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How the Arizona Cardinals match-up with: the Indianapolis Colts (Week 3)
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Arizona Cardinals vs. Indianapolis Colts
Week 3 - @Arizona, University of Phoenix Stadium
Sunday, Sept. 27, 8:20 PM ET, NBC *Sunday Night Football
All-time series: Indianapolis 7 - Arizona 6
Last 10 games: Arizona 6 - Indianapolis 4
Interesting Stat: Indianapolis has won the last three meetings, but all three of those games were in Indianapolis.
Quarterback
Colts - It's a little unnerving that the question isn't who will start, but who will be the back-up. That is, unnerving for the Cardinals. Peyton Manning is arguably the best quarterback of this decade, going to nine pro-bowls and winning the AP Most Valuable Player award three times, so there's little question that he will be the number one gun if he's healthy. And even if he's not healthy, back-up Jim Sorgi (yes, he will be the back-up) is a pretty solid number two.
Cardinals - Warner has never really had a consistent running game behind him to make his job of passing the ball easier (like Peyton Manning), so it's hard to say whether or not he would be more effective (with a run game that opens up his throwing lanes) or less effective (because he can get out of rhythm from time to time). If the Cardinals do get a real running back tandem with the addition of "Beanie" Wells, we shall see this year.
Edge: Colts, but very close. Manning is getting older, but so is Warner. The question this year might be, "Who will go down first?"
Running Back
Colts - This was a major concern last year, with the Colts finishing 31 out of 32 teams in rushing (guess who was #32). Not exactly a recipe for success, especially when Indianapolis has relied so heavily on a solid run game in the past. But don't be fooled - Joseph Addai was on and off the field with injuries all season (eventually ending in surgery once the season was over); Mike Hart, who looked promising in last year's pre-season, suffered a season-ending ACL injury; and the offensive line had multiple injury issues as well. Not to say that Colts fans shouldn't be worried since injuries can be recurring, but there's no way the string of bad luck Indianapolis faced last year will continue to the extent it did last year. The run game will improve - There's just too much talent here. Oh, yeah, and there's this guy named Donald Brown, the Colts' number one draft pick from Connecticut. Remember that name? You should. The Cardinals were projected to take him.
Cardinals - This will be a very interesting position to watch (and sort of odd that these two teams are playing each other this year) since the Colts passed on Chris "Beanie" Wells and chose to go with the never-injured Donald Brown. Maybe they did it because of the aforementioned injuries they suffered last year and couldn't take a chance on an injury-prone running back, but regardless, it remains to be seen whether or not they made the right decision. I hate to give the Cardinals too much credit here since the young running backs Wells and Hightower are so fresh, but for my money, if given the choice between Indianapolis' backfield and the Cardinals' pair of backs, I'd have to go with the Cardinals. Both teams are coming off of poor performances, but the Cardinals youth (on offensive line and among their backs) should serve them well.
Edge: Cardinals, by a hair. If Addai and Brown are 100% behind an 100% healthy line, I change my answer, but the chances of that are slim.
Wide Receiver
Colts - With the great Marvin Harrison gone, Reggie Wayne and Anthony Gonzalez become the solid number one and number two wide receivers, respectively. Though Indianapolis fans are playing confident, I am not so much. Gonzalez has never been a number two receiver and their number three through number five choices aren't what you would call enviable. Peyton Manning will find ways to get these receivers the ball (he always does), but if the run game suffers like it did last year and the Colts have to rely too much on the passing game, I see trouble.
Cardinals - Nobody in the league even begins to compare to the one-two-three punch of the Cardinals. Larry Fitzgerald has gotten stronger and faster this offseason (that's a scary thought), Anquan Boldin can have face surgery without taking pain pills (that is official badassness), and Breaston plays the wide receiver position with a fearless special teams abandon (think Sean Morey with great hands).
Edge: Cardinals, and this position could be the difference in the football game (and a lot of Cardinals games, for that matter).
Tight End
Colts - Dallas Clark has emerged as one of the premier tight ends in the league and even though there's not a whole lot of experience behind him, there doesn't need to be. When Manning's in trouble, Clark always seems to be in the right place at the right time. The future needs to be considered by Colts fans because the young back-ups will eventually become the starters, but at present, they can relax and enjoy the Clark-era.
Cardinals - I repeat, Stephen Spach, please be the answer we've been searching for, because I've seen Ben Patrick and Leonard Pope play in the NFL...and it's not pretty.
Edge: Colts, but have no fear, Adrian Wilson will hit Clark at least once in this game and it will be super sweet.
Offensive Line
Colts - The only sure thing on this line is Center Jeff Saturday. The rest is a crap-shoot. As stated above, the Colts offensive line was riddled with injuries the last couple of years and though there is reason for optimism that Ryan Lilja and Tony Ugoh could both be healthy at the same time this year, there is absolutely zero depth at this position. If even one of the big three (Saturday, Lilja, or Ugoh) drop, the running lanes will disappear fast.
Cardinals - I can't believe I'm saying this, but the Arizona Cardinals have more depth at offensive line than the Indianapolis Colts. Wait, let me repeat that: the Arizona Cardinals have more depth at offensive line than the Indianapolis Colts. Wow. Okay, I'm over it. Depth in no way translates to production on the field and since these two teams are meeting in the third game of the season, injuries might not be as much of an issue. The Cardinals have depth, but the Colts have experience.
Edge: Colts, but only because they were 31st in rushing last year and the Cardinals were 32nd.
Defensive Line
Colts - Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis are getting up there in years, but man, can they still play some football. They both registered double-digit sacks last year and both ended up in the Pro Bowl. And it's a good thing, because the rest of line is either inexperienced or lacking in size. If Indianapolis' 2nd round draft pick, Fili Moala out of USC, can learn quickly and start right away, there will be a collective sigh of relief from Colts fans, but don't expect everything to be perfect in the third week of the season. This match-up (Colts D-line against Cardinals O-line) will be one to watch and could be the first game in which "Beanie" Wells is called upon to do what he does best: run over defensive linemen.
Cardinals - Very similar to the Colts, the Cardinals have a couple of strong defensive linemen with Bertrand Berry and Darnell Dockett, who I do believe will both make the Pro Bowl this year. If these two can keep Peyton Manning honest by making him get rid of the ball early, this could be a very long game for the Colts offense. The health of the Indianapolis offensive line will be of the highest importance come game time.
Edge: Colts, solely because their defensive ends more than make-up for their lack of defensive tackle experience.
Linebacker
Colts - As the Indianapolis Colts Examiner suggests, this is as good a linebacking corps as the Colts have had in recent years. I agree, but it's still not very good. Sorry. Gary Brackett is your steady and reliable Old Yeller-like middle linebacker and he gets the job done as leader and captain of the defense. But ask most teams if they would trade linebackers for linebackers straight-up and you will get a laughed-at before you'll get any kind of deal.
Cardinals - Will Cody Brown have an impact this year? Cardinals fans hope so and the Arizona coaching staff expects so, but it remains to be seen. If Brown comes out of training camp and pre-season strong, fast, and hungry, life will be good for the Cardinals, but if Brown has learning curve issues, three weeks into the season won't have been enough time to figure it out and the Cards could make some mistakes.
Edge: Cardinals, with Gerald Hayes and Karlos Dansby still too dangerous to overlook.
Secondary
Colts - Can you say stacked? The Colts allowed a record setting-low six touchdown passes last year. Six. That's incredible. However, the Colts didn't play the Arizona Cardinals last year, either. This will be so much fun to watch - The best secondary in football against arguably the best passing offense in football. Woo hoo! I love the NFL!
Cardinals - As mentioned earlier in this article, just once Adrian Wilson needs to sneak into the short middle of the field and give Dallas Clark the hit of his life. That should make him think twice about coming across again and will give Wilson and Antrel Rolle some space to work. I am nervous about this unit against Manning, though, and Greg Toler's skill level at this point in the season could be critical.
Edge: Colts, by miles. Sorry Cards.
Special Teams
Colts - Punting is all but shored-up this year with Hunter Smith a question mark with Hunter Smith signing with Washington, especially since he was so consistent for so long. The other concern is with another aging kicker, Adam Vinatieri, who just underwent surgery on his right hip...yes, that's his kicking hip. Behind Vinatieri is Shane Andrus. Who? Exactly. You can't find any Colts kick returners in the top 50 from last year and you have to go all the way to 63rd to find a Colt on punt returns. Be sure that Indianapolis will be searching for new blood to fill these rolls.
Cardinals - Punting's no good, field goals are consistent, and the Cardinals could pick from at least five guys to return kicks and punts. So, as they say, two out of three ain't bad.
Edge: Cardinals, and they've got problems, so that just goes to show how bad a shape the Colts are in.
Overall
Colts - Unlike the last two matchups (the 49ers and the Jaguars), the Colts don't have any glaring holes that the Cardinals can take advantage of and, in fact, their main weakness (stopping the run) isn't something I'm comfortable saying the Cardinals can exploit. The match-ups in this one will be classic NFL: Colts D-line vs. Cards O-line, Cards passing attack vs. Colts secondary, Colts young defensive tackles vs. Cards young running backs. I expect this to be one of the closest games of the season for both teams.
Cardinals - This could be a turning point for the young Chris "Beanie" Wells, good or bad, because he will be needed more against the Colts than either of the two previous games. I would love to see the Cardinals throw for what would amount to half of the Colts passing touchdowns allowed last season (3), but it's more of a dream than a probability. In a game like this, the tight end position could also become brutally important. And you can see where this is going. We need to be able to run the ball and get the tight ends involoved to win this game...not exactly the Cardinals strong suits.
Week 3 (pre-training camp) prediction: Colts 17 - Cardinals 14
Other weekly opponent breakdowns:
Arizona Cardinals vs. San Francisco 49ers - Weeks 1 and 14
Arizona Cardinals vs. Jacksonville Jaguars - Week 2
Arizona Cardinals vs. Houston Texans - Week 5
Arizona Cardinals vs. Seattle Seahawks - Weeks 6 and 10
Arizona Cardinals vs. New York Giants - Week 7
Arizona Cardinals vs. Carolina Panthers - Week 8
Arizona Cardinals vs. Chicago Bears - Week 9
Arizona Cardinals vs. St. Louis Rams - Weeks 11 and 16
Arizona Cardinals vs. Tennessee Titans - Week 12
For more Indianapolis Colts analysis:
Indianapolis Colts Examiner
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