Tag: Arizona Cardinals (Page 29 of 51)

      Cards could face major changes next season

      February 7, 2009 /

      The Arizona Cardinals aren’t even a week removed from losing Super Bowl XLIII and already they need to fill both coordinator positions, convince starting quarterback Kurt Warner to return next season and deal with wide receiver Anquan Boldin’s continued unhappiness. Oh yeah, and linebacker Karlos Dansby is also set to become a free agent.

      On Friday, the Chiefs hired Todd Haley – the mastermind behind the Cardinals’ dynamic offense in 2008 – to become their next head coach. Not 24 hours later, Arizona fired coordinator Clancy Pendergast, despite his success coming up with defensive schemes to thwart top NFC runners Michael Turner, DeAngelo Williams, Brian Westbrook and Willie Parker in the playoffs.

      The loss of Haley is significant because he developed all the game plans and called the plays for the Cards’ biggest strength: their offense. It’s unsure at this point why the team fired Pendergast, but the franchise must have someone waiting in the wings because you don’t make a dramatic move like that without having a game plan in place.

      If Arizona can’t re-sign Warner and Dansby, then has to part with Boldin because they can’t appease his contract demands, then we could be looking at a very different Cardinals team than the one that took the field last Sunday in the Super Bowl. By all accounts, the team shouldn’t have much of a problem convincing Warner to return, but Dansby will be a highly sought-after free agent who is only 27 and in the prime of his career.

      Boldin’s situation is a different animal. He requested that the team trade him last preseason due to a lack of contract respect, and then threw a tantrum on the sidelines during the NFC Championship Game because Haley replaced him during a pivotal offensive series. Just recently, Boldin said that his relationship with the Cardinals was irreparable. At the end of the day, the team might not have a choice but to cut ties with the underrated receiver and trade him so his situation doesn’t continue to be a distraction.

      In order for the Cards not take a major step back, the two coordinators that the team chooses will need to be sound hires. It would be wise for Arizona to then make re-signing Warner and Dansby their next priority, and then deal with Boldin since he’s already under contract and can’t bolt on his own accord. Nevertheless, this will be an interesting offseason in Arizona.

      NFL

      Top 10 active NFL passing leaders

      February 7, 2009 /

      The 2008 NFL season is now in the books. Well, unless you love football so much that you actually watch and care about the Pro Bowl tomorrow. You know how I would care about it? If I was in Hawaii. But that’s just me. Anyway, as some of the game’s great quarterbacks padded their career stats, let’s take a look at the active Top 10 in passing yards:

      1. Brett Favre, New York Jets (65,127)—Sure, he led the NFL in interceptions this past season with 22, but Favre threw for 3472 yards and 22 touchdowns. Will this number stand, or will Favre add to it? I think I speak for every sportswriter out there when I say I’m tired of reading about and writing about Favre’s impending retirement.

      2. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts (45,628)—With 20,000 yards to catch Favre, it will take Manning, who has averaged over 4000 yards per season for 11 years, another five seasons to get there. Manning is only 32, so I’d bet on that. Well, unless Favre retires and unretires a few more times.

      3. Kerry Collins, Tennessee Titans (37,393)—It’s hard to believe Collins is only 36 years old, and leading the Titans to the best record in the NFL in 2008 sparked a fire under him. And that fire will continue to burn in Nashville despite how Vince Young feels about it.

      4. Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles (29,320)—McNabb is 82-45-1 as a starter over 10 seasons in Philly. Wait, can NFL games end in ties? Anyway, McNabb has thrown 194 touchdowns with just 90 interceptions. But the guy has no rings, and was so nervous in his lone Super Bowl appearance that he vomited in the huddle. I don’t get it.

      5. Brad Johnson, Dallas Cowboys (29,054)—Johnson stopped putting up meaningful numbers a few seasons ago, and he looked awful for those three games he started in place of Tony Romo this year. Let’s just say we shouldn’t expect ol’ Brad to reach 30,000 passing yards for his career.

      6. Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals (28,591)—Okay, so he didn’t win his second Super Bowl ring, but Warner still has an amazingly accurate arm at 37. He said he won’t tease us all with retirement talk ala Favre, but my feeling is he’s not anywhere close to being done.

      7. Trent Green, St. Louis Rams (28,475)—Green has started the equivalent of one season’s games over the past three, and he’s taken some brutal hits that have left given him multiple concussions. If I was Green, and I know I’m not, I would hang it up now.

      8. Jon Kitna, Detroit Lions (27,293)—Kitna has had some bad luck. He played on some bad Bengals teams and then signed with the Lions in 2006. And though Kitna went down with an injury after four games this past season, he still was part of the first 0-16 team in NFL history.

      9. Tom Brady, New England Patriots (26,446)—Here’s the irony. Brady had 76 passing yards before a brutal knee injury ended his season in Week 1. If he had played 16 games, there’s a very good chance he’d be as high as fourth on this list today.

      10. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints (26,258)—Brees came within 15 yards of Dan Marino’s single season record of 5084 passing yards, but he still made fantasy owners happy, and still climbed onto this list as a result.

      Source: Pro Football Reference

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Anquan Boldin says relationship with Cardinals irreparable

      February 6, 2009 /

      Anquan Boldin is apparently going to need more than a new contract and a firm handshake from the Cardinals in order to make him happy.

      From Rotoworld.com (via USA Tody):

      Anquan BoldinAnquan Boldin said Thursday that his rift with Cardinals management is irreparable and could force him to renew his trade demands.

      “It takes more than, ‘Well, we did you wrong and we’ll pay you this,'” said Boldin. “It’s not about the money. It was always about the principle.” Cardinals GM Rod Graves has been steadfast in his refusal to discuss a trade, but Boldin and agent Drew Rosenhaus are sure to stir up interest this offseason. Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald believe cooler heads will prevail and Boldin will remain in a Cardinals uniform. Ah, but they underestimate the evil genius of Drew Rosenhaus.

      Have you ever been in a relationship with a person for a couple of years and things start to go sour? Then even though things are bad, you tell yourself that if he/she starts changing their ways, you could see the relationship working out. You basically convince yourself that things could eventually work but you start setting the demands for the relationship so high that you essentially want it to fail so that you could get a clean break.

      That’s what this Boldin situation reminds me of. Maybe he’s saying things could eventually work out in Arizona because he’s been there for so long and part of him wants to stay. But he wasn’t happy about his contract situation at the start of the 2008 season. Now he’s still upset about his contract, but he’s also saying that it’s not just about the money and it’s the principle of the matter. You get the feeling that no matter what the Cardinals’ brass eventually does, Boldin is going to make it impossible for the organization to make him happy in the end.

      Maybe it’s time to start thinking that Boldin just wants out. He’s right – it’s not all about the money. It’s about the money, a fresh start and a change of scenery. And if that’s the case, he should state as such and be honest. Hey, some people just need a clean slate.

      NFL

      Report: Todd Haley to become Chiefs’ next head coach

      February 6, 2009 /

      According to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports, the Chiefs have decided to offer their head-coaching job to Cardinals’ offensive coordinator Todd Haley.

      Todd HaleyThe Chiefs offered the position to Cardinals offensive coordinator Todd Haley and he has accepted, FOXSports.com has learned. They are now trying to work out terms of a contract agreement.

      Haley interviewed for the position earlier this week and a Cardinals player at the Pro Bowl told FOXSports.com Haley was scheduled to arrive in Honolulu for the Pro Bowl Thursday as a guest of Cardinals wideout Larry Fitzgerald, but canceled at the last moment because of the Kansas City job.
      “He’s going to be a big loss for us,” another Cards player told FOXSports.com.

      A different Cardinals player said, “He was really liked in the locker room, because we felt like he was always trying to figure something out for us for Sundays. He never stopped.”

      Haley called the plays for the high-flying Cardinals offense that shocked the world by not only getting to the Super Bowl, but nearly winning it last Sunday.

      I wonder if this means Tony Gonzalez will want to stick around now that new GM Scott Pioli has decided to hire Haley instead of a college coach. Gonzo hinted earlier this week that he might want to bolt KC if the Chiefs hired someone from the collegiate ranks.

      Haley seems like a sound choice on many levels. He obviously knows what it takes for a team to reach the Super Bowl and he seems like the type of coach that can gain the respect of players. He has also already proven that he won’t take insubordination from any player and he has the smarts to draw up some dynamic game plans. Now it’s up to Pioli to rebuild the roster and give Haley talent to work with.

      NFL, Rumors & Gossip

      Cardinals to cut Edgerrin James?

      February 5, 2009 /

      Fresh off their Super Bowl XLIII appearance, the Cardinals are apparently set to release running back Edgerrin James this offseason.

      From Rotoworld.com:

      Edgerrin JamesAccording to the Arizona Republic’s Dan Bickley, Edgerrin James is “already gone” from the Cardinals.

      Edge reportedly did not return to Phoenix with the Cardinals after the Super Bowl. James’ release, which cannot become official yet, will save Arizona $5 million under the cap, increasing the team’s spending limit to roughly $47M. It also creates a need area at tailback. J.J. Arrington is a free agent and the Cardinals will have to find a complement for Timmy Hightower.

      This makes sense. Edge already stated throughout the regular season that he wanted out of Arizona, so why should the Cardinals keep him? They’ll save $5 million in cap space, and cut ties with a player that doesn’t want to be there. Plus, the draft is loaded with solid running back prospects this year so they don’t even have to use a first round pick on the position if they wanted to address other needs.

      It’s not worth speculating at this point what teams will be interested in Edge, but considering he’s already hit the dreaded age of 30 he probably won’t receive more than a two-year offer.

      Fantasy Football, NFL, Rumors & Gossip

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