dfosterf
15 years ago
Article 



Green Bay Packers' tactics irritate Arizona Cardinals

BY DAN BICKLEY The Arizona Republic January 5, 2010


PHOENIX -- Playoff games are stuffed with importance. This one feels ready to burst.


The Cardinals fear a quick knockout, one that lays their season to waste, mocking them as one-hit wonders. The Packers fear the Brett Favre Purple Sunset Super Bowl, and would do anything to outlast their nemesis.

If things go really wrong, Sunday's showdown in Glendale could be the last game Kurt Warner plays before announcing his retirement. None of us are ready for that.

The outcome of this game will provide answers to the NFL's latest dilemma. From the moment the 14-0 Colts passed on a chance at immortality, the league has been hearing from angry fans who don't want to see teams fretting over their own safety and playing half-hearted football. It makes for bad television.

In Week 17, the Cardinals rested key players and were flogged like deck hands. The Packers went full bore and crowed like gladiators. Ken Whisenhunt took significant heat for exposing Anquan Boldin, and for allowing Larry Fitzgerald to pursue personal statistics. Mike McCarthy was hailed for keeping his hot team in tune, a team that had been left for dead after losing both regular season games against Favre earlier in the season.

You can almost hear how the turn of events has angered Whisenhunt.

From Sunday's postgame press conference, when Whisenhunt chafed at the merciless beating, and what occurred after he hung the white flag:

They had their plan, Whisenhunt said. I guess they felt good about what they were doing.

Guess?

Whisenhunt has been agitated by McCarthy's tactics in the past. He felt the Packers coach game-planned for an exhibition contest against the Cardinals in August, a game the Packers went deep and led 38-10 at halftime. A needless embarrassment, in other words.

After sleeping on Sunday's loss, Whisenhunt's attitude hadn't changed much. He reiterated his regret for playing Boldin too long. He made it clear that he was rewarding Fitzgerald, ceding to a player who is (thankfully) driven by great personal ambition (fame and money).

Then he struck back at the Packers.

He made it clear that McCarthy was doing nothing different on the other sideline, allowing Aaron Rodgers to throw the ball continuously on the opening drive of the second half, even though the Packers were leading 26-0.

Its something you would feel sick about had (Fitzgerald) gotten injured at the end, but I have no doubt in my mind that's what Green Bay was trying to do with Aaron Rodgers (on Sunday) as far as the passing statistics, trying to get those things, Whisenhunt said. That's part of it.

On that drive, Rodgers passed Favre for second place on the Packers all-time single-season passing yardage list. When the drive was over, he came out of the game. Coincidence? Hardly, and don't think that shameless pursuit of statistics wasnt the No. 1 priority.

In the end, McCarthy was just lucky that one of his players didn't get hurt, like what happened to a burned Bill Belichick in New England, like what happened to Whisenhunt on Sunday.

Either way, the Cardinals are again under the microscope. They've been blitzed in two previous home games by the Packers, have the fewest wins in the NFC tournament, and yet host a playoff game. That policy could change in the future, as the league attempts to address the issue of teams tanking late-season games.

They've got a lot to think about, Packers defensive end Johnny Jolly said after Sunday's game.

Yep, a lot at stake here. Twice, the Cardinals have lost a chunk of dignity to the incoming opponent, humiliated by the Packers' cold-blooded approach. Twice, Whisenhunt has been irked by the audacity of the opposing head coach. The theme of last year's playoff run was a lack of respect. This year's quest begins with revenge.

This time, the Cardinals have no alibis.

buckeyepackfan
15 years ago
I guess The Packers better show up THIS WEEK, lol, the more I read about the different strategies different teams have taken, I am glad MM did what he did.

Now if MM wanted AR to break that yardage record, he would have let him play one more series.

I know AR will forever be linked to #4, but yes even I am getting tired of hearing that some think The Packers are always watching what Brett is doing so AR can match or out stat him.

MM never waivered from his stance, he planned last weeks game just like any other week, Cards didn't want to show up, well so be it, but don't cry about it after your team gets smoked.

Damn, that pisses me off, getting fired up now, is Sunday here yet?

One note on Welker, he was injured on the first series of the game, he would have been in, it was a freak accident, a real shame, but planning to rest your starters wouldn't have changed anything seeing that resting the starters pretty much means they will start the game and then come out after a couple of series.
I was addicted to The Hokey Pokey, but I turned myself around!
bozz_2006
15 years ago
wah wah wah. if the outcome of the game truly meant nothing to Coach Wiz, he wouldn't be crying like a bitch about what the other coach decided to do.
UserPostedImage
15 years ago
This is perfect. They are so caught up in what we are doing that they aren't staying focused on getting to the Super Bowl, which is where GB's mindset is.
UserPostedImage
warhawk
15 years ago
The Cardinals have plenty to worry about without focusing on how the Packers approached the last game of the year. Last year the Cards caught fire near the end of the season but this year they finished 3 and 3. They averaged over 30+ points down the stretch and into the playoffs and that's what carried them a year ago.

To give an example of comparing the two teams defenses I found a stat that sticks out fairly clearly in how far apart the two teams are.

Both teams faced 5 teams in the top 15 in passing yards per game and faced 11 teams that finished 15th or worse. However, the Cards played six games against teams in the bottom 10 while the Pack only faced 1 so the Cards actually had an advantage.

Yet we finish 5th overall in pass defense and they finish 23rd?

I think Wisenhunt should be a lot more worried about what Rodgers will do THIS week than he is about what happened last Sunday.
"The train is leaving the station."
Zero2Cool
15 years ago
Is he really complaining about the pre season game? I didn't think we didn't anything other than a very vanilla game plan in both games against the Cardinals. If they think the defense they saw (that got 3 picks) week 17 is the same one they are going to see this Sunday, they have another thing coming. Kurt might want to prepare his retirement speech before Brad Jones knocks him so senseless he forgets who he is.

I'm sure coaches are aware of the stats before the game, I doubt they keep track of them during the game. Surely someone does because someone is always telling other players 'hey ur this close to this record' etc ... it happened to Barry Sanders. I believe it was the rookie rushing record. The coach asked him if he wanted to go back in to get the record. Barry said something about it being 'neat' that he was that close, but said he doesn't play for records and thanked the coach. Now was Wayne keeping track or did he have someone tell him?
UserPostedImage
dfosterf
15 years ago
If we have the opportunity, and in keeping with all that is good and holy in the grand karmic scheme----

Run the score up on those bastards so friggin' high this Sunday that even we are embarrassed. :thumbleft:

Personally, it would take a lot.
digsthepack
15 years ago
Fuck, Whineyc#nt! He had a plan for his team, McCarthy had one for ours. He laid down, and the Packers ran him and his team over.

Tough shit...play the game!
State Motto: "Wisconsin, our serial murderers eat their kill!"
jdog2
15 years ago
See if MM could have this type of mind set to kill a team every game we would be so much better than his conservative play calling in the redzone or running the ball when we can't sometimes
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Felipe7777777
15 years ago
i laughed at this article, its kind of like saying that there is a "written rule" to not try hard in preseason/last game of the season GTFOH....im glad the pack played semi-hard you can tell it was not a full scheme pretty vanilla, if Ken wanted his team to take it easy that's his bad...

and LOL @ the whineyc*nt nickname, classic
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