Welcome to the Roundtable Preview of tomorrow's NFL matchup between the Arizona Cardinals and the New York Jets. Weighing in with pregame commentary are Jets' Community Leader Angel Navedo and Cardinals' Community Leader Tom Highway.
Both teams are coming off disappointing losses in Week Three. How will your team be looking to rebound on Sunday afternoon?
AN: For the Jets, the focus has to be on chemistry and continuing to simplify the offense. The Jets spend too much time in the early parts of the game feeling out their opponents before executing their own gameplan.
The problem is that once they've felt out their opponent, they've already allowed them to develop a rhythm.
Offensively, the Jets need to revert back to the pitch-and-catch style that worked well in the second half against San Diego.
TH: The Cardinals have placed a premium on keeping their winning record intact. Deciding to spend the past 10 days on the East Coast to eliminate the fatigue of travel was smart. Will this make a difference? We’ll soon know.
But the crucial question for the Cardinals is: Will the team develop, and accept its offensive identity?
Does coach Ken Whisenhunt have the flexibility to put aside his unsuccessful “run-to-set-up-the-pass” philosophy in favor of a “pass-to-set-up-the-run” attack?
This season, the Cardinals are ranked seventh in number of rushing attempts, yet are ranked 29th in yards-per-attempt.
In other words, they’re stubbornly emphasizing something that simply isn’t working.
What are the feelings like in the hometown so far? Are the teams exceeding/meeting expectations from the fans this season?
AN: The New York Jets are the butt of the joke right now. An expensive offseason capped off with a trade for one of the greatest quarterbacks in the NFL set expectations beyond realistic measures. All of that is coming back to bite the fans as they cope with the growing pains.
It's difficult in New York, though. This is a Giants' town, and fresh off a Super Bowl victory, and 3-0 start, the Jets aren't what the city revolves around. Especially not now with baseball season drawing to a close, and the city bidding farewell to two monuments in Yankee and Shea Stadiums.
TH: The hometown support of the Cardinals has been lukewarm thus far.
Owner Bill Bidwill’s management of the club has drawn deserved skepticism based upon an entire lifetime of, for lack of a better word, “cheapness.” The result has been a city filled with potential fans that are wondering whether a playoff-caliber club is anywhere in their near future.
I believe that this team may be it, but most Arizonans seem to be reserving judgment. It doesn’t help that the Bidwills dumbed down expectations in the offseason when they were pressuring Whisenhunt to “ride or die” with the inferior Matt Leinart at QB.
Can the Jets stop Warner and his receivers?
12 comments Last one added 9 months ago — Leave a Comment
Ted Choate 9 months ago
Great stuff, guys.
Can't wait for the game.
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Tom Highway 9 months ago
Thanks, Ted!... and thanks for the potd vote!
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Tom Highway 9 months ago
A huge thanks to Angel Navedo for some great questions and insightful answers!
I can't wait for the game tomorrow!
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Buddy Smith 9 months ago
It looks like you Cardinals fans know how to party.
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Tom Highway 9 months ago
You betcha, Buddy!
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Tyler Hill 9 months ago
Wow, great picture on this one....oh yeah the article was good to, lol
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Tom Highway 9 months ago
Thanks, Tyler!
...And I was told that the right picture would help pad my read count!
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William Berry 9 months ago
Great picture. Oh, was there an article?:)
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Tom Highway 9 months ago
Too funny, William!
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Gray Ghost 9 months ago
This is a great idea! Tremendous pregame read! This is as good an analysis as there is anywhere! Amazing. POTD hands down!
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Gray Ghost 9 months ago
You need to keep the round-table idea going Tom.
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Tom Highway 9 months ago
All the credit for the idea belongs to Angel. But I hope to do it again for future games.
And thanks for the pick, Ghost! Much appreciated!
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