate to pull Fiedler if they feel a change could provide a
much-needed spark.
The Cardinals need to account for RDE Jason Taylor in protection, and they
have a number of different options when McCown drops back to pass. The
first involves using Smith or backup Troy Hambrick to "chip" Taylor when
they release out of the backfield. This will help to keep Taylor
off-balance and allow Arizona to release five men into routes. Another
option would be to use TE Jones as an extra blocker to Taylor's side.
However, this doesn't seem to be a good fit for the Cardinals considering
the matchup problems Jones can create as a receiver working against Moore.
Perhaps the best option for Arizona would be to slide the protection to
the left side, which will give OT Leonard Davis the support he needs going
up against Taylor. It also doesn't limit McCown's options.
Arizona defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast is starting to show more
confidence in his cornerbacks, as evidenced by his recent aggressive play
calling. DCs David Macklin, Duane Starks and Renaldo Hill have held up in
the man schemes, which has allowed SS Adrian Wilson to take more chances
in coverage and when blitzing. The Cardinals want to attack Fiedler with a
heavy blitz package, and they should have some success as long as Macklin,
Starks and Hill continue to prove capable of playing on islands.
The re-emergence of Cardinals NT Russell Davis, who is drawing double-team
attention, has allowed rookie UT Darnell Dockett to create havoc in the
middle. Dockett is slightly undersized, but he has an explosive first step
and does a great job of shooting gaps. However, the Cardinals have become
vulnerable to quick-hitting inside traps because of Dockett's propensity
to play upfield. As a result, expect Miami to attack the A-gap by trapping
Dockett with LOG Jeno James who has the athleticism to be effective on
these types of blocks. If James can get his helmet across Dockett's face,
it should create a nice lane for RB Leonard Henry.
Special Teams
RS Josh Scobey missed the last three weeks with a knee sprain, but he is
expected to be at 100 percent. While backup RB Larry Croom filled in
admirably for Scobey, he simply isn't as explosive. Scobey was among the
conference leaders before the injury and his big-play abilities should
help improve Arizona's average starting field position.
Prediction: Cardinals 21, Dolphins 17
Scouts Inc.
Tuesday, our scouts filed their advance advance scouting report on this
week's matchup between the Cardinals and Dolphins. Now they're back with a
second look.
Miami OLB Junior Seau was placed on injured reserve after tearing his
pectoral muscle in Monday night's loss to the Jets. As a result, Eddie
Moore, who is in his second year, will move into the starting lineup at
strong-side backer while Morlon Greenwood will assume the vacant spot on
the weak side. The loss of Seau further weakens the Dolphin's ability to
stop the run, so expect SS Sammy Knight to be heavily involved near the
line of scrimmage. This will put pressure on DCs Sam Madison, Patrick
Surtain and Reggie Howard to hold up in man coverage working against the
Cardinals three-receiver sets. Miami's undersized front seven was exposed
by the Jets last week, but it may be able to prevent Arizona from having
similar success on the ground with Knight providing support.
WR Bryant Johnson has made steady progress over the last three weeks, and
he is starting to emerge as the player Arizona thought it was getting when
it made him a first-round pick in 2003. His development coupled with the
return of Anquan Boldin should improve an Arizona passing attack that has
averaged just 158.0 yards per game. The Cardinals now have the ability to
spread the field with Johnson, Boldin and rookie Larry Fitzgerald. Their
multiple-receiver sets should create seams in the running game and create
more room for TE Freddie Jones over the middle of the field. With Knight
figuring to play near the line of scrimmage and Moore being inexperienced
in coverage, look for Jones to have a big day catching the football.
One of the reasons why the Jets were able to rush for 275 yards against
Miami was missed tackles. The injuries to DTs Tim Bowens and Larry Chester
also played a role but the Dolphins had a number of opportunities to make
stops at the line of scrimmage and simply failed to wrap up. That trend
will have to change if Miami hopes to win this game. While RB Emmitt Smith
may not be explosive at this point of his career, he can put the Arizona
offense in manageable third-down situations if the Dolphins continue to
miss tackles.
Arizona offensive coordinator Alex Wood wants to set up the passing game
with a strong ground attack. However, he'll need a strong effort from his
interior linemen, as MLB Zach Thomas has tremendous range. OC Alex
Stepanovich along with guards Reggie Wells and Jeremy Bridges will be
responsible for tandem blocking DTs Jeff Zgonina and Bryan Robinson up to
Thomas. They must also do a good job communicating with one another in
order to cut Thomas off at the second level.
It's Boldin's ability to create yards after the catch using his tremendous
quickness, change of direction skills and size to shake or run over
defenders downfield that makes him so special. With the Dolphins figuring
to play mostly man schemes against Arizona, it will be important for
Madison, Surtain and Howard to keep Boldin in front of them. One way the
Cardinals will try to help Boldin is releasing him on crossing routes that
are designed to run away from the defense. If QB Josh McCown can hit
Boldin in-stride, Arizona could make some big plays.
QB Jay Fiedler will continue to start for Miami, but don't be surprised to
see A.J. Feeley get some reps if he gets off to a bad start. The Dolphins
are ranked dead last in the league in scoring offense (12.5 ppg), and they
won't hesitate to pull Fiedler if they feel a change could provide a
much-needed spark.
The Cardinals need to account for RDE Jason Taylor in protection, and they
have a number of different options when McCown drops back to pass. The
first involves using Smith or backup Troy Hambrick to "chip" Taylor when
they release out of the backfield. This will help to keep Taylor
off-balance and allow Arizona to release five men into routes. Another
option would be to use TE Jones as an extra blocker to Taylor's side.
However, this doesn't seem to be a good fit for the Cardinals considering
the matchup problems Jones can create as a receiver working against Moore.
Perhaps the best option for Arizona would be to slide the protection to
the left side, which will give OT Leonard Davis the support he needs going
up against Taylor. It also doesn't limit McCown's options.
Arizona defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast is starting to show more
confidence in his cornerbacks, as evidenced by his recent aggressive play
calling. DCs David Macklin, Duane Starks and Renaldo Hill have held up in
the man schemes, which has allowed SS Adrian Wilson to take more chances
in coverage and when blitzing. The Cardinals want to attack Fiedler with a
heavy blitz package, and they should have some success as long as Macklin,
Starks and Hill continue to prove capable of playing on islands.
The re-emergence of Cardinals NT Russell Davis, who is drawing double-team
attention, has allowed rookie UT Darnell Dockett to create havoc in the
middle. Dockett is slightly undersized, but he has an explosive first step
and does a great job of shooting gaps. However, the Cardinals have become
vulnerable to quick-hitting inside traps because of Dockett's propensity
to play upfield. As a result, expect Miami to attack the A-gap by trapping
Dockett with LOG Jeno James who has the athleticism to be effective on
these types of blocks. If James can get his helmet across Dockett's face,
it should create a nice lane for RB Leonard Henry.
Special Teams
RS Josh Scobey missed the last three weeks with a knee sprain, but he is
expected to be at 100 percent. While backup RB Larry Croom filled in
admirably for Scobey, he simply isn't as explosive. Scobey was among the
conference leaders before the injury and his big-play abilities should
help improve Arizona's average starting field position.
Prediction: Cardinals 21, Dolphins 17
