Seems Like a Lock: Saints Will Get Homefield Advantage, Go to the Super Bowl.
NFL, Video October 19th. 2009, 9:15am
Annoying question the media is going to shove down your throats non-stop for the remainder of the week: Are the unbeaten New Orleans Saints Super Bowl-bound?
(Pause for giddy moment prior to knee-jerk declarations.)
Hand Coach of the Year to Sean Payton! He’s a genius again!
Drew Brees just swiped the MVP lead back from idle Peyton Manning!
Sobering stat for the rest of the NFC: New Orleans will not play another game outdoors against an opponent with a record above .500 (Miami, Tampa, Carolina, Washington).
This is the portion of the post where we attempt to urinate all over the Saints’ 48-27 dismantling of the NFL’s best team through the first six weeks.
Crickets.
The Giants lost this game right before the half. They had just stopped the Saints on 4th and goal. Less than one minute remained. New York could have gone to the locker room with some momentum, and come out with a strong drive to open the second half to cut into the 10-point deficit.
Coughlin got too aggressive. Instead of taking a knee, Eli dropped backed to pass. He was drilled and fumbled. New Orleans scored to boost the lead to 17. Ballgame.
New Orleans hosts its two toughest games left on the schedule: New England and Dallas. It has two games left with Atlanta. A split in those four games, and wins against the other seven opponents (all of whom are currently .500 or worse) would mean a 14-2 record and almost certainly home field advantage throughout the playoffs. Minnesota might challenge the Saints – but it still has road games against the Steelers, Packers, and Bears, plus a regular season finale at home against the Giants.
*
Best media take from Sunday: Tony Dungy on Jim Zorn in Washington. The sluggish Redskins’ offense, 4th worst in the league, has taken play-calling duties away from the embattled Zorn. It appears as if Sherm Lewis will run the show now. Dungy, when asked about his thoughts on the situation, said: “This is not a good thing. I made a mistake and I acquiesced to that. I think if you’re Jim Zorn, you have to say, ‘Hey, I’m in charge of this team on the field. If I’m not, then get rid of me’ … You hired me to be the coach, this is what I think is best. Otherwise you’re just fighting uphill.”
Peter King hinted that the Redskins were going to fire Zorn following this week’s game against Philly because the bye week would give them two weeks to sort things out. Does anyone know if the UFL is hiring?
Now if the franchise could only find a way to get rid of Daniel Snyder …
*
Which was more impressive – Donald Driver’s one-handed grab against the Rams, or Donald Driver’s one-handed grab yesterday?
*
Yes, a word about the Jets. The 3-0 start was glorious. Rookie coach? Rookie QB? Hey, no problem! The Patriots don’t look that great! The Dolphins lost Pennington! For everyone who had the Jets winning between 4-8 games this season – we couldn’t find one pundit who had them as a playoff team – the 3-0 start was thrilling … but apparently deceiving, too.
Reality has hit. The Jets’ defense may have looked formidable during the first few games, and even at New Orleans. But Miami rushed for 151 yards against them a week ago. The Jets have registered just one sack in the last 12 quarters (and overtime). And just when it all couldn’t get any worse … run-stopping pancake machine Kris Jenkins is injured, and probably lost for the season.
The offense has hit a major road bump. Mark Sanchez had his third poor game in a row. After an impressive start, he’s got one TD and eight picks in the last three games, including five interceptions yesterday. The Southern California kid did not adjust well to the chilly, windy weather yesterday. (In his defense, Sanchez was missing his No. 2 and No. 3 receivers Sunday, and Braylon Edwards has been with the team less than two weeks.) Yes, we would have gone with backup Kellen Clemens in the fourth quarter. Sanchez looked that lost. The Bills studied him well and seemed to be all over everything he was doing.
Sanchez returns to the left coast next week against an Oakland defense that just befuddled Donovan McNabb. Last year, Brett Favre and the Jets went to the Black Hole and were beaten by the lowly Raiders. We will now cease and desist with any mention of the Jets and the playoffs.
87 Responses to “Seems Like a Lock: Saints Will Get Homefield Advantage, Go to the Super Bowl.”
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October 19th, 2009 at 9:18 am
Nope.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:19 am
jets suck.
see what happens when the Giants play a real team?
October 19th, 2009 at 9:21 am
I’m super fired up about Atlanta’s 4-1 start, but we’re obviously the second best team in the division. The Monday night game in two weeks at the Super Dome is going to be UGLY.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:23 am
The Southern California kid did not adjust well to the chilly, windy weather yesterday
Dan Fouts kept repeating that over and over last night. he needs to go from CBS
Ryan Fitzpatrick > Trent Edwards
So much for that TBL party when the J-E-T-S made the playoffs. maybe next year. not
October 19th, 2009 at 9:23 am
Drew Brees just swiped the MVP lead back from idle Peyton Manning!
Nope.
but he did move up to “Peyton, do you think I could see that?” and in a few weeks, maybe to “Peyton, do you think I could touch that”
/Peyton so far
GO BILLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
October 19th, 2009 at 9:23 am
If I’m a Jets fan, the one thing I’m worried about is Sanchez and him getting used to playing in that stadium in Oct/Nov/Dec. The winds @ Giants Stadium are brutal, and he showed yesterday he had no clue how to throw the ball in that weather. I think Sanchez will be fine and good QB, but remember, as he showed yesterday, he is only a rookie.
Bills fans, like myself, can’t get to excited over a win like that. The Coach was playing for a tie, the QB’s stink, and if the Jets had just an average game from a QB, they would’ve won.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:23 am
If Sanchez thought it was cold yesterday, he aint seen nothing yet, welcome to the northeast Mexi-chez.
Maybe the Giants were just frauds, they played a pitiful schedule up to yesterday. They’re good, but not #1 defense good.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:24 am
combined record of Indy’s opponents: 10-18. STL up next makes it 10-24. Then SF and Houston.
Wake me in mid-Nov prior to Pats’ game
October 19th, 2009 at 9:25 am
Dan Dierdorf kept repeating that over and over last night. he needs to go from CBS
/fixed.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:26 am
it was Fouts. check it
October 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am
TBL woke up and slammed a few shots of haterade this morning!
/Jets suck
October 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am
If the Steelers can get a big win at home next week against MIN (and they have a good history of beating undefeated teams at home), it will be huge to go into the bye week at 5-2 and tied for the division lead (assuming CIN wins as well – though they have the tiebreaker edge so far).
I still don’t think PIT is playing up to their potential yet though.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:27 am
You can take Dallas off of that list of New Orleans’ toughest opponents. Their pass defense is atrocious when they play zone, and they always play zone. Brees will probably throw for 500 yards in that one.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:28 am
there’s a lot of teams that play soft schedules and beat up on weak opponents, but the Giants didn’t even look like the team people thought they were against the Saints. for a #1 defense you’d expect the Saints to barely put up the points they did.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:28 am
I had Dierdorf during the Favres v Ravens game, i’m pretty sure. Whoever I had, I had somebody who wouldn’t shut up about Favre.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:29 am
Bills fans, like myself, can’t get to excited over a win like that
That wouldd be true in a “normal” win, but against the Jets, this was just fine by me (especially after last year’s JP debacle at the end to lose it).
We’re playing those asshats in Toronto this year, though, right? PanFries gets to play in a dome instead of outside at the Ralph. They should move the game to CNE like the old days.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:30 am
“When Joe Flacco looks back on this game he can say he faced Brett Favre and stood his ground.”
Yeah, so have the other 100 doods who’ve beaten Favre over the years.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:30 am
it was Fouts. check it
I know it was Fouts, but Dierdorf was repeating a lot of the same things. He was just as bad.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:30 am
True. Hopefully, we can make it look respectable. The scary thing is that we don’t normally play well in New Orleans. Add on the fact that our secondary is paper thin and it could be a long one.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:30 am
Peyton will eat that defense alive at home. Seriously, its going to be cell block 18 prison rape bad when the Pats get in there.
Sanchez played terrible. Jets aren’t as good as I thought 2 weeks ago. This team needs a bye like Whitney Houston needs crack. Still, they can win the next 2 games. Very possible. Sanchise will have a better game at home against the Delfines.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:31 am
The Giants shit the bed on the road at the same time early last season and bounced back just fine. I’d put those shovels down, kids.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:32 am
the eagles took a big shit yesterday, like the big nasty shit a bird leaves on your car. fuck ‘em
October 19th, 2009 at 9:32 am
Beating the teams your supposed to beat, what a concept.
Ask the Jets, Eagles, and Bengals about that.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:33 am
@JPQ1999: I will say this, If the Bills are gonna win 5-7 games this year, I’d like to have them be divisonal games. I love beating Mia, and NYJ.
/they blow.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:33 am
Belichick will throw about 25 extended handoffs to Welker and play keepaway. Think Colts will win, but not by more than a TD. None of the Colts’ corners are tall enough to win a jump ball with Moss. And, knowing them, they’ll probably put the 5′8 Tim Jennings singled up on him like they did in the ‘07 game, begging to get beaten.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:33 am
Sanchez played the worst game I’ve ever seen from a professional quarterback yesterday, but he’s a rookie–the surprising thing is that it took this long for him to start sucking.
The Jets’ real problem is people who saw 3-0 and thought playoffs. It’s not just fans either (looking at you, TBL); it’s also guys like Bart Scott and Rex Ryan and all their BS about “swagger.” Realtalk: you just got beat by Dick Jauron and Ryan Fitzpatrick. Time to shut your yaps and go to work.
/Jets fan
//Said 8-8 was the Jets’ ceiling before the season, and I’m sticking to it
October 19th, 2009 at 9:34 am
I did like it when Eli Manning lit up Ahmad Bradshaw for being a shitty blocker. That was neat.
Sparty, any word yet on Kareem Mackenzie? That line has been together a long time, and change is bad.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:34 am
both teams are nearly statistaically identical after 6 weeks, either a shootout or a low scoring affair, but it won’t be lopsided.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:35 am
Greenberg sounded like a man going to the gallows this morning talking about his Jets–couple that with Golic dropping tears about Notre Dame losing (shout out JPQ!) and it was music to my ears
Zorn sounded so defeated in the presser after the game; the ship is sunk in DC. Good luck there Sherm.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:36 am
bsanders: Oh, I have no doubt the Pats O will score their points. But Belichik’s pretty young/pretty old d is going to get a nasty rude awakening.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:36 am
agree, settle down.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:36 am
/fixed
October 19th, 2009 at 9:37 am
Peyton will eat that defense alive at home. Seriously, its going to be cell block 18 prison rape bad when the Pats get in there.
I don’t know a whole bunch about football, but I do know that Peyton Manning prefers to face 4 man fronts. I still can’t figure out why the Pats switched to a 4-3, unless Belichick is having sex with Tully Banta Cain.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:37 am
Sanchez played the worst game I’ve ever seen from a professional quarterback yesterday,
Derek Anderson: 2-17 vs Bills. Where does that rank?
October 19th, 2009 at 9:37 am
Hey Marcy, that’s a sweet gravatar, BTW.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:37 am
Fuck Ron Turner, fuck the Bears offensive line, fuck Greg Olsen and fuck Ron Turner again… in the ass.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:37 am
The Jets’ real problem is people who saw 3-0 and thought playoffs. It’s not just fans either (looking at you, TBL); it’s also guys like Bart Scott and Rex Ryan and all their BS about “swagger.”
“When we were 3-0, we thought we’d be 6-0 after six games,” Jets TE Dustin Keller said.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am
Right on. Atl never plays well at the Super Dome when the Saints suck, let alone when they are steamrolling teams. ATL needs a win next week at Dallas big time.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am
Nixon +3.45. If the Jets (mostly Rex) didn’t talk and talk so much about how they’re great I wouldn’t be so happy to see them lose. Fine line between swagger and bravado, and at 3-0 they crossed it.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am
groin injury, all that is known. mri today, i would suspect.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am
Kerry Collins holding on line one..
October 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am
Sanchez played the worst game I’ve ever seen from a professional quarterback yesterday,
You missed the Carolina Panthers playoff game last year, huh?
October 19th, 2009 at 9:38 am
The key to that game is Freeney’s health. If he’s 100 percent, I think the Colts win. His lease on Matt Light doesn’t run out for another couple years.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:39 am
Donovan McNabb should pray and thank the deity of his choosing that the Phillies are on an October run right now.
Because otherwise, he’d be getting crushed in the local press today. He got outplayed by, arguably, the worst QB in football.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:39 am
i get the whole jETS SUCK venom. fire away.
after that preseason game against the Ravens (MNF i think), i said the jets would win 4 games and have a top 5 pick. the 2nd half schedule is somewhat easy (then again … JUST LOST TO BUFFALO) so i think my final preview said 8-8 would be a good season.
yes, 3-0 was the ultimate fake-out. i got delusional. sucks coming back to earth. it’s like freshman year, first weekend out of the gate and you meet a hot chick and hook up (to this day you remember her name and many things about her!). you think you are going to score prom queens every weekend.
then you call the chick tuesday for a follow-up … dissed. and then you go on a 2-week drought and think you’ll never score again. you drink yourself into oblivion … oops, too personal
October 19th, 2009 at 9:40 am
I’ll get to work on making this happen. We have a new stadium at the CNE for the MLS team. It can accomodate an NFL field. Sure, it will only hold about 20,000 fans but we can work around that. The wind should be whipping in off the lake nicely by the time that game rolls around.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:41 am
I don’t know about you, but I was nailing queens every weekend.
/Butt sex’d
October 19th, 2009 at 9:43 am
Damn. So vivid and accurate.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:43 am
I love beating Mia, and NYJ.
Michael: that’s kinda where I’m at. We suck. Everybody knows it, so if we get a shitty win against a bunch of mouth breathers, I’ll take it.
Talk radio down here was great from what I caught this AM. After last week’s Dolphins win and after the Bills win, Vinny from Brooklyn now Coral Springs isn’t calling in talking shit anymore
Greenberg sounded like a man going to the gallows this morning talking about his Jets–couple that with Golic dropping tears about Notre Dame losing (shout out JPQ!) and it was music to my ears
it was my perfect storm of good luck. I went out last night and bought $20 in Powerball just to waste it, I feel so happy, and to get my luck back to what I’m accustomed to.
v4l: thx again, and say hi to Peppermint Patty for me -lol
October 19th, 2009 at 9:45 am
@Michael, Dirtheavy: Just let me savor my pain, won’t you? It’s all I have.
@coop247: I don’t have a problem with the yapping, just make sure you back it up. Not only have the Jets lost 3 straight games, they’ve lost the last 2 by playing lazy, uninspired football. If you yap, you can’t lose like that.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:46 am
I still don’t think PIT is playing up to their potential yet though.
they haven’t come close to playing their best yet. I’m pretty confident it will all come together in December. liking what they are building, and I’m ready to have Hines Ward’s babies
October 19th, 2009 at 9:48 am
yes, 3-0 was the ultimate fake-out. i got delusional. sucks coming back to earth.
careful, bud, you’ll break an ankle jumping off the bandwagon that quickly
October 19th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Win a Super Bowl, follow that up with the best record in the NFC, follow that up with a 5-0 start. But one loss to New Orleans shows that the Giants are frauds? Ok.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:51 am
I don’t know. Looking at the schedule, it looks a lot less daunting than it did in August. The only games I’d put in the definite loss column are @NYG and @New Orleans. Beyond that, every game left on the schedule is winnable.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:54 am
Duh, I mean look at the two teams’ track records. New Orleans has this on lock down.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:55 am
he looks like a pug
October 19th, 2009 at 9:57 am
Couldn’t agree more. The schedule is looking better and better as the weeks go by. Dallas is a game we need to win. We aren’t beating NO at home so chalk that up to a loss and after that we have the Giants and Eagles (if we split, I will be thrilled). All of that being said we still have Washington, NYJ, Buffalo and Tampa (2x). I like our chances of finishing out strong.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:58 am
He tried to call a timeout when his team didnt have one. I mean that’s just… Donovan. That “2 minute drill” to end the 1st half was so pathetic, as usual. Thought it was funny that they decided not to let Donovan screw it up and just kicked the field goal on 3rd down. I just cant see this team winning the big one until that idiot is gone.
October 19th, 2009 at 9:59 am
/fixed for unbiased accuracy
October 19th, 2009 at 10:02 am
whoa whoa whoa. it wasn’t like those wins were suspect and smoke and mirrors. they destroyed those teams. they had a bad game on the road and got beat bad. doesn’t mean anything other than the Saints being the better team right now.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:06 am
Come on Sparty, you know Pats’ fans are still bitter.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:07 am
I’ve been in meetings all morning, but I just wanted to say that the Patriots red throwbacks looked P.I.M.P. yesterday in the snow. I’ve never owned a football jersey before, but now I want to get one for Christmas.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:07 am
/Fixed for accuracay
//accuracy more like six months
October 19th, 2009 at 10:09 am
They should really just switch to those, a much better look.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:09 am
Donovan McNabb should pray and thank the deity of his choosing that the Phillies are on an October run right now.
Because otherwise, he’d be getting crushed in the local press today. He got outplayed by, arguably, the worst QB in football.
He tried to call a timeout when his team didnt have one. I mean that’s just… Donovan. That “2 minute drill” to end the 1st half was so pathetic, as usual. Thought it was funny that they decided not to let Donovan screw it up and just kicked the field goal on 3rd down. I just cant see this team winning the big one until that idiot is gone.
I seem to remember someone saying this 5-6 years ago…
October 19th, 2009 at 10:10 am
They’re frauds because of who they played? Every game the Redskins have played this year has been against a team that hasn’t won a game. Their record is 2-4. They’re 2-4 because they aren’t a very good team. The Giants had a stretch where they played some horrid teams, and they won those games, because they’re a very good team. There is nothing fraudulent about beating the teams you’re supposed to beat.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:11 am
As a Cowboys fan that was the best bye week ever
October 19th, 2009 at 10:12 am
The Bills, Pats, Chargers and Raiders should go back to their AFL throwbacks permanently (and the Oilers/Titans, but that would never happen). The others (Jets, Broncos, Chiefs) should never wear theirs again
October 19th, 2009 at 10:14 am
There are a lot of teams that need to go back to their old uniforms. The Vikings abomination of uniform comes to mind.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:15 am
Those four unis are all awesome. The best uniforms remain the old-school ones.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:15 am
I dont remember saying anything about the color of someone’s skin, jpq. Give it a rest.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:17 am
Jeff Reed cited for public intoxication. Water is wet.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:19 am
That is nothing like what Rush said. Limbaugh said he was only hyped up becuase he was black. What that guy said was that McNabb wasn’t good. Those two are not the same thing.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:21 am
So I’m looking at NFL.com at the throwback jerseys. I don’t like the current player selection (Brady, Welker, Moss, Mayo), but I’m seriously considering going with a John Hannah #73.
He was before my time, but when I played lineman as a kid, my dad always would talk about him because at the time he was the only good Patriot.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:24 am
@st.bear: check out jersey101.com
someone else posted that last week, almost ordered one on the spot and i haven’t had any deisre to buy a jersey in years.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:29 am
ST. Bear: Hannah was awesome, but also look at 56 Andre Tippett.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:31 am
I just went and saw they don’t even have Tippett. Dude got elected to the HOF in 2007 and they don’t have a throwback
/probably why it took him so long to get in
October 19th, 2009 at 10:31 am
You really might not have a better week of football.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:37 am
the whole coaching staff needs to be let go except for marinelli.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:41 am
I could do a custom jersey with #56 and Tippett on the back. I think I need to discuss this over with some friends and family.
October 19th, 2009 at 10:41 am
The Saints will be 11-5 and lose in the first game they play in the payoffs
/defense wins playoff games
//not blinded by week 6 NFL games like everyone else
October 19th, 2009 at 11:20 am
Nice reverse jinx attempt, TBL. Not biting.
Geaux Saints!
October 19th, 2009 at 11:58 am
The Giants started on the Saints side of the field for their first two touchdowns. The third was in garbage time against a third string quarterback. The defense created one Saints touchdown at the end of the first half because of a turnover. And the Saints had a pick-six called back because of a chickenshit “blow to the head” penalty.
But go on. Tell us how the Saints defense sucks. Keep living in 2007.
October 19th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Did I say it sucked? They have a slightly above average defense as evidenced by exploiting bad teams and rookie QB’s? e.g. stafford’s first game, kevin kolb, trent edwards, and mark sanchez. Then they played the Giants and they scored 27 points on the Saints. They will be ranked around 15 after they play the dolphins, falcons, and patriots.
Not sure what you are insinuating by acalling out chickenshit penalties and garbage time td’s. They play for 60 minutes and the officials call penalties, we can’t make exemptions
/not even a Giants fan
October 19th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
except they scored most of those points when the game was already out of hand.
because they DO make a difference. games are malleable, liquid…things don’t happen in a computer simulation program. you mean to tell me that the way a game is approached from a strategic point of view isn’t changed at all based on how the game progresses? there’s no way you can argue the giants’ late TD’s were as significant as the four the saints scored in rapid succession to start the game.
October 19th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
@spence
ok good argument to the garbage time td’s but what about the rookie qb’s and the penalties? The main point im trying to make is that teams will always get off the fast starts and people will overreact to them and assume that they will automatically make the playoffs or championship games or whatever. There is still, for all intensive purposes, 66% of the games left until the Super Bowl but if people wanna crown em then just crown em already i guess
October 19th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
im not disagreeing with any of that.
i think the saints D is middle of the road, at best. but haven’t seen seen some middle of the road D’s get to teh super bowl recently? st. louis won it and got there agin with shit D’s, arizona last year, seattle, indy the year after (playoff hot streak aside), oakland, the non-pats destroying giants…
i’ll crown drew brees cuz he deserves it, but i have no dog in this fight. if i bothered to read the rest of the comments, hell, i’d probably agree with you wholeheartedly.