Clowney impressive hunting QB
Cardinals insider and NFL writer Bob McManaman shares his observations and thoughts about what’s going on with the Cardinals and the rest of the league in his weekly offering that we like to call Tuesday’s Takeaways:
Things I liked in Week 10
❚ Jadeveon Clowney’s game-long pursuit of 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo during Monday night’s overtime thriller in Santa Clara, Calif. Clowney had his best game yet for the Seahawks, who acquired him just before the start of the season for a third-round pick and two backup players.
He had a strip sack that set up one touchdown, returned a fumble for a 10-yard touchdown of his own, and by my count had more than a dozen quarterback hits, pressures or hurries that completely disrupted Garoppolo, especially late in the game when it mattered most.
“He was so impressive all night long,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll told reporters. “They were tackling him, but he was just penetrating so fast and so furiously — what a fantastic game.”
Makes you wonder what the Cardinals’ Chandler Jones might be able to do against Garoppolo on Sunday when he lines up off the shoulder of 49ers tackle Mike McGlinchey, who bore the brunt of Clowney’s force Monday night. Jones, tied for the league lead with 111⁄2 sacks, had one sack of Garoppolo in Week 9 and almost got to him a few other times as well.
❚ Sunday night’s game between the Vikings and Cowboys might not have had as much back-and-forth drama as Monday night’s game, but it was a beauty nonetheless. It had a little bit of everything, including a handful of outstanding circus catches.
The best had to be tight end Kyle Rudolph’s leaping, one-handed touchdown grab in the back of the end zone for the Vikings. Not to be outdone, the Cowboys’ Amari Cooper had at least three crazy catches, including two toedragging receptions in a row, the second of which went for a touchdown that gave Dallas its first lead in the third quarter.
❚ Lamar Jackson continuing to stack together outstanding performances week to week for the surging Ravens, winners of five consecutive games following their 49-13 rout of the winless Bengals. The second-year quarterback was brilliant yet again and he’s made it a two-man race for Most Valuable Player honors with the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson.
Jackson’s making it a little more fun to watch, though. If you saw his 47yard run for a touchdown against Cincinnati, you know it, too. Jackson ran left, faked out a safety, then put a 360degree spin move on a linebacker and took off for one of the best touchdown runs you’ll ever see by a quarterback.
“I think that was the craziest thing I’ve witnessed on the field with somebody,” Ravens running back Mark Ingram told reporters. “He just spun and took off and let me escort him. That’s Lamar. That’s special.”
Coach Jim Harbaugh took it a step further, saying, “They’ll be watching that run for decades and decades.” Things I didn’t
❚ The amount of outrage so many people seem to have about Cardinals running back David Johnson.
Is he running like his All-Pro version of 2016? No, of course not. But after losing a fumble late in the third quarter of Arizona’s game at Tampa Bay and then getting benched in the fourth quarter in favor of Kenyan Drake, now everybody wants him gone.
My Twitter account blew up during the game — and the two days since — after I suggested I couldn’t believe all the negative reactions by so many folks to Johnson’s play. I’m all for fan engagement and the raw passion I saw from so many people out there, but I still think you’ve all got it wrong and here’s why:
Coach Kliff Kingsbury didn’t decide to make the running game a real priority until Week 5 against the Bengals. Johnson responded with 91 yards and the Cardinals rushed for 266 yards overall — their most in a game since 2011. Johnson also snared a 26-yard catch along the sideline late in the game to help the Cardinals win it.
But that was the game in which his back locked up on him. He played through the pain and people loved him for it. Then he injured his ankle a week later, which essentially knocked him out for three consecutive games until Sunday’s contest in Tampa. Yes, Johnson told us he was 100%, but I don’t think he was or is.
I think he said it because he’s a competitor, he wanted to play, and he didn’t want to lose playing time to Drake. While I agree that he hasn’t been running at top speed or seemingly with the same drive and energy he once did, I think it’s premature to give up on Johnson anytime soon. Besides, you’re stuck with him anyway because of the contract extension the Cardinals gave him prior to last season.
So sit back and tweet out your misery about me and Johnson all you want. I have no personal interest in any of it. But I think you’re wrong to want to run this kid out of town. Let’s see him when he’s completely healthy. If Kingsbury gives him another chance, which he should, Johnson will prove he’s still deserving of being the Cardinals’ No.1 running back.
If I’m wrong, I’ll own it.
❚ At 5-5, the Titans have climbed back into the race in the AFC South, but three-time Pro Bowl tackle Taylor Lewan is making it tough on them with his endless stream of penalties. He had three more on Sunday during Tennessee’s upset of the Chiefs.
“It’s not intentional. I do not mean to do it,” Lewan, who missed the first four weeks because of a suspension, said. “My intentions are good. I’m just trying to finish and it’s killing the team.”
❚ That the Saints have now played two games at home where they failed to score a touchdown on offense. It happened again on Sunday during a 26-9 loss to the Falcons, who snapped a sixgame losing streak. Teddy Bridgewater was starting at quarterback during a 1210 victory over the Cowboys the previous time the Saints’ offense failed to score a touchdown at the MercedesBenz Superdome.
Here’s what make that so unnerving if you’re a Saints fan: Prior to this year, New Orleans had never once been held without a touchdown at home with Brees running the offense since he joined the Saints back in 2006.
❚ How a player so talented — Buccaneers cornerback Vernon Hargreaves — could play his way off an NFL team because of repeated lack of effort. But that’s what happened the former firstround pick, who got pulled during Tampa Bay’s 30-27 victory over the Cardinals and was released on Tuesday.
The 2016 draft pick had made so many sensational plays for the Buccaneers over the past three-and-a-half years, but as head coach Bruce Arians noted during his postgame interview, the defensive back also dogged it far too many times.
“After thoughtful consideration over the past few weeks, coach Arians and I came to the conclusion that we needed to make this change,” Buccaneers GM Jason Licht said in a statement. “Decisions such as this are always difficult, but I felt it was in the best interest of our team to part ways with Vernon at this time and allow him to explore other opportunities. We are disappointed that it did not work out here for Vernon and we wish him continued success moving forward.”