Post by rainman on Sept 29, 2007 11:14:26 GMT -5
Steelers-Cardinals Match-Ups
Friday, September 28, 2007
By BOB LABRIOLA
Steelers.com
The following are some of the interesting matchups to watch when the Steelers travel to Arizona to face the Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium:
STEELERS NT CASEY HAMPTON VS. CARDINALS C LYLE SENDLEIN: The Cardinals coaching staff is pretty excited about the potential Sendlein has shown so far, and it’s not surprising. An undrafted rookie from Texas, Sendlein (6-4, 300) played in 49 career games in college, including 26 starts at center, and he was a team captain for the Longhorns. The idea was for Sendlein to learn while veteran Al Johnson, who was the Cardinals’ first free agent signing back in March, handled the starting job. But Johnson injured a knee and has not played in a regular season game, and that has forced the team to go with Sendlein. He’ll be going against Casey Hampton, a fellow Longhorns lineman, but Hampton is a veteran who has played in both the Pro Bowl and the Super Bowl. Hampton is the key to the Steelers’ run defense, and even with inside information from assistant head coach Russ Grimm and Chukky Okobi – now Sendlein’s backup – the Cardinals rookie is going to have a very difficult assignment. By Thursday, Johnson had returned to practice, but it wasn’t known how much, if at all, he’d be able to play against the Steelers.
STEELERS QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER VS. CARDINALS SS ADRIAN WILSON: Originally a third-round draft pick by Arizona in 2001, Wilson has developed into the kind of versatile, playmaking safety that is to the NFC what Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed are to the AFC. “I have a great deal of respect for Adrian Wilson as a player,” said Coach Mike Tomlin. “He is one of the most underrated defensive football players in this league. He make plays in the back field, along the line of scrimmage in the deep middle. He is a complete football player as a safety.” Last season Wilson returned an interception 99 yards for a touchdown, and a fumble 99 yards for a touchdown; for his career he has 16 tackles and 14 sacks; and after three games in 2007 he was second on the team in tackles to OLB Karlos Dansby. Roethlisberger comes into this game having done a fine job so far of protecting the football, with only one interception in 77 attempts. The Cardinals defense has yet to record an interception. In that strict sense, the matchup would appear to favor the Steelers at this stage of the season, but Wilson is still too impactful of a player to take for granted.
STEELERS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR DICK LeBEAU VS. CARDINALS QB KURT WARNER: On the day after the Cardinals lost to the Baltimore Ravens, Coach Ken Whisenhunt said Matt Leinart would be his starting quarterback this Sunday. On the day after that, Whisenhunt said he would continue to use the no-huddle that had brought the team back against the Ravens, and he said he’d run it with Kurt Warner instead of Leinart, as he did during that comeback against the Ravens. "I'm hoping as we get more comfortable and get more success there'll be some more things we can do to really utilize the whole package- quick plays, attacking down the field," Warner said. "Right now, it's a pretty base package." The Cardinals decided on the no-huddle as a way to neutralize the Ravens’ defensive pressure, and Warner was picked to be the quarterback because he has more experience. There were times when Warner couldn't tell what defense the Ravens were in because defenders were just milling around the line of scrimmage, so Warner began calling any play just to get the Ravens to line up in something, and then he would change it. LeBeau is usually good at this kind of cat-and-mouse, but the no-huddle is what brought the Cardinals back into the game against the Ravens and gave them a chance to force it into overtime. That shows Warner is pretty good at it, too.
STEELERS LG ALAN FANECA VS. CARDINALS DT DARNELL DOCKETT: “They have some good people up front,” said Tomlin about the Cardinals defense. “(Darnell) Dockett is kind of a guy that makes them go up front. He is their under tackle. Knowing a little but about what they do schematically, when he is disruptive, they have a chance to really get after you. They have some good people. They are well-coached.” The Steelers are averaging 198.3 yards rushing per game and 5.5 yards per attempt, but Tomlin believes the offensive line still can do a better job. “We are running the ball effectively right now,” said Tomlin, “but from assignment standpoint, we can do a better job up front. We pointed that out to the men and challenged them in that area. We have to do a better job of getting the correct hats on the correct hats in the running game. We are playing physical and we are getting after people, but we can be better in that area.” Faneca has gotten off to another good start individually, and he’s playing up to the level that has made him an annual All-Pro selection; Dockett is the best the Cardinals have along the defensive line. It should make for an interesting afternoon.
STEELERS KR ALLEN ROSSUM VS. CARDINALS KR STEVE BREASTON: Rossum recently set an NFL record by becoming the first player to return kickoffs for touchdowns for four different teams; Breaston is the polar opposite in the fact he’s a rookie and has a combined 10 kick returns to his name so far. There has been a buildup to this game that is highly unusual for teams that play once every four years, but the former Steelers currently working for the Cardinals adds some emotion where there otherwise wouldn’t be any. In settings such as these, big plays can have an impact that reverberates long after they’re over, similar to the aftershocks of an earthquake. Special teams touchdowns always initiate huge momentum swings, and in this particular game they might do even more.
Friday, September 28, 2007
By BOB LABRIOLA
Steelers.com
The following are some of the interesting matchups to watch when the Steelers travel to Arizona to face the Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium:
STEELERS NT CASEY HAMPTON VS. CARDINALS C LYLE SENDLEIN: The Cardinals coaching staff is pretty excited about the potential Sendlein has shown so far, and it’s not surprising. An undrafted rookie from Texas, Sendlein (6-4, 300) played in 49 career games in college, including 26 starts at center, and he was a team captain for the Longhorns. The idea was for Sendlein to learn while veteran Al Johnson, who was the Cardinals’ first free agent signing back in March, handled the starting job. But Johnson injured a knee and has not played in a regular season game, and that has forced the team to go with Sendlein. He’ll be going against Casey Hampton, a fellow Longhorns lineman, but Hampton is a veteran who has played in both the Pro Bowl and the Super Bowl. Hampton is the key to the Steelers’ run defense, and even with inside information from assistant head coach Russ Grimm and Chukky Okobi – now Sendlein’s backup – the Cardinals rookie is going to have a very difficult assignment. By Thursday, Johnson had returned to practice, but it wasn’t known how much, if at all, he’d be able to play against the Steelers.
STEELERS QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER VS. CARDINALS SS ADRIAN WILSON: Originally a third-round draft pick by Arizona in 2001, Wilson has developed into the kind of versatile, playmaking safety that is to the NFC what Troy Polamalu and Ed Reed are to the AFC. “I have a great deal of respect for Adrian Wilson as a player,” said Coach Mike Tomlin. “He is one of the most underrated defensive football players in this league. He make plays in the back field, along the line of scrimmage in the deep middle. He is a complete football player as a safety.” Last season Wilson returned an interception 99 yards for a touchdown, and a fumble 99 yards for a touchdown; for his career he has 16 tackles and 14 sacks; and after three games in 2007 he was second on the team in tackles to OLB Karlos Dansby. Roethlisberger comes into this game having done a fine job so far of protecting the football, with only one interception in 77 attempts. The Cardinals defense has yet to record an interception. In that strict sense, the matchup would appear to favor the Steelers at this stage of the season, but Wilson is still too impactful of a player to take for granted.
STEELERS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR DICK LeBEAU VS. CARDINALS QB KURT WARNER: On the day after the Cardinals lost to the Baltimore Ravens, Coach Ken Whisenhunt said Matt Leinart would be his starting quarterback this Sunday. On the day after that, Whisenhunt said he would continue to use the no-huddle that had brought the team back against the Ravens, and he said he’d run it with Kurt Warner instead of Leinart, as he did during that comeback against the Ravens. "I'm hoping as we get more comfortable and get more success there'll be some more things we can do to really utilize the whole package- quick plays, attacking down the field," Warner said. "Right now, it's a pretty base package." The Cardinals decided on the no-huddle as a way to neutralize the Ravens’ defensive pressure, and Warner was picked to be the quarterback because he has more experience. There were times when Warner couldn't tell what defense the Ravens were in because defenders were just milling around the line of scrimmage, so Warner began calling any play just to get the Ravens to line up in something, and then he would change it. LeBeau is usually good at this kind of cat-and-mouse, but the no-huddle is what brought the Cardinals back into the game against the Ravens and gave them a chance to force it into overtime. That shows Warner is pretty good at it, too.
STEELERS LG ALAN FANECA VS. CARDINALS DT DARNELL DOCKETT: “They have some good people up front,” said Tomlin about the Cardinals defense. “(Darnell) Dockett is kind of a guy that makes them go up front. He is their under tackle. Knowing a little but about what they do schematically, when he is disruptive, they have a chance to really get after you. They have some good people. They are well-coached.” The Steelers are averaging 198.3 yards rushing per game and 5.5 yards per attempt, but Tomlin believes the offensive line still can do a better job. “We are running the ball effectively right now,” said Tomlin, “but from assignment standpoint, we can do a better job up front. We pointed that out to the men and challenged them in that area. We have to do a better job of getting the correct hats on the correct hats in the running game. We are playing physical and we are getting after people, but we can be better in that area.” Faneca has gotten off to another good start individually, and he’s playing up to the level that has made him an annual All-Pro selection; Dockett is the best the Cardinals have along the defensive line. It should make for an interesting afternoon.
STEELERS KR ALLEN ROSSUM VS. CARDINALS KR STEVE BREASTON: Rossum recently set an NFL record by becoming the first player to return kickoffs for touchdowns for four different teams; Breaston is the polar opposite in the fact he’s a rookie and has a combined 10 kick returns to his name so far. There has been a buildup to this game that is highly unusual for teams that play once every four years, but the former Steelers currently working for the Cardinals adds some emotion where there otherwise wouldn’t be any. In settings such as these, big plays can have an impact that reverberates long after they’re over, similar to the aftershocks of an earthquake. Special teams touchdowns always initiate huge momentum swings, and in this particular game they might do even more.
