Tag: Steve Breaston (Page 3 of 4)

      Boldin being labeled as selfish for sideline rant with Haley

      January 19, 2009 /

      During the second half of the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, cameras caught Cardinals’ wide receiver Anquan Boldin in a heated debate with offensive coordinator Todd Haley on the sidelines. According to CBSSports.com writer Mike Freeman, Boldin abruptly left the field and locker room after the game without celebrating with his teammates.

      Anquan BoldinHe tried to ruin the Super Bowl celebration with his childishness.

      In the game, Boldin got into a heated argument with offensive coordinator Todd Haley. After the game, instead of celebrating with his team, Boldin abruptly left the field, then abruptly left the locker room.

      It was awful behavior.

      Quarterback Kurt Warner also got into an argument with Haley during the game but you didn’t see Warner acting like a petulant child afterwards. He celebrated with his teammates and enjoyed the moment.

      I have to say in nearly 20 years of doing this, I’ve never seen a player more concerned about his arguing with a coach over making a Super Bowl.

      What Boldin did almost never happens.

      Congratulations on making history, Anquan.

      According to Haley, Boldin was upset because Steve Breaston replaced him in one of the offensive formations.

      Boldin declined comment about it after the game, and Haley called it “a heat of the moment” situation.

      “We changed personnel groups out there and I put Steve Breaston in for (Boldin),” Haley said, “and he was upset about it.”

      One would have thought the Cards lost the game with how bad Haley was chewed out. (He also got into a smaller debate with Kurt Warner in the first half.)

      Boldin’s never been a me-first player so he deserves a break from the national media on this one. But no matter how upset he was, there was no excuse not to celebrate with his teammates. Reaching the Super Bowl should be a momentous occasion in a player’s career. Instead, Boldin has voiced his displeasure several times this year, mainly because of his contract situation and now because he was pulled from a game.

      Settle down, Anquan. Your team just made the Super Bowl and will need you. Your contract situation will get worked out after the season. Play ball until then.

      NFL

      NFL Playoff Preview: Falcons defense must rise to occasion

      January 2, 2009 /

      Entering their playoff game with the Arizona Cardinals this Saturday, all of the talk – and for good reason – for Atlanta seems to surround rookie quarterback Matt Ryan, head coach Mike Smith and the Falcons’ impressive turnaround from a dysfunctional 4-12 team to an 11-5 Super Bowl contender.

      But while it’s fun to shine the light on Ryan and the Falcons’ feel good story, more attention should be paid to Atlanta’s defense. Because it’ll be the play of Keith Brooking, John Abraham, Lawyer Milloy and the rest of the Falcons’ defensive unit that determines if Atlanta will move beyond Arizona this weekend.

      The Falcons will score, this much we know. Ryan, Michael Turner, Roddy White and Jerious Norwood lead an offense that has averaged close to 25 points per game and are playing against a defense that at times, has resembled a revolving door to the end zone this season.

      But how will Atlanta’s defense matchup against a veteran quarterback in Kurt Warner that has a trio of 1,000-yard receivers at his disposal in Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Breaston? Can the Falcons’ secondary of Foxworth, Coleman, Milloy and youngster Chris Houston contain the Cardinals’ explosive offense or will they be another victim to Arizona’s impressive passing attack?

      The key might be whether or not Milloy is healthy. He hurt his back in the team’s playoff-clinching win over the Vikings in Week 16 and sat out the Falcons’ Week 17 win over the Rams. If he’s ready to go, he’ll play a huge role in taking away an Arizona running game that averages just over 70 yards per game. And if Atlanta’s front seven can contain the run on its own, Milloy can better help in coverage and hopefully limit the Cards’ big-strike potential.

      Not many defensive backfields can line up and take on Boldin, Fitzgerald and Breaston in man-to-man coverage, and the Falcons are no-exception. While Dominique Foxworth has been solid since an early-season trade with Denver, Chris Houston is still learning the position and has been known to give up the big play at times. The Falcons will have to commit their safeties to help in coverage, which means Atlanta’s front seven must take away the run on its own.

      Another huge factor is whether or not the Falcons can generate a pass rush without having to commit extra defenders. The team has done an outstanding job rotating its defensive linemen this season and it’s led to Abraham having his best season as a pro. He and Babineaux have been fantastic at getting pressure on opposing quarterbacks all year, but it would go a long way in helping Atlanta’s success if second-year end Jamaal Anderson could give them anything in terms of a pass rush.

      If the Falcons are to beat the Cardinals on Saturday, it’ll be vital that Ryan and the offense get an early lead by pounding Michael Turner on the ground. This will keep the Cardinals’ offense on the sidelines and hopefully force Arizona to be one-dimensional. If Atlanta can build a double-digit lead, then Abraham and the rest of the Falcon defensive line can think pass first and get pressure on Warner. If they can force a turnover or two, they can put the game away in the second half and bleed the clock with their outstanding running game.

      NFL

      NFL Playoff Preview: Cardinals’ offense needs to find balance

      January 2, 2009 /

      With their 34-10 win over the St. Louis Rams in Week 14, the Arizona Cardinals clinched the NFC West for the first time since the league realigned the divisions in 2002. At 8-5, the Cards secured home field advantage in the first round of the playoffs and essentially felt pretty good about their chances of making a deep postseason run thanks to their explosive offense.

      Then all hell broke loose for two weeks.

      Arizona was hammered by the Minnesota Vikings, 35-14 at home in Week 15 and were trounced 47-7 by the New England Patriots in Foxboro the following week. In those two losses, the Cards turned the ball over four times and averaged just 43.5 rushing yards. If it weren’t for their salvaging 34-21 win over the Seahawks in the final week of the regular season, ‘Zona would have limped into the playoffs losers of three straight.

      While NFL purists love to note how explosive the Cardinals’ passing game is, the key for them beating the Atlanta Falcons on Saturday in the opening round of the playoffs is creating offensive balance. If they can’t run the ball, the Falcons should have no problem sitting back in coverage and allowing defensive linemen John Abraham, Kroy Biermann and Jonathan Babineaux to pin their ears back and get pressure on Kurt Warner.

      The Cardinals have averaged just 73.6 rushing yards per game this season, which ranks them dead last in the NFL. While Tim Hightower demonstrated his powerful running style at times this season, his inconsistency has forced Ken Whisenhunt to give veteran Edgerrin James more carries in efforts to try and revive his team’s dead running game.

      Led by Warner and a trio of 1,000-yard receivers in Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Breaston, the Cardinals are going to move the ball through the air on Saturday. But if the Falcons are able to stop the run using just their front seven, it’ll allow safeties Erik Coleman and Lawyer Milloy to stay back in coverage and help corners Dominique Foxworth, Chris Houston and rookie Chevis Jackson blanket the Cards’ talented receivers. Arizona must run the football effectively and force Atlanta to bring Milloy up to help in run support, or else the Cardinals will be one and done this postseason.

      The Falcons offense ranks sixth in the league in yards per game and is scoring 24.4 PPG, so they’re equipped for a shootout if one were to break out on Saturday. Given how poor the Cardinals’ defense has played at times this season, it would be a mistake to think ‘Zona will go anywhere this postseason if they can’t run the ball and strike balance on offense.

      NFL

      What makes a fantasy football championship week goat?

      December 22, 2008 /

      Yesterday was a big day in fantasy football. Most leagues held their title games, and barring a tight contest with a player or two in tonight’s Bears/Packers matchup, the champions have been crowned.

      With that in mind, Epic Carnival put together a list of the Top 10 Fantasy Football Championship Week Goats.

      Here are a few of the more interesting blurbs:

      10. Brett Favre. What could be better than the gunslinger facing his old coach, needing the win, against a secondary that’s been generous even by NFC West standards this year? Well, let’s just say that 18 for 31 for 187 with 2 picks wasn’t on the menu. Those Favre 4 jerseys are going to come cheap this off-season. He’d rank higher, but the fact is that if he was on your roster, you probably weren’t playing for much this week anyway.

      9. Steve Breaston. The Arizona #3 WR moved up to #2 this week with the injury to Anquan Boldin. Against the Patriots secondary — note: normally horrible — this was a sneaky great play, and one that you had to feel good about. He wound up with 6 more yards than Boldin, thanks to our #1 retard. Heckuva job, Cardinals.

      7. Matt Schaub. More or less a must start against the usually comical Raiders, especially after the recent Texans surge. I’m thinking you weren’t expecting the Raiders to more or less dominate the game, even if you were thinking that Nmandi Asomugha was going to make Andre Johnson disappear. Schaub’s 255 yards, no touchdowns, 1 pick and 10 yards rushing day probably didn’t make you lose, but it sure as hell wasn’t what you were hoping for, either.

      1. Kurt Warner. Licking your chops for that Patriot secondary, were you? That must have been before you saw the snow, and the entire Cardinals team look like they were melting from the exposure to it. Your season savior had 30 yards today, got pulled due to the utter lack of competitiveness, and more or less reminded you why the Cardinals are the worst playoff team in the history of the world.

      I expected that all four of these players would have big days, but once the snow hit in New England, I thought the Cardinals might struggle. Heck, I was so worried about the weather that I even benched Matt Cassel in one title game, but was (thankfully) still able to pull out the win, due in no small part to the fact that my opponent started several goats.

      There are a few names on the list — Marion Barber, Willie Parker, DeShaun Foster — that I doubt anyone was starting in their title games. For a “championship goats” list, it’s helpful to look at players that were great all season (or especially productive in Week 15) that turned in pathetic performances in Week 16. Kurt Warner and Matt Schaub are perfect examples, but who else fits the bill?

      I personally know two guys who are none too pleased with Andre Johnson (2 catches, 19 yards), who led many fantasy owners to their championship games with a huge 11-catch, 207-yard, one-TD performance in Week 15 against the Titans. Steve Smith also had a huge Week 15 (9 catches, 165 yards, TD) only to come up small — 68 total yards, 0 TD — in Week 16. To a lesser extent, Dwayne Bowe had a nice Week 15 (6 catches, 44 yards, TD) but posted substandard numbers (3 catches, 28 yards) in the Chiefs’ shootout with Miami. Deion Branch caught nine passes for 164 yards and two TD in Week 14 and Week 15, but mustered only two catches for six yards against a weak Jets pass defense on Sunday. In the same game, Thomas Jones gained 96 yards but failed to score a TD for only the second time in nine games. Roddy White came up small (3 catches, 24 yards) after a great season and a so-so Week 15. In non-PPR leagues, Brian Westbrook only scored 11 fantasy points, and my guess is that his owners needed more. Santana Moss (5 catches, 28 yards) failed to follow up a strong Week 15 performance (7 catches, 72 yards, TD) against the Bengals.

      It’s interesting that most of the guys I mention here are wide receivers. It seems like most of the key QBs, RBs and TEs performed pretty well in Week 16, though I’m sure I’m forgetting a few guys.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Cardinals might sit Anquan Boldin

      December 19, 2008 /

      The Arizona Cardinals are contemplating sitting wideout Anquan Boldin Sunday against the New England Patriots. Boldin is currently dealing with an injured shoulder.

      The injury report did not change from Wednesday except that Early Doucet (hamstring) was back to limited work. Anquan Boldin (shoulder), J.J. Arrington (knee) and DE/LB Travis LaBoy (ankle) didn’t practice and coach Ken Whisenhunt acknowledged that if Arrington and Boldin, in particular, have to sit to be ready for the playoffs, the Cards will do what is most prudent.

      This is a no-brainer. If Boldin can’t practice Friday, there’s no sense in having him play on Sunday with the playoffs just weeks away. The Cardinals would surely like to head into the postseason with some momentum (especially after they were just waxed by Minnesota at home last Sunday), but they need to be at full strength or else they don’t stand a chance in the postseason.

      Steve Breaston might make a decent option this week for fantasy owners, although New England’s defense has been decent against the pass and the weather won’t be pretty so you might want to find better options.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

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