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Arizona Cardinals Beat Writer, Cecil Collins -- 12/22/2011
All season long, the nay-sayers continued to pigeon hole the Arizona Cardinals as a fluke. Pointing to the fact that Arizona lacked an identity on either side of the ball, critics believed that the Cardinals could do no better than their 8-8 showing a season ago. Haters also said that GM BigJohnMic wasn't capable of leading a team to the playoffs without the help of subs in the process.Yet, through it all, and in absolutely stunning fashion, the Arizona Cardinals have won back-to-back NFC West Division crowns!
After struggling to maintain any sort of meaningful winning streak throughout the season, the Cardinals were able to win their final 3 games, all of which, were against playoff bound opponents (Packers, Redskins, Panthers). In fact, the Cards will have an inside track at the #2 seed and a first round BYE in the playoffs because they own wins over both NFC East leaders (Cowboys: 9-6 and Redskins: 9-6) and the NFC North-leading Green Bay Packers (10-6). To say this run to the finish line was improbable would be an understatement.
"Un-freakin-believable," was how Cardinals' QB Kevin Kolb described this run. "This is the type of stuff you can't script. We believed we could make it happen. All season, we believed. But you guys [the media] said we weren't good enough. Guess that's why we play the games, right?" Kolb, who is playing at a very high level this season, seems to have assured himself another trip to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl.
According to XFN, Kolb's passing yards (3,250), touchdowns (26), and passing attempts (381) are all down from last year's numbers (3965, 32, and 432 respectively). However, numbers don't tell the entire story. Kolb, to the chagrin of Bik
, has been a much more efficient passer this season, raising his completion percentage from 60 to 62 percent, as well as cutting his interceptions down from 33 to 18. And now, he finds himself leading a top-10 offense to the playoffs... again. "Crazy how things work out sometimes. Two years ago, I couldn't buy the starting job [in Philadelphia]. Now, I'm headed to the playoffs in consecutive seasons. In the immortal words of Chris Brown, 'Look at Me Now' Andy!"
In fact, don't look now. The Cards are enjoying playing the role of underdog. Even better, they're getting hot at the right time... too bad pundits didn't see that one coming.
All season long, the nay-sayers continued to pigeon hole the Arizona Cardinals as a fluke. Pointing to the fact that Arizona lacked an identity on either side of the ball, critics believed that the Cardinals could do no better than their 8-8 showing a season ago. Haters also said that GM BigJohnMic wasn't capable of leading a team to the playoffs without the help of subs in the process.Yet, through it all, and in absolutely stunning fashion, the Arizona Cardinals have won back-to-back NFC West Division crowns!
After struggling to maintain any sort of meaningful winning streak throughout the season, the Cardinals were able to win their final 3 games, all of which, were against playoff bound opponents (Packers, Redskins, Panthers). In fact, the Cards will have an inside track at the #2 seed and a first round BYE in the playoffs because they own wins over both NFC East leaders (Cowboys: 9-6 and Redskins: 9-6) and the NFC North-leading Green Bay Packers (10-6). To say this run to the finish line was improbable would be an understatement.
"Un-freakin-believable," was how Cardinals' QB Kevin Kolb described this run. "This is the type of stuff you can't script. We believed we could make it happen. All season, we believed. But you guys [the media] said we weren't good enough. Guess that's why we play the games, right?" Kolb, who is playing at a very high level this season, seems to have assured himself another trip to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl.
According to XFN, Kolb's passing yards (3,250), touchdowns (26), and passing attempts (381) are all down from last year's numbers (3965, 32, and 432 respectively). However, numbers don't tell the entire story. Kolb, to the chagrin of Bik
, has been a much more efficient passer this season, raising his completion percentage from 60 to 62 percent, as well as cutting his interceptions down from 33 to 18. And now, he finds himself leading a top-10 offense to the playoffs... again. "Crazy how things work out sometimes. Two years ago, I couldn't buy the starting job [in Philadelphia]. Now, I'm headed to the playoffs in consecutive seasons. In the immortal words of Chris Brown, 'Look at Me Now' Andy!"In fact, don't look now. The Cards are enjoying playing the role of underdog. Even better, they're getting hot at the right time... too bad pundits didn't see that one coming.
