The Arizona Cardinals have not had a lot of defensive success in 2019, especially against the pass. After last week’s 34-7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, linebacker Jordan Hicks said the problem has been communication.
That became the focus of practice in the week leading up to Week 14 and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“We’ve been practicing our communication,” cornerback Patrick Peterson told reporters this week. “I believe that’s where the mental lapses come from and all the breakdowns.”
He cited how young the team is, “especially in the secondary” and how a simple missed communication can blow up a play.
Peterson said defensive coordinator Vance Joseph changed things up for this week.
“We had some great practices here the last two days,” he said on Thursday. “Vance, I won’t say dummied the calls down a little bit, but he’s giving us the ability to play faster. He’s just giving us one call, not too many checks. Just go out there and play football.”
He wouldn’t call the defense they have been playing complex but indicated there “a lot of checks, a lot of moving parts” and “a lot of communication that was being keyed upon.”
Joseph supposedly is simplifying things.
He is, according to Peterson, “minimizing the checks.” No more worrying about what they need to do if one receiver or another moves in a particular direction or runs a particular type of route.
Peterson calls it “camp rules defense.”
Playing a Steelers team with a rookie quarterback in Duck Hodges, they might be able to get away with that.
If this is true, there should be far fewer busted coverages. That has been a problem all year.
Perhaps a simpler set of calls will allow the players to avoid busts. It could also get picked apart.
But considering the results for most of the season, it isn’t as if it can get much worse.
Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Stitcher Radio.
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