Whisenhunt is systematically taking over

By Chris Cluff  |   Wednesday, June 13, 2007  |  Comments( 4 )

Arizona Cardinals
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As Pittsburgh's offensive coordinator, Ken Whisenhunt learned that to win you have to be able to run the ball and you have to be able to stop the run.

In Arizona, Whisenhunt takes over a team that has not been very good at either recently.

Although it slipped from eighth overall in 2005 to 29th last season, the defense has not been quite as bad as the rushing offense, which is probably one reason Whisenhunt decided to stick with the creative Clancy Pendergast as his defensive coordinator. Pendergast's aggressive schemes seem to mesh well with Whisenhunt's desire to install the same 3-4 defense the Steelers used under Bill Cowher.

"I was impressed with Clancy's past success before I came to the Cardinals," Whisenhunt told Pro Football Weekly in February, "and when we sat down and talked about the defense, I respected and agreed with what he said and really liked the plan he had in mind moving forward.

"There are two real positives with Clancy," Whisenhunt added. "First off, he knows the players and has a system in place which will make a transition to a new regime easier, and the second thing is that he's a coordinator that has had success in the league before."

The Cardinals have played a base 4-3 for many years, and most of their personnel is geared toward it, so it will be interesting to see how quickly Pendergast can get players to adapt to the new system. Among the changes, ends Chike Okeafor and Bertrand Berry are learning to play outside linebacker, outside linebacker Karlos Dansby is learning inside linebacker and tackle Darnell Dockett is moving to end.

"Anytime you change the big guys, those inside guys, it's an adjustment," Whisenhunt told local reporters during a minicamp in April. "But that's the purpose of doing it now. We're looking at some things, we're moving some guys into different spots, and they're a little bit fish out of the water right now. I don't have any doubt that as training camp gets here and we get through some of these things in full pads, they'll feel a lot more comfortable with them."

He could say the same thing about the offense, which is built around throwing the ball but will be running it a lot more this year to take the pressure off second-year quarterback Matt Leinart.

When Whisenhunt took over as Pittsburgh's O-coordinator in 2004, the Steelers re-emphasized the run and returned to their accustomed spot among the league's better rushing teams. Whisenhunt plans to do the same thing with the Cardinals, but he has a lot farther to go with a club that was among the worst in the NFL last year at running the ball, averaging a league-worst 3.2 yards per carry and ranking 30th in rushing yards per game (83.6).

Edgerrin James was brought in last year to give life to a running game that had been sagging for years, but he didn't get going until late in the season and finished with the fewest rushing yards (1,159) he has had in a full campaign since he entered the league in 1999. Now James will have to switch from a one-back set, which he has run for most of his career, to the two-back system Whisenhunt plans to install.

Russ Grimm will be responsible for making it work, just as he did in Pittsburgh. Whisenhunt brought Grimm with him when the Steelers chose not to hire their former line coach, and Grimm has taken on the task of significantly upgrading an Arizona offensive line that has been a complete mess for the past three or four seasons.

Grimm is reshuffling almost the entire line, with three new players figuring prominently. First-round pick Levi Brown probably will start at right tackle at some point, Al Johnson will replace Nick Leckey at center, and Mike Gandy will battle Oliver Ross for the left tackle position. Reggie Wells moves from right tackle to left guard to replace Milford Brown, who was cut last week, and right guard Deuce Lutui is the only player who will be in the same spot he was in last season.

In an interview with SportsLine.com, Whisenhunt admitted that it might take some time to get the Cardinals up and running as well as the Steelers did.

"The big difference in Pittsburgh was that we had an offensive line that had been together," he said. "So there will be an adjustment period in terms of guys meshing on double teams and zone blocks.

"I think the guys on the offensive line are excited about running the football, about having a more physical game. What I learned in Pittsburgh is that you have to be able to run the ball and you have to be able to stop the run. And we did. We might not be as successful, but we're going to make the same commitment."

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About Chris Cluff

Chris Cluff spent 10 years as an editor and sportswriter for The Seattle Times. He was a key figure in the newspaper's coverage of the Seahawks, particularly during their Super Bowl run in 2005. He also has written two books on the Seahawks: "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Heart-Pounding,...
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