Steelers at Cardinals Preview (Game #4)

I never liked Whisencunt or Grimm. I�m glad both are gone. I want to see the Cardinals absolutely dominated and am confident that it will happen. The Steelers made the right choice by hiring Tomlin. Time to prove it on the field.

The Cardinals have one of the most active front 7�s in football. They are playing a hybrid 3-4/4-3 at this point in time and give a lot of looks. Their defense is similar to what the Steelers have been running. It�s fairly aggressive, though they haven�t been bringing a lot of pressure with their DB�s, besides Wilson. Adrian Wilson is used a lot like Polamalu. He plays most of the game up in the box. Probably about 90% of it. He�ll be used to cover as a corner or play as a LB. Rarely will you see him used as a traditional safety. He hits harder than any of the actual LB�s, though that isn�t saying much with this group. He sticks out at you anytime you watch him, and teams tend to avoid him. The Steelers will do the same, and it won�t be much of a problem.

As stated, the Cards are playing a bit like the Steelers. They give a lot of large cushions, usually to the weak side. They play more press coverage than the Steelers did prior to this year. They play primarily cover 3 and rely on confusing you. They have to because they lack the talent to do much else. There isn�t a pass rusher on this team I worry about this week. Calvin Pace is pretty strong, but can only really bull rush. He�ll be on Colon most of the game. This is similar to the match-up he had in week 1 against Cleveland, which he handled easily. Bertrand Berry is the sort of guy Marvel Smith loves.

Ward looks like he�ll miss the game, but I�m not very concerned with that. Holmes and Washington are both capable of stepping up, especially against the competition they�ll face this week. Both should have success against these corners, and may actually present more interesting match-ups. Neither is physical. Neither is very fast. Neither has any ball awareness to speak. The Steelers should have a lot of one-on-one match-ups outside. Washington and Holmes will win them. I have no problem throwing a few jump balls against either, because they don�t look back and play the ball. And I already mentioned the cushions. Slants and inside patterns will be there most of the day.

The FS seems completely mediocre. He�s always late getting anywhere and he doesn�t do much when he arrives. Not a hitter, and not very rangy. Just makes throwing vertical on this team even more attractive.

None of their LB�s can cover. Dansby and Hayes are sorry and get caught out of position frequently. Any TE on them is a match-up I like. Calvin Pace is a 270 pounder they usually ask to rush the passer. Berry stands up occasionally, drops back once in a while, but spends a lot of time dropping down and rushing the QB, as well.

I expect to see the Steelers exploit this team outside heavily. Skinny posts and fades are there all day. Miller and even Tuman should work the middle with success. The Cardinals will try to prevent the big play, but I don�t think they have the talent to do that. And the Steelers should have no problems working their way down the field with underneath stuff. I expect some successful screens to exploit the lack of discipline. Moving the ball won�t be a problem.

Gate Watson is very athletic. Maybe the most athletic 3-4 NT I�ve seen. He�s second tier. Not completely awful, but certainly better than Aubrayo Franklin of the 49ers. Mahan is injured this week. He should be able to seal him off. Same with Simmons coming down. Faneca should be able to move him. People have trouble sticking on him for very long, because of his size and ability to move. But I�m not that scared of running up the middle. He can not handle double teams. Antonio Smith and Dockett both struggle to hold their ground. They are more athletic than stout.

Dansby and Hayes are both terrible. Neither likes to hit or take a hit. If you get a blocker on them, they are absolutely finished. The Steelers are very good at the second level. Pace is stronger. I like him most of all these backers, but that isn�t saying much. He gets caught out of position a lot. Berry is weak at the point and undisciplined. Smith should dominate him.

Adrian Wilson will spend a lot of the game hovering around with the LB�s. You have to watch out for him. He�s the only one I worry about hitting. If Parker gets to the second level, or outside with anyone else, he could be gone. The corners don�t help out much in the run game and the Berry should be easy to seal. Dansby and Hayes are stiffs.

I would be very surprised if the Steelers offense doesn�t hang up 30+ on this team.

You have to be prepared to see almost two entirely different offenses. I expect to see some of Warner. Whiz knows he needs to try and keep the Steelers off balance. He knows he can�t run the ball. His harebrain no-huddle scheme was built for the Steelers and Ravens.

It starts with the two receivers outside. Boldin is genuinely scary. He�s a polished receiver. He has size and knows how to use it. I keep Taylor on him all day. Fitzgerald doesn�t worry me as much. What separates him from Boldin is he runs sloppy routes. He doesn�t cut cleanly and he looks where he�s going (or for the ball) too soon. He leaves the corners with too many chances to break on balls. He�s still a physical mismatch for Townsend, but he�s not as reliable a player as Boldin.

You need to press Boldin at the line. There�s no other way to play him.

When Leinart is in the game, the Steelers need to attack him. He makes poor decisions in the face of the blitz. Leinart doesn�t worry me that much.

You need to play Warner much different. I don�t blitz him, because that is when he excels. It�s about getting aggressive with his receivers outside and screwing up their rhythm. Get physical. Make him hang on to the ball longer and go through his reads. That�s when he gets uncomfortable, the pass rush has time to get to him, and he makes mistakes with the ball. I play Warner with a cover 2. I press the receivers, in particular Boldin. If you play soft, and it�s like running against air, he�ll pick you apart. These receivers will box people out and make the catch underneath or just run by you.

The Cards will probably try to hit their WR�s in space. Steelers need to be ready for bubble screens and hitches. Corners have to come prepared to tackle. This is an issue.

Haggans/Woodley have good match-ups outside against Levi Brown. He�s really struggling so far. He moves ok, but gets caught out of position. There will be chances to work him back inside, and bull rush him. He needs to get stronger and more technically sound.

Grimm seems to have simplified things for this OL. They aren�t pulling as much. They are running more of a zone scheme and letting James do what he does. The Steelers can handle this ground attack with the front 7. Stay square to the line. Don�t get caught up in rushing the passer. Stay in position and clog up the running lanes. If you leave a crease, James will find it. He�s not easy to bring down. He remains one of the leagues best RB�s. Great vision and runs hard. This isn�t Indy�s line up front. There isn�t a respectable run blocker in the group. Lutui is their best, but alls he can really do is seal his man off.

Stopping the run should be more of a problem when Leinart is in the game. That�s when the Cards threw on the Ravens. I would expect that to carry over in this game.

Trick plays are a concern. If the Cardinals . I imagine the Steelers are working on them in practice. Reverses and end-arounds are the first things to look out for. They should try one. Boldin played QB in college. They need to be ready for him to throw a pass. Edgerrin James threw a pass in the pre-season, which is something Steelers fans have seen over the years. Whiscunt will pull out all the gimmicks he can. He�ll try and manufacture points however he can.

The Cardinals have pretty awful coverage units. Rossum should have a chance to return a few. We�ve seen him break a kick. I wouldn�t be shocked if I saw a long punt return or two. The Steelers should win the field position battle.

Offense isn�t much of a concern to me. Steelers should have no problems. Passing or throwing, there isn�t an unfavorable match-up. Defensively, it�s important to press the receivers. If they give a clean release, I don�t expect good things. If they let the corners challenge them, they should shut this Cardinals offense down.