But McNulty had a simple thought: He thought he could help the quarterback spot, and that, in turn, could help the whole offense.

“I said, ‘Larry, we can sit here and complain about it and be frustrated, or I can try to do something about it,’ ” McNulty said. “I coached the position before, I think I can help those guys and I feel I can get them in a position where they can be more productive for our team. As opposed to, ‘I hope the next guy does this’ or ‘I wish we would do that.’ I figured I’d just throw the hat in the ring.”

One thing you definitely get the feeling of, and it’s McNulty’s passion and confidence in his new job. That’s what came across when he interviewed for the spot (and why both Ken Whisenhunt and president Michael Bidwill were so impressed).

“We’re beyond the replacing-of-Kurt-Warner at this stage,” McNulty said. “That’s not what we are talking about. When we are talking about production, you don’t have to win the game on your own, put the team on your shoulders.

“I’ve always taken a ground zero-type approach to teaching even the most base plays and teaching the fundamentals, where the mental and physical kind of mesh to the point to where, when it is all flying at you full speed, your body, your footwork, your training takes over, and you are able to operate with an efficiency to where the play is designed to operate. Anything after that, there’s enough going on in the game that anything can happen, good and bad. But you have to be on point with what you are supposed to do. That comes with repetitions.”

McNulty would love to get Kevin Kolb, John Skelton and Rich Bartel working on those reps now, although the new collective bargaining agreement prohibits work with coaches for a while. Whenever it is, however, McNulty wants his players going over footwork, mentally picturing plays and blitzes and the like, and having the quarterbacks do it over and over. And over, and over again.

“The nature of the business, if you are not productive, you won’t play,” McNulty said. “We have talented guys that have shown they can play and win games. It’s a matter of doing it more consistently.”

There is a familiarity with the quarterbacks that will help with the process. McNulty has seen Kolb and Skelton each from the first days they arrived in Arizona and has been able to observe what their strengths are and what needs improvement. Those are specifics with which to start, although, McNulty said, “there is no preconceived notion of who is going to be ‘The Guy.’ Just more of a knowledge base.”

As for Fitzgerald’s new boss, Fitz kept it simple in a text message when asked about what he thought of Reich coming aboard: “Congrats, and welcome to the family.”

It’s a moot point, of course, but that line of thinking took me to yet another place this morning: The impact of that 2004 draft class. Most of the time, the top half of the first round provides as many busts as success stories. It sure seems, eight seasons in, that the 2004 first round was better than most, at least in those top 16 picks.

There was Manning going first. The Raiders took tackle Robert Gallery next, and while he hasn’t been a Pro Bowler, he developed into a pretty solid NFL guard (now playing in Seattle). Larry Fitzgerald went third, QB Philip Rivers fourth. S Sean Taylor went to the Redskins, and he was becoming a star before his tragic murder. TE Kellen Winslow has been solid if not spectacular playing for bad teams in Cleveland and Tampa.

There were also cornerbacks DeAngelo Hall (8) and Dunta Robinson (10), Big Ben at 11, LB Jonathan Vilma (12) and Pro Bowl linemen Tommie Harris (a DT at 14) and Shaun Andrews (a T at 16). It was the receivers, other than Fitz, that put the dent in the group, since Roy Williams (7), Reggie Williams (9), Lee Evans (13) and Mark Clayton (15) all fizzled to a point, although Roy W. and Evans have been OK (well, at least until Evans dropped the Ravens’ chance to be in the Super Bowl.)

That first round also produced NT Vince Wilfork, RB Steven Jackson and LB Jason Babin.

It is also arguably the Cards’ best draft ever, with Fitz, Karlos Dansby, Darnell Dockett and Antonio Smith. All but Dansby have appeared in a Pro Bowl. (In 2001, the Cards got Leonard Davis, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Adrian Wilson and 10-year DB Renaldo Hill; in 1979 the Cards, with 12 picks, ended up with RB Ottis Anderson, T Joe Bostic and WR/DB Roy Green — and future baseball star Kirk Gibson, as a Michigan State WR, although obviously Gibson didn’t come to the NFL.)

That number includes for now the contract of tackle Levi Brown, who is scheduled to have a cap number of almost $17M but won’t have that by the time free agency begins. Brown will either have to be restructured or be released, but even if he comes back, that will lower the number considerably. Right now, the Cards have 11 players who are scheduled to have cap numbers of at least $3M in 2012: Brown, WR Larry Fitzgerald ($14.5M), QB Kevin Kolb ($10.5M), DT Darnell Dockett ($6.6M), S Adrian Wilson ($7.5M), S Kerry Rhodes ($5M), LB Stewart Bradley ($6.5M), G Daryn Colledge ($5.5M) CB Patrick Peterson ($4.2M), C Lyle Sendlein ($3.3M) and TE Todd Heap ($3.4M).

That number will increase by one, one way or the other. Defensive end Calais Campbell’s cap hit should easily join that group, whether it is through a new long-term contract or because of a franchise tag (projected to be at least $10.5M for defensive ends.) That also doesn’t include the handful of restricted free agent tenders that must be submitted before free agency starts.

(A reminder, however, that the offseason cap is figured with only the top 51 salaries. The entire roster doesn’t have to be taken into account until the start of the regular season.)

But the final play of the Super Bowl officially ends the 2011 season and allows the whole league to turn the page. With that in mind — and knowing a new coach (probably for receivers, with receivers coach John McNulty sliding over to coach the quarterbacks) still will be hired sooner rather than later, here is a look at some of the key dates over the next few months:

Feb. 20 — First day teams can attach the franchise tag (That process goes through March 5. The Cards could end up using theirs on defensive end Calais Campbell.)

Feb. 22-28 — Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

March 13 — Free agency begins (2 p.m. Arizona time)

April 26-28 — NFL Draft

Usually the team’s first on-field work is the minicamp the weekend following the draft. While no dates have been announced, I don’t see why that wouldn’t stay the same this season. While we have a long time to get into free agency — more than two weeks from the end of the combine, which is much different than years past when it used to start right after the Combine ended — one thing to note is on restricted free agents. The Cards have four restricted free agents (guys who could leave but the Cards, if they tender an offer, have right of first refusal): running back LaRod Stephens-Howling, linebacker Reggie Walker, safety Rashad Johnson and cornerback Greg Toler.

There are three tender offers that can be used in the new CBA: $1.26M to receive a player’s original round pick as compensation, $1.927M for a second-round pick, and $2.742M for a first-round pick. Just a guess, but I could see Toler (originally a fourth-rounder) and Stephens-Howling (a seventh-rounder) each getting a second-round tender. Johnson (originally a third-round pick) would probably get an original-round tender. I think the Cards want Walker back but I could see them declining to tender and then signing him later.

If the player is tendered and signs with another team — and the Cards didn’t match — the Cards would receive the compensatory pick when the player left.

The 2012 Hall of Fame class included running back Curtis Martin, defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy, center Dermontti Dawson, tackle Willie Roaf, running backs Curtis Martin, defensive end Chris Doleman and senior committee pick Jack Butler, a one-time cornerback.

The Cardinals’ beat writer for the Arizona Republic, Kent Somers, was the presenter for Aeneas in the voting room and is Arizona’s voter. He tweeted out this message: “Aeneas Williams did not make the final 5. Think he’ll be there in the future, however.” Given that Kent will have a pulse of what happens in the voting realm, that would seem to be a good sign.

(Kent, by the way, blogged about his thoughts and ballots during the Hall meeting today.)

This is going to be a yearly blog post, methinks. Would be interesting if it turned out Williams and Kurt Warner ended up in the same Hall class.

– On the decision to not let wide receivers coach John McNulty interview for Tampa’s offensive coordinator job because McNulty is already under contract, and whether there is a fear McNulty would be upset: “What we have to do is make the best decisions for the Cardinals, so we can win and continue to develop our team,” Bidwill said. “Sometimes you have to make tough decisions that aren’t exactly what the employee or the coach or the player or whomever might want. That’s part of this business and that’s part of the high compensation these folks get. They trade certain rights.

“Generally speaking, you don’t want to disappoint someone you like and work with, but at the same time, I’d much rather have John McNulty be part of our team because he is a darn good coach. I think Ken (Whisenhunt) feels that way, I think (general manager) Rod Graves feels that way and we need to make those decisions even those are hard decisions.”

– On the Todd Haley opportunity and the choice not to bring Haley back: “I think (offensive coordinator) Mike Miller has done a good job. I think to come in and uproot all that, that would send a wrong message to your staff. I feel like it’s really Ken’s bailiwick. If Ken was comfortable bringing Todd back, I would support him. If Ken is not comfortable bringing Todd back, I support that too. We are all in this making the best decisions we can to win football games, to win the NFC West. We know that road goes through San Francisco. We will make all the best decisions possible.”

– On McNulty’s ability to be able to improve QB play as quarterbacks coach (Bidwill did not say McNulty was going to be QB coach, but certainly talked like he will be, leaving the open coaching staff spot for a new receivers coach): “I sat in an interview with (McNulty) and he is a technician, strong, he’s a leader, a good communicator. I felt after a half-hour, I could start playing quarterback.

“He’s a great football coach and that’s what we need. If we want great quarterback play, we need guys who will be technical, who will be disciplined, and taking care of fundamentals.”

– An attempt to ask about the Cards and Peyton Manning went, understandably, nowhere. Manning is under contract with the Colts, so anything said about him at all by a team could be considered tampering. “You want to pay the fine?” Bidwill asked.

– On quarterback Kevin Kolb: “I still think Kevin, with an offseason, he is going to be a darn good quarterback,” Bidwill said, adding the team needs to develop their two young QBs, including John Skelton.

– On plans to build a practice bubble at the Tempe facility to be able to get out of the heat in the early season: “I would say it will take a little bit of time to go through the process, but as soon as we get through that process — there is a public process to it — construction time should be about a year,” he said. “I don’t see it happening in the 2012 season.”

– On looking forward: “We have to make the decisions to put us back in the driver’s seat of winning the NFC West,” Bidwill said. “That’s what we did in 2008. Get a home playoff game, and take it from there.”

The Cards, of course, didn’t have any primetime games in 2011, which wasn’t a shock given their struggles in 2010 (and no, I don’t know why Jacksonville got two Monday night games and a Thursday night game this past season.) The last time the Cards were on primetime was a Monday night home loss to the 49ers in 2010, a game in which I am sure Derek Anderson remembers well.

The Cards ended up with four primetime games in 2009 coming off their Super Bowl appearance — a Sunday night loss to the Colts, a Sunday night win in New York against the Giants, a Sunday night home win against the Vikings, and a Monday night road loss in San Francisco.

All primetime spots aren’t the same. These days, because of the network exposure, Sunday night has become the glamour slot, following by Monday night (although the league is still watching) and then Thursday. Thursday also isn’t exactly a player favorite because of the short week; what will be interesting to see is if the league makes sure Thursday teams are coming off a bye. That may be logisitically impossible, since the Thursday games will take place from Week 2 to Week 15.

The schedule, including primetime decisions, are announced in April. By then, free agency is finished and the league has a better idea of how teams will have changed. The first week of the season will have a Thursday night game, but it will be hosted by either the Giants or Patriots (whichever team wins) on on NBC.

Given the three Thanksgiving games on the non-NFL Network networks and the opening game, it is possible for every NFL team to have a Thursday game this season. We’ll see how that plays out.

Early in the day, Fitz appeared on ESPN radio with “Mike and Mike,” and was asked about the speculation of Manning and Arizona. “Everybody, if you play receiver, would love to play with a quarterback like Peyton Manning,” Fitz said. “Anyone in your right mind would want to play with him.”

But on a couple of interviews, including one with Bickley and MJ on XTRA 910, Fitzgerald was clear about his support for current quarterbacks Kevin Kolb and John Skelton.”We have two really good quarterbacks on the roster right now,” Fitzgerald said. “We showed we can win with both of them. With an offseason, I think Kevin is going to do a lot better. … It will pay dividends for us.”

Asked if the locker room had lost confidence in Kolb, Fitzgerald couldn’t say no quickly enough, even pointing to the times the players hadn’t lost faith in Kurt Warner during his bumpy stretches, especially in 2006. With Kolb, “you can’t lose confidence in someone who has been hurt,” Fitzgerald said. “The guy has a lot of talent.”

Fitz did note on “Mike & Mike” that having Peyton available could make it awkward for any team, which of course would include the Cards, if they pursued Manning. “People are always going to get their feelings hurt,” Fitz acknowledged, “… but you know Peyton is an upgrade to what you already have.”

Tom James of the Terre Haute Tribune-Star, who has covered the Colts for years, reported mid-day that Fitz and Colts quarterback Peyton Manning were expected to have dinner, which obviously caught everyone’s eye. Fitzgerald and Manning are friends — Fitz seems to be friends with pretty much every high-profile player this is — and so it could mean nothing about the future. But it’s hard to believe, with everything happening, the subject wouldn’t come up.

Fitzgerald, on XTRA, tap-danced around the dinner subject. “Man, I don’t even have Peyton’s phone number”

(As I noted on Twitter earlier today, Fitz does the “Who, me?” thing better than anyone else.)

Asked directly if he was going to have dinner, Fitz said “No, no, no.” Might he see Manning at all this week? “If I see him I’m going to give him a hug like I do when I see him, he’s a good dude and he’s a great ambassador for the game, but I still don’t believe Indianapolis is going to let him go.”

(The dinner sure sounds like it will happen. Fitz’s brother Marcus said “where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire” when asked about it, and Mike Jurecki reported confirmation.)

If he was let go, Fitzgerald guessed there would be “at least 15″ teams that would look into signing Manning. “Even teams that I would say are solid at the quarterback position, the New York Jets, someone that they are confident they have someone in the stable that can lead their team but Peyton is an upgrade … there are a ton of teams,” Fitzgerald said.

It was suggested the Cards would be one of those teams. If so, what would Fitzgerald think about that? Fitz paused for a moment. “I’m like everybody else in Arizona. I just want to win.”

It was really the only things he could say. Fitzgerald has to walk a fine line, and in the belly of the media beast Thursday, the questions were unavoidable. One thing Fitz has stayed consistent with was the end result — the winning part of the equation. He doesn’t tap dance around that at all.

“The hourglass has turned over on me,” Fitzgerald said.  “I’m going into my ninth season now. I’m not getting any younger and the window of opportunity is closing. As an athlete, you have a shelf life. Simple as that.”

The Manning media train is just pulling out, beginning with Bob Kravitz’s story last week, gaining speed thanks to yesterday’s ESPN interview and the fact the Super Bowl is in Indianapolis. Certainly, the Cardinals are going to be in the middle of this tsunami of discussion — on the “Mike & Mike” show on ESPN radio this morning, the Cards and Manning were discussed not once, not twice, but three different times by three different guests: Adam Schefter, Cris Carter and Al Michaels.

(A quick aside: Manning hasn’t been released yet. I know everyone has just started to assume he will be — even I have to say it seems to be headed in that direction — but it’s not in concrete. Interesting note by the National Football Post’s guru Andrew Brandt, that the Colts would suffer a $16M cap hit in 2012 if they cut him. If they keep him, his cap number is $17M. A heavy price to pay either way — although if they cut him, they save $28 million in actual dollars.)

This is all going to come down to health, which has been repeated over and over. Just because Manning is throwing right now doesn’t mean much; it’s one thing to throw in January or February with no pass rush to open guys and another to do it in the heat of a game in October. Another thing to pay attention to is how he throws. Just because he can throw doesn’t mean he can throw with necessary velocity, which has apparently been the question as this nerve regenerates. Reading and hearing about the injury, it sounds less that Manning would face a greater risk of debilitating injury if he returns and more like his ability to play at a high level that could be the problem.

Manning said yesterday the doctors told him he was “on point” with his recovery, whatever that might mean right now. I have zero doubt that if Manning can still play physically, he wants to and will play. Add that to the fact that, you know, he was a pretty good quarterback the last time he took the field, and he will have a ton of suitors if he is released even with the questions about his health.

And then the coverage will make it look like Tebow squared. The National Manning League.

]]> http://blog.azcardinals.com/2012/02/01/manning-hypespeculation-just-getting-started/feed/ 77 darrenurban ManningUSE http://blog.azcardinals.com/2012/01/31/petersons-plea-for-five/ http://blog.azcardinals.com/2012/01/31/petersons-plea-for-five/#comments Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:39:01 +0000 Darren Urban http://blog.azcardinals.com/?p=7767 ]]> It didn’t take long for Patrick Peterson’s teammates to realize he was something special as a punt return man. As fellow DB and punt return blocker Richard Marshall noted, “Pat P is the man.” Yet the oft-repeated mantra of Peterson’s, the one in which he just told his teammates to “give me five yards”? Peterson admitted now, it wasn’t so easy to deliver that message.

“Honestly, I was scared to tell those guys at the beginning of the season,” Peterson said. “That’s the same thing I told the guys (in college) at LSU but I was a veteran at LSU. As a rookie, I didn’t want it to come off the wrong way, ‘This guy is too cocky.’ I asked coach Spence (special teams coach Kevin Spencer) if I approached the punt return team, because I feel I can make something special every time I touch the ball.”

So in a meeting the week after the game in Washington — the second game of the season — Peterson made his plea.

“From that day on, I asked the guys and a lot of times they gave me more (room), and we tied the NFL record,” Peterson said. “They took heed in it, and without those guys, I wouldn’t be in this position.”

Peterson knows now, there will be plenty of weeks where kickers don’t even try to kick it his way, eschewing the chance at deep punts to avoid him. That’s what he always expected, and it doesn’t faze him.

“I have to make them pay,” Peterson said. “If they have 10 kicks and they want all 10 away from me, they will miss one of them. And that will be my opportunity.”

Speaking of opportunity, there was one for him to hold the punt-return touchdown record all to himself in the season finale. Peterson looked like he was about to get his fifth of the season, only to have Seahawks punter Jon Ryan barely catch his foot and trip up Peterson. With a smile, Peterson acknowledged the play still haunts him.

“I was actually was stumbling into the cut,” Peterson said. “I wanted to come all the way to my left. I saw a linebacker coming into my blind spot, and I did something unusual. Normally I get back to the sideline and all my blocking was on the sideline. Rashad (Johnson) was coming to pick up the punter and I just saw it too late. It was uncharacteristic. It hurt me to my stomach each and every time I watched it.”