Hey ROTB,

I have one pair of tickets that became available. The good news is that my seats were relocated, still home side, closer to the 20 yard line, and they're on the aisle now.

Seats: Section 105, Row 11, Seats 1-2 (aisle).

Parking: Green or Orange

Plus: 10% discount on Merchandise at the stadium.

Cost: $245 total. The price went up $25 per seat in the new section, so I took Drullin's advice and cancelled the Red Parking pass to help reduce the cost of the tickets.

If you're interested please contact me by email (fieldsrt@gmail.com) or reply to the post and I'll get back with you ASAP.

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I was just looking at ESPN and saw that Leinart has signed with the Raiders to back up Carson Palmer and help mentor Terrelle Pryor. Looking at Matt's career in the NFL is incredible. He and Vince Young were the Andrew Luck and RGIII (in that they were the top two QBs in their draft) from that draft class who were both "can't miss prospects". Looking at Vince Young signing to back up Bills QB Fitzpatrick, and Leinart backing up former USC teammate Palmer just shows the business of the NFL and how quickly you can fall if you don't capitalize on your moments in the spotlight.

Looking at Leinart during his time at the Texans, I thought he'd found the offensive style and team he would need to finally resurrect his name. But due to injury he's now going to be another career backup with the term "draft bust" tossed around from time to time.

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The days have been ticking by, we have seen every possibility, we have listened to every talking head, and now we wait to see how the weeks of preparation and big boards turn out Thursday night. We've heard strong talk from the Arizona Cardinals front office, stating that they will not be locked into an offensive lineman in the first round just for the sake of addressing a need, and we have heard about the willingness to pick up a special player when they are available at your pick, such as Ryan Williams. The real first round is always wild and different than anyone can ever truly predict, but based on certain team needs and draft day impulses I think we've got something that will more closely resemble this years draft than you've seen on a lot of other sites. Same rules apply: first round only and trades are permitted. With that in mind, here is the final Revenge of the Birds mock draft for 2012.

The first pick of the 2012 NFL Draft is..

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Hey ROTB,

Now that the season schedule has been announced I wanted to put out my annual shameless plug to be a part of my ticket share. I live in San Diego and only go to around 3-4 games per year, so I like to provide the tickets to family, friends, and our great community here at pretty much cost. (see post for breakdown)

If you are interested in any games please shoot me an email or post below and I'll get back in touch with you. I've explained the price breakdown a few times and have sold to a few guys on ROTB a few times and all has gone well.

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Everyone has their version of the 2012 Mock Draft running around the internet, and it's fun to try to pick where players are going to go, but without free agency, franchise tags being put in place, and the combine we're left to speculate. We read Mel Kiper's big board and look at Scouts Inc.'s top 32, but no matter what there is always surprises when it comes to Draft Day. For me it's always the incredible trades, when a team see's their perfect pick just about to slip away. In this, the sixth installment of the Revenge of the Bird's 2012 Mock Draft, there will be trades, and of course there will be controversy. Now on with the Linsanity!

The first pick of the 2012 NFL Draft is...

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Hey ROTB,

I thought this article was an interesting take on the possible affects of the concussion lawsuits that are currently taking place and how the eventual awards could be the unraveling of the NFL in our lifetime.

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The Super Bowl is behind us, the 2011 season is finally over and all 32 teams are preparing for next year's run. The Giants win created a special place for themselves in history, but most important for our intentions the win solidified the final two remaining draft positions. Who will Coach Belicheck find as a diamond in the rough at 31? Who will Coach Coughlin (or his successor?) select with the prestigious 32nd pick (it's the only time in history that it's a good thing you're picking last, it's because you're the defending champions). In this, the fourth installment of Revenge of the Bird's 2012 Mock Draft, the same rules will be in effect as the previous three mock drafts: No trading positions and first round picks will be mocked. Without further ado.

The first pick of the 2012 NFL Draft is...

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While around 70% of the ROTB community is probably in favor of the return of Todd Haley, his return to Arizona seems less likely than his taking an OC position with another team. As I read articles and listen to sports talk radio from around the league I get the feeling that Haley will take an OC position that is as prestigious as being a HC almost anywhere else, or at the least he'll take an OC job and not stoop all the way down to a position coach.

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The 2012 NFL Draft is still a few months away but the staff at Revenge of the Birds is ready to start breaking down all of the different draft possibilities and how they'll affect the 2012 Cardinals organization. While four teams are still hoping for Super Bowl berths, 28 are working their draft boards, scouting, and evaluating the roster to identify which free agents are coming back and which need to be signed to fill in gaps in the team. The rules to the mock draft will be simple, we're going straight through all teams that are currently locked into their draft positions, no epic trades to move up or down. We'll rotate staff members each week to give a different view of the draft and we'll listen to your comments and make changes accordingly. Without further delay, let's draft!

The first pick in the 2012 draft...

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In overtime the Arizona Cardinals seem to shine in the 2011-12 season. It means something when a coach decides to kneel the ball with 30 seconds left and take his chances in the extra period of play. That something is the play of his team, specifically that of his Quarterback. John Skelton usually gets hot in the 4th Quarter of play and his hot streak continues into the extra period. In week 17 Larry Fitzgerald had hot hands and was performing circus catches in the second half making John Skelton look like a professional, the Seattle defenders look like rookies, and the Cardinals Front Office look like genius' for signing Fitz' contract extension during the season that at many times looks like a bargain price! The play of the game could go to any of Larry's incredible catches, but the one handed grab at 8:36 in overtime on 2nd and 9 has to be the play of the game.

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Highs and lows, highs and lows. We've experienced more highs and lows in each weekly Cardinal game than a kid on ride at Six Flags! The bonehead plays this week go to the three and out at 2:17 left in the 4th Quarter. The play calling was terrible, pass-run-pass, and the running plays were so clearly drawn out it seemed like it was a replay "TE shift to the right side, then WR shift to right side, overload right with TE in motion". It worked the first two times, but on the third, fourth, and fifth times it resulted in little to no yardage.

From a 1st and 15 with that much time left I expected a run, quick pass slant, and then have the option of a play action for a big pass if needed, or bring in Smith or Taylor for the 3rd down back to get those last remaining yards. But instead, the Cardinals were only able to run 31 seconds off of the clock and were forced to punt the ball back to Seattle to start at the Seattle 39 yard line. The Cardinals Offense put the pressure on the Defense to once again save the team from a loss due to an inconsistent offense. Lucky for us all, the Defense answered the call and allowed the game to go to OT. The rest is history from there.

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At the beginning of the fourth quarter the Cincinnati Bengals held the lead at 23-0. The Arizona Cardinals had been unable to do anything in the passing game, except turn the ball over to the Bengals. The Cardinals running game was non-existent with Beanie Wells showing power but lacking speed due to his injured knee, and OC Miller's use of LaRad Stephens-Howling and Chester Taylor on third downs turned into check downs that were always two or three yards shy of the first and lead the team to punt six of their nine possessions. The other three possessions ended with John Skelton throwing interceptions. All signs were pointing to a blow out loss, in addition to the end of any playoff ambitions in 2011. The announcers continued to hold onto hope that John Skelton would turn on his fourth quarter magic and somehow lead the team back from a miserable afternoon which included Bengal's WR Jerome Simpson making a leap over Cardinals LB Daryl Washington that continues to air on ESPN and NFL network and will probably be used well into next year. At 14:17 left in the 4th Quarter the Arizona Cardinals received the ball and lead to the beginning of the comeback...

More after the jump!

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Three quarters of Long John "Bonehead" Skelton, and one quarter of quarterback play at an NFL level. One sentence pretty much sums up the bonehead play of our journeyman quarterback in week 16. It's incredible to watch Skelton week to week, because you never know when he's going to turn on his NFL quarterback skills.

It seems like it shows up in the 4th quarter for some unknown reason as shown in his multiple wins this season, the biggest this year being against the 2011 NFC West division champion San Francisco 49ers. The 49ers defense is elite and tops in the NFL, and Skelton was able to throw enough to get the job done. But against a good defense in Cincinnati, not as good as the 49er defense, Skelton was his own worst enemy.

Skelton suffered from two constant mistakes in week 16, he was forcing throws rather than taking what the defense gave him, and his throws were consistently too high. The high passes are the reason the top man in the bracket coverage the Bengals were using on Larry Fitzgerald were able to basically catch the interception as if the passes were intended for them. The INT to Bengals CB Nate Clements was absolutely pitiful as he was standing right in front of Skelton and caught the pass as if he was Skelton's hot receiver on a check down. The Week 16 Bonehead play goes to QB John Skelton. Let's hope he can play three additional quarters like he plays the 4th from now on.

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In Week 15 the Arizona Cardinals continued their unique winning style, but most important they continued a four game win streak. Finding just one play to call the play of the game differs from person to person and can depend on your favorite player, side of the ball, position, or anything else that makes you say "that was it, we'd have lost if not for that". This week there are a few plays that stand out as candidates; O'Brien Schofield's back-to-back sacks and forced fumble to set up the game tying points, Patrick Peterson's incredible punt return in overtime, or the following play when Larry Fitzgerald made the 32 yard catch and run to set up the game winning score. I've read an article this week that specifically said the PP21 run back aligned the stars for the Arizona Cardinals and put the focus needed into the team to finish the game. I like that line of thinking, but what about the argument for Schofield's sacks leading to the points on the board to get to overtime? What about Fitz nearly running the deep pass in for a touchdown in OT? His catch and run essentially sealed the win by getting Jay Feely into chip shot range.

What will be the play of the game this week? Let's discuss after the junp!

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I don't want to steal the focus of this article from what it is for, selecting and debating the bonehead play that took place during the game and highlighting what went wrong or who messed up. But this week I do want to put a little bit of emphasis on how bad the referee's were during this game. The biggest bonehead call was in the 4th Quarter when the Ref's called the fumbled ball dead after O'Brien Schofield's second sack (back-to-back). The ball should have remained live as it rolled on the ground at the five yard line and was recovered by Calias Campbell. If it would have remained live CC93 would have returned the ball for a touchdown, which would also have been the game winning points.

There are a lot of games in which we all feel that the ref's miss something big, and I know the argument that "they could throw a flag on every play", but in this week 15 game I saw multiple blatant holds from the Cleveland Offensive Lineman and only one was called against Cleveland throughout the game. There were two very big Pass Interference calls that were missed against Cleveland where a Cleveland defender made multiple tugs at Early Doucet's jersey and had his left arm wrapped around Doucet way down the field. When the ball was thrown to Doucet the defender was able to knock the ball away, no flag thrown and Arizona had to punt, again. I don't know what these ref's were watching out there.Though inept at their jobs, at least it was pretty consistent because they also made the wrong call on a big Arizona PI play. The ref was standing on the sideline staring at Adrian Wilson when he hit WR Little in the back and took him out of the game for a few plays, but didn't throw the flag. That was a beautiful hit, but honestly should have been called for PI because Wilson was making contact with the receiver (more like laying the wood) before the ball was in his hands.

More after the jump!

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The Arizona Cardinals are challenging the status quo. Head Coach Ken Whisenhunt came to Arizona in 2007 and immediately began work to change the losing mentality that has long made the Cardinals a speed bump to the rest of the NFL and a punchline for members of the sports media. The ride from 2007 has yielded an 8-8 season, two division championships, two runs in the playoffs, one NFC championship, and one unforgettable trip to the Super Bowl. Though during Whisenhunt's tenure as Head Coach there have been stumbles and mishaps, primarily focused around the Quarterback position and a defense that has never had an identity. There has been a feeling that the team wasn't molded to exactly what Whisenhunt had in mind for this team, so he has provided a steady message of "stay the course" which has often caused frustration to the Cardinals fan base. After an incredible 5-1 record in the last six weeks it seems Whisenhunt has been right all along.

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Fighting for redemption one play at a time. Skelton is known for being able to shake bad performances, even when they happened just one play prior. After a terrible performance in San Francisco back up Quarterback John Skelton was given the opportunity to earn redemption in front of the home crowd in Arizona when he entered the game after starter Kevin Kolb left due to injury. Skelton started out shaky and had many wondering if they would see a repeat performance from the journeyman QB but in a different stadium and different uniforms. The outcome though was completely different, the Cardinals won and Skelton rallied and put together his best game as a passer in regards to completion percentage 67.9 and ended the game with a passer rating of 129.7. Though his two interceptions and one fumble were costly mistakes, with one interceptions taking place just outside of the redzone during a 3rd quarter push while the Cardinals trailed 14-19 to the 49ers.

The play breakdown after the jump!

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The Cardinals won 19-13 in Overtime. But even when there is a win, there is always something that needs to improve with every team. The Cardinals Defense is playing at a high level gaining confidence each week in Ray Horton's defense. But they have room for improvement, particularly in the secondary due to both corners A.J. Jefferson and Patrick Peterson being young players who are growing each week but still have not been able to create many turnovers. CB Richard Marshall, who is one of my favored CBs on the team in recent history, has let multiple interceptions slide out from his fingers. Both Jefferson and Peterson have created a few turnovers and when they have they were very meaningful in either scoring points or sealing the game, but I'd like to see more. With that said, those are areas for improvement, not bonehead plays.

The bonehead play can only go to "first half Kevin Kolb", "second half Kevin Kolb's" less accurate and less composed evil twin. For the full breakdown, hit the jump!

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This week, like many before it, I can not award the Bonehead Play to a single play such as an interception or a fumble. It will have to go to a body of work presented by one player, most of you already know who it is. The Week 11 Bonehead Play(er) is simply John Skelton.

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The story that everyone was talking about before the new Quarterback controversy was that the Arizona Cardinals were close to having a winning record rather than losing six straight. Four of those losses were from a combined 11 points (Redskins -1pts, Seahawks - 3pts, Giants -4pts, Ravens-3pts). With a record of 3-6 due to narrow point margin losses and an offense that has stalled regularly it goes without saying that scoring opportunities need to be capitalized on. If the offense can only get within kicking distance then the team had better make sure that they get three points on the board because red zone opportunities have not been very frequent. In a game of inches, one point is all the difference between champions and losers, and three points is the difference between a steady job in the NFL and having to find the next your job somewhere else.

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There has been lots of open speculation that Peyton Hillis will not be returning to the Cleveland Browns next year. Talks have been made that he'll land in Dallas, or maybe end up as the smash back in a tandem like Brandon Jacob's role is with the Giants. With the NFL's transition to less featured backs and more two headed monsters for rushing attacks I could see Hillis ending up in San Francisco, Seattle, Miami, Tennessee, or what I would prefer Arizona. I know the Cardinals have Beanie Wells, Ryan Williams, Chester Taylor, and THE LSH. But I have to admit I'm worried about Williams return next year. I know (hope) he's going to be great, but I don't know if he'll be able to bring his game at the same level of intensity because they say it takes a full year to return from the serious injury that he suffered. Because of that I'd like to see the Cardinals backfield be filled with a three headed monster of Wells, Hillis, Williams, and our Scat back kick returner LSH. 

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If you watched the Week 9 St. Louis Rams at the Arizona Cardinals game then you know that there is a long list of bonehead plays that showed up on Sunday. In what was being called a "battle of the field goals" due to a lack of touchdowns from the two second year QB's it was shocking to Cardinals fans everywhere to watch two points go up on the board. In consecutive home games the Arizona Cardinals have given up a safety. But when it happened again one series later, the Cardinals had picked up the reins of a stat last seen in 1999, two safeties were allowed in back to back series! Congratulations to John Skelton and the O-Line, you've earned the Week 9 Bonehead Play.

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It would be simple to call the second half of the week 8 game against the Baltimore Ravens the bonehead play, but that's not the point of the article. The point of the article is to highlight the few bonehead plays that could have been adjusted and helped secure a win. I'm going to call out two bonehead plays this week.

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In week 8 the Arizona Cardinals will face two opponents that they have struggled with in the past; the Baltimore Ravens and playing on the road. Worse still is that the road game is in the Eastern timezone! We know of the struggles that the Cardinals have faced when on the road, notably that they haven't won a road game since the 2010 season opener in St. Louis. So history would say that there is little too look forward to this week, except for more pain. I disagree wholeheartedly. This week is filled with opportunities to see what we've got on the defense. The Ravens showed their weaknesses last week during a disappointing loss on Monday Night Football, and Horton and his defense are eager to prove they can pick up where the Jaguars left off. 

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Hey ROTB,

My cousin won the Albertson's Kick Off Kid contest, so her daughter is going to be the kid to pick up the tee after the opening kick of the Rams game. We're also going to get four side line passes for kickoff, and four tickets somewhere in the stadium.

So I have my tickets and Red parking pass available. They're section 103, row 19, seats 16-17. If anyone is interested in the tickets, let me know. I usually charge $225 for the two tickets and the parking pass, but since I already paid for these tickets, and will still be going to the game, if anyone can give me $140 for them, or best offer let me know.

The good news is, there is a chance that the Cardinals could win this one! And it's a division rival, so there should be a little bit of rivalry in the basement of the NFC West.

The Arizona Cardinals are now 1-4. The Minnesota Vikings scored 28 points in the first quarter of the game, 21 of those points can be credited to the offense not getting started due to a lack of protection (more on that later), and seven of those points are credited to the defense not being able to stop an offense that is centered around one player, Adrian Peterson.  I know there will be an argument that 21 points, or all 28, should be credited to the defense and the inability to stop AP. But I blame the offense for giving very short fields and turning over the ball being the reason the defense was in those position. So what was the breakdown? Why did this happen? Let's be rational and identify what went wrong.

The loss in Minnesota was caused by a continuation of three things: first, a lack of pass rush, second, a complete lack of protection against an elite four man defensive front and third, but most important, the coaches not game planning for elite players on both sides of the ball, namely Peterson and Allen.

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