Bills/Cardinals: Keys to a Bills Victory
by Kurupt on Oct 4, 2008 7:30 AM EDT
in Buffalo Bills Opinion
Email
Print
Buffalo Bills (4-0) at Arizona Cardinals (2-2)
Sunday, October 5, 2008 - 4:15 PM EDT
SB Nation's Cardinals coverage: Revenge of the Birds
The 4-0 (how great does that sound?!?) Buffalo Bills head out to the desert to face the Arizona Cardinals in a tough intra-conference matchup. The Bills are looking to move to 5-0 for the first time since 1991 and for just the fourth time in franchise history. Below are my keys to a Bills victory and a perfect record heading into the bye week:
Harass Kurt Warner: Pretty self-explanatory, but do whatever is necessary to get after Warner. Blitz him from any and all angles, run stunts, create pressure up the middle, hit him with a 2x4, etc. Simply put, pressure and harass him, and he will turn the ball over. We cannot allow him to sit back in the pocket because he will pick us apart and hit his talented wideouts. He's as good as it gets when given the time to throw; it's time for us to have a game like the Jets D just had against him last week. To do so, we have to get after him. I like the Aaron Schobel vs Mike Gandy matchup. If there is ever a game for Schobel to look like a Pro Bowler, it's this week against our old turnstile, Gandy.
Live on the Edge: Don't let Warner beat us; instead, force Edgerrin James to crank out the yards. He's nowhere near the explosive runner he used to be and it may be in our defense's best interest to go the nickel route and challenge the Cardinals to beat us by running it. I have no concern about James and the Cards' running game, so it is likely we focus on stopping the Cardinals through the air and take our chances against the Edge.
Take Fitzgerald out of the game: Easier said than done, I'd say. With Anquan Boldin more than likely out of this game, Larry Fitzgerald will be the apple of Kurt Warner's eye. And he could very well destroy our secondary if given the opportunity. Because of that, I would focus heavily on shutting him down, shading a safety (likely Ko Simpson) toward him early and often. With Terrence McGee out, we'll have to provide help to Jabari Greer and the young corners, Leodis McKelvin and Ashton Youboty. I'll take my chances with Steve Breaston and Jerheme Urban rather than letting Fitzgerald run free.
Control the line of scrimmage...offensively: There comes a time when the OL has to step up their play and finally hit their potential. We've been so far from that level the past few weeks, but this is a good week for them to return to form. Darnell Dockett is a very good player for the Cards, but their other starters are nothing to be overly scared of: Gabe Watson, Antonio Smith and Travis LaBoy (sorry Cards fans, don't kill me). They have actually been quite solid this year stopping the run and getting after the QB, so despite their anonymity, they have been effective. The linebackers, led by Karlos Dansby, are pretty solid, so it will take a strong effort from our big nasties to control the game. WIth the way they've played recently, I have a feeling that pride will kick in and they will finally have a big game, instead of a big quarter or two like we've been experiencing.
Show Lee Evans off: Having signed Evans to a brand new, big time contract extension, I think fans around the league would like to see whether Evans is worth that type of money or not. This is the perfect week for Evans to have a big time game to prove to everyone how good he can be. With a semi-hobbled Eric Green, a rather solid, but unspectacular Rod Hood and the young Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie manning the CB spots for Arizona, Evans will have enough opportunities to excel this week. The deep ball was a major concern for the Cardinals D last week, so that looks to be an area Trent Edwards needs to attack this week. Like I say every week, get Lee into it early. I'd love to see him finally have an 8+ catch game.
Dominate Special Teams: This should be a close game which could come down to Special Teams. The Bills should have a significant advantage in all areas of the "third phase", and this is an area to excel in this week. Steve Breaston is a solid punt returner, but overall hasn't had much success returning kicks or punts this year. Dirk Johnson is a mediocre punter who will give McKelvin and Fred Jackson opportunities to return punts, so the blocking needs to remain as strong as it has all season there. As a unit, the Cardinals have been one of the bottom teams in the league this year, while the Bills rank near the top, per usual. This would be a good week for McKelvin to break that big kick return we've all been waiting for.
***
This is a big game for the Bills and a win would leave a great taste in their mouth heading into the bye. It is also another opportunity for the team to show that they are a contender this year and are able to win tough games, including tough games on the road. Go Bills, and let's make it 5-0!
Stay tuned to Buffalo Rumblings and tomorrow's Open Game Thread for the "live chat" during today's big game with the Cardinals! That thread will open approximately an hour before the 4:15 PM EDT kickoff. Until then, GO BILLS!
12 comments
|
1 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Two things n what you mentioned
Let Edge beat us, is the best strategy, because frankly, since he’s been there he has been inept. Plus, even if he does crank out yardage, it wil take alot more time to do so, and will keep us out of a shootout, which is certainly DJ’s style. Keep it close, and then take the game in the second half. By doing this, we might see alot of blitzing as well, if we stay in a nickel package more often.
Secondly, I’d say last week we gave Hardy the chance to make plays and he failed. I am fine with that, as he has to get worked in over the course of the year. But, this week, you are spot on in saying we need to just go with Lee and show this league why he earns more than 98% of the WRs in the league.
The Bills CAN win every game
Couple of things
The Cards have the 9th ranked defense, 16th against the pass and 14th against the rush. Their defense wasn’t responsible for the rout in New Jersey so much as the fact that their offense kept giving the ball to the Jets. Look for the Bills to keep hitting the a gap and to do so for relatively short yardage (3.3 or less ypa).
The Cards have the 5th ranked offense, 4th in passing and 25th in rushing. If the Bills can make Arizona run more than Warner would like then Buffalo should be able to really control the game. That is, of course, if someone hypnotizes Edwards and makes him believe that the start of the game is really the start of the 4th quarter…
I think it’s too early to be hard on Hardy. The first pass thrown his way (pass 3) was poorly thrown and over even his head. The second pass (pass 6) was the one where Hardy wasn’t able to make the adjustment on the ball. It could be that he was looking over the wrong shoulder, ran the wrong route or something else. What is clear is that as he tried to adjust to it his feet and the DBs feet got tangled and Hardy went down. Passes 9 (drop) and 11 (couldn’t outfight the DB for the ball in the endzone) were on Hardy. I know we all wanted him to come out and put up 1000 yards. I suspect that he’ll actually contribute more than just a fade pattern TD reception this week as the Cardinals will be all over Evans.
All good points Kurupt
I would agree that pressure on Warner is the #1 key. The second, IMO, is to establish our running game. I want to see long, time consuming drives that limit the Cards’ opportunities to touch the ball and gives our defense plenty of time to rest. If we do these two things, the rest should take care of itself and the Bills should win. While we need to keep the Defense honest buy taking our shots down the field, we do not want to get pass happy trying to take advantage of a match-up we feel favors the Bills. Establish the run and make them pay once the Def has been set up. We must avoid the 3 and outs that come with getting into a shoot out.
While we need to keep the Defense honest buy taking our shots down the field, we do not want to get pass happy trying to take advantage of a match-up we feel favors the Bills.
COULD NOT agree with this more. Buffalo was throwing deep a lot in St. Louis, and as a result, they weren’t playing their style of offense against the Rams. In fact, the Bills passed 21 times in the first half in St. Louis, as opposed to just 11 rushes. Those numbers flopped to 10 passes and 18 runs in the second half. It made our passing game much more effective, and thus the offense more effective.
by Brian Galliford on Oct 4, 2008 6:26 PM EDT up reply actions
Agree, but if throwing the ball favors the Bills, wouldn’t we want to take advantage of that?? If the passing game is there, I say utilize, but don’t skirt on the run plays.
At some point, I want to see more outside runs, draws and screens. This may be a good week for those, especially out of a shotgun or spread formation. If we have early success throwing, that will surely open up some running lanes out of those passing formations. That’d be nice, for once…
~K
Cards running game.
Well I’m not worried at all about Edge, Hightower does have some potential. I’m not saying that he has anything that Stroud and co. can’t handle, but the Cards run game may not center on Edge.
We need to screen it
We haven’t really seen the bills utilize the screen that much at all since the Jags game and I seem to remember it working well. As big as our O-Line is its always impressed me how well they can move and its always a safe bet to get the ball into the hands of Marshawn/Freddy. Thats one of the big things I would love to see the bills get back to on offense is utilizing the screen more which would also slow down the non-stop blitzing we’ve been seeing
"Where else would you rather be than right here, right now?"
On the other hand we have seen the short out and the roll-out/tight end out
These short, quick passes, I think, are playing to Trent’s strengths, and I’d like to see more of them. We haven’t seen a lot of screens because Trent and the backs haven’t been in synch, and when they have, Trent hasn’t had the touch on them required. You can’t fire a shot to a back who turns around and the ball is on him before he knows where he’s at.
The screen and these short, quick, rhythm passes are going to be the key against the best pass rushing teams and they will come with time.
In my opinion, what you’re seeing in this part of the offensive game plan is a young team that doesn’t have the entire play book mastered yet. If they did, people would be talking about the Bills going to the conference playoff, not just making the playoffs. One step at a time.
This team isn’t that good. Yet. It’s certainly not #5 in the ``power rankings,‘’ whatever they are.
Time for the offense to take a step backwards and recognize just where it is, and where it is not. Cards 35, Bills 17, I’m afraid boys.
by Defensewinsgames on Oct 5, 2008 9:58 AM EDT reply actions
Great! Thanks for the heads up. Now I don’t have to waste my time watching the game. :)
by Brian Galliford on Oct 5, 2008 10:37 AM EDT up reply actions
Screens aren’t that hard to run. Matt Cassel comes in for NE and doesn’t have much of an issue throwing them (downfield is his problem). If the OL chips the DL enough for Trent to have a few seconds to sell the screen, they should have plenty of success with them. It was one time, from my hazy memory, that Trent sent it hot to Marshawn (Seattle game maybe??), so I wouldn’t say he does that all the time….I want to see more quick slants to Evans and Reed, some double moves for Evans to get deep and more Fred Jackson in the passing game…
Jauron will have them ready today. Whether that’ll be enough to outscore AZ, I don’t know, but I don’t expect to lose by three scores unless something goes crazy.
~K
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
