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The New Orleans Saints All Time Worst Players and Team: Offense
In the midst of all this celebration and jubilation that follows our team's Super Bowl victory, I have to admit I have a little bit of an empty feeling inside this offseason. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait for the season to start and I'm burning in anticipation for the September 9th clash with the Vikings. I also couldn't be more elated with how last season ended. But something is different this offseason: there is nothing to really complain about. You see, as a Saints fan for my entire life, every offseason I've been programmed to do the following:
1. Complain about how awful the Saints were the previous year.
2. Talk non-stop about the necessary changes that need to be made.
3. Complain about how the Saints failed to make said suggested changes.
Having the satisfaction of being on top means a happy customer and no thriving for change.
Before you crucify me for being a bad fan, don't tell me you don't feel the same, even if it's just a little bit. So what are we supposed to complain about now? This is where these posts come in. I present to you, in conjunction with your voting for the CSC All-Time Saints Team, the All Time Saints' Awful Team. After reading these you can go back to celebrate while feeling more complete. In fact, these names will probably make you appreciate last season even more.
QB: Heath Shuler - Shuler was the 3rd pick overall in the NFL draft by the Redskins and he played for the Saints under Mike Ditka for just one season in 1997. Shuler posted a Ryan Leaf-esque stat line throwing for just 2 touchdowns and 14 interceptions in 9 starts that season. I'm giving honorable mentions to Danny Wuerffel and Doug Nussmeier, Shuler's backups that season, for playing bad enough to allow Shuler back on the field at different points during the season.WR: Albert Connell - Another player the Redskins hooked us up with. Connell played for the Saints in 2001 only but was supposed to be a big time addition. The Saints gave him a 5 year, $13 million deal that included a $2.5 million signing bonus to catch 12 passes that season. Apparently that wasn't enough loot for him, because he elected to steal $4000 in cash from Deuce McAllister's locker. I blame him for Deuce's current bankruptcy issues.
WR: Lindsay Scott - The Saints had huge expectations for the UGA star picking him 13th overall in 1982. The guy rewarded them by being completely incapable of catching a cold, or getting open. He scored just one touchdown in four seasons and never had more than 24 catches in a year.
HB: Vaughn Dunbar - Mike Ditka picked Dunbar 1st overall in 1992, and after a subpar 1992 season he blew out his knee. He would come back to fumble his way through two more seasons and end it with a 3.5 yard per carry career average.
FB: Bill Butler - Butler was notorious for being an awful blocker at fullback for the Saints in the early 70's and was known for getting holding penalties called on him on almost every possession. He was supposed to be a playmaker but he only found the end zone rushing once in three seasons.
TE: Irv Smith - The 1993 draft wasn't all bad as it brought the Saints William Roaf, but Smith was a 1st round pick in that draft as well. The Notre Dame product was a mediocre blocker, he was slow, and he dropped more crucial passes than I could ever care to remember. He never scored more than 3 times in one season and he averaged less than 27 receptions per year in his 5 seasons with the Saints. Irv was also the king of false start penalties and was good for at least two a game.
T: Darryl Terrell - Arguably the worst starting left tackle in NFL history.
T: Keno Hills - How Hills remained with the team as long as he did (3 seasons) despite constantly getting beat like a drum was beyond me. Hills was famous in the late 90's for inviting any player he was blocking to positively pummel his quarterback. He was later arrested for heroin possession with intent to distribute while also carrying a fire arm. As overweight as he was I can't imagine he used that much heroin.
G: Royce Smith - 8th pick overall and he played just two seasons for the Saints in 1972 and 1973 before they got rid of him.
G: John Shinners - Shinners was a 1st round pick in 1969, and just the third player drafted by the Saints in the 1st round in team history. He ended up having a fairly lengthy and decent career, but only played two mediocre seasons with the Saints to start before they got rid of him. Should have hung on to this one.
So who did I miss? Any players that didn't make my team that you would have added?
Have the New Orleans Saints Benefited From an Uncapped Season?
The rules of engagement in NFL free agency this offseason underwent a dramatic face lift, and it's safe to say the approach many teams took because of the rule changes in an "uncapped season" completely changed many team's approach to roster moves. The top 8 finishers, for starters, couldn't sign any unrestricted free agents unless they lost one. This was, I assume, in an effort to give the weaker teams from the 2009 season a competitive advantage in luring top tier available talent. The only problem with that? Good young top tier talent wasn't available, for the most part, because normally unrestricted free agent 4th and 5th year players became restricted. I'm not going to dig too deeply into the different nuances of the specific rules, because I think most of us have either taken the exorbitant amount of time needed to understand it by now, or just don't care to learn it. So here's the real question: did the Saints benefit from the changes brought about in the uncapped season?
Let's start with the losses. The main names that are gone are Scott Fujita, Mike Bell, Jammal Brown (by trade) and most likely Mark Brunell. The Saints also released a slew of players this offseason, but I think it's clear that all those players would be history in a capped year as well. Had this been a capped season, I think it's safe to assume all four players listed above would still be gone also. If anything, Brown and Bell were both closer to staying based on the new rules. The Saints could have kept Bell, but they refused to match an offer made by the Philadelphia Eagles, making it clear they deemed he was expendable. In a capped year they wouldn't have had the right to even match the offer. The Saints got value out of Jammal Brown, because they could, trading him to the Washington Redskins. If Brown was an unrestricted free agent, he would have gone to the highest bidder, and I can promise you that was never going to be the Saints and they'd get no compensation. The Brunell as Brees' backup experiment has run it's course, and he's old enough that he was unrestricted anyway. As for Fujita, it's possible he saw a larger offer than he might have seen on a capped market by the Cleveland Browns, but it's clear the Browns valued what he could bring to them more than the Saints valued his worth to the their team. Based on how fast Fujita signed with the Browns, I think it's pretty clear New Orleans made no real attempt to keep him. I think it's safe to say based on all this that the uncapped season didn't hurt the Saints from a loss standpoint.From a re-signing of your own players standpoint, the setup is such that teams have an advantage in keeping their own players. Let's face it, if Lance Moore, Roman Harper, Jahri Evans and Pierre Thomas hit the open market unrestricted, the Saints lose at least one of them. Granted the Saints may have gone to bigger lengths to re-sign these guys prior to them hitting the market, but keep in mind unrestricted free agency is a goldmine for most players and they like to test it out. I'm sure they'd make a run at keeping all of them, but sometimes the almighty dollar trumps anything else. Regardless of whether Pierre Thomas asked for Steven Jackson type money or not, you have to figure there's a team out there stupid (or smart) enough to give it to him. The only reason he didn't see that on the open market this year is no team wants to give up that kind of money on top of a 2nd round draft choice. Jahri Evans got the richest deal in NFL history for a guard, so I think he would have stayed regardless, but I still think the Saints benefited from having exclusive rights to him because it gave them more time to iron out the extension and exact terms. With competition from other teams the Saints may have needed to act faster. As for Roman Harper and Lance Moore, both are pretty good players, but you have to figure there's a team out there that would value them more than the Saints do. The Saints view them as solid role players, not superstars. Other teams could view them as SuperBowl champions that could turn around their poor fortunes. Someone would throw Fujita-like stupid money at them. The fact that these four players (Evans, Thomas, Moore and Harper) are all back with the Saints is in large part thanks to the new rules. Under the usual rules of free agency, those four players would have been unrestricted and available for any team to sign at no compensation.
As for the acquisition of unrestricted free agents, there's no question the Saints were at a disadvantage with the top 8 rule. But they still managed to upgrade their pass rushing ends with Jimmy Wilkerson and Alex Brown, which made both Charles Grant and Bobby McCray expendable. They were still able to add Jason McKie as insurance, should Heath Evans take more time than expected to recover from his knee injury. They were still able to add depth on the offensive line by signing Terrence Metcalf. I'd also like to add that the Saints were right up against the cap before the league went uncapped anyway, so there's no way they could have competed with signing expensive coveted unrestricted free agent difference makers anyway based on their previous cap situation.
Finally, I'll also make the argument that the new rules helped bring Darren Sharper back. There's no denying Sharper wanted a 3 year deal, and he wanted someone to commit to him for the last few years of his career. No team would do that, in my opinion, not only was he coming off microfracture knee surgery, but because there's a chance next year will end in a lockout. No team wants to commit to the big signing bonus up front that goes along with a 3 year deal when they might not get to play next season. The injury factor alone was significant, but a long term deal based on an uncertain immediate future for the league wasn't going to happen. So where did that leave Sharper? He either signs for big money with a crappy team for one year that didn't make the playoffs last year (like the Jaguars who showed interest), or he re-signs with the Saints. In a capped season, the Jets could have signed Sharper and they were clearly interest. But Sharper could only sign with a top 8 team if said teams lost an unrestricted free agent player first. The Jets' hands were completely tied, so they couldn't sign Sharper. The Saints were exempt from the top 8 rules with respect to Sharper because he was their own player. Sharper is a winner and he wanted to play for a good team that gave him a shot at winning another SuperBowl. Well, the Saints were the only team under the top 8 rules that made the divisional playoffs last year and could sign him at no penalty. I'd say that's a pretty huge advantage.
All in all, I think a lot of us were worried that teams with more financial means like the Raiders, Cowboys and Redskins would throw all kinds of crazy money at free agents and this uncapped season would be a major disadvantage to a small market team like the Saints. In the end, I think this offseason went much better than it would have otherwise thanks to the rules that were in place when you consider all the items listed above.
I've included a poll to get your thoughts on whether you agree, or if you think otherwise on if the uncapped offseason rules helped the Saints. Looking forward to seeing what you guys think about it.
Saints Offseason Grades
I know most of you are dying for some football, and no, I'm not talking about that "football" they're playing over there in South Africa where if you touch someone a little too hard they wave a yellow piece a paper at you. I also know that the lack of football in your life also means you've been spared from my post game player grading. Perhaps this is a good thing. As much as you needed a break from my posting, I needed a break from reviewing game film so I could come back refreshed and ready to do more this season. Today I thought to myself, hey, I actually miss grading the Saints players. Admittedly that hasn't been the case too many times this offseason, but I think I'm officially ready for the season to start and for my blogging role at CSC to resume. It's true, I need to step up my game. Well there is only one problem, there are no games, so there's nothing to grade. You're still getting something out of me, so here's your offseason grades
saints-nation, aka "the Juge", aka Andrew Juge, aka me: D- (.067) My lack of blogging on CSC has been utterly pathetic. How Dave hasn't banished me yet I'm not sure. In fact, he doesn't know I'm writing this right now so I hope you enjoy reading this before it's deleted. In my defense, I've been focused on my own Saints blog which I still update daily, and I've been "celebrating" the birth of my first child who came to the world on May 16th. Any of you dads out there know how the things you "want to do" happen less frequently when you're busy changing diapers. I still argue that I'm not deserving of an F, though, because I'm typing this now and I didn't fail Jermon Bushrod's performance against the Cowboys. That's right, I gave him a D-. Granted this proves my standards are incredibly low, but if someone getting routinely abused by DeMarcus Ware operating at 45% is worthy of a passing grade, by God I am too.
Jeremy Shockey's Hydration: C+ (2.33) Sure, he passed out again, which is becoming a cool little offseason ritual for him... but he did it at the training facility this time. I'm guessing team doctors were on grounds, so this was safer, and he looks more heroic for busting his tail in the weight room. Shockey is getting pretty good at picking his pass out locations. Way better than wasted poolside in Vegas, right? Perhaps ESPN should start polling fans where he'll land next. Do you think there are any NFL odds on this?
Dave Cariello aka saintsational: A+ (4.33) The lack of participation by me has meant Dave assuming an even larger responsibility than usual in keeping all you good people entertained. So what does he do? He gets Al Woods to become a resident blogger for like a week. How cool was that? He's stayed on top of everything and kept the summer dialog plentiful, which I can promise you is no easy task in the offseason when you're a blog that just talks about one NFL team. He also finally revealed his true identify to you all by making his name "Dave Cariello." Another great call, because every time I read "saintsational" I read saintsation. Now sure, maybe that's my perverse mind, but I for one do not enjoy confusing Dave with an attractive girl in pom-poms. It's like taking a really cold shower.
Whoever Designed the SuperBowl Ring (pictured): A (4.00) It's got a fleur de lis on it, it says World Champions (even though the Saints never play any teams outside the US), and it's got a crapload of diamonds on it. We could pool together about four or five engagement rings we've collectively given our wives/fiances, and they'd still be worth less together than this prized jewel. Either we're pathetic or the Saints are awesome. Perhaps said wives/fiances would argue both are true.
Mickey Loomis: C+ (2.33) He does pretty good with the draft. He finally dumps Charles Grant's lazy a$$. He covers up a felony, allegedly. He gives Jahri Evans the deal he deserves. He plays hard ball with Pierre Thomas and probably ticked him off. Mixed bag.
Roman Harper and Lance Moore: A (4.00) Those guys were in the same position as Jammal Brown and Pierre Thomas. Did they refuse to sign their tenders? No. Did they hold up to express their displeasure about the contract status? No. Did they show up to work despite not having deals in place so they could work with their teammates? Yes. I applaud these guys. Class acts all the way.
Steve Smith: F- (negative GPA?) How do you break your arm playing flag football when you're a pro player? Wow. Epic fail. Good thing he doesn't play for the Saints or he might have suckerpunched Leigh Torrence for no reason and broken his jaw. Not that you root for opposing team's players to get injured, but I'm in favor of anything that stunts the growth of Panther's QB Matt Moore.
And last but not least, a question. I'm curious: what grade would you give yourself for CSC participation this offseason?
Saints Offseason Grades
I know most of you are dying for some football, and no, I'm not talking about that "football" they're playing over there in South Africa where if you touch someone a little too hard they wave a yellow piece a paper at you. I also know that the lack of football in your life also means you've been spared from my post game player grading. Perhaps this is a good thing. As much as you needed a break from my posting, I needed a break from reviewing game film so I could come back refreshed and ready to do more this season. Today I thought to myself, hey, I actually miss grading the Saints players. Admittedly that hasn't been the case too many times this offseason, but I think I'm officially ready for the season to start and for my blogging role at CSC to resume. It's true, I need to step up my game. Well there is only one problem, there are no games, so there's nothing to grade. You're still getting something out of me, so here's your offseason grades
saints-nation, aka "the Juge", aka Andrew Juge, aka me: D- (.067) My lack of blogging on CSC has been utterly pathetic. How Dave hasn't banished me yet I'm not sure. In fact, he doesn't know I'm writing this right now so I hope you enjoy reading this before it's deleted. In my defense, I've been focused on my own Saints blog which I still update daily, and I've been "celebrating" the birth of my first child who came to the world on May 16th. Any of you dads out there know how the things you "want to do" happen less frequently when you're busy changing diapers. I still argue that I'm not deserving of an F, though, because I'm typing this now and I didn't fail Jermon Bushrod's performance against the Cowboys. That's right, I gave him a D-. Granted this proves my standards are incredibly low, but if someone getting routinely abused by DeMarcus Ware operating at 45% is worthy of a passing grade, by God I am too.
Jeremy Shockey's Hydration: C+ (2.33) Sure, he passed out again, which is becoming a cool little offseason ritual for him... but he did it at the training facility this time. I'm guessing team doctors were on grounds, so this was safer, and he looks more heroic for busting his tail in the weight room. Shockey is getting pretty good at picking his pass out locations. Way better than wasted poolside in Vegas, right? Perhaps ESPN should start polling fans where he'll land next. Do you think there are any NFL odds on this?
Dave Cariello aka saintsational: A+ (4.33) The lack of participation by me has meant Dave assuming an even larger responsibility than usual in keeping all you good people entertained. So what does he do? He gets Al Woods to become a resident blogger for like a week. How cool was that? He's stayed on top of everything and kept the summer dialog plentiful, which I can promise you is no easy task in the offseason when you're a blog that just talks about one NFL team. He also finally revealed his true identify to you all by making his name "Dave Cariello." Another great call, because every time I read "saintsational" I read saintsation. Now sure, maybe that's my perverse mind, but I for one do not enjoy confusing Dave with an attractive girl in pom-poms. It's like taking a really cold shower.
Whoever Designed the SuperBowl Ring (pictured): A (4.00) It's got a fleur de lis on it, it says World Champions (even though the Saints never play any teams outside the US), and it's got a crapload of diamonds on it. We could pool together about four or five engagement rings we've collectively given our wives/fiances, and they'd still be worth less together than this prized jewel. Either we're pathetic or the Saints are awesome. Perhaps said wives/fiances would argue both are true.
Mickey Loomis: C+ (2.33) He does pretty good with the draft. He finally dumps Charles Grant's lazy a$$. He covers up a felony, allegedly. He gives Jahri Evans the deal he deserves. He plays hard ball with Pierre Thomas and probably ticked him off. Mixed bag.
Roman Harper and Lance Moore: A (4.00) Those guys were in the same position as Jammal Brown and Pierre Thomas. Did they refuse to sign their tenders? No. Did they hold up to express their displeasure about the contract status? No. Did they show up to work despite not having deals in place so they could work with their teammates? Yes. I applaud these guys. Class acts all the way.
Steve Smith: F- (negative GPA?) How do you break your arm playing flag football when you're a pro player? Wow. Epic fail. Good thing he doesn't play for the Saints or he might have suckerpunched Leigh Torrence for no reason and broken his jaw. Not that you root for opposing team's players to get injured, but I'm in favor of anything that stunts the growth of Panther's QB Matt Moore.
And last but not least, a question. I'm curious: what grade would you give yourself for CSC participation this offseason?
New Orleans Saints’ Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades vs. Colts
Below are the last players grades I'll do this season. Thanks for all the great feedback and comments you've given me, it's been a lot of fun doing this. I look forward to doing it again next year, though the time away from studying game film will be nice. The letter grade represents the players performance in the game, whereas the GPA in parentheses represents the player's cumulative effort for the season. You'll also notice that because I'm taking Tracy Porter as the player of the game defensively as a given, the poll will be for your special teams player of the game. Lots of great options to choose from there. Sidenote, was anyone else shocked that no roughing the passer calls were made all game? I'm not saying that any hits deserved that designation at all, but I am saying that with pressure being a major part of the gameplan for both teams and all the rules that favor the quarterback's health: I am shocked we never saw a roughing call.
Will Smith: C (2.75) Very quiet day for Smith. As always, the effort was very evidently there. It's no secret he's by far the Saints' biggest pass rushing threat, especially when they only send four. Everyone knows by now: you neutralize Smith and you have time to throw the ball. That's exactly what happened, which is why Gregg Williams dialed up the blitz incessantly. Will Smith ended with 1 tackle, and his best pressure was on the very last Colts offensive play of the game where he hurried Peyton Manning into throwing the ball incomplete on 4th and goal. The Saints are going to have to get Smith some kind of help in the offseason because the Saints can't just count on one player on their front four to consistently get to the quarterback. Sidenote, on Tracy Porter's interception runback for a touchdown, the Saints were very fortunate that Smith didn't get flagged for a block in the back on Manning. Peyton's back was turned to the play as Porter cut inside of him, and Smith felt free to give him a shove and knock him to the ground. The referee missed that call.
Bobby McCray: B- (2.07) Maybe the answer to Smith getting help is a healthy Bobby McCray? He's still a far cry from the performances he had a year ago, but the two weeks off seemed to help his aching back. McCray finished with 2 tackles and was able to get to Manning and force hurries a few times. He also put a nice hit on the Colts' QB at one point. For what it's worth, I do feel like McCray has made some strides against the run because in the pass he's been a bit of a one trick pony. The less of a liability he is against the run, the more the Saints will trust him on running downs. Give McCray credit for also causing the Colts' right tackle to jump early.
Anthony Hargrove: B (2.43) Hargrove was actually very solid against the run, and put good pressure up the middle. He finished with 3 tackles. I was surprised to see the Saints even use random blitz packages where they'd drop Hargrove into zone coverage over the middle, and he handled himself well in that capacity as well. I think the Saints adopted that option because Manning was dumping the ball off over the middle to Joe Addai so much. I don't remember having seen that defensive wrinkle this season, so I think it's fair to say Gregg Williams gave Manning looks he wasn't expecting. The only reason Hargrove's grade isn't higher is the completely idiotic personal foul penalty he got near the end of the game for spearing Addai. Totally unecessary.
Sedrick Ellis: B- (2.72) The Saints are completely and utterly reliant on Ellis to stop the run. If he didn't get push inside and pressure at the point of attack, Addai usually ripped significant runs. If he did, Addai was usually stopped dead in his tracks. He finished with 3 tackles, including one for a loss. While Addai did hurt the Saints for a massive 5.9 yards per carry average, give Ellis credit for his good play in short yardage situations. I will say, though, that I've seen Ellis tackle much better than he did in this game.
Scott Fujita: B- (2.74) Fujita was sent blitzing a lot, and the Colts were ready for it. As much as we praise Drew Brees for how quickly he gets the ball out of there, Peyton Manning was getting the ball out of his hands quicker. Fujita was able to get to Manning and hit him just once. He finished with 4 tackles, but allowed a few to slip past him. He was decent in this game, but nothing special.
Scott Shanle: B (2.69) Shanle was the player most responsible for covering Dallas Clark, and he was victimized often. More often than not, his coverage was actually exceptionally good. Clark would often have Shanle draped all over him, only for Manning to fit his passes into the tightest of windows and Clark to make very sure catches in traffic. Very tough assignment for Shanle, who wasn't able to help as much in run support because of his duty in coverage. I can't really blame Shanle for getting beat as often as he did, because I'm not sure Ray Lewis would've fared much better. When a quarterback is that accurate and a tight end is that good, there only so much you can do. Shanle did have 6 tackles and made a lot of beautiful open field stops. He was sure in his tackles and coverage, so I thought he was pretty solid overall. I can't give him too good of a grade because of the amount of times he was beat, but let's not forget he also had two defended passes with textbook coverage and a big hit on Manning on a blitz.
Jonathan Vilma: B (2.93) I think that perhaps Vilma would've handled the Dallas Clark assignment slightly better than Shanle did, but it's clear Gregg Williams trusted that task to Shanle because he wanted Vilma free to roam the middle of the field to make open field plays with Darren Sharper playing so deep. Vilma finished with 7 tackles, 2 of them for a loss, and a defended pass. When he shot upfield and into the backfield he was able to make a couple of sick plays. He did a nice job, especially late, in pass coverage as well. My only complaint is that he whiffed badly on a few running plays, especially early. Addai made him look pretty silly on a few running plays where Vilma assumed a play action and was late to respond once he realized the play was actually a run. Part of the Colts' success running the ball was Vilma's bad angles and poor tackling at times. Still, the good outweighed the bad.
Jabari Greer: B- (3.28) Greer was covering Pierre Garcon for a large majority of the evening, and he did fine. Greer finished with 4 tackles and no defended passes. He got banged up at one point, came out, and Garcon immediately caught a 19 yard touchdown pass, if that gives you any idea how valuable Greer's coverage is to the Saints. Give him credit for a couple of terrific open field tackles, too. That said, Greer's coverage wasn't the usual blanket shut down style we've all grown accustomed to. Many times his coverage on Garcon was entirely too soft, though he never allowed the speedster behind him. On the big third down drop by Pierre Garcon, Greer was beaten badly. Not only would that catch have been a big conversion to keep an important drive alive for the Colts, but Garcon could have gained significant yardage after that catch. That drop was a huge play in the game. I'm not saying the Saints lose if Garcon makes that catch, but it wasn't good coverage at all by Greer and the complexion of the game would have changed.
Tracy Porter: A (3.15) I just can't say enough about the game Tracy Porter played. Forget the game winning 74 yard interception return for a touchdown that might just be the biggest play in Saints' history, the guy was on his game all night. Is it possible Porter ended this season as the Saints' best cover corner over Greer? It's possible. Either way, the Saints have a dynamite tandem and if these two stay healthy then our pass defense will be very good for a long time. Porter ended the game with 4 tackles, and the only minus was I saw him miss a couple of tackles that he's capable of making. I know Reggie Wayne was battling a sore knee, but to hold him to 5 catches for 46 yards in the biggest game of the season is a monster performance. Tracy Porter might get my award for the Saints' player of the playoffs ahead of Drew Brees and Pierre Thomas. Can you guys remember the last time we had a young cornerback that was this good? I can't.
Randall Gay: B- (2.64) Like Shanle, Gay was victimized a couple of times despite textbook coverage. That's what happens when you play Peyton Manning, I suppose. Any other quarterback for any other team and those passes probably fell incomplete or got intercepted. The Saints missed him when he left the game with an injury, because Usama Young struggled in the slot before giving way to Malcolm Jenkins. Gay finished with 2 tackles.
Malcolm Jenkins: A- (2.46) What a game by the rookie cornerback. Wow! I was so pumped to see Jenkins come up and finally put together a very composed and legitimate performance. If not for Tracy Porter, Jenkins would have a case for the defensive player of the game. Maybe he's turning a corner, no pun intended, but I felt pretty reassured that Jenkins is very capable in the slot. He finished with 5 tackles, including one for a loss. Keep in mind these tackles came mostly in the second half once Randall Gay left with an injury which increased Jenkins' workload. He was all over the field. He made big hits, sure tackles in the open field, and was mostly great in coverage. Jenkins did get beat deep once by Austin Collie for a 40 yard pass on the Colts' final drive. That's been a bad habit of his to allow receivers behind him, and his biggest liability continues to be his speed. He just doesn't have the catch up speed to make up for his mistakes, so they are magnified when he makes them. The thing about Porter and Greer is that they make less mistakes, but they're also so fast that they can get away with more than Jenkins. Anyway, Jenkins played a whale of a game, and he almost got himself a pick by masterfully jumping an out route but Manning's pass was just outside of his reach. He also put a monstrous hit on Dallas Clark late that let the tight end know "if you keep hurting us, I'm going to start hurting you". Love it.
Roman Harper: B+ (2.74) Harper was the secondary cover guy on Dallas Clark, when Shanle was sent blitzing or left to help in run support. Like Shanle, he had a couple of times where terrific coverage led to nice breakups and a couple of times where nice coverage could do nothing to stop a completion. Harper was around the box and making tackles all day. His coverage was overall much better than usual. He finished with a team high 8 tackles, and minus a few slipped tackles I thought he had a very solid performance. I will say that his help over the top on the touchdown pass to Pierre Garcon, though, was terrible.
Darren Sharper: C+ (2.86) Did any of you see how far back Sharper was playing all game? It was like Gregg Williams was saying: "you can do your underneath stuff all you want all game long, I'm not going to let you beat us deep over the top". That strategy worked for the most part, because besides the 40 yard Collie reception late (where Sharper provided poor help over the top to Jenkins) the Colts didn't have any success throwing deep. In fact, they hardly ever tried to. Overall Sharper did a good job of taking that option away from Manning, but he finished with just 3 tackles and didn't do a great job in run support when he'd come up to back a play. It was a quiet day for Sharper overall, but the gameplan was partly to blame for that.
Pierson Prioleau: B- (2.50) Prioleau was solid in coverage the few times he was asked to come in and play defense. He was also solid on special teams. Small sample size, but I thought I'd recognize that I liked what I saw. He finished with 1 tackle.
Usama Young: C- (2.80) Young was good on special teams, too, but when he came in to replace Jabari Greer on defense, Peyton Manning immediately went after him. His coverage on the 19 yard touchdown pass to Pierre Garcon was not good and he was burned badly. He finished with 1 tackle and wasn't really allowed to see the field again on defense after that play.
Jeff Charleston: C+ (2.33) Like Smith I saw a lot of effort and he put decent pressure on Manning, finishing with 1 tackle. Too many times, though, it just seemed like anytime Charleston was on the field I saw him running after the play as oppose to making it.
Thomas Morstead: A- (3.12) I was surprised to see that his kickoffs were a lot shorter than usual, as he never got one to go for a touchback. That's the only negative, because the kickoff coverage units were on it. Chad Simpson averaged just 22.2 yards per kick return and was tackled at least behind the 30 on almost every return but one that I could remember. He also averaged a healthy 44 yards per punt, again getting one inside the 20, and the other punt was returned for no gain. So that means his net average was also 44 yards. What else can you say about the guy? Hands down the Saints' rookie of the year. Give him credit, too, for hitting that onside kick to start the second half perfectly.
Courtney Roby: A (2.91) Roby is clearly the Saints' best gunner, and he's turning himself into arguably one of the best gunner's in the league. That no gain punt return I spoke of was T.J. Rushing getting obliterated by Roby right after he caught the punt. Hey T.J., you should've fair caught that one buddy. Roby was also the man that downed the punt inside the 20. His 4 kickoff returns also went for a solid 25.5 average, including one for 34 yards. Give Roby props for coming back from an apparent leg injury just two weeks prior in the Vikings game. The guy is a stud.
Garrett Hartley: A+ (3.17) Hartley was perfect on 3 field goals and 2 extra points. Every kick he hit went right down the middle. He was the first kicker in SuperBowl history to connect on three kicks from 40+ yards. None of those kicks were easy chip shots, and there was absolutely no doubt when they left his foot that they would be good. He's got a case for SuperBowl MVP, in my opinion, just like Brees and Porter. In summary, he carried out his job to perfection. He deserves an A+, because literally, he couldn't physically have performed his duty any better than he did. It's funny because I heard an ESPN analyst say in the pregame that the kicking game was a major advantage to the Colts because of Matt Stover's experience, but look who missed the big time kick and look who was solid all game long.
Chris Reis: B+ (2.50) He didn't do much in this game, but he recovered the onside kick and his GPA was hurting prior to this game, so I decided to give him a little boost. Upon review, the ball was trapped between his hamstring and his hand. I'm not sure how he came out of the pile with the football. Give him credit for great strength. That recovery was one of the biggest plays of the game.
My Saints' Defensive Player of the Game: Tracy Porter
My Saints' Special Teams Player of the Game: Garrett Hartley
New Orleans Saints’ Offensive Player Grades vs. Colts
For the last time this season, these are the offensive player grades against the Colts in the SuperBowl. Keep in mind that while you might find that some of these grades are harsh, the offensive line struggled mightily in short yardage situations and the Saints only averaged 2.8 yards per carry as a team. Regardless of these grades, though, nothing can change the fact that the Saints are SUPERBOWL CHAMPIONS BABY!!!
Drew Brees: A- (3.24) The guy was MVP of the game for a reason. Despite being pressured significantly a number of times, he was only sacked once, and he finished the game 32 of 39 for 288 yards and 2 TD's with no turnovers. Some of the windows Brees fit his passes in were so small you almost wonder if he has too much confidence in his ability. The only time Brees seemed to have time back in the pocket was on play action plays. Otherwise, his unmatched footwork was on full display. Brees was conservative most of the night, taking what the defense gave him underneath and being content with the short safe throws. The one negative that I'll say about Brees, and for some reason this has been an issue lately, is that his deep balls downfield have really suffered in terms of accuracy. That was similarly the case in this game, as he missed both Jeremy Shockey and Robert Meachem down the seam with overthrows. Still, it was a masterful performance. He was a little shaky early but he turned it on in impressive fashion after the first quarter and he never really came close to turning the ball over. He completed his last 10 passes and 18 out of his last 19. WOW!
Reggie Bush: B (2.78) Bush finished with just 25 yards on 5 carries, 38 yards on 4 catches, and one punt return for 4 yards. While he didn't have a game changing play I thought he was overall pretty solid. He hit the holes with authority and showed nice burst and aggression. He also got roughed out of bounds so while it won't show up on the stat sheet he got the Saints a nice 15 yard gain off that. The most impressive play Bush had all game was on a third down where he stood up a blitzing linebacker in pass protection, then curled off the block to catch a short sidearm pass from Brees that he then turned upfield to get a big first down. Bush did a little bit of everything on that play: blocked impeccably on a tough assignment, caught a tough pass in traffic, and turned it upfield for a nice gain. I think Bush has turned a corner and has waved goodbye to some of the bad habits that haunted his play earlier this season and throughout his career.
Mike Bell: C- (2.38) I love Bell, and his action was so limited in the game that I hate to give him a bad grade... but one of the two carries he had was a very regrettable circumstance. On third and goal from the 1, Bell tried to bounce his run outside instead of hitting the middle of the line of scrimmage. Bell slipped on the play, and was hit for a one yard loss. The Saints would go for it on 4th down and get stopped inside the 5. That failure to score could have been a back breaker. Luckily it wasn't, but coming away without points there was unacceptable. He finished with 2 carries for 4 yards.
Pierre Thomas: B+ (3.15) You might look at Thomas' stats and think he didn't have that special of a game: 9 carries for 30 yards, and 6 catches for 55 yards with 1 TD, but he ran with impressive toughness and would never go down to the first tackler. Even on the 4th and goal play where he was stopped short of the goal line, he broke two tackles, before another two tacklers were finally able to wrestle him down. Don't blame him, blame the terrible blocking for that play. Several times Thomas looked to be stopped dead in his tracks only to get extra yards. He did a fantastic job wielding through traffic on his touchdown, a 16 yard screen pass where he got great lead blocks before cutting back against traffic and breaking a tackle on his way to the end zone. What an awesome season for PT.
Marques Colston: B+ (2.93) Colston's drop hurt his grade. You know the drop I'm talking about. That was flat out unacceptable. It stalled a Saints drive and is part of the reason the Colts got up 10-0 early. How he dropped that ball is beyond me, that was maybe his easiest catch of the season. Then he comes back, and makes a reaching grab in traffic for a huge first down deep in Saints territory to get them out of bad field position. That catch was one of the toughest he's had all season. Weird. Overall his play the rest of the game was very solid and he more than made up for his mistake early. He was Brees' most targeted player and he delivered several times with big catches. He finished with 7 catches for 83 yards and kept the chains moving. The Colts had no answer for his frame on high passes downfield.
Devery Henderson: B+ (2.86) Henderson wore a different hat in the SuperBowl than we've been accustomed to seeing throughout his career. Instead of being the stretch the field, deep threat guy that makes only big plays, Henderson was the short throw underneath chains moving guy. Henderson made nice tough catches in tight coverage all night. He finished with 7 catches for 63 yards and provided a reliable target for Brees all day. He was also seen throwing a terrific block off the edge for Reggie Bush on a 12 yard run. Henderson also had an end around that went for a loss of 7 yards, with him passively tip toeing out of bounds to avoid a hit. Granted the play was going nowhere, but come on Devery. That aside, a solid performance for #19.
Lance Moore: B+ (2.54) Moore had limited action in this game, but boy did he make the most of it. After a reception for no gain, he had a huge 21 yard reception on one of the Saints' drives, making one of the largest gaining plays of the day. That aside, Moore made arguably the play of the day. Perhaps Tracy Porter steals his thunder a little bit with a game sealing pick six, but that 2 point conversion catch Moore made was one of the most athletic and clutch plays I have ever seen. On that stage, with the Saints up 5, for him to come up with that play was just sick. I can't give Moore enough credit for that play. He was quiet otherwise, but that play had a huge impact on the game.
Robert Meachem: C (2.84) Meachem finished with just 2 catches for 6 yards and really had no impact whatsoever on the game. The ankle must really be limiting him because for a while there towards the end of the season before that injury happened he was the arguably the best playing receiver on the roster. I gave his grade a little boost, though, because he took a screen pass at the line of scrimmage that had no business going anywhere, and he did a fantastic job of breaking a tackle and turning that play into a 6 yard gain.
Jeremy Shockey: B (2.83) Shockey had been playing on one leg throughout the playoffs. Give the guy credit, he toughed it out. By the way, the 3 games Shockey missed this season are the 3 games the Saints lost. When Shockey played, the Saints were 16-0 this season. He finished with just 3 catches for 13 yards and a touchdown. Most of his catches were of little impact and short of necessary yardage, but his touchdown was a beautiful one on one box out job where he just out-muscled the defender for the ball. That 2 yard reception ended up being the difference in the game.
David Thomas: B- (2.48) His lone reception for 9 yards gave the Saints a 1st and goal, and it preceded the aforementioned Shockey touchdown. Thomas did his usual movement from starting tight end, to second tight end to fullback. He had mixed results with his blocking, but had no major mistakes.
Jermon Bushrod: C+ (2.61) A one legged Dwight Freeney gave Bushrod absolutely everything he could handle. I was surprised to see that because Freeney had trouble getting a burst off the edge with his bum ankle, he resorted to just bum rushing Bushrod on most downs and had a tremendous amount of success doing so. In a word, Bushrod was abused by a clearly superior football player. The Saints gave Bushrod a lot of help throughout the game to neutralize the pass rush coming from that side, even when Freeney was taking a breather. As the game progressed it seemed like Bushrod got better, but it was a mediocre performance for him. Luckily he only gave up one sack.
Zach Strief: C- (2.33) Strief played a number of downs as the blocking tight end. He was flagged for a false start inside the Colts' 5. He also failed to report as an eligible receiver once (not sure if that's his fault or the coaching staff's fault), and he was very fortunate to not get flagged for an ineligible receiver downfield. Oh, and his blocking wasn't up to snuff. Definitely not his best day. It's going to be interesting to see what the Saints do with the left tackle position next season. Jammal Brown is coming off an injury and is in the last year of his contract, and both Bushrod and Strief have had their ups and downs. I'm not sure either can be the long term permanent answer at left tackle. In Strief's defense, the Saints have had him playing all over the field (including tight end) all season. If his natural position is right tackle, it's nice that the Saints are giving him playing time and finding ways to get him involved, but I can't imagine it's easy to play out of position all the time. Give Strief credit, like David Thomas, for helping the Saints all season and doing whatever the team asked of him even when he wasn't put in ideal circumstances to showcase his skills.
Carl Nicks: B- (2.95) His run blocking was surprisingly mediocre, and his pass blocking wasn't very impressive either. No major mistakes, so Nicks was fairly steady, but he just wasn't mauling people and taking care of business like he normally does.
Jonathan Goodwin: B- (2.96) Goodwin got very little push off the line of scrimmage all day long. Whenever he stayed in position he had very little success. He did have success, as always, pulling on screens and leading the way with huge blocks. Give him credit for springing that Pierre Thomas touchdown with a fantastic lead block.
Jahri Evans: B- (3.12) Like Goodwin, on PT's touchdown, he threw a tremendous block to seal the backside and give Thomas a cut back lane which he'd use to score. Both of those blocks really were special. Evans, however, was otherwise struggling. He was very up and down all game. He was either dominating, or getting dominated. There was no in between. Too many times in short yardage situations he failed. On the two goal line plays that were stopped the Saints ran behind Evans with no success.
Jon Stinchcomb: C (2.73) Robert Mathis may have never gotten a sack, but it wasn't thanks to Stinchcomb's blocking. He beat Stinchcomb around the edge with speed, inside with power, and many other ways. To me Stinchcomb was the most struggling player on the line. He had his moments, but like Evans just didn't get it done on short running plays. His pass protection was shady, and he was fortunate that Mathis couldn't get to Brees because of how fast he was getting rid of the football and how good his footwork was.
My Offensive Player of the Game: Drew Brees
The National Media Whining is Starting to Irk Me
This post is dedicated to all the whiners and naysayers that are continuing to disrespect the Saints after what they've accomplished this season. What is wrong with you people? So your poster boy Brett Favre was robbed, get over it. You all need to stop for one second and think about the basic unwritten rules of football. When you're a quarterback, you're taught from day one to "NEVER EVER EVER EVER THROW ACROSS YOUR BODY BACK TO THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD IF YOU'RE ON THE SIDELINE ". The dude made a mistake that isn't worthy of a rookie quarterback. That's right, a rookie quarterback shouldn't be making that mistake. A freshman in college shouldn't be making that mistake. That mistake is of the pop warner variety, and Favre made it with the game on the line on the biggest of stages. How about some responsibility for his ineptitude?
I am pissed.
Oh ESPN and the NFL. What a bunch of sorry losers. Check out this article, where the NFL basically says "we should have handed the game to the Vikings and we blew our chance to do so", and ESPN marks it as a LEAD STORY, basically saying "see?? We told you! The Vikings were robbed by bad officiating!". The undertones reek of whining. You know what? How about the fact that, even if the Vikings got in the red zone, they made a habit of turning the ball over once they got there? How about the fact that when the Saints played the Vikings last year, a phantom "Adrian Peterson is down by contact despite that the ball was loose in his hand" saved the Vikings from a turnover? Nevermind that Ed Hochuli deemed it appropriate to call Jay Cutler's backwards flip an incomplete pass with a game on the line. Bad officiating is hardly unheard of, and the Saints have had more of their share of being on the losing end of that coin. Everyone has. I don't feel sorry for the officials, I don't feel sorry for the Vikings, and I sure as hell don't feel sorry for the media. Questionable calls are part of the game. Side note, I know the NFL is more cautious than ever with quarterbacks and wants them to start wearing skirts, but God forbid they missed Favre getting roughed up. It's not like the Vikings didn't benefit from questionable "roughing" calls the officials made at other points in the same game.
Seriously, ESPN and the NFL, specifically, are pissing in my wheaties. Some Vikings fan, some anti Saints fans, and some other national media outlets are jumping on that bandwagon. The SuperBowl is becoming less about my happiness as a huge Saints fan and more about me giving a collective finger to all those people. And that's frankly too bad. Is that my fault for being angry? Maybe. But I think it's more about the whiners that are sad they didn't get their poster boy in the big dance. How about blaming him? People keep whining that the Saints played "dirty" to get into the SuperBowl. I didn't even know you could play dirty in a football game. Football is "dirty". Did the Vikings play a "clean" game? "Dirty" is just a word that's equal to aggressive, and it's used by whiners to give it a negative connotation. I guess whiners would prefer the 2008 "finesse" version of the Saints. With all due respect, that team went 8-8 and I have no interest in trading them for the 2009 version of my favorite team.
So fast forward now to the SuperBowl matchup: Saints vs. Colts. Now the Saints have no chance, according to the whiners. I hear them saying: "They're going to get blown out, they don't even really belong in the game, and they're going to get exposed". Why is everyone so surprised the Saints are in this game anyway? Weren't they the top seed in the NFC based on the 16 game season? Didn't they earn homefield advantage? I know everyone fell in love with the "the Saints are backing into the playoffs with a 3 game losing streak" buzz line, but look how that worked out. What do the Saints have left to prove to get the recognition that they belong in this game? I'll tell you what they have left to prove: NOTHING. The Saints are a top two team in the NFL, and they're arguably the best. Period, end of story. I can't wait for the excuses that are going to come up if the Saints pummel the Colts... I'm sure these pathetic "football fans" will come up with something.
There, now I feel better. I can go back to ignoring the whiners and enjoying my team's well deserved success. I hate to break it to you, but they're winning the SuperBowl whether some of you can accept it or not.
New Orleans Saints’ Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades vs. Vikings
The amount of big plays were so abundant in this game, it was hard to give most of these defensive players a bad grade, despite giving up over 450 yards and 28 points. Many of them alternated with good with the bad. Still they deserve to be credited for being mostly responsible for the win. Special teams, on the other hand, was a thing of beauty.
Will Smith: B- (2.80) Smith was a very tough player to grade because the offensive line focused their efforts on making sure he was blocked on passing downs. He was chipped and double teamed, adding to that the fact that Brett Favre was getting the ball out of his hands in a hurry. Still, Smith showed tremendous effort, tackling ability and pursuit on running plays. He didn't get any hits on Favre and he wasn't much of a factor rushing the passer, but he did end with an impressive 6 tackles and forced a fumble.Bobby McCray: C+ (2.04) McCray was mostly on the sidelines during running plays, and the Saints brought him in in instances where he could pin his ears back and go after Favre. He finished with 2 tackles, used his frame and wingspan to deflect a pass, and he was able to hit Favre once. He also got flagged for a 15 yard penalty for blowing up Favre after he handed the ball off on an end around. Part of me wanted to penalize his grade severely for getting flagged, and part of me wanted to give him a pass for roughing up the opposing quarterback for the second straight week.
Jeff Charleston: C (2.33) Charleston was mediocre despite a good amount of playing time, especially on running downs. He finished with one tackle, and was able to put a nice little lick on Favre at one point. He's a passable situational end and nothing more.
Remi Ayodele: B- (2.37) He was involved in the running game and showed more effort that he did earlier in the season. As the games have progressed, I have to applaud Ayodele for his effort. He finished with 5 tackles and was involved in the tackling piles. Still, too many times did he get pushed around allowing Adrian Peterson to get into open space. Give him credit for recovering a fumble that the Saints desperately needed inside the Vikings' 20.
Sedrick Ellis: B (2.72) With the heavy rotation happening on the defensive line, I think Ellis was on the sidelines way too often. When he was in, he didn't make a big play, but he was aggressive. He finished with 6 tackles, most of them a result of finishing plays and helping his teammates. He never gave up on plays and he was quick to finish things off when Peterson was thrown off balance. He also got a decent amount of push up the middle.
Anthony Hargrove: B- (2.39) Hargrove was easily noticed on the plays he did make, but he was also responsible for some major running lanes that Peterson benefited from. He did get great pressure on passing plays, and once almost broke Favre in half. He finished with 2 tackles, including one for a loss.
Scott Shanle: B+ (2.67) Shanle was all over the field. He was decent in pass coverage, though he was victimized a handful of times, but his strength absorbing blocks, his pursuit on running plays and his tackling was top notch. He finished with 10 tackles.
Jonathan Vilma: B (2.92) Vilma wasn't as involved in stopping the run as Shanle. Peterson made him look silly a few times, slipping through his tackles or blowing past him completely. Vilma was most effective with his pass coverage on this day. He defended two passes and intercepted another. He was mostly responsible for covering Visanthe Shiancoe and he did a good job for the most part. Despite his occasional woes against the run, he did finish with 5 tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Scott Fujita: B- (2.75) Fujita was so effective blitzing against the Cardinals, I was disappointed he wasn't sent more often against Favre. He still managed to get one pretty physical knock down, though. He finished with 5 tackles but he wasn't overly impressive. Too many of his tackles were broken. Give Fujita for coming up with a fumble recovery on a bobbled handoff between Favre and Peterson inside the Saints' 10 right before halftime. The Saints dodged the bullet despite a costly Reggie Bush fumble thanks to that.
Jabari Greer: B- (3.33) He had 8 tackles and 2 defended passes. Favre attacked him early and often. In fact, Favre was never afraid to go after him. The results were mixed. His high tackle total is a function of how much action Greer got. It certainly wasn't his best game. He made some terrific open field tackles and completely whiffed on others. He was beaten on a touchdown pass to Sidney Rice, but he also neutralized him overall.
Tracy Porter: B+ (3.09) Porter was arguably the toughest player to grade for the Saints because he was responsible for the biggest plays and the biggest breakdowns. His interception at the end of the game was almost as big as Hartley's make. The Saints were up against it and he came up with a huge pick at the most crucial of times. That play alone gets him the defensive MVP, in my eyes. He also had a very head's up strip from behind catching up to Adrian Peterson inside the Saints' 10 yard line, resulting in another absolutely crucial red zone turnover. So you could argue he saved the Saints from 7 points there, and the game winning field goal at the end. He finished with 8 tackles and a defended pass. Like Greer, he was attacked often and had mixed results. His biggest mistake was a justified pass interference call in the end zone on Bernard Berrian that gave the Vikings the ball at the Saints' 1 yard line. He had his hands full with Berrian and he was giving up way to much underneath. Still, you just can't ignore the big plays he came up with.
Randall Gay: C+ (2.64) Gay had terrific coverage a number of times that still got victimized. It was weird because at least 2 or 3 times, I thought to myself "wow, that's pretty solid coverage by Gay", only for a Minnesota receiver to come up with a sick catch in traffic. Hard to blame Gay for those, but the bottom line is it apparently wasn't good enough. He finished with 3 tackles.
Darren Sharper: B+ (2.90) Sharper was the most steady and consistent Saint on the night. He never allowed a big play over the top, he was physical, he was sure in his tackles, and he played smart. Sharper never made the big play like Vilma or Porter did, but he was the most solid defender on the night. Twice he was sent in on safety blitzes that he timed perfectly, and he pulverized Favre. Talk about laying the wood. I'm surprised Favre actually got up from one of them. He led the Saints with 11 tackles and was all over the field. Quite frankly, Peterson would've potentially had a 200 yard rushing day if he didn't make solid back end tackles.
Roman Harper: B- (2.70) It was a mixed effort for Harper, too. Per usual, his pass coverage was a little suspect. Specifically, he allowed a big third down conversion at an important stage when he was completely burned by Shiancoe. It's a bad sign, if you ask me, when your strong safety can't run with a tight end. Still, he was physical in the box. He missed a couple tackles, but Peterson was extremely slippery. Harper still managed 7 tackles and a forced fumble.
Garrett Hartley: A (3.09) Hartley was perfect on his 4 extra points, and he hit the game winning 40 yard kick in overtime that sent the Saints to the SuperBowl. The kick would've been good from 60, as it was right down the middle and cleared the crossbar by a mile. Kickers don't get put in a higher pressure situation, and that was a big kick to make. As many kicks as we've seen missed this year at the pro and college level, I have to admit I was bracing myself. That's a big time kick under the more dire of situations. Hartley forever placed himself in Saints history with that make. Make no mistake about it, that was a SuperBowl kick.
Thomas Morstead: A (3.00) As much credit as Hartley is getting and deserves, perhaps the most overlooked player on the Saints in this game was Thomas Morstead. Forget special teams player of the game, I think Thomas Morstead has a case for the Saints' PLAYER OF THE GAME. He was that good. Did anyone see that 63 yard punt he completely obliterated? Not only is his leg strength unique, he also gets tremendous hang time. He set up his coverage units nicely, and the Vikings' return units never threatened remotely. He averaged 51.3 yards per punt off of 7 punts, with 4 ending up inside the Vikings' 20 and no touchbacks. Those stats are unbelievable. That's crazy good. His net average was 49.16. 49.16 for crying out loud!!! Off 7 punts!!! It takes players an entire career to punt a game like that together, and Morstead did it in his rookie season, in the NFC Championship. I can't speak highly enough about this guy or the difference he's made. He's without question the Saints' rookie of the year. No one else is even close. The scary part is that he's gotten better and better as the season progressed. Hopefully he'll be the Saints' punter and kickoff man for a very long time. Speaking of kickoffs, they were mostly good and deep, but he did have a couple of short squib/line drives. Luckily none of those turned into a disaster, but I wonder if they were on purpose? That costs him the A+, but make no mistake when I say that he's my Saints' player of the game.
Courtney Roby: A- (2.84) Special teams on the whole were fantastic. Take away Bush's fumble and the whole unit deserves an A+ for the production they came up with. Not much is being made out of their performance in the media, but I really thought it was the difference in the game (arguably more so than the turnovers). Roby was rock solid on coverage, forcing both fair catches and Percy Harvin / Darius Reynaud into redirecting their returns to lanes that led to nowhere. On his returns, Roby never went down to the first hit. He showed good speed and tackle breaking ability. He was able to rip one 61 yard return, and he averaged 28.6 yards per return off 5 tries. He got banged up, but hopefully he'll be ok for the SuperBowl because he's an integral part of what the Saints do. I'm glad we have him. What were we thinking cutting him prior to week 1? We're extremely fortunate no one snatched him up.
My Defensive Player of the Game: Tracy Porter
My Special Teams Player of the Game: Thomas Morstead
New Orleans Saints’ Offensive Player Grades vs. Vikings
I still can't fully believe the Saints are going to the SuperBowl. What a game. I've rooted my whole life for this, and like many of you words can't describe the emotions I went through in the Dome on Sunday. Anyway, on to the grades.
Drew Brees: B (3.22) Brees got the job done, but it wasn't a flawless performance. Statistically, you'd see his 106.5 rating and think he had a very solid performance, but it wasn't always terrific. Brees was less accurate than usual, perhaps due to the tremendous amount of pressure he saw. Brees was credited with two fumbles, once on a bobbled snap and once on a sack/strip by Ray Edwards. Luckily neither was lost by the Saints. Give Brees credit though, he did enough to get his team the W. He finished 17-31 for 197 yards, 3 Touchdowns and no interceptions. It's rare to see him under 200 yards passing.Reggie Bush: C+ (2.77) The one item that I thought was unforgivable for Bush was the fumble late in the first half on a punt return inside the Saints' 10. Fortunately for the Saints the Vikings came away with no points, but why Bush didn't just settle for a fair catch was beyond me. That was just a very stupid move. Running the ball was equally bad, as Bush too often tried to bounce things outside. In his defense there wasn't much to be done on most of the carries he saw. Just 7 carries for 8 yards. So why does he get a C+? Well, he made two big plays in the passing game. First, he converted a big third down with a beautiful 25 yard crossing route where he beat his man badly, then he caught a crucial 5 yard touchdown on a 3rd in goal. Reggie Bush, in my opinion, is the absolute best in the NFL at using his athleticism to get in the end zone. If he's close, he's going to find a way to contort his body and get six points. Once again, he found the pylon and showed incredible skill. I just don't think there's many players in the NFL, if any, that can turn some of the plays Reggie turns in TD's. That was something special, and the Saints needed it badly.
Pierre Thomas: A- (3.13) Thomas started out with a bang, taking a screen pass 38 yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 7. He looked fast, shifty, strong and balanced on that play as he broke a couple tackles and raced to paydirt. I really wish the Saints had made the effort to run the football more with Thomas, but maybe his ribs wouldn't allow. Why he never saw the carries on the 3rd and shorts that the Saints continually failed to convert is beyond me. His dive for a first down on 4th and 1 in overtime was, without question, the biggest conversion of the season. He's stopped short and the Saints likely lose. He also got the overtime period started on the right tone with a tough 40 yard return. He had just 14 carries, but 61 yards and another touchdown to show there. The only negative was his sometimes spotty pass protection.
Devery Henderson: B (2.83) With just 4 catches for 39 yards, Henderson was sadly the Saints' most productive receiver on the night. He had a 15 yards reception on a 3rd and 17, and he had another reception just short of the first down right before Pierre Thomas' 4th and 1 plunge. He would've had a 1st down if not for bobbling the football on that play. He also dropped a pass. All that said, he made a very tough catch in the end zone for a 9 yard touchdown. That catch was set up thanks to Brees getting out of the pocket and buying time. Henderson was initially covered, but did a great job of staying with the play and making one of the biggest catches of his career.
Marques Colston: C- (2.90) Colston had a drop in overtime over the seam that nearly led to a very costly interception. Brees looked his way often but couldn't really come up with completions. It was an off day for the big target and a forgettable performance. Just 2 catches for 22 yards.
Robert Meachem: C+ (2.90) Give Meachem a lot of credit, he was basically running on one leg out there and he showed a lot of toughness. I don't think I've ever seen a player play the same week he had his ankle in a walking boot. He was having trouble running out there and gaining any real separation. He still managed 2 catches for 19 yards, though, including a catch in overtime which set up Garrett Hartley's field goal.
Lance Moore: C- (2.43) What happened to him? He caught the first pass of the game for 5 yards and was never heard from again. Hopefully he can bounce back and show us something in the SuperBowl. It's been a really disappointing year from him. I know he's been frustrated with the number of injuries that have plagued him all year long.
Jeremy Shockey: C- (2.82) Like Meachem, Shockey showed a lot of guts and courage getting out there when clearly less than 100%. I thought Shockey was a liability overall, though. He wasn't getting open, he wasn't doing a good job of blocking off the edge, and he just wasn't contributing much positive. I'll give his grit and intensity the credit it always deserves, but I just didn't feel like Shockey was helping the Saints in this game. He finished with 1 catch for 9 yards.
David Thomas: B+ (2.47) Unlike Shockey, Thomas was basically the jack of all trades out there. He lined up as a receiver in the slot, he lined up at fullback, and he was the primary tight end and lead blocker for the majority of the game. He made one of the best catches he's had all season showing very soft hands, and finished with 3 catches for 32 yards. He also drew a lethal pass interference call downfield in overtime. He did all the little things well and was a big part of the victory. Thomas hasn't had it easy and the Saints are asking a lot out of him, so I applaud him for coming through with flying colors.
Zach Strief: B- (2.38) It was a tale of two halves for the big man, who was the third tight end for the majority of the game. I graded him out extremely high in the first half. He did a tremendous job in both pass protection and blocking off the edge. He was a major help to both Stinchcomb and Bushrod who were dealing with very tough assignments. The second half saw a major decline in his run blocking. I think the Saints were encouraged with what they saw early so they went off the edge in Strief's direction with very little success in the second half.
Jermon Bushrod: B+ (2.63) Jared Allen had 2 tackles and 1 hit on Brees all day. That's it. I said that Bushrod's production was the key to the game, and he performed great. Granted he had a lot of help with Strief, David & Pierre Thomas, as well as many designed roll outs away from his side. It was clear the Saints knew they needed to neutralize Allen, and they were very aware of his whereabouts throughout. Still, give Bushrod credit, this was his toughest test of the season and he played about as well as anyone could have asked for.
Carl Nicks: B- (2.96) Average performance for Nicks. The Saints ran behind him and got average push. In short yardage situations especially, he was pushed around way more than normal. Pat Williams was a handful for him. Still he managed to make some nice blocks on Pierre Thomas runs.
Jonathan Goodwin: C (2.98) Hard to say whether it was Goodwin's fault or Brees' for the fumbled snap, but they sure picked a weird time to botch what is in my recollection the only time all year that's happened. On a 3rd and 1 Reggie Bush cut back, Goodwin made a poor block and the play went nowhere. Pierre Thomas' 4th down conversion was made despite significant pressure up the middle. He made some decent plays, too, but it was far from his best game.
Jahri Evans: C+ (3.15) Evans was only slightly better than Goodwin getting push on the interior. Kevin Williams gave him everything he could handle. Evans was overall more dominant than Goodwin and Nicks, but he was also guilty of more critical errors. Lynell Hamilton's only carry was blown up on a 3rd and short thanks to a poor block by Evans.
Jon Stinchcomb: C (2.78) I predicted that due to the help Bushrod would need that Stinchcomb would be isolated one on one with Edwards a lot, and I was right. Stichcomb handled himself fine on running plays, but struggled mightily on passing downs. Edwards was beating him off the edge repeatedly, and even managed a sack. A number of times Edwards was very close to making more plays if not for Brees' uncanny pocket awareness.
My Saints' Offensive Player of the Game: Pierre Thomas
Jared Allen vs. Jermon Bushrod is the Vikings @ Saints Matchup to Watch
When the word first came out that Saints left tackle Jammal Brown was injured, the news was that he'd be out approximately 8 weeks. At the time I thought the injury was incredibly significant, but I was somewhat relieved by the ideas that Zach Strief played well in spot duty during his short career at left tackle and that Brown had a scheduled return date. At that point, all Strief really needed to do was hold down the fort. As the season started and unfolded, though, the news broke that Jammal Brown would not return this season, and Jermon Bushrod was the unlikely player who stepped up and assumed the role of left tackle ahead of Strief. Bushrod has had high and low points during this season, but it's undeniable that he's performed much better than any of us ever expected. His games against the Giants and Cardinals this season, specifically, were so good that I didn't miss Brown at all. He even handled John Abraham and Julius Peppers much better than Brown ever did. His performance against DeMarcus Ware and the Cowboys, however, was not worthy of a spot on the Saints' offensive line during the Archie Manning era; and we all know that Archie was running for his life on every snap in those days. Come Sunday in the NFC Championship against the Minnesota Vikings, Bushrod will face off against the defensive league MVP candidate Jared Allen. If you listened to Forecast Radio this week then you heard my call in towards the tail end of the show outlining this. This will be the matchup to watch.
So it's a simple question: is Bushrod ready for this test?
Here's what's a given: We know the Vikings' offense can be prone to turnovers with Favre's history in big games and Peterson's severe fumbling issues. We also know they're going to move the ball on the Saints and score points. We know the Saints' offense will make plays and score points. On paper it should be a fantastic game. The Superdome will be a major advantage to the Saints.
But again, how will Bushrod perform against Jared Allen? As the game unfolds he'll have his victories and defeats, no doubt. He's going to get chips from Jeremy Shockey and Pierre Thomas to help, and Carl Nicks will rotate over to double team Allen at times. I'm mostly comfortable with this, because while Pat Williams and Kevin Williams will get less attention, I think Jahri Evans and Jonathan Goodwin can match up pound for pound with them. Jon Stinchcomb, on the other hand, will be mostly isolated one on one with Ray Edwards, and I don't know how comfortable I am with that. So much is being made out of how Bushrod will handle Allen, and yours truly is certainly a culprit, but Stinchcomb is going to have his hands full. The attention and help that Bushrod will get will cause more pressure on Stinchcomb. I hope he's up to the task, and I think that he is, despite welcoming his first child to the world this week (congrats to him for that, by the way). Ultimately if Brees gets sacked, hit, or hurried, it could result in turnovers. We all know that the name of the game is winning the turnover battle. This will be a tough game to do that in. Make no mistake, this Vikings team is very good and this is the Saints' toughest challenge yet.
So how do you think Bushrod fares? Do you think he completely whiffs on this opportunity and gets manhandled by Jared Allen? Does he hold his own and do just enough to keep Brees mostly clean? Does he shock the world and deliver his biggest performance of the year shutting Allen out? Thoughts please.
New Orleans Saints’ Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades vs. Cardinals
Below are the player grades for defense and special teams. It was a tougher game to grade than most because the Cardinals only ran the ball 15 times.
Will Smith: B (2.80) Smith showed heart and effort as always. Even last year when his performance was stunted by a hernia, one thing you could never deny with Smith was that the effort is there. Smith was somewhat neutralized on passing downs, and while he got in Kurt Warner's face on occasion, he wasn't the constant menace he's been at times this season. Against the run, as will be the theme throughout this grading, there wasn't enough of a sample size to really identify how he performed. He was most effective getting his hands up on passing players and disrupting Warner's timing. If you watch Warner's arm angle, he actually throws the ball almost sidearm and when defensive linemen get their hands up there's a number of opportunities to bat passes. Smith was able to do that twice, and one of them resulted in an interception that killed the game. Smith showed great hands to bring that one in, and he ended with one tackle.Bobby McCray: B- (2.08) McCray's play will be most remembered for the devastating hit that he put on Kurt Warner following Will Smith's interception. That hit was as vicious as any I've seen put on a quarterback this season, and Warner left the game woozy and when he returned he wasn't the same. I never root for a player to get injured, and I hated to see Warner get hurt because I think he's a class act and a heck of a football player, but I'll say right now that I'm all for McCray to put a hit like that on Brett Favre next week. Otherwise, McCray was mostly quiet in pass rushing situations, his supposed specialty. The opening run of the game by Tim Hightower was a counter run right at McCray, and he was pushed completely out of the play. He stands his ground on that play and there's no touchdown. Not that he's the only one responsible for the breakdown, but he certainly contributed to it. As hard as I am on Charles Grant, I wonder if that play would've been as successful with him in the game. Regardless, McCray actually cleaned up his run defense from there. Unlike Grant, he did a good job of keeping containment when necessary, and and keeping pursuit when possible. He finished with 2 tackles, including one that was a nice pursuit play from behind. Oh, and as for Jeff Duncan calling that hit on Warner a "bordeline cheap shot", get over it dude. Do you want the quarterbacks to start wearing skirts? It was a clean block, and Warner was trying to make a tackle after a pick. There was nothing cheap about it.
Anthony Hargrove: B- (2.38) Just one tackle for Hargrove today, for a loss on a running play, but he did a decent job of keeping pressure up the middle. I was disappointed to see that he never really got reps at end in place of Charles Grant. His role stayed mostly the same, and McCray was the one who benefited from the most increase in playing time. Hargrove did play a lot at defensive tackle with the Saints putting the Cardinals in so many passing situations. Hargrove didn't get the stats to back it up, but he was active and had to be accounted for.
Sedrick Ellis: C+ (2.70) Ellis' pursuit on the opening play of the game was terrible. He completely over-pursued into the backfield, and he was then blocked out of the play. It was surprising to see Ellis handled pretty well at times. Ellis did get a sack, but that was his lone tackle and he was otherwise quiet.
Remi Ayodele: C (2.36) Ayodele's playing time was severely cut back by the amount of passing plays the Cardinals ran. He didn't finish with any tackles, so it's hard to give him better than a C, but he didn't make major errors either. I think you can expect to see much more of Ayodele next week with Adrian Peterson coming to town.
Scott Fujita: B+ (2.76) Fujita was most effective as a blitzing linebacker. Gregg Williams used Fujita as the 4th or 5th rusher many times in passing situations, and Fujita did a fantastic job beating Levi Brown around the edge a few times. While Fujita didn't get any sacks, he caused several errant Kurt Warner passes. He also put a nice hit on Warner once. He finished with 2 tackles, including one for a loss.
Scott Shanle: B (2.62) Shanle was the most active and sure tackler on the Saints. He finished with 7 tackles. Because of the tremendous amount of blitzing the Saints used, and the good coverage downfield, Warner settled for throws underneath most of the game. That was actually smart, thanks to the real estate in the middle of the field. Thankfully, Shanle was a tackling machine laying some serious wood. At one point he hit Early Doucet so hard his helmet came off. Shanle was seen hitting people off crossing patterns short of the first down all day long. His coverage was very good too. His two mistakes, however, led to 14 points. First, he was blown completely out of the play on Hightower's run. Then, he hit Kurt Warner in the head on a pass rushing play to negate a Darren Sharper interception. Later on that drive, the Cardinals would waltz into the end zone on a running play. The roughing the passer call, as weak as some people said it was, is an NFL rule. I'm sorry, but they're going to call that on you every time and Scott Shanle should know better. Period. It's too bad, because he hurts his grade with that major mistake. Otherwise, he was A material.
Jonathan Vilma: C (2.92) Vilma had one tackle, that's it. I had to double check the stats because I couldn't believe it. Re-watching the tape, he was surprisingly nowhere to be found on several plays. Very odd. I will say he had solid coverage on many passing plays. Still, the Saints are going to need much more out of him next week. Side note, speaking of hitting Warner in the head, the Saints were very fortunate that Vilma didn't get flagged for 15 yards on Sedrick Ellis' sack. The replay shows very clearly that Vilma's hand made contact with Warner's head which disrupted the play. Still, give him credit there for good pressure, but I'm glad he got away with that one because that drive turned out to be a three and out right before a Saints' touchdown drive.
Jabari Greer: A- (3.40) Greer almost shut out Larry Fitzgerald for an entire half. What more needs to be said? Every time the Cardinals tried to get Fitzgerald involved, Greer was a complete nuisance and pest to that gameplan. All this talk about how the Saints were going to need to slow down Fitzgerald if they had any chance... and Greer stepped up and looked like Darrelle Revis out there. Fitzgerald did end with 6 catches for 77 yards, but he had an awful amount of stat padding against prevent defenses with the score out of hand. Greer showed no ill effects from his hernia surgery. He finished with 2 tackles and a beautiful pass breakup in the end zone.
Tracy Porter: B+ (3.08) Porter wasn't quite as razor sharp as Greer, but he was pretty close. The cornerback play overall was outstanding. After seeing what Warner to Breaston/Doucet/Fitzgerald did to the Packers' accomplished defensive backfield last week, I was very impressed with how our guys did. They yielded just 205 yards to Warner, and 61 garbage yards to Leinart. Porter had 5 tackles, but some was a result of allowing a few completions. That said, Porter did a good job of tackling and kept the game in front of him.
Randall Gay: B+ (2.67) Gay was beaten a few times on crossing routes and passes underneath. His coverage was hit or miss, but running all game with Early Doucet over the middle was no easy task. Still, Gay finished with a game high 7 tackles and was physical bringing down his opponents. His sure tackles did include a back ride for about 5 yards with Larry Fitzgerald, which was interesting. Give Gay credit for giving his all and staying aggressive. Gay was victimized badly on a pass to Jerheme Urban with the score tied at 7, but he came up with an amazing strip from behind to force a fumble. A turnover like that early in the game with the score tied and Arizona playing with confidence couldn't have been more huge. That was a complete momentum changer and it really got the crowd going. It told the defense: we may give up plays, but we're going to make plays too. It gave the defense the momentum it needed after a dismal start to the game. I can't speak enough about that play Gay made. It was almost Meachem's strip in Washington big.
Roman Harper: C (2.71) Harper just seemed a step slow to every play throughout. On both touchdown runs, he was slow to the play and ineffective. He was playing in the box but not really making anything happen. He finished with 2 tackles and it wasn't his most memorable performance by any means.
Darren Sharper: B+ (2.87) The one reproach I have of Sharper was a terrible angle as the last line of defense on Hightower's run. We've seen him do this a few times this season, and that's the liability you live with when he offers so much in playmaking ability. He didn't even get a hand on Hightower to slow him down. Other than that, Sharper was active and in a word, good. Twice he laid massive hits to the Arizona receivers, forcing dropped passes. Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Breaston both won't be too quick to forget the last time they played Darren Sharper. Sharper also came up with the forced fumble by Gay, and it looked for a second as if he might take it to the house. He was head's up to scoop the fumble and put a nice return together. He also had a beautiful interception that was called back due to Shanle's roughing the passer call, but his catch deserves mention because it was nasty. He played great pass defense over the top all day.
DeMario Pressley: B- (2.67) Just one tackle for Pressley and he didn't play much, but I wanted to give him props for once again maximizing his effectiveness when he's on the field. He made a nice tackle on a running play.
Pierson Prioleau: B (2.48) His coverage was good, and he was very solid on special teams. He finished with 2 tackles, and he should have had an interception but he dropped a Matt Leinart pass that went right through his hands. That was a pretty good Roman Harper impression if you ask me.
Usama Young: B+ (3.08) Young's two tackles were both very impressive. He laid a massive hit late in the game, and he also had a shoestring tackle on a screen pass to Tim Hightower that would've gone a long way if he didn't trip him up. Young looked fast and aggressive out there.
Jeff Charleston: B- (2.50) Charleston play a good amount of the fourth quarter and played fine. He held his ground and was a little disruptive in passing situations. He finished with 2 tackles.
Thomas Morstead: A- (3.04) Morstead's kickoff depth got progressively better and better as the game wore on. Good thing, because LaRod Stephens-Howling was giving the Saints trouble early with dangerous kick returns. Morstead averaged 42.8 yards per punt on 4 punts, and not one was returned. He was also able to pin one inside the 15 despite working with a short field. He's been doing a terrific job of neutralizing opponent's return games, especially lately. His best punt ended up going for a touchback, which was bad luck, but that punt was blasted for 66 yards. He absolutely crushed that one and showed off his superior leg power.
Courtney Roby: B- (2.79) Roby, per usual, was very good covering kicks and punts. He kick returns were spotty, though. He had a decent one that went 25 yards, but he also had a terrible one where he was hit inside the 20 after a 12 yard return.
Garrett Hartley: A- (2.83) Hartley's lone field goal was a 43 yard attempt. It was nice to see him not only make it, but drill it with plenty of yards to spare right down the middle. He was 6 for 6 on extra points, too, and with the season the Saints have had on PATs that is no given. Hard to give him any different of a grade based on how well he handled his responsibilities.
My Defensive Player of the Game: Jabari Greer
My Special Teams Player of the Game: Reggie Bush
New Orleans Saints’ Offensive Player Grades vs. Cardinals
WHO DAT! I can't tell you how relieved I am to be posting these grades knowing that it won't be the last time this season. Below are the grades, and by now you know how it works.
Drew Brees: A (3.23) Brees had a very solid performance that saw him yet again not turn the ball over, nor get sacked. It's incredible that a team would ever go sackless when they gameplan for an entire week to get in Brees' face at all cost, but his footwork and the offensive line are that good. Brees finished 23-32 for 247 yards and 3 touchdowns. He misses the A+ because he missed Jeremy Shockey and Robert Meachem both on verticle throws that could've made the score even uglier. Still, he was vintage out there. Give Brees credit for his fitness and conditioning, too. He took a pretty nasty low hit from Calais Campbell that was flagged, and I'm not sure most quarterbacks wouldn't have left that hit with a severe knee injury. If you ever see Brees stretching during warmups, you'll know that his flexibility saved his knee on that play. My heart stopped for a second, hopefully he's not too sore this week from it.Reggie Bush: A+ (2.80) Reggie Bush had the game of his life. If you don't vote for Bush as the offensive player of the game, you need to have your head examined. Bush created numerous matchup problems, and showed the gamebreaking speed and playmaking ability that makes him so dangerous all game. He scored on a 46 yard run and an 83 yard punt return, breaking the Cardinals' back. His touchdown run had a little bit of everything. The speed of Darrell Green, the shiftiness of Barry Sanders, and the tackle breaking ability of Craig Heyward. Bush looked decisive in his cuts, and authoritative through the hole. I've never seen him run with so much power and determination, but he definitely looked good enough to be an every down back. I'm sure Reggie will have his doubters in the future, but it was nice to see him shut them up if only for a week. I'm glad I patiently put up with a season full of horrendous punt returning, because I was rewarded as a fan with one of his most electrifying punt returns of his career.
Mike Bell: C- (2.43) Bell's first carry was a bruising 5 yard run that saw him hit the hole hard and bull over a couple Cardinals. Sadly, he only got 5 more carries for 6 yards from there. I'm not sure what happened to Bell, but he just doesn't seem like he has that fire in his belly that he had earlier in the season.
Pierre Thomas: B (3.09) Thomas was very brave, considering his broken ribs, and he showed nice toughness throughout the game. He finished with 52 yards on 13 carries and 4 catches for 18 yards. I was a little annoyed with the playing time he got late with the game out of hand, which of course resulted in him turning an ankle. Give Thomas credit as well for doing a good job in his blitz assignment pickups. He also threw a nice pass block after pitching the flea-flicker.
Lynell Hamilton: B+ (2.67) Hamilton was a surprise red zone option ahead of Mike Bell, and he did an impressive job getting his first carry over the goal line for the Saints' first touchdown. On the very next play he went down and got a tackle on special teams. With the Saints up big late, he got numerous clock running reps. He moved the chains and showed a lot of promise. He finished with 23 yards on 5 carries and a touchdown.
Marques Colston: A- (2.98) Colston was Brees' main target and he was making plays all game long. Whenever it seemed like the Saints really needed a play, Colston was there to answer the call. With the number of blitzes the Cards sent, Colston was often isolated in man to man coverage, and Brees just put the ball in places where Colston could take advantage of his massive frame to outplay his opponents to the ball. He finished with 6 catches for 83 yards and a touchdown.
Lance Moore: B- (2.56) Moore made two catches for just 6 yards. His first was a nice play in the flat for 7 yards, and his next was a yard loss on a bubble screen. At one point Brees targeted Moore over the middle on a 3rd down play, but Moore struggled to get much separation. It just seemed like he wasn't able to really run away from the defensive backs, which means he's lost some game speed because of the two bum ankles and his time away from the game. I don't think he's quite at 100% yet, and he's not a big vertical threat right now. I gave him a big grade boost, though, because despite his diminutive size he threw two key blocks. Specifically, he threw a terrific block on Reggie's touchdown run. Not only did he a good job on manning up on his guy to create an initial lane, he also threw a secondary block once Reggie broke a tackle and cut back to blow up a seam. He was also wide open another time in the flat, but Brees elected to overthrow a triple covered Colston in the end zone.
Devery Henderson: A- (2.82) If you want any more evidence of the progress this player has made over his time with the Saints, look no further than the 44 yard touchdown catch he made in this game. Two to three years ago, he makes that catch maybe 25% of the time. Now? He makes it at least 75% of the time. When you have to turn around completely, come to a total stop, and focus on a ball with a defender running full speed at you, that is not an easy catch. Let's be clear on this one: Drew Brees didn't make that good of a throw. Henderson made a terrific adjustment to the ball, and showed terrific hands to corral that in and hang onto it as he absorbed a hit. That catch was just sick. He also broke several tackles on a 16 yard screen pass that showed good strength and toughness. He finished with 4 catches for 80 yards and that touchdown. I can't tell you guys how glad I am that Mickey Loomis and Sean Payton decided to re-sign him this offseason, because that move was very much in question.
Robert Meachem: C- (2.93) Very quiet day for Meachem. He did get a first down in the red zone on a four yard end around, but he had no catches and wasn't involved in the passing game. Why does Sean Payton love that play on a short field so much? In his defense, he was wide open on the flea-flicker and could easily have been the touchdown recipient had Brees thrown his way instead of Henderson's. On another play, Meachem ran free from coverage and was overthrown, literally running out of his shoes to try to catch up to Brees' pass. Otherwise, he was completely uninvolved.
Jeremy Shockey: B+ (2.91) In a word, Shockey was a "warrior". He was clearly hampered by the turf toe that continues to bother him. At different points in the game he could barely walk, and yet he kept going out there to give his team everything he had. He finished with 3 catches for 36 yards and a touchdown, and most of the plays he made came early. I thought the Saints made a bad decision to de-activate Darnell Dinkins before the game. That left them with only two tight ends, and when Kyle Eckel left the game with an injury, David Thomas had to move to fullback. This meant that Shockey, could he walk, was forced to play more than he likely should have. Give him a ton of credit for having sure hands and making plays despite clearly being well below 100%. I would expect Dinkins to be active next week to give Shockey more of a rest and give the Saints the versatility to play Thomas at fullback if they need him to.
David Thomas: C+ (2.41) Thomas did a decent job playing fullback, but struggled at times. In the passing game he was a non-factor and Brees stayed away from him. I don't blame him for taking a terrible angle on his end around that ended a yard short of the first down, because it was a stupid call. I hate to criticize Sean Payton because I think he's very creative, innovative, and one of the best offensive minds in the game... but that play shouldn't even exist in the playbook. I'm sorry, but an end around to David Thomas? Seriously? And you're going to run in on a third and short? The thing is, Thomas could have gotten the first down easily had he turned upfield and plowed over the defender, but he tried to bounce it outside. But again, that's not playing to a player's strengths. Normally Payton is so good at getting the most out of his players by putting them in positions to succeed. A complete brain cramp by the coaching staff there.
Jermon Bushrod: A- (2.59) Granted Bushrod got a lot of help, whether it was Pierre Thomas chipping, or Carl Nicks rotating over to double team, but he was very solid. This was arguably Bushrod's best performance as a Saint. He was lights out in pass protection, and extremely effective on running plays. Most of the Saints' big running plays were off the edge to the left side, including Reggie's gamebreaker where Bushrod threw a devastating block. Maybe the bye week did him some good because I know he was nursing an injury. He'll have his hands full with Jared Allen next week.
Zach Strief: B (2.36) Strief didn't play as much as I was hoping he would, but when he came in he was usually a 3rd tight end with Dinkins inactive. He did a great job of sealing the edge and using his size to get defenders off the line of scrimmage. He was a big reason for the Saints doing a good job late of running the clock.
Carl Nicks: B (2.98) Nicks shuffled between playing amazing and mediocre. The help he gave Bushrod was largely outstanding in passing situations. The Saints ran continually behind him on the ground, and he had mixed results. He also pushed a first and goal from the 2 yard line way back with a holding penalty.
Jonathan Goodwin: B+ (3.04) Goodwin was overall solid, but he allowed some interior penetration on a couple of weak running plays by Mike Bell. His pass blocking was good. As always, he was most dangerous pulling and leading the way for plays downfield.
Jahri Evans: A+ (3.20) Evans was a dominant force for the entirety of the day. Watching game tape, it was like seeing a 30 year old athlete blocking a 5 year old child. Seriously, he was just toying with rushers and pushing them around however he wanted. This guy should have been elected to the Pro Bowl long before now. On a number of play action plays, he rolled to the left to seal the edge of Brees' backside, and his blocks were so good Brees could have sat back there for a week. On any running plays that hit the second level, there was Jahri, already responsible for a great initial block, running down field blowing people up. I don't think some Saints fans realize how lucky we are to have a player of this quality. If not for Brees, he's my Offensive MVP of the season, hands down. And the margin between Brees and Evans is very close. Just look at their GPAs. He is that good. I don't get a chance to watch many other guards around the league this closely, but I would defy anyone to show me someone better.
Jon Stinchcomb: A (2.82) Stinchcomb's pass blocking was impeccable. I have a feeling the Vikings' front four will give the Saints more trouble than Arizona did, so Brees may not see the same kind of time. The were times where Brees could've had 10 seconds to throw if he needed it. He's got a quick release anyway, but I think Ben Roethlisberger would love to play behind this pass blocking offensive line with the amount of time he takes. The right side of the line in particular was rock solid all day. It was almost like Stinchcomb and Evans wanted to validate their Pro Bowl selections. Stinchcomb was also much more physical and active in run blocking than I'm used to, and he was never beaten around the edge.
Kyle Eckel: B (2.34) Eckel gets a warrior tag, too, because the Saints were short at fullback/tight end, and he came back with what appeared to be a stinger. His lead blocking was significantly improved from what I've seen at other times during the season, but boy do the Saints miss Heath Evans.
My Offensive Player of the Game: Reggie Bush
Arizona Cardinals @ New Orleans Saints – Shootout Expected
When the Arizona Cardinals come visit the New Orleans Saints (kickoff is Saturday at 3:30pm Central, 4:30 Eastern on FOX) at the Superdome, points should come in bunches. If the Packers @ Cardinals matchup last week was any indication of what two very capable offenses with struggling defense can do to each other, I'm thinking we'll see more of the same in a dome with impeccable conditions.
Here's a few factors to consider when you get into shootout games like these:
-- Turnovers and sacks come at a premium. They do in all games, but a one turnover difference can swing the game when both offenses are gaining yards in bunches. Any big defensive "play" can prove to be a game changer.
-- 3rd down plays are crucial. When teams are moving the ball seemingly at will, you have to take advantage of your opportunities to get off the field as a defense because they won't come that often. If you're facing a 3rd and 4 or more, that is your chance to get a stop and you're in desperate need to make that play.
-- Penalties are a major factor. When offenses are operating at a very high efficiency rate, the easiest way to stop them is when they need 15-20 yards to get a first down, instead of 10. Conversely, helping them out by handing them 15 yards on a personal foul when they're already moving the ball on you is a back breaker.
-- Stopping opposing offenses to field goal attempts is basically a win. If the field goal is missed, even better.
Those are my four items to watch, and while you can say those factors apply to any football game, I'd venture to say they are more pronounced in a shootout. So how do the Saints and the Cardinals stack up in these categories?
Turnovers and sacks:
Turnover Differential: Saints 3rd in NFL (+11), Cardinals 24th in NFL (-7)
Sacks Made: Cardinals 6th most in NFL (43), Saints 13th most in NFL (35)
Sacks Allowed: Saints 4th least in NFL (20), Cardinals 6th least in NFL (26)
3rd Down Conversions:
When on Offense: Saints 6th in NFL (45% conversion), Cardinals 21st in NFL (36%)
When on Defense: Saints 19th in the NFL (38% conversion), Cardinals 27th in NFL (35%)
Penalties:
On Offense: Saints 13th least penalized (89), Cardinals 26th least penalized (108)
On Defense: Saints 7th least penalized (86), Cardinals 23rd least penalized (104)
Field Goal %:
Cardinals 1st in NFL (95%), Saints 24th in NFL (79%)
So all in all, if this game turns out to be an offensive fanfare/shootout like I expect it to, the Saints match up favorably in all of the categories I listed as crucial except for field goal percentage. The sack category is basically a push, because while the Saints recorded 8 less sacks this season, they also gave up 6 less than the Cardinals. The major differences you can see in what happened to both teams over the course of the season are that the Saints offense and defense both converted 3rd down opportunities at a much better rate than the Cardinals. The Saints also have a much better turnover ratio for the season, and the Saints get an infinitely smaller number of penalties per game. This all adds up to what I consider a big advantage for the Saints, should this game get into a shootout. Big plays, to an extent, involve bigger risks. When both teams are taking big risks, the one with more penalties, turnovers, and lower 3rd down % conversion rate tend to lose. On paper, the Saints have to be a pretty big favorite, especially considering the fact that this game is at home. But we've all seen what Kurt Warner has done the last two years in the playoffs, and there is a reason the game is being played. The Achilles heel for the Saints, I think, would be a crucial late Garrett Hartley field goal should the Saints come to need it. Season stats are out the window when the opening kickoff is hit, but ultimately, the team that does better in these areas I've outlined will win. History says the Saints are better in those areas than the Cardinals. We shall see if history can repeat itself at 3:30pm Central on Saturday.
Seeing the statistics I put together above, do you feel better, worse or indifferent about the Saints-Cards matchup?
New Orleans Saints’ Special Teams Player Grades: Year in Review
My special teams MVP for the first half of the season, based on having the highest GPA, was Thomas Morstead. After 16 games, Morstead still has the highest GPA, so he gets my special teams MVP for the season. Below are the final GPA's for the season, including the number of games graded. Keep in mind, that doesn't mean number of games played, it's just the number of games I graded based on extended action.
Here are the GPA's, highest to lowest:
Thomas Morstead: 3.00 (16 games)
Courtney Roby: 2.80 (15 games)
Garrett Hartley: 2.67 (5 games)
John Carney: 2.61 (11 games)
Below are the Special Teams Player of the Game Awards I handed out with the Player Grades over the course of the season:
special teams:
Thomas Morstead 6
Courtney Roby 5
John Carney 1
Garrett Hartley 1
New Orleans Saints’ Defensive Player Grades: Year in Review
My defensive MVP for the first half of the season, based on having the highest GPA, was Jabari Greer. After 16 games, Jonathan Vilma gets my defensive MVP for the season. He may not have the highest GPA, but I'll take 15 games of 2.98 quality average over 9 games of Greer's 3.37 average, or 12 games of Porter's 3.06 average. Below are the final GPA's for the season, including the number of games graded. Keep in mind, that doesn't mean number of games played, it's just the number of games I graded based on extended action.
Here are the GPA's, highest to lowest:
Jabari Greer: 3.37 (9 games)
Tracy Porter: 3.06 (12 games)
Usama Young: 3.00 (3 games)
Jonathan Vilma: 2.98 (15 games)
Jonathan Casillas: 2.84 (2 games)
Darren Sharper: 2.83 (14 games)
Will Smith: 2.79 (16 games)
Roman Harper: 2.75 (16 games)
Sedrick Ellis: 2.73 (10 games)
Jo-Lonn Dunbar: 2.73 (4 games)
Scott Fujita: 2.70 (10 games)
DeMario Pressley: 2.67 (6 games)
Marvin Mitchell: 2.67 (5 games)
Scott Shanle: 2.60 (14 games)
Randall Gay: 2.60 (10 games)
Chris McAlister: 2.50 (2 games)
Pierson Prioleau: 2.42 (8 games)
Remi Ayodele: 2.38 (15 games)
Anthony Hargrove: 2.36 (15 games)
Malcolm Jenkins: 2.33 (10 games)
Jeff Charleston: 2.33 (1 game)
Kendrick Clancy: 2.17 (2 games)
Mike McKenzie: 2.13 (5 games)
Charles Grant: 2.08 (16 games)
Leigh Torrence: 2.00 (2 games)
Rodney Leisle: 2.00 (1 game)
Bobby McCray: 1.98 (15 games)
Troy Evans: 1.87 (5 games)
Chris Reis: 1.67 (1 game)
Below are the number of Defensive Player of the Game awards handed out in my Player Grades posts:
Darren Sharper 3
Jonathan Vilma 3
Roman Harper2
Will Smith 1
Tracy Porter 1
Jabari Greer 1
Malcolm Jenkins 1
Mike McKenzie 1
Remi Ayodele 1
Charles Grant 1
Anthony Hargrove 1
New Orleans Saints’ Offensive Player Grades: Year in Review
My offensive MVP for the first half of the season, based on having the highest GPA, was Jahri Evans. After 16 games, Drew Brees now has the highest GPA, so he gets my offensive MVP for the season. Below are the final GPA's for the season, including the number of games graded. Keep in mind, that doesn't mean number of games played, it's just the number of games I graded based on extended action.
Here are the GPA's, highest to lowest:
Drew Brees: 3.18 (15 games)
Jahri Evans: 3.13 (16 games)
Heath Evans: 3.11 (6 games)
Pierre Thomas: 3.10 (13 games)
Robert Meachem: 3.02 (14 games)
Jamar Nesbit: 3.00 (1 game)
Carl Nicks: 2.98 (16 games)
Marques Colston: 2.93 (15 games)
Jeremy Shockey: 2.87 (13 games)
Devery Henderson: 2.77 (16 games)
Jon Stinchcomb: 2.75 (16 games)
Reggie Bush: 2.69 (14 games)
Lance Moore: 2.54 (5 games)
Lynell Hamilton: 2.53 (5 games)
Jermon Bushrod: 2.51 (15 games)
Mike Bell: 2.49 (13 games)
David Thomas: 2.41 (13 games)
Zach Strief: 2.31 (13 games)
Kyle Eckel: 2.20 (5 games)
Darnell Dinkins: 2.14 (6 games)
Tory Humphrey: 1.67 (1 game)
Mark Brunell: 1.00 (1 game)
Nick Leckey 1.00 (1 game)
Below are the number of Offensive Player of the Game awards handed out in my Player Grades posts (note I gave Shockey and Bell a tie one week):
Drew Brees 4
Pierre Thomas 3
Marques Colston 2
Robert Meachem 2
Reggie Bush 1
Carl Nicks 1
David Thomas 1
Lynell Hamilton 1
Jeremy Shockey 0.5
Mike Bell 0.5
Charles Grant Injured, Out for the Playoffs
So much for resting the starters. It looks like the limited action Charles Grant got against the Carolina Panthers was enough to injure his bicep and earn him a place on injured reserve. I'd say it's not that big of a deal considering his overall lackluster performance this season, but consider that Bobby McCray's performance has been even worse. Veteran Paul Spicer has be re-signed to take up Grant's place on the roster. It's hard to say who will replace Grant on the field, but I'm assuming it will involve some rotation of Spicer, McCray, Jeff Charleston, Anthony Hargrove. As far as I'm concerned, the more of those snaps Hargrove gets, the better. McCray will likely be used more heavily in obvious pass rushing downs and situations. This is a blow for the Saints, but not a disastrous blow. Grant's performance this year is replaceable.
How much do you think this hurts the Saints' playoff chances?
New Orleans Saints’ Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Panthers
Grading the defense was tricky because some of the starters got action before giving way to their backups. None the less, see below the player grades for defense and special teams at Carolina. The letter grade represents the player's individual performance in the game, the GPA represents the player's cumulative effort for the season.
Will Smith: C (2.79) Smith finished with 1 tackle and wasn't really a factor when he was in. He made no major errors, but he wasn't really involved either. It seemed clear at the outset that the main instruction from Sean Payton was "don't get hurt". Smith didn't apply much pressure on Matt Moore on the few passing downs he saw.Charles Grant: D+ (2.08) I could essentially copy and paste what I just wrote for Will Smith, including the 1 tackle performance, and that would mostly describe Charles Grant's limited action. Except, unlike Smith, he was responsible for a major error. On the second play of the game, Grant followed the line shift to the left, pushing Carolina's right tackle hard in that direction. Problem is, the play was a counter and with terrible containment Grant paved a massive lane for Jonathan Stewart to hit the second level. As Stewart made his cut back, Grant had his back to the ballcarrier and was completely clueless as to what was happening. Needless to say, Stewart made one guy miss and raced 67 yards to paydirt.
Bobby McCray: B- (1.98) Bobby got extended action and while his pass rushing was largely mediocre, he actually did a pretty good job against the run. He finished with 2 tackles, including an impressive stop in the backfield.
Anthony Hargrove: A- (2.36) In my estimation, Hargrove was by far the best Saint of the day. He was energetic, active, and looked like one of the few players that actually wanted to be out there. You have to love the guy's hustle. After Smith and Grant left the game, he also got extended action at his natural position of defensive end. No surprise, he looked a lot more comfortable and assertive in that role. He finished with a whooping 6 tackles, and he batted a 3rd down pass at the line of scrimmage to kill a drive. He was also in Matt Moore's face numerous times, and even got a sack. On the sack play, he appeared to pull off the rarely seen but always praised sack-strip-recovery-score play, but replay proved Moore was down by contact. Regardless, a head's up play by Hargrove and a really good game by the reserve pass rusher. He even did a very good job holding his own against the run, which has been his main struggle this season.
DeMario Pressley: B (2.67) Every time this guy comes in, he plays pretty well. I think the Saints should give him extended playing time because I think he's capabale of making an impact. He was good against the run and helped his teammates finish plays. 3 tackles on the day.
Remi Ayodele: C (2.38) Limited action for Ayodele so it's hard to grade the guy. He finished with 1 tackle and was fine overall. Certainly didn't do anything special, either.
Rodney Leisle: C (2.0) Leisle held his ground well against the run, but he looked slow and overmatched when he tried to move laterally. He finished with 1 tackle.
Scott Fujita: C- (2.70) Fujita actually played a good amount of the game, but either he was uninspired or the Panthers avoided running in his direction with so many weak links to pick on elsewhere. He finished with 4 tackles and did a decent job against the pass, but his tackles were soft and he just looked out of it. Anytime there was a running play, he was extremely slow to help his teammates. Perhaps he was playing not to get injured like so many others. I'm sure the Saints would've preferred to sit guys like Fujita, Meachem and Henderson, but when you've only got 45 gameday roster spots you can only sit so many players.
Jonathan Casillas: B (2.84) Casillas was active and has really shown promise. The guy is all over the place on the field and he has a nice mean streak. I think he can use a little work in his tackling, and showing a little containment in his pursuit, but for an undrafted free agent he's really played well the last few weeks and he's a promising prospect at linebacker. I was really impressed with his toughness up the middle. He finished with 7 tackles and had loads of involvement. He never really got exposed in passing situations though, and I wonder if maybe that would be a weakness for him. He's a bulky guy so he may not have the fluidity and range to cover as well.
Troy Evans: C- (1.87) Evans was the guy that whiffed miserably on Stewart's counter that went 67 yards. He was the only guy that really had a chance to save that play. He finished with 5 tackles, but too many times was he completely blown up by blocks or slow to make a play.
Marvin Mitchell: B+ (2.67) Mitchell started at middle linebacker and played the entirety. He was physical, hard nosed and quick to the ball. He had 6 tackles and was a major part of the impressive second half performance that saw the Saints give up only 6 points defensively. He acted like a leader despite his lack of experience and showed me a lot. We've got a good backup behind Vilma.
Jabari Greer: B- (3.37) Greer looked rusty in coverage and got beat on a few throws. That said, he showed very clearly why he is the best cornerback on the roster. He was physical and wasn't afraid to stick his nose in to help against the run. Twice the Panthers tries to run screens to Mushin Muhammad, isolated one on one with Greer, and both times the dwarfed corner made impressive tackles short of a first down marker. As he gets acclimated to game speed and gets his feet under him, he should be back to performing like he did earlier in the season. He finished with 6 tackles, but did give up some yardage in pass situations.
Randall Gay: C (2.60) Gay was burned often by the Panthers, and he didn't do a good job of covering his man. More often than not it was Muhammad exposing Gay in the slot. That said, Gay was physical and at least able to limit the damage by making sure tackles. His coverage was bad enough that he deserved a worse grade, but he did an excellent job blitzing. Once he sacked Moore, and also blew up Moore on another play just as he released the ball. He finished with a team high 7 tackles, thanks in part to the plays he was giving up.
Tracy Porter: B- (3.06) Porter didn't play a fantastic game by any means, but he showed a few good things out there. He finished with 2 tackles and a defended pass. By and large his coverage was pretty good, though suspect on one pass to Dwayne Jarrett.
Chris Reis: C- (1.67) Reis looked extremely slow out there. On Stewart's long touchdown run, Reis was losing ground badly. There's no denying he was busting his tail off and he wasn't afraid to get physical, but the bottom line was he was too slow, too small, and of too little ability to really make an impact at free safety. I think Reis might be better off playing at strong safety, but he doesn't really have the size for that either. He did finish with 6 tackles, but by and large he was a boy among men out there. I feel mean saying it because I love Reis and he's liked by fans and praised as the "new Steve Gleason", but he really needs to stick to special teams.
Roman Harper: C+ (2.75) Harper was throwing his body around out there and showing some effort. He took risks and overpursued incessantly. Some of his gambles paid off but I hope he plays with a little more restraint in the playoffs. He finished with 3 tackles.
Pierson Prioleau: C+ (2.42) Prioleau played pretty well in coverage, against the run, and did a good job of keeping plays in front him - except for one horrendous play. With just 13 seconds left in the first half, he allowed Dwayne Jarrett to abuse him in single coverage on a flag route over the middle. The result was a 30 yard touchdown pass just before halftime which was essentially a back breaker given the Saints' anemic offense. Too bad, because Prioleau let down a defense that was actually playing pretty well. You take away that long run by Stewart and that terrible coverage by Prioleau and the Saints' defense, backups and all, would've played a whale of a game. Unfortunately, as always, the big plays will kill you even when you're playing well. As mentioned, though, beyond that play Prioleau was pretty solid. He finished with 4 tackles.
Garrett Hartley: B+ (2.67) Hartley was charged with handling kickoffs in this one and struggled to get much depth on his first two kicks. In his defense, though, the weather was cold and the conditions made it hard to really blast one. He did manage to kick his third one for a touchback. He also hit an extra point and his lone field goal try from 35 yards out right down the middle.
Thomas Morstead: A+ (3.00) Morstead was the Saints overall player of the game, in my opinion. His punting was a pure work of art. He punted 9 times, none of them touchbacks, and 7 of them pinned inside the 20. Just sick. It's not like he was punting from close either, as he averaged a very healthy 46.3 yards per punt. He gave the Panthers no chance to get much going with the field position he stuck them in. If you've been following my grades you know I do not give A+'s out frequently, but Morstead deserves this one. I believe it's the third one I've given out. Oh, and even though Captain Munnerlyn ripped off a 31 yard punt return at one point, Morstead's net average was still 42.3, which was very very good. It's sad when the punter is your best guy on gameday, but he deserves props.
Courtney Roby: C- (2.80) Roby was off to a great start in the game. He had a great tackle with the coverage unit, then he downed two of Morstead's punts inside the Panthers' 20. He was headed towards a really nice little grade. Then, he had to negate a big time Reggie Bush punt return with a block in the back, and he had to fumble a kick return with under 5 seconds left in the half to set up one last John Kasay field goal before going into the locker room. I'm sorry, but fumbling a kickoff like that before halftime is a cardinal sin. I realize he got hit hard and got a concussion, and I hope he's ok because we need him and he's a good player, but you just can't do that.
My Defensive Player of the Game: Anthony Hargrove
My Special Teams Player of the Game: Thomas Morstead
New Orleans Saints’ Offensive Player Grades @ Panthers
Below are the grades for the season finale. The grades represent the player's individual performance in the game, and the GPA represents the player's final cumulative effort for the season.
Saints vs Panthers coverage
Mark Brunell: D (1.00) Yikes! I was actually stupid enough to hope this ancient fossil could hold his own in spot duty, but he just looked old and out of place. Any throw downfield was completely off target. Most of his throws were so erratic the defenders didn't even have a shot at making plays. Brunell looked completely immobile, off balance in the pocket, slow, grossly inaccurate and out of sync with the entirety of his teammates. I'm not going to give the guy an F though, considering he didn't turn the ball over but once at the very end of the game and it was his first start in over three years. The only passes he had that were of any success whatsoever were little screens and flares underneath, usually set up by misdirection play action fakes. It made me realize just how screwed we were if Brees... yeah, I'm not even going to say it. It's not like we didn't know it already, but Brunell was worse than I possibly could've imagined. I have to assume this game will cost him his job for 2010 if he even thinks about putting off retirement. The last thing I'll say, in Brunell's defense, is the Saints ran a very vanilla offense consisting of two receiver sets on almost every down. It's not like he ever really had a chance given the hand he was dealt and a poor running game behind him. He finished 15 of 29 for just 102 yards and 1 interception. Too bad Chase Daniel never got a chance to get some snaps, but my guess is the #2 QB next year will be someone not currently on the roster.
Reggie Bush: B+ (2.69) Bush looked really good running the football and even looked solid on punt returns. Granted Bush has been averaging about 2 to 3 rushes per game over the last several weeks, but he always seems to average 7 yards or more per carry. I wonder if maybe he should see more carries in the playoffs. He finished with an impressive 35 yards on 5 carries, and he made one cut and hit the holes with authority. He also did a good job on punt returns, though he best one was called back for a block in the back by Roby. Still, he wasn't running backwards. He returned 2 punts for 11 yards, sadly boosting his season average.
Mike Bell: D- (2.49) Bell didn't break any tackles, was often hit for a loss, and didn't get anything going. I don't know what happened to the human wrecking ball that looked fast, tough and authoritative in his running style, but he was shut down completely. Despite getting 17 carries, Bell finished with 28 yards (1.7 per carry). He also got blown up for -2 yards on 2 catches. This was by far his worst game of the season. In his defense he got no blocking and the Panthers sold out against the run when he was in, but the bottom line is he went through the motions and showed no real fire.
Lynell Hamilton: B (2.53) Hamilton was a little up and down, but his statistics turned out pretty good: 10 carries for 48 yards, 3 catches for 38 yards and the Saints' lone touchdown on the afternoon. Hamilton even got some looks out of the wildcat, which were arguably some of the Saints' most successful plays offensively. He was largely responsible for the Saints scoring on the touchdown drive by carrying the team on his back despite a bum shoulder. I think he showed the coaching staff he has some heart and that he belongs on the team.
Devery Henderson: C (2.77) Never really got a chance to show much of anything. The Saints were so terrified of getting him hit on punt returns in the second half that he was waving for a fair catch starting when the punter's foot made contact with the football. He finished with one catch for 18 yards and could have come down with another in traffic. The few times a ball was thrown his way, though, he had absolutely no chance of catching it.
Robert Meachem: D (3.02) Meachem had two receptions for just 12 yards, and both were disastrous plays. The first was a screen where he needed to get a yard going forward to pick up a first down, but was stood up in his tracks and tackled short of the first down marker forcing the Saints to kick a field goal on drive where they had a chance to tie the game at 7. His second catch turned into a lost fumble deep in Saints territory. He was probably the most targeted player on the day but absolutely nothing worked. He was overthrown, underthrown, and once had alligator arms on a deep ball he otherwise had a shot at. Can't really blame him, either, because Captain Munnerlyn took his head off and left him gun shy on a close-line tackle on a seam route where Brunell left him exposed. Regardless of how bad Brunell was, though, for Meachem to catch just 2 balls with the amount coming his way and to fumble once is inexcusable. No doubt he'll get that corrected in time for the playoffs.
Jermon Bushrod C- (2.51) In limited action, Bushrod wasn't very good. I think he'll be the X-factor in the playoffs. If he can hold his own the Saints will have a chance, but if he has a performance similar to what he had the last time he faced DeMarcus Ware, it could cost the Saints dearly. God forbid the Saints make the SuperBowl and he has to face Dwight Freeney or Shawne Merriman. I know he's been showing up on the injury report lately and I wonder if that's the reason for his drop in performance. Or maybe he's just run out of gas after a long season. Younger players who are used to college's 12-13 game season need adjusting to the 16 game + season in a league with more physicality. Regardless, his run blocking wasn't good and he got Brunell absolutely crushed on a token "throw the ball 10 yards over anyone's head and out of bounds" pass. Hopefully the two weeks off will do him some good.
Zach Strief: C (2.31) Strief came in as the full time right tackle in the second half, and he was mediocre. I still think he's our best option at left tackle right now. Just my opinion, but he's a mammoth build that's hard to move. I know he's got slow feet but he's always filled in nicely when the Saints needed him. Anyway, he didn't get a chance to showcase his pass blocking, but his run blocking wasn't anything to write home about.
Carl Nicks: B- (2.98) He played the whole game and had ups and downs. On the touchdown run by Lynell Hamilton, check out the replay if you get a chance. Nicks mauls two defenders and pushes them back about 4 yards into the end zone, clearing up the easiest trot for Lynell into the end zone. This guy is capable of dominating opponents on any play. Unfortunately, he was the one dominated all too often in this game. He got no help from his center whatsoever, whether it was Goodwin or Leckey. Nick Hayden and Hollis Thomas just aren't good enough to give the Saints this much trouble.
Jonathan Goodwin: C- (3.02) Goodwin was responsible for many of the Mike Bell disaster carries. He suffered major breakdowns in assignments. His pass blocking was also poor. Only played one half.
Jahri Evans: C (3.13) Evans, like many Saints, looked like he was playing not to get hurt and was just going through the motions. He too made some errors that cost the Saints any chance at moving the football. Only played one half.
Jon Stinchcomb: B (2.75) Stinchcomb only played one half as well, but he was in my mind the most consistent lineman. Showed good effort and was responsible for a couple of beautiful Reggie Bush runs by throwing devastating lead blocks. His pass protection wasn't picture perfect, but he got the job done mostly.
Darnell Dinkins: B- (2.14) Dinkins was a little spotty in run blocking, but he surprised me by actually making a couple plays in the passing game. By no means could he be mistaken for a weapon of any sort, but he did manage 4 grabs for 20 yards. Given how bad Brunell was getting the ball downfield, Dinkins was one of the few reliable options the Saints went to for positive yardage.
Kyle Eckel: C (2.20) Eckel got a lot of action in this one, and he just didn't really manage to get much done as a lead blocker. I don't see what the Saints see in him. I'd rather they just re-sign Darian Barnes, an old school hit you in the mouth run blocker. Yeah Barnes is never going to catch the ball or get any carries, but he'll throw a nasty lead block. Eckel is like a junior sized version of Heath Evans, and while he's got a little versatility, he's just not helping our run game. He did have a nice 7 yard reception, though.
Jamar Nesbit: B (3.00) Nesbit came in for Jahri in the second half and he actually helped keep Brunell mostly clean. He was, with Nicks, the main player they ran behind in the second half and he did a pretty good job opening holes, especially on the wildcat plays. On the play action roll out fakes, he also did a good job pulling to Brunell's blind side and keeping Tyler Brayton in check.
Nick Leckey: D (1.00) Leckey was not good, at all. He replaced Goodwin and the play at center somehow got worse. The amount of push Carolina was getting from two average at best NFL defensive tackles was sickening. Carolina was blowing up the middle of the Saints' line all game long, and Leckey was responsible for a large majority of that.
Tory Humphrey: C- (1.67) Did a poor job as a lead blocker. Granted it's not his position, but playing fullback was a failed adventure. He did make one reception for 7 yards before getting tackled by what seemed like 12 Panthers. I don't know if this guy will still be on the team come the playoffs.
My Offensive Player of the Game: Lynell Hamilton
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