Arizona Cardinals looking to unleash Rondale Moore with more creative use of second-year receiver

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Can Rondale Moore ignite an Arizona Cardinals offense? Cliff Kingsbury may have finally figured out how to get the most out of a sophomore wide receiver; Watch the Cardinals play the San Francisco 49ers live on Monday Night Football in Mexico from 1:15 am early Tuesday morning.

The Arizona Cardinals may have recently reminded themselves of the gem they have in Rondale Moore, whose wider deployment threatens to reveal the best of the second-year wide.

The “gadget” serves to applaud the versatility of elusive receivers that cloud the defense’s reading of a scrimmage advance and covert passes and just about everything that goes against your usual downfield route. It can also do a disservice to the traditional traits of catching a pass and running a route by casting a shadow of uncertainty about its role.

Moore naturally embraced this narrative when he emerged from Purdue with a reputation as a trap-running demon, adapted to a time of deep cover that freed up space in which to operate beneath him, and at a time when offensive coordinators competed between yourself. to see who can use their receivers in the most innovative and unusual way.

The tape spoke of a weapon that was electric with a ball in its hands, with a strong frame and a low center of gravity that allowed it to break grips and home run break speed, combined with devastating change of direction to lay double-stroke routes and open-field jukes.

In a Week 10 win over the Los Angeles Rams, Moore lined up as a receiver “X” isolated to the left of a 3×1 formation on fourth and second, performing a fade off his outside release before pivoting hips at the top of his route and hauling a catch with one hand in tight cover from David Long. It would have been the highlight of the week if not for Justin Jefferson and his absurd grip on the Buffalo Bills.

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It was also the newest part of the Cardinals’ potential epiphany: perhaps now is the time for Cliff Kingsbury to start using his road runner more in the bottom field. If not in the outfield, then at least expand the boundaries of the approach that limited Moore to primarily hit-and-run schemes behind the line of scrimmage. To sum it up, Moore caught 38 passes behind the line of scrimmage in the 2021 season, finishing second in the league, with the other four players in the top five being running backs (PFFs).

Moore is slowly putting together the most productive and arguably revealing period of his NFL career as the Cardinals show signs of using it more creatively. He recorded nine catches for 94 yards for 10.4 yards on a career-high 13-target reception against the Rams, then eight catches for 69 yards from 10 targets against the Seattle Seahawks and seven catches for 92 yards and a touchdown against the Minnesota Vikings.” . After seven games this season, Moore missed the first three weeks with an injury and only needs 22 yards and nine more targets to surpass his rookie record (435 yards from 64 targets in 14 games).

His 7.1 yards after catch-per-reception also ranks eighth in the league, while he averages 3.8 separation yards and the third-best 7.5 yards of average cushioning (Next Gen Stats metric for distance measured between receiver/ tight end and defender). they line up against during the click).

“That’s what we’ve seen all along,” Kingsbury said this week. “He is dynamic. We have to find ways to pass the ball to him in space and his ability to do it every play. The quarterback is definitely growing.”

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