While it wasn't all bad for the Cardinals in their
first preseason game, it was pretty close. The starting defense struggled badly
against Drew Brees and the potent Saints offense in their only drive. The
tackling was horrendous, and the Cardinals seemed to get beat off the ball on
almost every play. The offense didn't fare much better. We saw what we saw from
Kevin Kolb last year, which was not much (in reference to the fact that he
missed 7 games last year and then he got hurt last night). John Skelton looked
good at times, and bad at times, much like last year. He did lead the Cardinals
on a nice drive, but missed on a couple of easy throws he will need to make if
he wants to win the job.
However,
there were some bright spots, although few and far between. WR LaRon Byrd had a
solid game. He made some impressive grabs over the middle of the field and
showed off his length and athleticism. If he continues to have solid preseason,
I believe he can become the #3 receiver the Cardinals need, because I'm still
not sold on Andre Roberts. DE Calaias Campbell played well. He recorded a sack
and routinely disrupted the Saints QBs. Also, punter Dave Zastudil did a good
job flipping field position, particularly in the first quarter. It's very sad
when you have to list a punter as a bright spot, but you have to give credit
where credit is due.
All
in all, I'm not going to read into this game too much. They have only had a
handful of practices so far, so if there was a time they were going to show
rust, this would have been the time to show it. We shouldn't jump to
conclusions or fall off the bandwagon just yet. This is just the beginning. My
guess is by the end of the preseason, the Cards will look much better.
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