So, I’m really looking forward to the game on Sunday night. But before we get to that (and we will) let’s take a non-Saints fans look back at week 6. Let’s do this…
It didn’t work out like most Saints fans thought, but you had to know this type of game was going to happen. The defense has been giving up big plays for most of the season and at some point the offense wasn’t going to be able to keep up. This week they happened to come up slightly short. I guess there is some consolation in the fact that they only lost by 6 despite 4 turnovers. Really, thinking about it, it feels that the Saints lost by a lot more than that. I guess it’s good that they were in the game late, but a loss is a loss. And if the defense doesn’t step it up soon, there could be more of those.
The secondary can’t make a play. I know the Saints defense played well on third down, but both of those touchdown passes could have been avoided with slightly better play from the defensive backs. When Patrick Robinson is your best player on the day, you know it’s rough. The Olay Tackles made an appearance again. Preston Parker should have been laid out on that touchdown catch. Sticking your arms out at a receiver running full speed will not stop him. Tackling tends to get worse as the season progresses so this could be an issue—especially against the Colts this week (more on that in a day or two). Unless this gets fixed (and there is time) I don’t see this team doing much in the playoffs. More after the jump…
Sean Payton is a badass. Not only is he is an aggressive coach (I have a friend who calls him Tri-Testes Payton) but I’d bet he’s tougher than many players in the league. How intimidating is he to an opposing coach? How do you not feel like a woman coaching against him? You can just see him thinking, Yeah, I broke my shin and have a torn up knee. So what? I’m going to still out-coach you. What does Colts head coach Jim Caldwell do against a monster like that?
Side note: I kind of slept through most of the first half. In my half-daze I thought I heard the announcer say that Payton doesn’t make many of the decisions to go for it on 4th down. He said that the offensive coordinator makes most of the aggressive calls. Did I hear that correctly? Or does Payton decide to go for it on 4th and the coordinator just picks the play? Can someone fill me in on this?
Speaking of the Colts, they are my favorite team. Yup, the 0-6 Colts are my team. I’ll be honest, we’re bad. Really bad. But I’m happy to be playing the Saints right now. Sean Payton is hurt and who knows how much that affects the team’s preparation, the Saints secondary looks terrible, maybe the team doesn’t regroup after the loss. This could be an upset Sunday night. But that could just be the fan in me talking. Later in the week I’ll go more in depth on things to look out for during the game.
