WhoDat!656

Now on to the New Orleans Saints, when you look at this team, there are good weapons all around for Drew Brees to use, but the two best skill players on this team are wide receiver Marques Colston, and tight end Jimmy Graham. Colston in my opinion does not present a huge issue. I expect Patrick Peterson to follow him around similar to what he did in week two against Detroit covering Calvin Johnson. If Peterson is the elite shutdown corner we all think he is/can be, Colston is a guy he needs to shutdown, (see Richard Sherman against Anquan Boldin). But Graham presents a huge problem for the Cardinals in my opinion. I don’t see anyone on this roster outside of Peterson who I would feel comfortable leaving in man to man coverage against the 6’7” 265 lb Graham. While some may say Mathieu would be a logical choice, may I point out the near one foot height advantage Graham has on Mathieu. Karlos Dansby was torched time and time again by Cook, do you really expect him to be able to stay with a perennial pro bowler like Graham? Yeremiah Bell may end up being the best choice, but does he have the speed and coverage skills to keep up with Graham? Maybe the Cardinals switch Peterson off Colston to Graham and hope guys like Mathieu and Jerraud Powers can hold their own against Colston and the rest of the Saints wide receivers. This is where the problem lies for the Cardinal defense this week. I’m expecting a mix of zone coverages and some bracket coverage on one, while Peterson matches up with the other.
All of this to say, this week may be when the Cardinals miss Washington the most. Washington not only has the size, but also the speed to match up and at least contain a guy like Graham, which would then allow the Cardinals to run some more complex schemes to take away the other weapons of the Saints, while also trying to get pressure on Brees.

How much will the Arizona Cardinals miss Daryl Washington this week? - Raising Zona - An Arizona Cardinals Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.

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homerj07

Drew did ok against them. He does look a little skittish at times.