Montee Ball Will Struggle Against Tough Arizona Cardinals Run Defense

Knowshon Moreno's 1,500-plus-yard season in 2013 set the bar high for Montee Ball, but the second-year tailback out of Wisconsin has been pedestrian in 2014—making him a candidate to play poorly against a great Arizona Cardinals run defense in Week 5.

On the year, the 23-year-old has just 165 yards and a touchdown on 49 carries. With 3.4 yards per attempt, Ball has been a subpar option for the Denver Broncos. He also has just 51 yards on seven catches in the passing game.

Ball's best performance came in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts. He rushed for 67 yards and a touchdown; though, the fact that he received 23 carries means he averaged 2.91 yards per rush—again, not very good.

Many of his struggles have come as a result of his inability to convert first downs, tweets Cecil Lammey of ESPN Denver:

The Cardinals represent a tough test for Ball. They allow just 71.7 yards per game on the ground, fourth-best in the NFL.

Ball was previously stifled by the likes of the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs and the Colts. Below you can see how he fared against those defenses compared to where they rank in the NFL:

Defense	Current Ranking	Yds/G Allowed	Result
Indianapolis Colts	11	104.8	23 ATT, 67 Yds, 1 TD, 2 Rec, 16 Yds
Kansas City Chiefs	18	116.5	12 ATT, 60 Yds, 3 Rec, 29 Yds
Seattle Seahawks	5	72.3	14 ATT, 38 Yds, 2 Rec, 6 Yds

Watching him struggle against Seattle is really no surprise, but the fact that he struggled against middle-of-the-road defenses in K.C. and Indy doesn't bode well for him in Week 5. If nothing else, his struggles against Seattle should be an indicator of how he'll perform this week.

In fact, NFL.com's Michael Fabiano told fantasy owners to sit Ball this week for fear of another bad performance:

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Ball likely cost you a top-20 pick in your draft, but beware of this week's matchup against the Cardinals. Over their last nine road games, this defensive unit has allowed just three rushing touchdowns. During that time, Frank Gore is the lone running back to rush for 100 or more yards. Those numbers don't bode well for Ball's prospects.

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Denver's offense hasn't looked crisp at times, and much of that has to do with Ball's inability to run consistently. Peyton Manning doesn't need him to gain 10 yards on every run, but gaining one or two yards is unacceptable.

Manning operates best in an offense that can establish the play action early. With an ineffective running back, that is almost impossible.

The Cardinals front seven creates pressure at will. The Broncos offensive line needs work, meaning the Cardinals will be in the backfield frequently on Sunday.

Those aren't good signs for Ball. He has potential as a feature back, but his breakout week will not come against Arizona. Look for him to finish with fewer than 50 yards rushing and an average of about 3.5 yards per carry.

Follow Kenny DeJohn on Twitter: @KennyDeJohn_BR