With the recent news that Peyton Manning has undergone neck surgery for the 2nd time, and the fact that he is currently without a contract, Peter King is wondering if the Colts are second guessing whether or not they should sign him for another 5 years.  Is it possible that Peyton Manning will hit the free agent market whenever that should happen?

Continue reading this post »

I know we've been chatting about which NCAA QB we would want the Cardinals to draft next spring for several weeks now.  It seems we have some differing opinions, which I think is fantastic.  Isn't this site designed to be an outlet for fans to express there opinion with other fans?  Sometimes we're civil, sometimes the arguments get fierce, but in the end, we all love the Cardinals, and all generally respect eachother. 

Having said that, Has anyone considered the possibility that Andrew Luck--the predominant favorite among Cardinals fans as the franchise savior--stays in school?  He's only a redshirt sophomore.  Those Stanford guys are SERIOUS about their education.  If there was ever a D1 school that really puts academics first it's probably Stanford.  Knowing that he is a top pick will probably help his decision, but he wouldn't be the first to stay in school after beign considered a top 5 pick (see Leinart, Matt circa 2004).  So if Luck decides to stay in school, are kind of screwed or do we target other positions in the first round and hope we can get a 2nd round steal?  Personally, I would love to see someone like Tyrod Taylor come to the Cards in the 2nd round.  I've seen him play in person, and he is much better than you'd think. 

So here's my question for debate:

Other than Jake Locker (Skii I know you have a mancrush on him, and I'm OK with that-I have the same for Kellen Moore) what round and which QBs do we target if Luck stays in school?  What positions and players should we target in the first round if we're not going for Luck?

I am proud to announce that I will be travelling from Allentown, PA to Glendale, AZ for the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Halloween.  This will be the 3rd time I've been fortunate enough to attend a Cardinals home game since UofP stadium opened, and I've seen some doozies:

1st game in 2007 was against the Steelers.  Any Cardinals fan remembers that was the game Breaston returned a punt for 70 couple yards in the 4th quarter that pretty much sealed the game.  I STILL get goosebumps and chills when I watch the video of that game and hear how loud the crowd got during that return.

2nd game in 2009 was against the Eagles in the NFC Championship, and any Cardinals fan remembers how that one turned out!  Easily one of the best sporting events I've ever had the priviledge of attending.

2 outstanding games,and  I'm wondering what will be in store against the Bucs on Halloween!  Any fellow ROTBers going to that game?  I know my brother usually tailgates in the RV lot, so that's where I always ended up, but I would sure love to meet some of my fellow ROTBers.

Now I need your help.  Please answer my poll and help me decide which jersey I should wear:

I am incredibly bored at work, and spent some time reading through some posts on The Falcoholic, and I am quite surprised by what I am reading.  Most of the Falcons commenters are looking right past the Cardinals.  After last week's showing against the Steelers, the Falcon's fans are looking at our game as a guaranteed win, and quite a few are expecting a blow out. 

I know travelling to the East Coast has had a negative effect on our team in the past, but that is in the past.  This year's team lost some key players, but have retained a lot of leadership from the only NFC team to win at least 1 playoff game in each of the last two seasons, and the same team who has only been able to be knocked out of the playoffs by the Super Bowl Champ two years in a row.  I look at the following as reasons why our beloved Cardinals should win:

1.  Being the underdog.  Did you know the Falcons are favored by 7 points?!?!?  Ours is a team that loves to play with a chip on it's shoulder, and with all the experts (not surprisingly) picking the Falcons, the oddsmakers picking the Falcons, the Cardinals are going to come out fired up.

2.  An entire week of work between Fitz and DA.  None of us are ever going to say DA is the 2nd coming of KW, but with more reps, these two should be able to connect better than the 3 for 15 they went last week, and you know Fitz is going to show why he is the best in the game at some point this season.  Atlanta has some tiny DBs, and taht will work to our advantage.

3.  81 plays on defense.  Last week our defense was on the field for 81 snaps, partly because we lost 4 fumbles, and had to play against three 2 minute drills (1st half, and two 2nd half).  This tires out a defense, and we STILL only gave up 13 points. 

4.  4 fumbles.  If we didn't lose 4 fumbles last week, we win going away.  No one will ever convince me otherwise.  I would be completely shocked if we fumble like that after a week like we just had.

5.  Our defense is nasty.  Nuff said on this one.  I dare "Matty Ice" to try and throw at Dr. C.  He's scared and won't do it.  If he does, expect the Doc to have a pick 6.  And don't even get me started on how beastly A-Dubb, 9-0, D-Wash, and company are. 

6.  Coach Whiz.  We have one of the best coaches in the league on our sideline.  I am confident we will have an aggressive game plan and come out prepared to play and win.

All in all, I am looking forward to seeing the Falcons fans and the so called experts eat their words.

My prediction: A hard fought game, a Cardinals victory, and our team coming home to open the 2010 home season with a 2-0 record.

GO CARDINALS! 

I know we have lost a couple of players this season, and I know some of our fellow fans are upset about it and think we are reverting into the "same old Cardinals", but let's all take a deep breath and step back from the ledge.  We all loved Q, but as many of you have already stated, this trade was absolutely expected.  He was a great player for our Cardinals, but it was time to part ways, and I believe Early and Steve B can fill that spot admirably.  Besides, we still have the best WR in the game.

Continue reading this post »

Your Saint's were clearly too much for my Cardinals to handle.  I wish it would have been a little closer, but we can't all get what we want.... 

I'm still proud to be a Cardinals fan, and always will be, but we were clearly outmatched today.  I will be cheering for your team to win the Super Bowl, and I'm sure I'm not the only Cardinals fan who feels the same.   Kick some Viking or Cowboy ass next week, and bring home the Lombardi trophy in a few weeks.  Next time we play, my team won't make it so easy on you!

I saw this over at Canal Street Chronicles, and I liked it, so I thought ROTB would probably enjoy it as well.  Here's how it works:

Put your final score prediction in the Subject box of your comment, and put 3 random predictions about the game in the message area.  Mine after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

 Here we are, another round of the playoffs gone, and one step closer to a 2nd straight Super Bowl appearance.  Tomorrow's game is looking to be another great one, as the Cardinals matchup with the NFC's top seeded team in New Orleans.  I had some extra time on my hands, so I fired up the old PS3, put in Madden 2010, and put the settings at All-Madden, 8 minute quarters with a 15 second runoff, and away we went to see what a video game thinks will happen tomorrow.

1st Q:

Saints win the toss and elect to receive.  They open the ball with 2 straight PT runs that are both stuffed.  On 3rd and long, Brees hits D Thomas for the 1st.  2 more PT stops lead to a 2nd 3rd and long, and again, Brees completes for the 1st down.  On the next play, Brees is hit as he throws, and Dockett intercepts the ball.

The Cardinals open up with 2 straight Hightower runs into the line, before Warner completes to Fitz, but falls short of the 1st, forcing a punt. 

The Saints are driving with a balance of PT runs and Brees passes, and move the ball across midfield.  PT is having a hard time finding a lot of room to run, and as the quarter comes to a close, the Saints are facing 3rd and 10 at the Cardinals 36.

Continue reading this post »

Wow, the playoffs are finally here!  I know how excited I am for the game tomorrow.  I would like to say I will be in the stands tomorrow, but I wasn't able to fly out from PA, so I will be cheering from home.  To all of you Cardinal faithfuls going to the game, have a great time, get the crowd going, and come away from the game without a voice. 

Looking forward to a great game tomorrow, and I hope a Cardinals victory.  To start the playoff weekend, I thought I'd run another Saturday Sim on Madden 2010.  As usual, this is all for fun, but it is (IMHO) interesting to see how a computer simulated video game views this matchup.  We set the game on 8 minute quarters, All-Madden level, with a 15 second runoff, and away we go:

Continue reading this post »

Seeing as how the Cardinals have an opportunity to earn a 1st round playoff bye with a win coupled with Vikings and Eagles losses, I was wondering how the rest of you feel about it?  I don't know if a 1st round bye is always a good thing...

Continue reading this post »

Hope everyone had a good holiday season so far, I was travelling the past 2 weeks so I was unable to do a Saturday Sim.  I might be the only one on ROTB who enjoys this, so after a 2 week hiatus, I fired up Madden 2010, set the skill level to All-Madden, put it on 8 minute Quarters with a 15 second run-off and let it go. 

I have to say, I wasn't expecting this outcome, and I don't think the rest of you will like it either.  The good thing is, none of the Saturday Sims I have done have even remotely resembled the game, so maybe that is a good sign after all.  After the jump, the results.

Continue reading this post »

We're back with another edition of the Saturday Sim, this time simulating the Cards going to San Francisco for Monday Night Football.  I set Madden to All-Madden level, put the quarter length on 8 minutes with a 15 second runoff, and let her rip. 

Now, obviously these simulations are rarely even remotely close to what happens in the actual game, but they're fun none the less.  This game, in my opinion, could play out very much like this one.  The way the Cardinals are playing right now, and I could see it happening.  Regardless, you'll all like the outcome, and if the actual game even remotely resembles this simulation, we'll be celebrating a 2nd straight NFC West title come Monday night!  After the jump, the Sim results:

Continue reading this post »

I had some free time last night so I went ahead and did a Madden Simulation of Sunday's game between the Vikings and Cardinals.  The results were interesting, a little disappointing, but if the real game plays out like the sim, it will be a heck of a game to watch.  Like Andrew does, I put Madden 10 on All-Madden level, with 8 minute quarters and a 15 second run-off.  Here's what happened:

Continue reading this post »

I think at this point, we can (almost) all agree that Kurt Warner is the best QB we have on our roster.  With his probable concussion from the Rams game, does it make sense for him to play against the Titans on Sunday?

Here's the way I am looking at it:  With a week's worth of practicing with the 1st team, Leinart would probably be a servicable QB for the game, and it would allow Warner to get completely healthy for the stretch run and playoffs. 

Let's face it, the division is almost a certainty at this point.  Does it make more sense to get Warner completely healthy and let Leinart get some burn, or do we risk further injury by bringing him back to soon?

On another note, can we beat the Titans with Leinart at the helm?  What do you guys think?