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DEPTH CHART
Regularly
Updated - Last
Updated
November 25, 2011
Return to Highlights Page
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OURS/NOT
THE OFFICIAL CARDINAL DEPTH CHART. COLOR KEY -
Starter/ Back Up/Injured
- IR or Cannot Play//Practice
Squad, /Not
Tendered, Not Under Contract or UFA/ Bubble |
Quarterbacks
4 Kolb, 19 Skelton, 2 Bartel,
14 Croyle,
6 Hall, 03 Anderson,
State of the
Position
-
In good hands. When Kolb's name first surfaced, I was nervous because he
resembled a lot of system-QB's who, while good at "managing the game" seldom
rise out mediocrity. But there are a few guys (Jeff Garcia and Joe Montana
who come to mind) who are good enough athletes and who elevate the
mechanical/cerebral aspects of the game sufficently to lead their teams to
big successes. Not only does Kolb manage the game well - he's compact.
accurate, knows what he's doing and also a master at the play-action waggle
and naked boot. Skelton is more athletic than Kolb and very smart, but still
has a lot to learn (an objective not made easier by a high ankle injury. I
like Bartel a lot. He's super-accurate (hitting receivers in full-stride on
crossing routes) and picks up things quickly. His biggest hurdle - staying
focused and not making foolish mistakes that cost us points or field
position. |
Running Backs
RB -
26, Wells,
36 Stephens-Howling (KR/PR),
46 Alfonso Smith, 29 C Taylor, 37 Powell,
34 Hightower,
31 Wright,
34 R WIlliams,
FB -
45 Mau'ia,
35
Sherman, 42 Ali
State of the Position -
Taylor's addition gives us good depth at the position and a veteran
presence. We
have four distinct running styles in the dominating Wells, the scatback
Stephens-Howling the experienced, versatile Taylor and north-south/one cut thumper, Smith. The loss of
Ryan Williams cost us a special every-down RB who can hit home runs and make
the first tackler miss. We were surprised that we didn't keep 2 quality
fullbacks (& 3 or 4 TE's), but Cards opted to release Mau'ia and. keep
Sherman (whom the coaches love for his intangibles). Cards are said to be
scouring the wires for a talented veteran or youngster. |
Wide Receivers
WR -
12 Roberts,
85 Doucet,
17
Stuckey, 13 Nichols,
10 Komar, 16 Curry-Chapman, 15
Breaston,
WR -11 Fitzgerald,
18 S Williams,
89 Sampson,
80 I Williams, 83 J Johnson,
10 Harvey,
15 Jeffcoat,
State of the
Position
-
Remains talented & deep. despite the loss of Breaston. Fitz is special.
Doucet and Roberts a a year more experienced. So his big WR Steven Williams
(who also looks more poised and solid this year). Physically, we have a
clone of Williams in Sampson.
|
Tight Ends
86
Heap, 87 King,
84 Housler, 81 Dray,
83 Spach,44 S Skelton,
89 Patrick
State of the
Position
-
Total makeover. Heap is
a Pro Bowl all-purpose TE (arguably our best since Jackie Smith). Cards added top notch blocker by signing King. 2nd year man Dray
can block a little and catch a little, but little more than that. He was a
surprise keeper going into the final cut. The addition of Housler in the 3rd
round gives us a pass-catching threat down the seam with 4.5 - 4.6 speed.
|
Offensive Line
LT- 75 L Brown,
74
Batiste,
67 Young,
79W Vermiglio,
66 Thorson
LG -71 Colledge,
62 Bartholomew,
78
Womack,
68 Pestock,
64 Niland
OC-
63 Sendlein,
62 Claxton,
60 O Dowd
RG- 70 Hadnot,
76
Lutui,
65 Louis,
RT - 72
Keith,
73 Bridges, 61 Speredon,
69 Mensik,
State of the
Position -
Same guys as last year with the
only additions Colledge and Batiste and subtractions the aging Faneca and C
Ben Claxton.. That plus Hadnot edging out the overweight Lutui for the
starting RG spot. I guess Russ Grimm is banking on an additional year's
worth of coaching and development trumping any major infusion of talent. If
there's one aspect of this year's team that makes me nervous, it's right
here on the O-line.
|
Defensive Line (8 or
9)
DE
93
C Campbell,
91 Holliday
NT 79 Carter,
98 Eason, 60 Lumpkin, 92 D Williams, xx B Robinson, xx Watson,
DT- 90 Dockett, 96 Talley
69
Navarre, 91? Iwebema,
78 Branch,
State of the
Position
-
Same starting front three but "different" overall, when you factor in some
sort of rotation, Dockett and Campbell are underrated Pro Bowl
bookends. Williams provides a solid beefy presence inside, but arrived in
Camp overweight and is being pushed by the lighter Carter. Vonnie Holliday
is a seasoned, though aging pro who is flying around the field like a
23-year old - possibly the sleeper addition of the entire defense. Eason
also provides a solid gritty quality especially vs. the inside run. Bottom
line, there's more energy and aggressiveness inside than, perhaps there was
last year with Watson, Branch and Robinson mostly plugging up the middle
|
Linebackers (7)
ROLB
55
Porter,
50 Schofield,
59 B Williams
,
59 W Davis,
39 Lemmens
LOLB-
53
Haggans, 94 Acho,
52
Obiozor,
48 Sharpe
ILB 51
Lenon,
52
Bradley, 54 Sturdivant,
95 Togafau,
ILB-
58
D Washington,
56 Walker,
47, K Smith,
57
Gatewood,
State of the
Position
-
Hard to
figure out. We still lack a proven pass rush, but we could be in good shape
if we can get another year out of Porter, Schohawk continues to bounce back
from his knee and/or Bradley (who can play inside or outside) can make an
impact. We've already seen what Bradley can do when he drops back from his
ILB position into zone coverage. He provides even more veteran leadership to
the LB corp (to augment the leadership provided by Lenon and Porter).
Washington looks to be on the verge of doing great things now that he's had
a year under his belt. Haggins remains a steadying and underrated presence
over on the strong outside. Walker was a surprise survivor of the final
cutdown. Acho physically fits the profile of a Woodley or Harrison (which is
probably why we drafted him - as a gift to Ray Horton) but I'm not sure he's
fast enough to play on the outside. He might be better being groomed for the
inside.
|
Defensive Backs (9)
RCB-
31 Marshall,
27 Adams, 32 Lindsay
41
Turner, 38 Bennett,
28
Toler,
43 Dunn,
, 41 T Evans, xx Merkerson
LCB-
20 Jefferson,
21 Peterson,
30 M Green,
22 Butler,
29
Nnabuife,
29 Rodgers-Cromartie,
SS- 24 Wilson,
23 Abdullah, 22
Ware,
33
Irvin, 40 Tillman
FS -
49 Rash Johnson,
37 Considine, FS- 25 Rhodes, 37 LeGree,
32 Campbell,
38 Rich
State of the
Position
-
Fluid. DRC was traded for Kolb. But Jefferson (who has many of the physical
qualities of DRC) seems ready to step in to replace him and do so with more
consistent tackling and more aggressive short-coverage skills. But he's
young. The loss of Toler would normally be fatal, but the addition of
Marshall (who reminds me of a more aggressive McFadden) and the rookie,
Peterson (whom most believe is destined for stardom) and sawed-off
nickel/dime corner Adams puts us in a potentially more solid situation at
corner than we've been in years - but this assumes a big IF - that our two
youngsters (Jefferson and Peterson) live up to their billings. Cards added
Butler and Lindsay after the Final 53 cutdown to bolster depth at corner.
When
healthy, Adrian Wilson is considered the best player (next to maybe Fitz) on
the Cardinal roster. But he hurt his bicep and - although he plans on
forgoeing surgery playing anyway - I'm concerned about his (1) risking
further injury and (2) not playing as well with the injury as,say Abduallah.
I'd have made Rhodes the Cardinals' defensive
MVP off his play last year. Abdullah looked sharp and physically imposing in
preseason Game 4. Johnson should be playing at a higher level for a fairly
high draftee, but is solid enough to generally be trusted as a backup.
|
Special Teams (3)
K-04
Feely
P/H- 09 Zastudil, 05
B Graham
LS-
82 Leach
KR
-
37 Stephens-Howling,
21 Peterson,
12 Roberts, 20 Jefferson,
15
Breaston,
PR -
12
Roberts,
21
Peterson,
20 Jefferson, 30 M Green
15 Breaston,
State of the
Position
-
A bit fluxxy. Feely is back and as good as ever. Leach is a solid long
snapper. Graham was a pooch punt inside the 10-yard line maestro, but the
Cards weren't happy with his inability to long-punt us out of deep crumby
field-position situations and opted to replace him with Zastudil (considered
an excellent punter, but often injured in recent past seasons. We're
guessing that the Cards would like to take some of the heat off LSH (who, in
the absence of Ryan Williams, may have to shoulder more of the running load
with Beanie) and Roberts (who in the absence of Breaston, maybe asked to do
more at WR). Peterson has looked almost eerily good returning punts (as
though he was an 8 year veteran instead of a mere rookie). He presents a
Hester-like home run threat every time he touches the ball, so within the
parameters of safety and caution, don't be surprised if he plays an
increasing role in our return game. |
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