Down 10 with 8:03 left, Saints go on a 13-play, 5:11 drive (1 Viewer)

[HouseCall]

I think some of the need to huddle was dictated by the fact that the defense took everything away beyond 10 yards. It was essentially locked down. We were having to cherry pick check-downs the entire drive. Noting on the edges was opened and nothing beyond the linebackers was open. We were forced to dink and dunk all night and I believe it was by design from Carolina's defensive game plan.

Carolina was gashed by deep plays the last time we played and they were determined to lock that down -- and they did. All of our drives, save the TD first TD drive in the 4th were multi-play, time-consuming affairs. I really think the Panthers cover-two (which always gives Brees/Payton fits) had Brees and the receivers befuddled. We couldn't get the tempo up because we couldn't find a weakness in what they were doing in the back seven.

It was incredibly frustrating to watch the methodical plodding down field but I got the sense we were unable to call multiple plays and run no-huddle because we were struggling to find gaps and weaknesses.

All that aside -- we don't give them short fields with TOs and blocked FG, we blow that game open. But we did and here we are...

 

[Domeination]

Payton is too wedded to his rotating packages to go no huddle. It would have been the thing to do in the situation last night, but this has been a recurring problem the past few seasons.

 

[insidejob]

Payton is too wedded to his rotating packages to go no huddle. It would have been the thing to do in the situation last night, but this has been a recurring problem the past few seasons.

He was barely substituting on that drive. That's why it was so frustrating. And you can still substitute while running no huddle.

Or just get in and out of the huddle faster. Literally walking to and from the huddle alone cost us over 30 seconds of game clock.

 

[Chris]

If we have shown a lack of urgency before in the past, it was never more apparent than what we saw at the end of the 4th quarter in this game. It was totally egregious and was a contributing factor as to why we lost that game.

 

[bobad]

It's mind boggling and anyone watching it unfold was thinking the same thing, except the Saints coaches on the sideline.

Indeed, but neither Drew nor Payton were in a hurry.

Why?

I have no choice but to believe Payton was protecting Drew. He looked a bit off... maybe he's nicked.

 

[FLIPPY]

All they had to do was stop the Panthers on 3rd and 12...:fit2:

 

[Bill]

Given how the Panthers were playing this, I don't fault the team for running the ball. But look at the time between plays (higlighted in bold).

New Orleans Saints at 08:03
1-10-NO 24
(8:03) (Shotgun) 34-T.Hightower left tackle to NO 24 for no gain (95-C.Johnson; 20-K.Coleman).
2-10-NO 24
(7:33) (40 seconds)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short left to 83-W.Snead to NO 32 for 8 yards (27-R.McClain; 33-T.Boston). PENALTY on CAR-59-L.Kuechly, Defensive Holding, 5 yards, enforced at NO 24 - No Play.
1-10-NO 29
(7:13)(clock stopped - penalty) 34-T.Hightower right end to NO 34 for 5 yards (33-T.Boston).
2-5-NO 34
(6:41)(32 seconds) 34-T.Hightower left tackle to NO 37 for 3 yards (95-C.Johnson; 92-V.Butler). Tim Lelito reported as eligible
3-2-NO 37
(6:08))33 seconds)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short left to 34-T.Hightower to NO 41 for 4 yards (58-T.Davis).
1-10-NO 41
(5:38)(30 seconds)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short left to 13-M.Thomas to CAR 48 for 11 yards (26-D.Worley). Penalty on CAR-26-D.Worley, Defensive Holding, declined.
1-10-CAR 48
(5:26)(clock stopped - penalty)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short right to 10-B.Cooks to CAR 45 for 3 yards (24-J.Bradberry; 27-R.McClain).
2-7-CAR 45
(5:04)(22 seconds - no huddle)(No Huddle, Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short left to 34-T.Hightower pushed ob at CAR 37 for 8 yards (26-D.Worley).
1-10-CAR 37
(4:56)(clock stopped - OB)(Shotgun) 34-T.Hightower right tackle to CAR 33 for 4 yards (27-R.McClain; 59-L.Kuechly). CAR-59-L.Kuechly was injured during the play. He is Out.
2-6-CAR 33
(4:20)(36 seconds)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short left to 34-T.Hightower to CAR 23 for 10 yards (95-C.Johnson; 33-T.Boston).
1-10-CAR 23
(3:55)(25 seconds - no huddle)(No Huddle, Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass incomplete deep right to 83-W.Snead (24-J.Bradberry). PENALTY on CAR-98-S.Lotulelei, Defensive Offside, 5 yards, enforced at CAR 23 - No Play.
1-5-CAR 18
(3:49)(clock stopped - penalty))(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short left to 13-M.Thomas pushed ob at CAR 9 for 9 yards (58-T.Davis).
1-9-CAR 9
(3:43)(clock stopped - OB)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short right to 83-W.Snead to CAR 3 for 6 yards (55-D.Mayo).
2-3-CAR 3
(3:43) (Shotgun) PENALTY on NO-64-Z.Strief, False Start, 5 yards, enforced at CAR 3 - No Play.
2-8-CAR 8
(3:01)(42 seconds runs between Snead's catch at the 6 and the next completed play)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass incomplete short left to 89-J.Hill (94-K.Ealy).
3-8-CAR 8
(2:56)(clock stopped inc)(Shotgun) 9-D.Brees pass short middle to 82-C.Fleener for 8 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
3-W.Lutz extra point is GOOD, Center-47-J.Drescher, Holder-6-T.Morstead.
NO 20 CAR 23 Plays: 13 Possession: 5:11


If you take out the clock stoppages, you have nine plays. Two of them were run from the no huddle, but even those took 22 and 25 seconds. For the remaining seven plays, the average time to snap was 34 seconds.

When Carolina got the ball back, there was 2:47 and the Saints had two timeouts. This meant that unless Carolina stopped the clock with incompletions or out-of-bounds, or by penalties, they only needed one third-down conversion to basically milk the clock down below 20 seconds.

If the Saints had sped up by a total of 30 seconds, and that's only a bit more than four seconds on each of those seven plays that we huddled on (using an average time of 34 seconds), the Panthers would have had the ball with at least 3:15 left. With two timeouts and the 2-minute warning, you can still surrender at least one 3rd down conversion and get the ball back down 3 with more than a minute . . . rather than the 16 seconds that we ended up with.

Down 3, a minute is more than ample. You can even use the middle of the field if you can get up and spike it. It's a completely different scenario.

Of all the issues we had last night, how this drive played out may have been the most puzzling.

We owned the Panthers in the 4th quarter but simply allowed ourselves to run out of time. :scared: It was excruciating to watch.

 

[LiterOCola]

The drive previous to that was 16 plays, 8+ minutes. Overall it was a very lax series of drives in the second half. The type of time-sucking drives you'd hope for out of a team protecting a lead, not trying to climb out of a major deficit.

 

[Homebrew11]

The lack of urgency was mind boggling.

 

[GrandAdmiral]

All they had to do was stop the Panthers on 3rd and 12...:fit2:

Strictly Dennis Allen's fault in my opinion. You don't call for zone in that situation. You just don't.

 

[efil4stnias]

Indeed, but neither Drew nor Payton were in a hurry.

Why?

I have no choice but to believe Payton was protecting Drew. He looked a bit off... maybe he's nicked.

Or maybe 3 days rest for a game as violent and physical as PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL isnt enough?

I think they honestly thought the way they were playing on both sides of the ball would be enough.

3rd n 10...Cam threw a pass that normal QBs just pull down. He didnt even take step - it was all arm. Vonn Bell was in perfect alignment....but about 2 yds further up than he was supposed to be. 2 yds back and he tips the ball.

Just like that. game of inches. Always is.

 

[someone]

Do I think we could have moved quicker? Certainly. Would we have scored if we moved quicker? Maybe, maybe not. I've seen many a "comebacks" fail with late turnovers because the team is too panicked and moving too quickly. We had an [albeit very slim] chance with the ball on the final drive. The only reason we even had that chance is because we were able to score on the previous drive.

Two years ago (I believe) we put an emphasis on not panicking in any situation. We are methodical in our approach because if we move too quickly and force balls down the field when it's just not there, we turn it over.

So yes, they could have and probably should have moved quicker to the line, but there's no guarantee we would have scored the TD and then it's all a moot point anyways. It's not as simple as "we are an explosive offense so we should just be able to chuck it and score in 2 minutes regardless of situation or defense."

This loss boils down to special teams mistakes, again.

 

[someone]

Strictly Dennis Allen's fault in my opinion. You don't call for zone in that situation. You just don't.

Captain Hindsight, eh? And if Vonn Bell drops deeper in his zone like he should have and gets a tip on the ball? Do we still not play zone? We got pressure with three and dropped 8 into coverage. If Bell gets a hand on that ball, it's likely intercepted by defenders behind him. He bit at the check down (Tolbert).

 

[Goatman Saint]

So it's Dennis Allen's fault that 17 points were the offense or special teams failures? The defense really only allowed what 6 points? No sorry. Can't hang this one on the defense


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[JvilleJoe]

Even with the slow tempo on that drive, we still had an opportunity to get the ball back for at least a FG try. The Panthers first down when we did not blitz was the backbreaker, but I have to give the defense props for having it's best game of the season and playing solid football for 4 quarters.