2009 Regular Season Records:

Cardinals: 10-6, NFC West Division Champions

Rams: 1-15, 4th in NFC West

Game time:

Sun., Sept. 12th, 4:15 p.m., ET., Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, MO

Background:

A new chapter in the Cardinals’ story begins this Sunday.  Despite winning back-to-back division titles, achieving 4 playoff victories in two seasons, an making a Super Bowl appearance, the Cardinals find themselves playing a familiar role; the disrespected underdog.  Luckily, it’s a role that’s relished by the Cardinals, something Ken Whisenhunt has skillfully utilized to his team’s advantage.  This year’s Cinderella campaign starts in St. Louis against an opponent the Cardinals have dominated over the past four seasons; the Rams.

A weak week one opponent or not, Arizona suffered a devastating off-season, a point that has been emphasized by every media outlet.  Yes, the Cards lost a number of high-caliber players on both sides of the ball through retirement and some drawn out, long awaited free agent departures.  A large chunk of the 2008 Super Bowl team is gone including Warner, Boldin, Rolle,  and Dansby, a fact that has many analysts gifting the division to the 49ers by default.  Warner, Boldin, and Dansby were great team leaders and the 2010 Cardinals are understandably still searching for their identity without those three.

Like the off-season, the pre-season matched the rocky terrain of the Arizona desert the Cardinals call home.  Ken Whisenhunt found his team right in the middle of a red-hot quarterback controversy that made headlines all over the nation.  Derek Anderson, of the 2007, 10-6 Browns fame, is now the Cardinals starting quarterback.  Matt Leinart, of the Heisman trophy winning, two-time college national championship fame, is a lowly third-stringer for the Houston Texans.  The Cards’ new sensation Max Hall, an undrafted rookie out of BYU is now the second string quarterback, but poised to step in if Anderson falters.  Finally, the Cardinals’ fifth-round selection, John Skelton, is third on the depth chart.

All this quarterback shuffling didn’t happen overnight, though.  Leinart and Anderson traded ineffective performances for the first two weeks of the pre-season.  Along with the quarterbacks, the offense struggled mightily, but the team split the first two games with a victory over the Texans and a loss to the Titans.  After Ken Whisenhunt benched Leinart in favor of Anderson against Chicago, the gears started to lock into place and the offense showed modest improvements, winning the last two pre-season games against Chicago and Washington.  The change in the team is reflected no so much in numbers and stats, but in a change of attitude.  When Leinart was benched and ultimately released, it seemed like the Cardinals breathed a sigh of relieve, as if having ridden themselves of an ill-favored house guest who’d long outstayed his welcome.

As the offense cleared it’s throat during the pre-season, the defense quietly played solid ball.  The first team unit only gave up handful of points.  The leaders on the defensive line, Darnell Dockett and Calais Campbell have each recorded a sack and both look poised for a big 2010 campaign.  Rookie LB Daryl Washington has played his way into a starting role, and veteran Joey Porter doesn’t appear to have lost much (if anything) in the way of intensity and aggression.  Finally, Greg Toler has taken his place opposite Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and has played consistently thus far, recording an interception in week 3 against the Bears.

There are, however, good reasons why the Cardinals are doubted this year.  They lost a lot of talent that made them winners over the last two years.  Derek Anderson’s lone bright spot was in 2007; he’s played terribly since then.  Only two offensive lineman are playing the same position as last year and Brandon Keith has never started an NFL game.  Larry Fitzgerald has missed the last three games of the pre-season with a sprained MCL.  Beanie Wells’ knee is not 100%.  The inside linebackers are questionable with Paris Lenon starting and Daryl Washington making his NFL debut.  An aging Bryan Robinson must hold down the nose tackle position until Dan Williams is ready to step in.  If the Cardinals are going to win their third consecutive division title, they are going to have to overcome these immediate hurdles and whatever obstacles are sure to present themselves along their path this year.  Right now, though, the Cardinals are full of potential and undefeated.  Let’s take a look at some things that will help keep them that way.

Cardinals’ Week 1 Depth Chart:

Offense:

WR1 – *Larry Fitzgerald (MCL sprain, definite), S. Williams, Max Komar

LT – Levi Brown, Jeremy Bridges

LG – Alan Faneca, Rex Hadnot

C – Lyle Sendlein, Ben Claxton, Rex Hadnot

RG – Deuce Lutui, Rex Hadnot

RT – Brandon Keith, Jeremy Bridges

TE – Ben Patrick, Stephen Spach, Jim Dray

WR2 – Steve Breaston, Early Doucet, Andre Roberts

QB – Derek Anderson, Max Hall, John Skelton

RB – T. Hightower, *B. Wells (right knee, probable), J. Wright, L. S.-Howling

FB – Jerome Johnson

Defense:

DE – Calais Campbell, Kenny Iwebema

NT – Bryan Robinson, Gabe Watson, Dan Williams

DT – Darnell Dockett, Alan Branch

ROLB – Joey Porter, Cyril Obiozor

RILB – Paris Lenon, Reggie Walker

LILB – Daryl Washington, Reggie Walker

LOLB – Clark Haggans, Will Davis

RCB – Greg Toler, Trumaine McBride, A.J. Jefferson

LCB – Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Michael Adams, Brandon McDonald

SS – Adrian Wilson, Matt Ware, Hamza Abdullah

FS – Kerry Rhodes, Rashad Johnson

Keys to a Cardinals Victory:

Offense:

• Protect the ball and execute: Derek Anderson and the rest of the ball carriers have to protect the ball; no interceptions and no fumbles.  The Rams, who are coming off their worst year in franchise history, are going to have trouble on both sides of the ball.  They have a very hyped rookie quarterback making his first NFL start and a defense that’s still missing most pieces of the puzzle.  As a result, the Cardinals must make sure they don’t help the Rams by turning the ball over and not executing plays.  Even a poor team can take advantage of mistakes from time to time.

• Attack the Rams’ CBs: Anderson and the Cardinals should have a big day passing.  The Rams have a pitiful set of starting CBs in Ron Bartell and Justin King.  Any one of the talented Cardinals’ receivers (Fitzgerald, Breaston, or Doucet) could easily devour these sub-par defenders in 1-on-1 coverage.  Even a marginal running game combined with an aggressive down field air attack should be more than the Rams defense can handle.  The Cardinals shouldn’t have much trouble moving the ball against the Rams.  If they do, it’s not a good omen for the Cards.

• Neutralize Chris Long: With the losses of DE Leonard Little and DT Adam Carriker, DE Chris Long represents the last real pass rush threat for the Rams.  As a result, the Cardinals should focus on keeping Long away from Anderson.  The Rams just don’t have a credible interior pass rush anymore.  If they manage to stop Long on the edge, the Rams will have to rely solely on blitzing, which will leave an already poor secondary very exposed.

Defense:

• Stop Steven Jackson: It’s really that simple.  The Cards have to make Sam Bradford beat them, which at this point in Bradford’s career and with the Rams supporting cast shouldn’t happen.  Amazingly, Jackson continues to be a top flight running back with one of the worst offenses in the NFL.  Imagine what Steven Jackson would be like on a team with even a mediocre offensive line, let along a good or great line.  That, however, is a fantasy and the Cardinals will be in great shape if they shut down the Rams’ running game.

• Pressure Sam Bradford: With Jackson hopefully neutralized, the Cardinals need to bring the heat on defense.  Defensive coordinator Bill Davis will hopefully blitz Bradford early and often, stressing a broken offensive line and forcing the rookie to make quick decisions, which may turn into bad decisions and points for the Cardinals.  Again, make Bradford beat the Cardinals.

• Intensity from the start: Any fan of the Cardinals knows that this team occasionally comes out flat and without the proper intensity and focus.  This flaw usually manifests itself against lesser opponents and they don’t get much “lesser” than the Rams.  A week 1 upset to a, let’s face it, pushover division foe would be devastating to the Cardinals.  Arizona should head into town focused and ready to snatch up an easy, but all important week 1 road victory.

AccuScore Projection:

Cardinals 63% favorite to the Rams 36% underdog.

Average scores: Cardinals – 23.3, Rams – 18.4

Head to Head Since 2006: Cardinals have a 7-1 record.

• Dec. 27, 2009: ARI 31 @ STL 10
• Nov. 22, 2009: STL 13 @ ARI 21

• Dec. 7, 2008: ARI 34 @ STL 10
• Nov. 2, 2008:  STL 13 @ ARI 34

• Dec. 30, 2007: ARI 48 @ STL 19
• Oct. 7, 2007: STL 31 @ ARI 34

• Dec. 3, 2006: STL 20 @ ARI 34
• Sept. 14, 2006: ARI 14 @ STL 16

St. Louis Rams Key Losses:

• Marc Bulger, QB
• Leonard Little, DE
• Adam Carriker, DT
• Alex Barron, OT

St. Louis Rams Key Returning Personnel:

• Steven Jackson, RB
• James Laurinaitis, LB
• Donnie Avery, WR
• Oshiomogho Atogwe, FS
• Chris Long, DE
• Danny Amendola, WR

St. Louis Rams Key Additions

• Sam Bradford (rookie), QB
• Na’il Diggs, LB
• A.J. Feely, QB
• Chris Hovan, DT
• Fred Robbins, DT
• Bobby Carpenter, LB
• Roger Saffold (rookie), OL
• Marty Gilyard (rookie), WR

Rams vs. Cardinals 2009 Regular Season Rankings:

Rams:

• Passing Yards: 28th (167.9 yards/game)
• Rushing Yards: 20th (111.5 yards/game
• Passing Defense: 25th (235.3 yards allowed/game)
• Rushing Defense: 27th (137.6 yards allowed/game)

Cardinals:

• Passing Yards: 12th (251.0 yards/game)
• Rushing Yards: 28th (93.4 yards/game)
• Passing Defense: 23rd (233.7 yards allowed/game)
• Rushing Defense: 17th (112.8 yards allowed/game)

Rams vs. Cardinals 2009 Season Leaders:

Rams:

• Passing: Marc Bulger – 140/247, 1469 yds, 5 TDs
• Rushing: Steven Jackson – 324 carries, 1416 yds, 4 TDs
• Receiving: Donnie Avery – 47 rec, 589 yds, 5 TDs

Cardinals:

• Passing: Kurt Warner – 339/513, 3753 yds, 26 TDs
• Rushing: Beanie Wells – 176 car, 793 yds, 7 TDs
• Receiving: Larry Fitzgerald – 97 rec, 1092 yds, 13 TDs

Rams 2010 Season Outlook:

The outlook doesn’t look good.  The Rams terrible offensive line is probably going to get worse without any significant help.  Left tackle Alex Barron was traded to the Dallas Cowboys and 2009 draft pick Jason Smith will take his place.  Rodger Saffold, the Rams’ 2010 second-round selection will step in as a starter.  Adam Goldberg, Jason Brown, and Jacob Bell round out a well below average offensive line, which should ensure that the Rams won’t do much this year, besides get Bradford pounded.  Add to that a pedestrian receiving core comprised of Donnie Avery, Danny Amendola, and rookie Marty Gilyard, and you’ve got a recipe for another frustrating season in the cellar of the NFL.  The hopes, once again, fall on the shoulders of Steven Jackson, but not even he can save this woeful offense by himself.  Sam Bradford absolutely looks like the real deal so far, but he’s in for a rough season behind that line.

The defensive side of the ball doesn’t look much better.  The Rams have a non-existent interior pass rush, which will get worse since DT Adam Carriker is gone.  Also, the Rams lost a large chunk of their rush on the edge in Leonard Little, though Chris Long can still put pressure on opposing QBs.  Second-year pro LB James Laurinaitis, had a great rookie season, but there isn’t enough talent around him.  The only bright spots in the Rams secondary are their two safeties Dahl and Atogwe, but they won’t be enough to overcome the deficiency created by their atrocious CBs, Bartell and King.  The Rams seem to be moving in the right direction is some regards, but they are a long way away from contention or even mediocrity.

Week 1 Prediction: Cardinals win 27-13.

Fitzgerald has 11 touchdown catches in his last 11 games against the Rams.

Matt Leinart kisses the Cardinals goodbye, signing a 1-year deal with Houston in the process.

Check out this story posted over at NFL Gridiron Gab.  Leinart has found a new home already.

Quarterback Matt Leinart has found a new home, as reports say that the former Cardinals first-round pick has landed with the Houston Texans.ESPN says that it is a one-year contract, which shows just how little interest the former USC star really had on the open market being available to all 31 teams (minus Arizona of course).

He will take a physical, sign the contract and join the team Monday. Leinart will become the Texans’ third quarterback behind starter Matt Schaub and backup Dan Orlovsky, who will remain the No. 2 at least until Leinart has some command of Houston’s offensive scheme, sources said.

The Texans cut John David Booty, another former USC quarterback, when they trimmed their roster to the mandatory 53 limit on Saturday, leaving Schaub and Orlovsky as the two quarterbacks. Leinart will be working with some of the NFL’s best receiving talent, including All-Pro Andre Johnson.

Matt Leinart's days in Arizona are officially over.

I have to be completely honest.  I never saw this coming.  I had Matt Leinart starting all the way.  As the off-season wore on, however, it became increasingly clear that Leinart was not going to be able to lead this team.  Despite what was becoming plain to see, I still couldn’t admit to myself that Leinart wasn’t panning out.  Not at all because I especially liked Leinart or because I thought he was especially talented.  Maybe, however, it was due to the fact that his pre-season numbers weren’t so bad.  Maybe it was that Derek Anderson didn’t seem like a great alternative.  Maybe I just didn’t want to see the Cardinals embroiled in a quarterback controversy.  Whatever the reason, it seems like moot point now; Leinart’s gone.

Leinart appeared to have become a distraction.  Coach Whisenhunt seems to have picked up on that as well, which seems to be the reason why Leinart was ultimately released.  Whisenhunt admitted that “this process was not about two weeks into camp or two preseason games.  It was a complete body of work over a period of time.”  In short, the Cardinals appeared to have run short on patience with Leinart’s attitude.

So with the attitude problems hopefully gone, I’m anxious to move on and look forward to the coming season,which is closer than ever.  Derek Anderson has looked pretty impressive in the third and fourth week of the pre-season and the team certainly seems to have responded to the switch.  I’m looking forward to the season opener against the Rams.  I’m excited about this team’s chances and I’m looking forward to Derek Anderson hopefully bringing the team its third consecutive division title.

Other Tidbit:

• RB Alfonso Smith and LB Chris Johnson were the last two cuts, which brings the Cardinals roster down to the required 53 players.

The 10th overall pick of the 2006 NFL Draft out of USC, Leinart was told on Saturday that he would not be on the teams final roster, and will have the chance to look around the league for work elsewhere.

Leinart had started 17 games over the last four seasons, completing 57.1% of his 595 pass attempts for 3,893 yards, with 14 touchdowns and 20 interceptions, compiling a 70.8 passer rating. Most of Leinart’s game action occurred during the 2006 and 2007 seasons before giving way to Kurt Warner.

After two seasons as Warner’s back-up, Leinart was expected to ascend to the starting role this season. The Cardinals pursued competition for Leinart, and signed former Browns quarterback Derek Anderson to a two-year, $7.25 million contract in March.

Anderson was named the starter for the team’s third pre-season game, a decision that Leinart griped about, saying he felt he had outplayed his competition this spring and summer.

The Cardinals were shopping Leinart around the league, and gave Leinart permission to do the same, but no team was willing to take on his contract, which was to pay him $2.45 million this season, and $12.86 million in total compensation in 2011.

With Leinart off the roster, undrafted rookie quarterback Max Hall will be the team’s backup quarterback.

Scott was a sixth-round pick by the Eagles, and was traded to the Cardinals earlier this week in exchange for cornerback Jorrick Calvin, who was chosen one spot after the Eagles chose Scott.

ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported on Wednesday that the NFLPA was monitoring a pair of trades between the Washington Redskins and St. Louis Rams that involved the swapping of late-round draft picks in exchange for conditional draft picks.

These players, fifth-round defensive end Hall Davis and sixth-round tight end Dennis Morris, were perceived to have little chance of making their original team, and the union’s concern is that by trading these players before releasing them, the Rams and Redskins were circumventing Article XVII, Section 4(m) of the collective bargaining agreement.

This little-known clause of the CBA is applicable only in an uncapped year, and requires teams to distribute 85% of the rookie pool money allocated to that player, but went unpaid due to his release, among that team’s rookies, drafted or undrafted, at the end of the season based on playing time. By trading these players, instead of releasing them, the teams may be trying to avoid the distribution of $300,000 amongst their rookies at the end of the 2010 season.

The Rams and Redskins were the big blips on the NFLPA’s radar, especially after Davis was dumped after one practice, but Mortensen noted that the NFLPA was paying attention to the Eagles-Cardinals deal, as well.

The NFLPA is expected to address this issue at the end of the season.

Offensive guard Reggie Wells has been traded to the Eagles for an undisclosed draft pick, though it’s presumed to be a 2011 sixth-round pick.

With this move, the second trade with the Eagles in a week, Deuce Lutui will reclaim his starting job after reporting to camp late, weighing nearly 400 lbs.  It’s not exacly clear how much Lutui weighs at this point, but obviously he’s fit enough to take the starting job away from Wells.

Wells concludes his 7-year career with Arizona after being selected by the Cardinals in the 6th round of the 2003 draft.  Once the Cardinals signed offensive linemen Rex Hadnot and Alan Faneca in the off-season, it seemed that at least one lineman wouldn’t make it to the regular season. 

Brown (6-2, 242) was the 63rd overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, and spent his entire rookie season on injured reserve after suffering a gruesome wrist injury that required surgery.

Brown hadn’t done much for the Cardinals this pre-season, but Brown posted 24 quarterback sacks during his four years at UCONN, including 11 as a senior in 2008. Some team will take a closer look at him, provided he’s able to get by the medical check.

The Cardinals have also waived 2009 fifth-round offensive lineman Herman Johnson.

Rookie QB Max Hall celebrates during a fine performance against the Redskins last night.

Max Hall definitely put an exclamation point on his bid to make the roster as he led the Cards to a victory over the Redskins in the final game before they count.

The former four-year starter at BYU finished 7/9 for 126 yards and a rushing TD on a six-yard scramble.  Notable passes included a 12-yard strike to TE Steven Spach on 3rd-and-12 and a 34-yard completion to Max Komar, who also made a strong final statement to make the squad.

Starter Derek Anderson also looked sharp on his lone drive, finishing 2/3 for 47 yards.  Unfortunately, Stephen Williams allowed a pass to go right through his hands that could have been a touchdown for the Cards.  It’s pretty much a done deal that Anderson will start the season as the Cardinals’ quarterback.

Matt Leinart played two series going 3/5 for 14 yards with a sack.  It seems more likely than ever that both Leinart and the Cardinals are trying to figure out how to end the relationship.  Leinart was his usually flip-self during the post-game interview.  “I’m not really worried about [what happens],” Leinart said.  “I’m just going to go home to my son, hang out with him, wake up, and see what happens.  I just want to play and have a chance to play.”  Leinart’s chance to play in Arizona or anywhere else for that matter is dwindling by the day.

The story of the night, however, was definitely Hall.  There’s talk now of Hall actually backing up Anderson.  “I am very comfortable in [backing up the starter],” Hall said.  “I have a long way to go to be successful as a starter in this league but I feel comfortable as a backup, to keep learning and to get an opportunity to play once in a while and prepare myself for the future.”

Hall feels pretty good about the body of work he has put together during his short time in the NFL, as well he should.  “I thought I did everything I could do with my opportunity,” Hall said.  “I hope the coaches liked what they saw. I want to be here so hopefully they keep me around.  I thought they gave me a very fair shot and I think I took advantage.”

Ken Whisenhunt definitely liked what he saw from Hall.  “It was good to see Max make some plays,” Whisenhunt said.  “It was good we were able to play him so much in the preseason so we could see him develop.”  Coach Whisenhunt stated that he hasn’t ruled out carrying four quarterbacks, but that’s something the team will have to figure out by the end of this Saturday (9/4) when the roster will be but down to 53 players.

It seems the Cardinals could go one of four ways with their quarterbacks.  In no particular order, the options seem to be:

1. Trade /cut Leinart, making the depth chart: Anderson, Hall, Skelton
2. Keep Leinart and cut Skelton, making the depth chart: Anderson, Leinart, Hall
3. Keep Leinart and cut Hall, making the depth chart: Anderson, Leinart, Skelton
4. Keep all four, making the depth chart: Anderson, Leinart, Hall, Skelton

Injury Updates:

• RB Beanie Wells injured his right leg while attempted to bounce outside.  Wells was hit by Redskins’ CB Kevin Barnes on the play.  Wells, however, stated that he’s fine.

• CB Michael Adams has a left should sprain, which, according to Ken Whisenhunt, is potentially more serious than Wells’ injury.  Darren Urban reports that Adams claimed the shoulder was already sore and was simply aggravated, but an exam will take place today (8/3).

The 10th overall pick of the 2006 NFL Draft out of USC, Leinart has started 17 games over the last four seasons, completing 57.1% of his 595 pass attempts for 3,893 yards, with 14 touchdowns and 20 interceptions, compiling a 70.8 passer rating.

Most of Leinart’s game action occurred during the 2006 and 2007 seasons before giving way to Kurt Warner. Leinart has apparently lost his training camp competition for the starting job to Derek Anderson, who was signed to a two-year, $7.25 million contract in March.