Quick Notes from Coach Pete on Victory over Texans (2 Viewers)

[Kyle brister]

I do agree the defensive line was our weakness in that game, especially interior ones. Had 3 undrafted players rotating there and had to move Cam and Davenport inside around just to get a pass rush. But it was the first game and this defense usually gets better as the weeks continue. I just can't believe we gave up so many big runs. I can tolerate 6 or 7 yards here and there but poor techniques and tackling need to improve.

I have to disagree with that assessment. We beat the steam out out Watson. And we had great push up front against the run most of the game. It is the Line backers jobs to come up in run support especially when our front four beat up their front five like they did. We got better run support from our DBs than our LBs Monday night. Those guys have to pick up the pace & that's why we traded for Kiko Alonso.

 

[St. PJ]

2nd play from scrimmage. 2nd down, 1 to go. Houston puts a WR, #14, in motion. Davenport blows past the OT Laremy Tunsil who booger just pumped up...looks like he has clear shot...qb hands off and RB runs for first down and Davenport looks like he played it wrong to average fan.

But, Davenport had contain. That was an option. Because Davenport did what he did, he forced Watson to hand off to the rb who would be running through a gap Cam Jordan was crashing down on, a gap LBs were also supposed to fill.

Simply, he funneled the play inside to the guys who were supposed to make the play...to the help. If he plays it different, Watson pitches it, and if you look, there is nobody within 15 yards of the WR running behind Watson who would be receiving that pitch. Watson still hands it off, because a year was the same play last year...Davenport leapt horizontally 5 yards and tackled the guy who got the pitch in the freakiest wicked violent tackle ever, for a loss. Houston got 3 or 4 yards, but if not for that freak, they pitch it and get much gain.

EDIT: Sorry for the way this looks... did it from phone. This was from a text I sent to a friend who was concerned about Davenport.





bigger gain.

 

[Reggie09MVP]

I disagree on Davenport. The hole DLine tired due to excessive snaps. Texans had a large number of big drives. One was 17 snaps. However Davenport is a small school player adjusting to the NFL and he is doing fine. Doing plenty of dirty work.

I agree that DHop is quality but he didn’t just beat us. Dan explained that it was good scheming/ poor Defensive execution more than anything. DHop was actually poor by his standards. 3 drops which equalled his season total last year. I was highly impressed with Lattimore.

 

[Dillonsp]

I disagree on Davenport. The hole DLine tired due to excessive snaps. Texans had a large number of big drives. One was 17 snaps. However Davenport is a small school player adjusting to the NFL and he is doing fine. Doing plenty of dirty work.

I agree that DHop is quality but he didn’t just beat us. Dan explained that it was good scheming/ poor Defensive execution more than anything. DHop was actually poor by his standards. 3 drops which equalled his season total last year. I was highly impressed with Lattimore.

I agree completely! All of the Lattimore and Davenport hate I've been seeing is completely unwarranted (not just this thread). Stats don't tell the whole story and there were a lot of uncalled holds. And, to some, it seems trey hendrickson making good plays means Davenport is a bust. Makes no sense.

Considering Lattimore was shadowing one of the best WRs in the league right now, I'd say he did a pretty good job, especially since it was week 1

 

[St. PJ]

1) Gladly
2) shutting Watt down proved that.
3)Count on the Superbowl because the idiotic media will never vote Brees for MVP.
4) That is obviously going to happen, but that DL was great the other night. Our LBs namley AJ Klein didn't show up at all as I recall.
5) I agree
6) The other team is the Chiefs. But the Patriots would have gone down & scored with 2 seconds on the clock.
7) Obvious with great balance to boot.
8) Again this should obviously be the progression for these guys.
9) He is right about Hill & we should expect something surprising coming from that this week.
10) absolutely correct. It was good to be pushed to the limit by a great team & come out on top. The Texans will bounce back & be better & the Saints will bring a lot of confidence mixed with humility into the game this Sunday.

Swimmer, not sure if Coach Pete is real, or an altar ego of yours. But he is a great analyst who makes a lot of good points. Have a good week. Whodat!

I rewatched the game last night, pausing every defensive play at the snap, and slowly fast forwarding. Without knowing game plan specific assignments or adjustments made to what is normally taught, from my uneducated eyes, for the most part the defensive line did their job. There were multiple plays in the first half on the Texans scoring drive of 94 and 75 yards where d-line (and in some cases whomever has contain... a few times it was a blitzing DB) forced the RB/QB back inside to the "help", and our LB's were out of position, not in the lane or gap they were most likely responsible for, or simply bit the cheese and crashed down too hard to not be able to contain a cutback.

I saw this happen specifically with Klein on a few occassions. I also saw what at first glance appeared to be a bad angle or a whiff, but in slower motion you see an O-lineman get a block in. A good example of that was the first screen pass the Texans threw... Tunsil got a block at the last second on the DB, but in real time it looked like the DB missed the tackle then Tunsil made contact with him.

With the d-line, it is much easier to make somewhat educated guesses as to what their responsibilities were (especially if you've played d-line under a few different systems). LB's it is harder to judge whether they are out of position or playing poor technique without having an all 22 view or at the very least be able to see where the secondary is lined up and where there first steps and eyes are. From TV production, it is very difficult to ascertain a DB's responsibility on a given play, because most shots you see only have half the DB's in the picture.

All that said, I was very impressed with what Davenport did. On the Texans final score, he looked nearly hogtied, and on multiple other plays he or Cam were literally inches away from Watson when Watson lets go of the ball. By the way, I've not read the entire thread yet, but Cam Jordan freaking DOMINATED. I was not at all impressed with Thor. Davis had some errors, but Davis also made his share of plays and pressures too. Can't say that for Thor. I was also impressed with Malcolm Brown.

Spend time re-watching the defensive snaps the same way. Pause at snap during everyone's first step... move it forward a few frames at a time, and watch it develop.

 

[Kyle brister]

2nd play from scrimmage. 2nd down, 1 to go. Houston puts a WR, #14, in motion. Davenport blows past the OT Laremy Tunsil who booger just pumped up...looks like he has clear shot...qb hands off and RB runs for first down and Davenport looks like he played it wrong to average fan.

But, Davenport had contain. That was an option. Because Davenport did what he did, he forced Watson to hand off to the rb who would be running through a gap Cam Jordan was crashing down on, a gap LBs were also supposed to fill.

Simply, he funneled the play inside to the guys who were supposed to make the play...to the help. If he plays it different, Watson pitches it, and if you look, there is nobody within 15 yards of the WR running behind Watson who would be receiving that pitch. Watson still hands it off, because a year was the same play last year...Davenport leapt horizontally 5 yards and tackled the guy who got the pitch in the freakiest wicked violent tackle ever, for a loss. Houston got 3 or 4 yards, but if not for that freak, they pitch it and get much gain.

EDIT: Sorry for the way this looks... did it from phone. This was from a text I sent to a friend who was concerned about Davenport.





bigger gain.

Looks like an uphill battle all the way.

 

[Swimmer]

In the gym this afternoon, talked to Coach Pete about Davenport mentioning a number of the positives sited by a number of you Who Dats in this thread. Coach Pete is not happy with Davenport. I know this thread will get a lot of negatives, but I feel that my role in trying to convey Coach Pete's insights and insider to SR is to tell it like he sees it and not sugar coat. This is not exact but pretty close....

"Davenport was not brought in to be average or to fill some hybrid roles to help other players. The Saints gave up a lot to get him. The expectation of the Saints coaches and FO is that Marcus s will be another Michael Strahan caliber disruptive DE. Davenport took the money and got fat and out of shape. Just look at his build now versus last year and if you look close enough, you will see how puffy he looks. If Davenport doesn't come around in a major way, the Saints will likely dump him after next year. I saw this kid up close. He has as strong skills as any DE I've ever seen. Average is not acceptable from him."

Wow - I did not expect that. Pete rarely gets upset from all the martial arts meditation and exercise he does. He is clearly seriously POed at Davenport right now.

 

[StudioSaint]

Has any of the actual coaching staff or a credentialed reporter confirmed Davenport reported to camp "fat and out of shape?"

 

[Infoman]

In the gym this afternoon, talked to Coach Pete about Davenport mentioning a number of the positives sited by a number of you Who Dats in this thread. Coach Pete is not happy with Davenport. I know this thread will get a lot of negatives, but I feel that my role in trying to convey Coach Pete's insights and insider to SR is to tell it like he sees it and not sugar coat. This is not exact but pretty close....

"Davenport was not brought in to be average or to fill some hybrid roles to help other players. The Saints gave up a lot to get him. The expectation of the Saints coaches and FO is that Marcus s will be another Michael Strahan caliber disruptive DE. Davenport took the money and got fat and out of shape. Just look at his build now versus last year and if you look close enough, you will see how puffy he looks. If Davenport doesn't come around in a major way, the Saints will likely dump him after next year. I saw this kid up close. He has as strong skills as any DE I've ever seen. Average is not acceptable from him."

Wow - I did not expect that. Pete rarely gets upset from all the martial arts meditation and exercise he does. He is clearly seriously POed at Davenport right now.

I'm with "Coach Pete", and I have been getting ripped for it here too... I really don't mind, but the kid has been frustratingly average at this point, and IMO Trey Hendrickson will (and should) start ahead of him until he gets his act together...

All the other stuff about how he is taking one for the team by occupying blockers and playing out of position is just "sunshine rationalization" by fans that don't want to admit what's really happening...

The kid is built like Tarzan, has untold ability, but for whatever reason... he doesn't play like it... he should be dominating one on ones with Cam on the other side... I don't care who else is out of the lineup... or what his perceived "role" is... and it's frustrating.

Thanks for the insight as always Swimmer.

 

[Kyle brister]

In the gym this afternoon, talked to Coach Pete about Davenport mentioning a number of the positives sited by a number of you Who Dats in this thread. Coach Pete is not happy with Davenport. I know this thread will get a lot of negatives, but I feel that my role in trying to convey Coach Pete's insights and insider to SR is to tell it like he sees it and not sugar coat. This is not exact but pretty close....

"Davenport was not brought in to be average or to fill some hybrid roles to help other players. The Saints gave up a lot to get him. The expectation of the Saints coaches and FO is that Marcus s will be another Michael Strahan caliber disruptive DE. Davenport took the money and got fat and out of shape. Just look at his build now versus last year and if you look close enough, you will see how puffy he looks. If Davenport doesn't come around in a major way, the Saints will likely dump him after next year. I saw this kid up close. He has as strong skills as any DE I've ever seen. Average is not acceptable from him."

Wow - I did not expect that. Pete rarely gets upset from all the martial arts meditation and exercise he does. He is clearly seriously POed at Davenport right now.

I think old Coach Pete may have issues with the coaches as much as Davenport. I liked what I saw out of Davneport & how he was used to free other rushers against the Houston O line. He was going up against their best O lineman by far & took up a lot of time getting double teamed as well as causing problems stunting. I liked a lot of what our line did. Not so much with our LBs. I think Davenport & Hendrickson both make an even larger impact this week. We will need our defense to make a huge impact as this game will be won, or lost by their actions.

 

[CHI-TOWNSAINT]

In the gym this afternoon, talked to Coach Pete about Davenport mentioning a number of the positives sited by a number of you Who Dats in this thread. Coach Pete is not happy with Davenport. I know this thread will get a lot of negatives, but I feel that my role in trying to convey Coach Pete's insights and insider to SR is to tell it like he sees it and not sugar coat. This is not exact but pretty close....

"Davenport was not brought in to be average or to fill some hybrid roles to help other players. The Saints gave up a lot to get him. The expectation of the Saints coaches and FO is that Marcus s will be another Michael Strahan caliber disruptive DE. Davenport took the money and got fat and out of shape. Just look at his build now versus last year and if you look close enough, you will see how puffy he looks. If Davenport doesn't come around in a major way, the Saints will likely dump him after next year. I saw this kid up close. He has as strong skills as any DE I've ever seen. Average is not acceptable from him."

Wow - I did not expect that. Pete rarely gets upset from all the martial arts meditation and exercise he does. He is clearly seriously POed at Davenport right now.

Since he's comparing Davenport to Strahan, I think this is pertinent....

Strahan year 1 - 1 sack and 3 tackles in 9 games
Strahan year 2 - 4.5 sacks and 40 tackles in 15 games
Strahan year 3 - 7.5 sacks and 58 tackles in 15 games
Strahan year 4 - 5 sacks and 63 tackles in 16 games
Strahan year 5 - 14 sacks and 68 tackles in 16 games

Davenport year 1 - 4.5 sacks and 22 tackles

It took Strahan 5 off-seasons to work his craft to post double digit sacks. We're through Game 1 of the dudes 2nd season and people are already saying if he isn't this by next year he's gone. I just don't get it.

 

[jdpower13]

Davenport took the money and got fat and out of shape. Just look at his build now versus last year and if you look close enough, you will see how puffy he looks. If Davenport doesn't come around in a major way, the Saints will likely dump him after next year.

The guy has not even played a full season yet and you're talking of dumping him? C'mon now. I get it we spent 2 1st rounders to get him and the expectations are high but let's be patient a little bit. He played 75% of the snaps compared to 52% for Hendrickson... I don't see that happening if he was out of shape or if the coaches were mad at him. Also, he looks pretty good to me :

 

[Swimmer]

I'm with "Coach Pete", and I have been getting ripped for it here too... I really don't mind, but the kid has been frustratingly average at this point, and IMO Trey Hendrickson will (and should) start ahead of him until he gets his act together...

All the other stuff about how he is taking one for the team by occupying blockers and playing out of position is just "sunshine rationalization" by fans that don't want to admit what's really happening...

The kid is built like Tarzan, has untold ability, but for whatever reason... he doesn't play like it... he should be dominating one on ones with Cam on the other side... I don't care who else is out of the lineup... or what his perceived "role" is... and it's frustrating.

Thanks for the insight as always Swimmer.

Hey Infoman - I respect your insights. Personally IDK. To me, he came out last year so raw but what so full of energy and he unleashed his insane athleticism. Even after the injury, he lost some of his burst but he still mixed in and threw huge bodies around like toys. I expected a significant step forward this year, but he doesn't seem to have made the jump and he doesn't seem to even be as disruptive as the 1st half of the season last year. Even then, it often takes d-linemen 3-years to develop so I want to give him every benefit of the doubt.

 

[Swimmer]

Since he's comparing Davenport to Strahan, I think this is pertinent....

Strahan year 1 - 1 sack and 3 tackles in 9 games
Strahan year 2 - 4.5 sacks and 40 tackles in 15 games
Strahan year 3 - 7.5 sacks and 58 tackles in 15 games
Strahan year 4 - 5 sacks and 63 tackles in 16 games
Strahan year 5 - 14 sacks and 68 tackles in 16 games

Davenport year 1 - 4.5 sacks and 22 tackles

It took Strahan 5 off-seasons to work his craft to post double digit sacks. We're through Game 1 of the dudes 2nd season and people are already saying if he isn't this by next year he's gone. I just don't get it.

CHI-TOWNSAINT - Thx so much for the stats. Really interesting stuff.

Coach Pete has not told me his total involvement with Davenport. Every now and then he slips and says something about Marcus that lets me believe Coach Pete had deeper involvement with Marcus than he is telling. He is acting towards Davenport as he does when one of his top students lets him down. Until one of his top students turns around his effort and fully dedicates himself to improvement, Pete does not share his love. Actually, he is quite cold during that period. As soon as a protege turns it around, then Pete starts to heap praise, but he is sparing with his praise until he sees total commitment over a period of time. He is acting towards Davenport as if Marcus was one of his students. And all this said IDK

Edit: How long did it take Rankins to full become a star? 3 years? 4 years?

 

[CHI-TOWNSAINT]

CHI-TOWNSAINT - Thx so much for the stats. Really interesting stuff.

Coach Pete has not told me his total involvement with Davenport. Every now and then he slips and says something about Marcus that lets me believe Coach Pete had deeper involvement with Marcus than he is telling. He is acting towards Davenport as he does when one of his top students lets him down. Until one of his top students turns around his effort and fully dedicates himself to improvement, Pete does not share his love. Actually, he is quite cold during that period. As soon as a protege turns it around, then Pete starts to heap praise, but he is sparing with his praise until he sees total commitment over a period of time. He is acting towards Davenport as if Marcus was one of his students. And all this said IDK

I understand....all I'm saying is if the guy continues to "flash" and improves his play from last year to this, then I'm good considering how raw he was coming into the league. In saying that, he flashed last week even though he didn't have stats to back him up. Not everyone can throw a guard on their tail, and he did....I'm convinced the guy just needs time.