Wild Card Weekend: Cardinals vs. Rams

[BEASToftheEAST4]

This was the most dominating, well rounded game we played all year long. Was awesome to watch and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Let’s keep that momentum going into next week against a hobbled Bucs team that we match up favorably against. 
 

Side note: I know the defense played well as a whole in general but I was happy with what I saw from Burgess. Makes me wonder even more why he hasn’t been able to get on the field. I’ll take him over Nick Scott

[LeotheLion]

1 hour ago, BStanRamFan said:

I felt really good about Sony Michel in our offense. Loved the physicality he brought and churned out yards in the run game, but WOW. Watching Akers reminds me how good he is. The speed to hit the gap and ability to take it to the house is in insane. Plus he can push the pile forward. Can't believe what we're seeing from him 5 months removed from an Achilles. If he plays like that all postseason it takes alot of pressure off Stafford/McVay to be pass heavy and defenses will have to bring in an extra defender to account for Akers. This is potentially BIG if he's really healthy.

 

Defense played lights out as we usually do against ARI. Murray looked unprepared and disinterested which I was shocked about. We got really lucky how the matchups played out, let's make the most of it.

I've always thought Murray lacked a competitive fire. Last night in his first playoff game sort of confirmed that. If there was a gambling line that he switches to baseball I'd probably throw a taste on that.

[REVELATI0N]

 

[Flounch]

6 hours ago, BStanRamFan said:

I felt really good about Sony Michel in our offense. Loved the physicality he brought and churned out yards in the run game, but WOW. Watching Akers reminds me how good he is. The speed to hit the gap and ability to take it to the house is in insane. Plus he can push the pile forward. Can't believe what we're seeing from him 5 months removed from an Achilles. If he plays like that all postseason it takes alot of pressure off Stafford/McVay to be pass heavy and defenses will have to bring in an extra defender to account for Akers. This is potentially BIG if he's really healthy.

 

Defense played lights out as we usually do against ARI. Murray looked unprepared and disinterested which I was shocked about. We got really lucky how the matchups played out, let's make the most of it.

Yeah i mean we saw the difference between Akers and Michel yesterday. On the play where Michel gained 3/4 yards, Akers could run for more yards and can make people miss tackle. He's more dynamic than Michel and it feels good to have him back. 

What i didn't like yesterday was the QB sneak from Stafford....i mean he's not good at it. His body is too high when he sneak, and when i see this formation it makes me sweat.

Also, the timeout we waste....i think it's the first time in a year that i saw these timeout early into the game. It reminds me of when Goff was there and we took early timeout, we have to fix this. 

And the empty back set in each 3rd down...where is the surprise ? I mean yesterday it was fine but next week the defense will know how to defend this, it s a little bit too predictable. 

[Dr LBC]

4 hours ago, Flounch said:

Yeah i mean we saw the difference between Akers and Michel yesterday. On the play where Michel gained 3/4 yards, Akers could run for more yards and can make people miss tackle. He's more dynamic than Michel and it feels good to have him back. 

What i didn't like yesterday was the QB sneak from Stafford....i mean he's not good at it. His body is too high when he sneak, and when i see this formation it makes me sweat.

Also, the timeout we waste....i think it's the first time in a year that i saw these timeout early into the game. It reminds me of when Goff was there and we took early timeout, we have to fix this. 

And the empty back set in each 3rd down...where is the surprise ? I mean yesterday it was fine but next week the defense will know how to defend this, it s a little bit too predictable. 

The way that Stafford runs the QB sneak you can tell he's been running that play behind big, beefy centers his entire competitive career before coming here.  And the thing is, Allen is definitely not big and beefy.  Allen did actually get the play where it needed to be (particularly the second sneak that got in for the TD, where it seemed like Stafford figured out to take a beat and let Allen engage then follow whichever of Allen's shoulders got the most gain on initial punch) - which was why I thought the fact that they needed the review to see that Stafford got into the end zone, since Allen literally finished the play with everything above his knees over the goalline and Stafford was practically glued to the back of his left oblique.  What I saw someone ask last night, and it got me to thinking, why has no QB tried doing the jump-reach that Brees used to do all the time, especially in goal-and-inches situations?

[jrry32]

31 minutes ago, Dr LBC said:

The way that Stafford runs the QB sneak you can tell he's been running that play behind big, beefy centers his entire competitive career before coming here.  And the thing is, Allen is definitely not big and beefy.  Allen did actually get the play where it needed to be (particularly the second sneak that got in for the TD, where it seemed like Stafford figured out to take a beat and let Allen engage then follow whichever of Allen's shoulders got the most gain on initial punch) - which was why I thought the fact that they needed the review to see that Stafford got into the end zone, since Allen literally finished the play with everything above his knees over the goalline and Stafford was practically glued to the back of his left oblique.  What I saw someone ask last night, and it got me to thinking, why has no QB tried doing the jump-reach that Brees used to do all the time, especially in goal-and-inches situations?

It's risky. A savvy LB can punch the ball out before you score if he times it right.

[Dr LBC]

14 hours ago, jrry32 said:

It's risky. A savvy LB can punch the ball out before you score if he times it right.

That's kind of a given, but my feeling was that Stafford - or let's be honest... most QB's - hasn't built of the cachet with referees for the benefit of the doubt, wherein any little piece of the ball is shown on replay to have broken the plane of the goal-line and the referees executes to the letter of the law (in that the play is immediately dead because the goal-line has been eclipsed).  I do also wonder whether the willingness of Brees to run that play didn't increase substantially after the Saints acquired Max Unger (who is an abnormally tall center with exceptionally long arms for an interior lineman).