Saturday, September 24, 2011

Redskins-Cardinals 4th quarter game review




















OK, finishing up the Cardinals win this morning. Here are the links to the 1st quarter, 2nd quarter, and 3rd quarter. A little later today there will be a summary post with some highlights from the full review.

[You may be wondering about the large blank space at the top of this post. As am I. It cannot be deleted in my editing screen - in fact it doesn't exist there. Well, that's Blogger for you.]

Fourth Quarter

Washington Redskins at 15:00

1-10-ARZ 44 (15:00) R.Grossman pass short right to A.Armstrong to ARZ 36 for 8 yards (K.Rhodes).

2-2-ARZ 36 (14:33) R.Helu right tackle to ARZ 29 for 7 yards (R.Walker).           

Helu  creates yards despite less than perfect blocking. Chester gets beat and has to cut inside early, but a hard cut gets him throught the hole. There may have been more yards to be had, but Lichtensteiger missed a second level cut block on an ILB. Seems like I’ve been writing that a lot this week.

1-10-ARZ 29 (13:58) R.Helu left end to ARZ 11 for 18 yards (K.Rhodes).

Niles Paul motions to behind Fred Davis on the left, then after the snap crosses the backfield to cut block the backside pursuit. I don’t think this was intended to be a fake, and yet the strong safety and one of the ILBs reach strongly to Paul’s move as if they think an end around is coming. That takes them out of position and Trent knocks the other ILB backwards.


1-10-ARZ 11 (13:14) R.Helu right end to ARZ 14 for -3 yards (D.Dockett).

Redskins try an outside zone, but the DT overpowers Chester and beats Helu to the corner.

2-13-ARZ 14 (12:36) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass short left to R.Helu pushed ob at ARZ 9 for 5 yards (S.Bradley).

3-8-ARZ 9 (12:08) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass short middle to J.Gaffney to ARZ 5 for 4 yards (K.Rhodes; R.Walker).

The OLB tries to draw Trent to the outside and then give him and inside swim move, but Trent keeps his base and gives Rex time. Unfortunately, nothing comes open but Gaffney’s underneath route.

4-4-ARZ 5 (11:23) G.Gano 23 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-N.Sundberg, Holder-S.Rocca.
ARZ 14 WAS 13, 7 plays, 39 yards, 3:42 drive, 3:42 elapsed

G.Gano kicks 65 yards from WAS 35 to ARZ 0. A.Jefferson to ARZ 32 for 32 yards (R.Jackson, A.Armstrong).

This is a very nice cutback move in traffic by the returner; it is Lorenzo Alexander’s overpursuit that allows him to turn upfield for yards.

Arizona Cardinals at 11:18, (1st play from scrimmage 11:09)

1-10-ARZ 32  (11:09) (Shotgun) PENALTY on ARZ-C.Wells, False Start, 5 yards, enforced at ARZ 32 - No Play.

1-15-ARZ 27 (11:09) (Shotgun) K.Kolb pass deep right to L.Fitzgerald for 73 yards, TOUCHDOWN [L.Fletcher].           

The Cardinals have trips left and Larry Fitzgerald by himself on their right. Barnes is blitzing from the slot and, not for the first time, telegraphs it badly. This means Kolb knows before the snap that Hall is stuck on man coverage on Fitzgerald without help, since Doughty is already drawn over towards the trips and Atogwe, playing deep, has to play to that side as well to compensate for Barnes not being in the coverage. After that it’s just a matter of Hall biting on a double move from one of the best receivers in the game, and that can happen to anyone.

J.Feely extra point is GOOD, Center-M.Leach, Holder-D.Zastudil.

ARZ 21 WAS 13, 1 plays, 68 yards, 0:20 drive, 4:02 elapsed

J.Feely kicks 64 yards from ARZ 35 to WAS 1. B.Banks to WAS 27 for 26 yards (M.Adams).

Washington Redskins at 10:58, (1st play from scrimmage 10:52)

1-10-WAS 27  (10:52) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass incomplete short right to C.Cooley (A.Jefferson).

Another good adjustment by Trent to an inside move from the OLB.

2-10-WAS 27 (10:45) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass incomplete short middle to D.Stallworth [C.Haggans].

Failed screen. Chester disengages form his defender to get downfield and block.  Problem is, when the DE splits Trent and Lichtensteiger, Hightower runs smack into him, so with the rusher coming free there is no one to take the pass.

3-10-WAS 27 (10:41) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass deep middle to J.Gaffney to WAS 47 for 20 yards (P.Peterson).           

Nice cut on the blitzing OLB by Hightower. Either Rex was expecting Gaffney to bend his route in harder or it was just a weak throw; either way Gaffney has to go to the ground despite being wide open.

1-10-WAS 47 (10:00) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass short middle to D.Stallworth to ARZ 44 for 9 yards (O.Schofield).

Blitz beats the protection, then Rex beats the blitz.  Cardinals are in a two-DL nickel package. The RDE – the most outside rusher on his side – attacks Lichtensteiger. That means Trent is standing there with no one to block. The other DL attacks Montgomery and a OLB threatens Brown to the outside, so a ILB and a safety each come at Chester and of course he can only block one. But Stallworth is running the safety valve route on this play. The OLB covers his short hook, but Stallworth extends his route across the field and Rex, keeping his cool, finds him for a completion and some YAC.

2-1-ARZ 44 (9:23) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass short right to R.Helu to ARZ 44 for no gain (R.Walker).

Helu motions wide right and takes the screen, but the playside CB recovers from Stallworth’s cut block and  and none of the linemen account for him (because Stallworth was supposed to).

3-1-ARZ 44 (8:45) D.Young left end to ARZ 37 for 7 yards (O.Schofield; P.Peterson).           

Beautiful little fake. The line crashes hard to the right, but Rex slips the ball to Darrel Young – who looks like he’s lead blocking – while Hightower still acts as if he’s taking the hand off and heading for the right corner. Instead Young cuts left and has already gained the first down before he has to run through two defenders to pick up some bonus yards.

1-10-ARZ 37 (8:08) R.Helu up the middle to ARZ 28 for 9 yards (O.Schofield).

The pass rushers are completely fooled by the draw, and Fred Davis gets downfield and puts a very solid block on an ILB.

2-1-ARZ 28 (7:32) R.Grossman pass incomplete short middle to D.Stallworth.

Helu does a pretty good job picking up the ILB blitz through the right A gap, but on the left side Trent and Lichtensteiger get beaten by a stunt. I think Lichtensteiger reads it correctly. Trent is supposed to pick up the DE who rushes outside, while Lichtensteiger is there waiting for the OLB to bounce inside. But Trent stays centered on the OLB, and the DE comes clean and forces a rushed throw.

3-1-ARZ 28 (7:27) R.Grossman pass short left to F.Davis to ARZ 25 for 3 yards (K.Rhodes).           

Helu motions out wide to the right; this tips off man coverage as an ILB follows him. Why is it important to know the Cardinals are playing man coverage? Because Rex wants to throw the quick out to Davis. With man coverage, he knows that a) Davis can beat the LB to the outside and b) the playside corner will be drawn out of the play by Armstrong's go route. If you try that versus zone coverage, that corner is sitting right on Davis’ route and you have a real problem. In case you’ve ever wondered why the Shanahan’s motion backs outside but rarely throw to them, this is why.

1-10-ARZ 25 (6:53) R.Grossman pass incomplete short middle to S.Moss (V.Holliday).

2-10-ARZ 25 (6:49) T.Hightower left end to ARZ 20 for 5 yards (V.Holliday).

This was a decent gain, but could have been better had Montgomery and Lichtensteiger executed their block properly. On most zone blocking plays you will see two blockers initially double team a defender, then one slides off to get to the second level. In this case Lichtensteiger gets himself to the outside of the lineman – as he is supposed to do – but can’t sufficiently slow him as he works his way down the line. Both Montgomery and Lichtensteiger continue to be engaged with the man, and neither one sheds. The 5 yards are gained due to a very strong second level block by Trent Williams. Unfortunately, he could only take out one of the three second level defenders. By the way, Cooley does a nice job kicking out the playside OLB as well.

3-5-ARZ 20 (6:05) T.Hightower left end to ARZ 18 for 2 yards (K.Rhodes, V.Holliday).

Montgomery and Lichtensteiger both get clean releases to the second level. They are faced with a safety to the outside and a ILB to the inside. Lichtensteiger probably should have taken the safety. But despite the fact that he has Montgomery on his right shoulder with a clear angle on the ILB, Lichtensteiger decides to block the ILB too. The safety makes the tackle. Oops.

4-3-ARZ 18 (5:23) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass deep right to S.Moss for 18 yards, TOUCHDOWN.           

First of all, just love the call to go for it here.

Rex has Gaffney wide open in the flat for a free first down. But he sees Moss beating the CB on a corner route and goes for the jugular. Because it worked, Rex was bold. If it had been incomplete, he would have caught holy hell on talk radio on Monday morning.

The safety is very slow getting over to bail out his corner; I think he hesitates because Fred Davis threatens the seam.

(Pass formation) TWO-POINT CONVERSION ATTEMPT. R.Grossman pass to S.Moss is incomplete. ATTEMPT FAILS.

This was of course yet another tip at the line, but Rex was trying to squeeze it into such a tight window that I really doubt Santana could have made the catch anyway.

ARZ 21 WAS 19, 13 plays, 73 yards, 5:41 drive, 9:43 elapsed

G.Gano kicks 65 yards from WAS 35 to end zone, Touchback.

Arizona Cardinals at 5:17

1-10-ARZ 20 (5:17) C.Wells right guard to ARZ 23 for 3 yards (R.McIntosh). 

Cofield is overpowered by the center and loses his two gap responsibility; fortunately Rocky sheds a second level block to keep the gain minor.

2-7-ARZ 23 (4:35) (Shotgun) K.Kolb pass incomplete short right to E.Doucet.
Penalty on ARZ-T.Heap, Illegal Motion, declined.

After seeing how the Redskins stacked the line the Cardinals really should have audibled to something that didn’t have four wide and only one back in to block. But Atogwe and Fletcher each shoot a B gap and the back can only take Fletcher (he block him very ineffectively) so Atogwe is in Kolb’s face as he throws.

3-7-ARZ 23 (4:32) (Shotgun) K.Kolb pass incomplete short right to E.Doucet (R.Kerrigan).

The Redskins again crowd the line, and the Cardinals again motion to four wide but with the specific intent of beating the blitz this time. Kerrigan comes clean, and Kolb tries to dump it over his head to the uncovered slot receiver. But Kerrigan gets his hands up and deflects it.

4-7-ARZ 23 (4:28) D.Zastudil punts 41 yards to WAS 36, Center-M.Leach, downed by ARZ. WAS-D.Gomes was injured during the play.

Washington Redskins at 4:20

1-10-WAS 36 (4:20) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass short left to F.Davis pushed ob at ARZ 49 for 15 yards (J.Porter).           

Nice blitz adjustment. An ILB shoots the Redskins left A gap, and Lichtensteiger has the discipline to let him go by and trust Helu to pick him up. When the other ILB comes on a delayed blitz Lichtensteiger, who was supposed to be drawn out of the play, is there waiting for him.

1-10-ARZ 49 (4:14) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass short right to F.Davis to ARZ 45 for 4 yards (R.Walker; C.Campbell).

This time Lichtensteiger fails to read a blitz and follows the DT to his right, leaving the rightward four Redskins linemen blocking just two pass rushers. This means a safety and ILB can both blitz through the left A gap. Helu picks up the safety, but the ILB is coming clean and Rex has to dump it to Davis in the flat.

2-6-ARZ 45 (3:36) R.Grossman pass short left to S.Moss to ARZ 33 for 12 yards (P.Peterson).           

There’s another blitz coming – the Cardinals really want to force a turnover at this point of the game – but it’s visible before the snap. Again, pre-snap motion shows the man coverage (this time the motion is by Santana). That means the corner who is playing a good 6 yards off Moss won’t have any underneath help, and with a safety in the box the corner can’t play him tight and count on the safeties to take anything deep. So Moss easily gets open to the flat.

1-10-ARZ 33 (2:56) R.Helu up the middle to ARZ 22 for 11 yards (A.Wilson).           

The DT drives Mongomery 7 yards into the backfield, but in a remarkable show of agility Helu makes a hard cut before smacking into him and burst through a hole up the middle that is opened up due to Trent effectively sealing the other DT to the right.

1-10-ARZ 22 (2:09) R.Helu left end to ARZ 22 for no gain (P.Peterson).

Cooley engages the OLB and completely loses the battle, giving up the corner.

Timeout #2 by ARZ at 02:03.

Timeout #1 by WAS at 02:03.

2-10-ARZ 22 (2:03) R.Grossman pass short right to A.Armstrong to ARZ 16 for 6 yards (P.Lenon, A.Jefferson).

Trent’s cut block fails to take the OLB to the ground so he is able to get his hand up and tip the pass, but it wobbles it’s way to Armstrong in the flat anyway.

Two-Minute Warning

Timeout #2 by WAS at 01:56.

3-4-ARZ 16 (1:56) (Shotgun) R.Grossman pass incomplete short middle to R.Helu (C.Campbell).

I am so sick of watching defensive linemen tip passes. Seriously, it has gotten old for me. For the second time this game, Rex goes all Theismann on us.

4-4-ARZ 16 (1:50) G.Gano 34 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-N.Sundberg, Holder-S.Rocca.

ARZ 21 WAS 22, 8 plays, 48 yards, 2:35 drive, 13:15 elapsed

G.Gano kicks 65 yards from WAS 35 to end zone, Touchback.

Arizona Cardinals at 1:45

1-10-ARZ 20 (1:45) (Shotgun) K.Kolb pass short middle to C.Stuckey to ARZ 32 for 12 yards (B.Westbrook). The Replay Assistant challenged the fumble ruling, and the play was REVERSED. (Shotgun) K.Kolb pass short middle to C.Stuckey to ARZ 32 for 12 yards (B.Westbrook). FUMBLES (B.Westbrook), RECOVERED by WAS-R.Doughty at ARZ 32. R.Doughty to ARZ 32 for no gain (C.Stuckey).

Fletcher trips while trying to cover the outside receiver’s hook, and the guy is about to gain the first down and then some. But Byron Westbrook, who had been covering the flat hustles upfield and makes the hit from behind, forcing what may well have been a game-saving fumble.

Washington Redskins at 1:39

1-10-ARZ 32 (1:39) R.Grossman kneels to ARZ 33 for -1 yards. Timeout #3 by WAS at 00:55.

Victory formation.

2-11-ARZ 33 (:55) R.Grossman kneels to ARZ 34 for -1 yards.

Victory formation again.

Timeout #3 by ARZ at 00:52.

3-12-ARZ 34 (:52) R.Grossman kneels to ARZ 36 for -2 yards.

Hey! Once more.

4-14-ARZ 36  (:10) (Punt formation) PENALTY on WAS-G.Gano, Delay of Game, 5 yards, enforced at ARZ 36 - No Play.

4-19-ARZ 41 (:10) S.Rocca punts 43 yards to ARZ -2, Center-N.Sundberg. P.Peterson to ARZ 27 for 29 yards (S.Rocca).

Good guys win.

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