I was in New Orleans on a family trip while the game was on, but I found the game and watched it last night. Here are a few of my thoughts:
Matt Cassel is looking good. He missed Flash on that first drive, but he put the ball where CP had a chance and Patrick Peterson didn't. When challenging one of the best and most talented corners in the game, sometimes it's okay to be a bit conservative. He had a similar throw to Rudy in the endzone where the ball was a bit high, but it hit the receiver in the hands and you can't really blame Matt. The rest of his game was a joy to watch. He showed really nice mobility and pocket presence. He's never going to be Cam Newton, but he showed enough with his feet where he's not a statue in the backfield.
Kyle Rudolph, outside of missing the aforementioned TD, is looking like he's next in line to own the NFL. This guy has a chance to really cause some mismatches. I think he's going to add a dimension to our offense similar to when Norv had Antonio Gates and LT.
Jerome Simpson actually made a nice catch where he had to turn around and catch it from behind across the middle. He missed that fade late in the game, but he's not stinking it up like I've heard some others suggest. Greg Jennings is looking more like that 85 from Green Bay that always torched us than he has in a long time. Thielen played well, but missed a big opportunity, and Rodney Smith seized every opportunity he had. We might really have a special corps here.
Xavier Rhodes is contesting everything. He has a chance to be one of the NFL's elite. He sticks close to his receivers and really laid the wood. Between Xavier and Harrison Smith, we have the blocks for a very nice secondary.
I want to like Asiata, but I couldn't help but think that he lacked burst in the worst kind of way. Obviously, Adrian is the best in the game. But it was so obvious to me how many more yards Adrian would have had that Asiata was missing. When you combine how explosive Banyard looked (poor man's Sproles?) and McKinnon's draft position (he has been talked up as a Sproles type, but I see him more like Michael Turner: limited wiggle but nice strength/straight line speed combo), I think Asiata has a chance of getting cut. If we really need a bruiser in a pinch, Felton can serve that role. Speaking of Felton, it was nice to see him get a decent workload on the night.
Chad Greenway is playing the run as well as ever, but he gave up a TD pass that I would have liked to see him contest just a little bit more. Anthony Barr still isn't a finished product, but YOWZA his athleticism shines some time. He might have an opportunity to have a rookie season similar to Aldon Smith where he doesn't have to be a full-time player, he just has to be an athletic freak that draws attention away from the other guys. Brinkley will probably never be a good nickel linebacker, but on the goal line he has some nice run support.
It's really, really rough watching Walsh struggle. I thought he was definitely a Top-5 K in the league after his rookie season, but we're seeing that inconsistency again. I wonder if Locke holding instead of Kluwe has anything to do with it?
It was also difficult to watch the defense give up an early TD and let Arizona convert FOUR 4th down tries.
Of course, the low points were easily erased when watching our young QB trot the field with ice in his veins. He's still not ready for week 1, but THIS is what we needed to see from him to give us hope. I haven't felt more confident in our QBs since 2009, and even then I was terrified Favre would get injured.
Basically, the team still has things to clean up (and always will) but I can't imagine being any happier with the end result from a preseason game!
