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First, that was a hell of a game. Sometimes it's hard to get out of a the coach mindset and just enjoy the excitement, but this was one hell of a game. Even if the Saints would have lost at the end, I would be saying the same thing and be confident that they are a contender. But they won a close, back-and-forth game, and those are SO difficult to win... but more on that later.
Positives
-Overcame adversity. The Saints came in with a good game plan and executed it well early on, but they had trouble finishing. They fizzled out twice in the RZ in the first half (one time with a RZ INT that was a devastating 14-point swing). The defense allowed a 17-play drive late in the half which is incredibly deflating for both sides of the ball, especially in that situation. And they got screwed with the clock run off which cost them at least another 3 points. Yet they still find a way to win against a very good Texans team (seriously, the Texans are legit).
-Smart adjustments. I loved the aggression on defense, and I liked that they got even more aggressive in the 2nd half. On offense, I posted about it right before the 2nd half--didn't matter if it was through the run game or the pass game, they needed to get Kamara involved and they did. Brees spread the ball around to Ginn, Smith, and they got Hill out there in some key situations and used him. The sense of urgency that was missing in the first half showed up in the 2nd half.
-Best OL in the NFL. There may be some lines that are better in pass pro. There may be some that are more efficient run blockers. But the Saints starting 5 are the most well-rounded group in the NFL. Protection was great all game, and the Saints could have run the ball even more if they wanted to.
-Brees is still a championship QB. There's a lot of plays I could bring up, but the 3rd and short right before the 2 minute warning was all him, and all masterful. He hadn't pushed the ball down the field all game, and he he waited until the play clock was running down to hard count and pull the Texans out of their defensive stem (disguise)...if he would have hard counted earlier, they wouldn't have moved... and in about 5 seconds, checked the play and got the snap off before the clock ran out. He just checked to 4 verticals, but with Thomas as the #3 WR he knew he would hold the single high safety and Ginn would be 1-on-1 with the nickel, a mismatch all day. Brees looked off the safety and threw an easy ball to Ginn. 40 yards later, DAGGER! From the huddle to the whistle, the dude is unbelievable.
-Trey Hendrickson looks like a pro bowl player when he is on the field. I hope he starts getting even more snaps.
Negatives
-PJ Williams is giving me polio. Seriously. He can be painful to watch. I called him the weak link on the defense last year and I still feel that way. And it is not that he is bad on every play. It's that he is bad IN CRITICAL SITUATIONS. I get his appeal as a nickel corner, he is physical and puts his nose in the run game. But in the pass game he is such a liability, he is a penalty machine, has bad fundamentals and is constantly out of position and trying to rally late. They obviously see something in him (he is a big nickel CB), but teams are going to attack him in 3rd down all season long, or when they need a TD like in that 2 play drive that gave them 6 points with 37 seconds left in the game. Anyway, he's obviously not going to get benched since he's been doing this crap since last year, so I can only hope that he doesn't get exposed even more than he did last season.
-Davenport did not impress me tonight. I am not overly critical of the guy like I think some people are, but I can only say his play was uninspired. He is not very assignment sound and plays really high and just soft at times. He seems to play with a little more aggression when there is a pass rush game on up front (twists and stunts), but just coming off the edge I saw him high, lazy with his hands and getting tossed at times. I really hope he hasn't regressed.
-While I didn't really have a problem with the play call ratio, I do worry about Brees throwing the ball nearly 40 times and his arm fatiguing like it seemed to last season. I also thought there were some missed situational opportunities in the 1st half (particularly in the RZ) that we won't be able to always overcome... almost couldn't overcome this game. That is really tough, and I don't like to MMQB this stuff so I won't harp on it. As a coach you make decisions, same as a QB, and you can't sit there and vacillate over it. You make the decision and hope your guys will make you right. This was a well-coached game, but the first half definitely looked like a "formula" on how to handle the Saints' offense.
-As soon as I complimented Deonte Harris he fair caught a punt inside the 5 yard line. I'm glad the Texans screwed up and we were able to make them rekick (which then he called for a fair catch and tried to return it lol). I love the guy, but he is not immune to rookie mistakes.
-Don't take this as me not being pleased with the defense... I loved the way they played overall and I loved their gameplan (despite almost 200 yards rushing surrendered, some poor situational ball on 3rd down and just bad football on the Texans last scoring drive... as well as some uninspired individual efforts)... but I was actually a little shocked at how we allowed the Texans best WR to kind of have his way with us. And I don't mean the old cliche of "why didn't we double team him". I mean... why didn't we reroute him from the slot down in the Red Zone? Why did we ever have PJ Williams manned up on him? Why wasn't our underneath coverage carrying him and condensing those windows? They just seemed content to float around and not keep tabs on the other team's best player. Obviously the game plan was centered around pressuring Watson, but some of this is just general football IQ and situational awareness. I hope it doesn't become a theme.
WITH ALL OF THAT SAID... man that was one hell of a game. The Saints look like they're picking up exactly where they left off last season. I had to stay up until 4:30am (EU time) to watch it live and it was totally worth it! Close games are so hard to win, and that mental toughness to overcome adversity and close out a 1 score win or come from behind victory... it really comes down to 2 or 3 opportunities in the game. Champions get it done, and that's what the Saints did tonight (or for some of us, this morning).
Positives
-Overcame adversity. The Saints came in with a good game plan and executed it well early on, but they had trouble finishing. They fizzled out twice in the RZ in the first half (one time with a RZ INT that was a devastating 14-point swing). The defense allowed a 17-play drive late in the half which is incredibly deflating for both sides of the ball, especially in that situation. And they got screwed with the clock run off which cost them at least another 3 points. Yet they still find a way to win against a very good Texans team (seriously, the Texans are legit).
-Smart adjustments. I loved the aggression on defense, and I liked that they got even more aggressive in the 2nd half. On offense, I posted about it right before the 2nd half--didn't matter if it was through the run game or the pass game, they needed to get Kamara involved and they did. Brees spread the ball around to Ginn, Smith, and they got Hill out there in some key situations and used him. The sense of urgency that was missing in the first half showed up in the 2nd half.
-Best OL in the NFL. There may be some lines that are better in pass pro. There may be some that are more efficient run blockers. But the Saints starting 5 are the most well-rounded group in the NFL. Protection was great all game, and the Saints could have run the ball even more if they wanted to.
-Brees is still a championship QB. There's a lot of plays I could bring up, but the 3rd and short right before the 2 minute warning was all him, and all masterful. He hadn't pushed the ball down the field all game, and he he waited until the play clock was running down to hard count and pull the Texans out of their defensive stem (disguise)...if he would have hard counted earlier, they wouldn't have moved... and in about 5 seconds, checked the play and got the snap off before the clock ran out. He just checked to 4 verticals, but with Thomas as the #3 WR he knew he would hold the single high safety and Ginn would be 1-on-1 with the nickel, a mismatch all day. Brees looked off the safety and threw an easy ball to Ginn. 40 yards later, DAGGER! From the huddle to the whistle, the dude is unbelievable.
-Trey Hendrickson looks like a pro bowl player when he is on the field. I hope he starts getting even more snaps.
Negatives
-PJ Williams is giving me polio. Seriously. He can be painful to watch. I called him the weak link on the defense last year and I still feel that way. And it is not that he is bad on every play. It's that he is bad IN CRITICAL SITUATIONS. I get his appeal as a nickel corner, he is physical and puts his nose in the run game. But in the pass game he is such a liability, he is a penalty machine, has bad fundamentals and is constantly out of position and trying to rally late. They obviously see something in him (he is a big nickel CB), but teams are going to attack him in 3rd down all season long, or when they need a TD like in that 2 play drive that gave them 6 points with 37 seconds left in the game. Anyway, he's obviously not going to get benched since he's been doing this crap since last year, so I can only hope that he doesn't get exposed even more than he did last season.
-Davenport did not impress me tonight. I am not overly critical of the guy like I think some people are, but I can only say his play was uninspired. He is not very assignment sound and plays really high and just soft at times. He seems to play with a little more aggression when there is a pass rush game on up front (twists and stunts), but just coming off the edge I saw him high, lazy with his hands and getting tossed at times. I really hope he hasn't regressed.
-While I didn't really have a problem with the play call ratio, I do worry about Brees throwing the ball nearly 40 times and his arm fatiguing like it seemed to last season. I also thought there were some missed situational opportunities in the 1st half (particularly in the RZ) that we won't be able to always overcome... almost couldn't overcome this game. That is really tough, and I don't like to MMQB this stuff so I won't harp on it. As a coach you make decisions, same as a QB, and you can't sit there and vacillate over it. You make the decision and hope your guys will make you right. This was a well-coached game, but the first half definitely looked like a "formula" on how to handle the Saints' offense.
-As soon as I complimented Deonte Harris he fair caught a punt inside the 5 yard line. I'm glad the Texans screwed up and we were able to make them rekick (which then he called for a fair catch and tried to return it lol). I love the guy, but he is not immune to rookie mistakes.
-Don't take this as me not being pleased with the defense... I loved the way they played overall and I loved their gameplan (despite almost 200 yards rushing surrendered, some poor situational ball on 3rd down and just bad football on the Texans last scoring drive... as well as some uninspired individual efforts)... but I was actually a little shocked at how we allowed the Texans best WR to kind of have his way with us. And I don't mean the old cliche of "why didn't we double team him". I mean... why didn't we reroute him from the slot down in the Red Zone? Why did we ever have PJ Williams manned up on him? Why wasn't our underneath coverage carrying him and condensing those windows? They just seemed content to float around and not keep tabs on the other team's best player. Obviously the game plan was centered around pressuring Watson, but some of this is just general football IQ and situational awareness. I hope it doesn't become a theme.
WITH ALL OF THAT SAID... man that was one hell of a game. The Saints look like they're picking up exactly where they left off last season. I had to stay up until 4:30am (EU time) to watch it live and it was totally worth it! Close games are so hard to win, and that mental toughness to overcome adversity and close out a 1 score win or come from behind victory... it really comes down to 2 or 3 opportunities in the game. Champions get it done, and that's what the Saints did tonight (or for some of us, this morning).
