Well, I guess that settles it! The Saints go 2-0 against the Dirty Birds this season with a decisive victory on the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Monday night. 45-16 actually make's it look closer than it really was. I think that if you ask any member of the Saints offense they'd tell you that they left a few points on the field. Drew Brees was held to only 307 yards passing and had 2 interceptions. I think that he could have played a better game and still managed to break Dan Marino's single season passing yards record.

Here's the thing....we rushed for 164 yards and went 10 for 13 on third downs. Our defense held the Falcons to 35 yards rushing and 16 points. The Falcons were less than 50% on third down conversions and 0 for 3 on fourth downs! Net yards by both squads was roughly equal, so it would lead you to believe that our defense's "bend but don't break" style paid off this week. The defense was also responsible for 6 of the 45 points. I am hard pressed to remember our last defensive score!

Blah...blah...blah! We proved once and for all who's the better team this year. Of course, we might have to do it again The Dome come January! That doesn't scare me one bit! But that's not what I want to talk about. I want to address the issue of all the the Falcon's fans and players complaining that Payton and Brees did not have to pass for the final touchdown when the game was well in hand. All I have to say is.....EAT CRAP! The Falcons went for it on fourth down on their own 33 yard line. They were down by 3 touchdowns. They knew what Drew Brees was trying to accomplish and tried to end the game on a fourth and one so that he would not be able to throw any more passes and Matty "Ice" could kneel it out and they could lick their wounds back to Atlanta holing their heads high because they didn't let Brees break the record on their watch. Here's the thing though.....YOU DIDN'T GET THE FIRST DOWN! You blew it! We beat you! Just like we did all day, our defense stopped you from ruining our day! Matty "Ice" couldn't "Ice" the deal! Mike Smith could have punted the ball away and Drew could have broken the record and knelt the game out in an honorable fashion around the 50 yard line. Everyone would be happy and life would go on. BUT, by going for it on fourth down, down by 21 points and deep in their own territory, Mike Smith only left us one option.....TOUCHDOWN to break the record. If The Falcons didn't want to see the record broken on their watch, then they should have stopped it...BUT THEY COULDN'T! So spend the next two weeks sulking and blaming, and in the mean time, we'll be getting ready to play in the Dome again when it counts even more.

What I like best about all the crying over the last few weeks (whistle-gate in Nashville, dirty play in Minnesota and running up the score on Monday) is that the SAINTS have become that team that is a threat. We've become that team that people hate because we're THAT GOOD! Just like I hate the Patriots and The Steelers and the 80's 49ers! Nobody is talking about the Packers anymore, because they are no longer undefeated and they've nearly been beaten every week for the last 6 weeks. They are not as theatning as they used to be and THE SAINTS ARE! Everyone knows it....The Saints are the real deal! Our defense is vastly improved! Our offense can score 60 points. Morstead might be the best leg in the game and Kasay is knockin' in 82% of his field goals. Talk about getting hot at the right time! The Saints have a real shot at this thing!

To all Falcons' fans....SORRY...we're just better than you right now. BUT...let's see who can get it done during the tournament! I'm looking forward to another showdown in the Dome in January!

'An Dat's Dat!

Twas the night after Christmas, when all through the Dome

All the creatures were stirring up Falcon Gumbo

The banners were hung from the rafters with care

Knowing that St. Breesus would soon be there

We Who Dats were settled all in our seats,

With visions of feasting on dirty bird meat

We’re all in our jerseys, with dome foam in hand

Screaming and dancing to Dixieland bands

When out on the field there rose such a noise

Fans on our feet yelling “Bless you Boys!”

The Who Dat Nation was at fever pitch

As the chosen team captain raised his fist

The Mercedes Benz crest that hung from the ceiling

Gave all that came hither that victorious feeling

When what to my wondering eyes should appear

The dirty birds shaking and quivering in fear

Then a voice came thundering so loud and so clear

We knew that kickoff soon would be near

They blew up the tunnel and lit of the flames

We whistled and shouted and called them by name!

Now Ingram, now Colston, now Thomas and Porter

On Shanle, on Vilma, on Harper and Jordan

Out on the gridiron, with the game on the line

Demolish the Falcons, the playoffs are nigh!

Dressed head to toe in their black and their gold

When the Saints come marching, it’s a sight to behold

Payton and Brees go straight to their work

As Ellis and Smith put “Ice” in the dirt

By air and by ground, the attack is relentless

And nothing can get through Greg Williams’ defenses

The shockwave is felt from the lake to the quarter

We turned Falcon to mince meat in prompt and short order

As the whistles are blown and the game is in hand

Exhausted and joyous are players and fans

The division is sewn up all nice and tight

May all Who Dat faithful sleep peacefully tonight

 ...'an dat's dat!

The Saints have learned how to play from behind, from in front, under adversity, with bad calls, against stacked odds and exalted by personal uplifting tragedy. The 4-1 Saints, on a 4-0 tear, head to Tampa to take on the over-rated, over-achieving Bucs in a battle that will surely show the potential of both sides. The Bucs got handed a spanking in San Francisco last Sunday and the Saints barely got out of Carolina with a win. Both teams are looking to rebound from sub-par performances. Two teams enter…one teams leaves a winner!

Here’s why I think the Saints are a better team than then Bucs;

1)   Veteran quarterback! Come on! Drew Brees is one of the best in the game right now and he is playing some of his best football. He has that “never out of the game” mentality that wins close games and frustrates the hell out of opposing defenses trying to hold on to a lead late in the game. With around 7 minutes left in the game on Sunday against the Panthers, Brees drove the length of the field and scored to take the lead, leaving 50 seconds on the clock. Poised and confident, the thought does not enter his mind that he will NOT succeed!

Couple this with the young, foolish pride of the budding Josh Freeman and the Saints have the upper hand before they smell a blade of Florida grass. 

2)   Defense – Greg Williams…and the emerging Patrick Robinson, healthy Jon Vilma, Tracy Porter and Will Smith and you have yourself a handful. Josh Freeman is good…he’s big…he can throw, but can he out-think Greg Williams? I don’t think so. The Saints should be able to out-coach the Bucs on both sides of the ball, but especially on the defensive side. Our defense has yet to play to it’s potential. I am looking for a big game from them against the Bucs. I think that The Bucs will be trying a little too hard after Sunday SF debacle.

3)   Has anyone talked about our special teams yet? These guys are on fire. The punt coverage has been through the roof. Blocked extra point…ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I don’t want jinx him, but Kasay is looking pretty good for a dinosaur. Love the guy! 53 yards from a 75 year old leg is freakin’ awesome!

4)   The Bucs defense is not what it used to be…or it still is what it used to be…just older. The 49ers made that group look like they were stoned. They might come out trying a little too hard too. Who’s gonna guard Jimmy Graham? Sproles? Meachem? I think that David Thomas will have a big game here because everyone will be keeping their eyes on everyone else…he’s a GREAT tight end…I think this will be his “Welcome to 2011” coming out party!

The Saints are on a Crusade. We’re still pissed about losing to Green Bay. We’re pissed about our performance in Seattle last year. We’re pissed about bad calls costing us touchdowns and we’re pissed about The Superdome being turned into a luxury car advertisement. The Saints and New Orleans are not “luxury”! We stand for good times during bad times (ever heard of a hurricane party?). We stand for cheap beer and red beans, dome foam and nachos, mud-bugs and ersters. We aint luxury….we’re Mississippi mud…we’re swamp and pirots, we’re Fat Tuesday…Fat Monday and FOOTBALL SUNDAY!

An’ Dat’s Dat!

Texas is nice enough. They're very proud of themselves. There are signs everywhere saying "Don't Mess With Texas". It's meant to be a warning against littering, but it speaks to a much deeper attitude in every Texan. Right now, the number one ranked, Texans defense is saying "Dont Mess With Texas". Members os the team have been quoted as saying, "the Saints wont be a problem". I say it's time to MESS WITH TEXAS! Don't let your 2-0 record go to your head! The Colts are in the beginning of a nose dive and The Dolphins are a struggling team at best. The Texans defense has yet to meet an opponent that can put up 30+ points a game. 

The SAINTS aren't scared of good defenses! The Packers and The Bears have great defenses and we managed to put up 859 yards and 64 points against them. There are holes in every defense and Brees and Payton will find them in the Texans'.  Brees spent two years practicing against a Wade Phillips defense in San Diego. Although Payton lost to the Phillips defense during pre-season, we left a lot of our tricks in the bag. Both Payton and Greg Williams will be opening up the playbook this Sunday. The Texans' pass defense is great....our offense is better. We are heavily stacked in the run game and if Mario Williams gets upfield too fast he might find himself behind the best screen game in The NFL.

As a Saints fan, I find it almost amusing that another team would look at US as their "first test of the season". Our team has become the team that you can "prove" yourself against if you want to be considered a top-notch member of the NFL. We have become the team to beat. It's quite an honor! BUT NOT THIS WEEK! The Saints are on a mission this year. We have all the weapons! Drew Brees is in his prime, our defense has vastly improved since week one, our running game is made for speed AND power, Jimmy Graham and Dave Thomas are legitimate threats and Darren Sproles is lighting it up in all aspects of the game. Our offensive and defensive lines are playing VERY well and the secondary has been hitting people hard and covering tight! 

This Sunday's match-up in The Superdome will be a chess match for sure. Two teams who believe that they have what it takes to go all the way. AND THEY DO! In my humble opinion, this game will be decided on ball controle and clock management. Who can get the crucial 3rd and short, who wins the special teams game and who can capitalize on defensive mistakes. The turnover battle will be all-important. How many times does Matt Shaub have to peel himself off the Dome turf? The 12th man will be a HUGE factor...perhaps a few false starts?!?!?

In short, it's time to MESS WITH TEXAS in a big way! They might be on the way to great things this season....but not tomorrow...not in our house...not against our team. It's a short trip from Houston to New Orleans but it's gonna be a long road home for the Texans!!! 

Lay It On the Line

Recent offensive line changes make one wonder if our world-class, first –rate, number one O-line might resemble more of a second line.  Brees and Payton have enjoyed the security of a strong front five since joining the team in the 2006 season.  Based on sacks allowed, the offensive line routinely ranked in the top 25 percent the past five seasons.  In an offense designed for aerial attacks and screen plays, one would be hard pressed to find a better suited offensive line.  Clearly, Drew Brees is a master defense-reader - calling audibles and making last-minute split decisions.  His passer rating and completion percentage speak to his genius.  Those in the know will be quick to point to the correlation between Drew Brees’s success and the capabilities of the offensive line.  Just ask Drew himself….the offensive line has gone with him to every Pro Bowl he has played in.  He knows where his bread is buttered, and so do we.

Which brings us to the question – why fix what ain’t broke?

This week, the Saints released Pro Bowl OT Jon Stinchcomb.  With Pro Bowl G Jonathan Goodwin being traded to San Francisco there are some pretty big “cleats” to fill on the offensive line.   Looking to fill these voids, are veterans C Olin Kreutz from Chicago and OT Jordan Black from Jacksonville.  Naturally, I wanted to know how these teams stacked up to the Saints in terms of sacks allowed – anything to calm my nerves.

This is tricky to try and tease out – but being a “numbers” person, I thought I would comb through the stats on NFL.com to look for any data that might make me feel better about these moves.  Unfortunately, stats for offensive line are thin – basically, you only have sacks to work with and that is an imperfect metric.  A lousy quarterback can hold on to the ball too long and there is only so much the offensive line can do.  Looking at sacks allowed, the teams Kreutz and Black have played for since 2006 are a bit all over the map, but skew towards being on the “not so pretty” side of things.  But, when you cross that with quarterback statistics (QB rating and completion rating), the questionable protection seems less muddy – these guys were protecting QBs like Rex Grossman and Tyler Thigpen…enough said.

So after a half a pot of coffee and undisclosed amount of time on nfl.com, what did I conclude?  One: nerves are greatly exacerbated by copious amounts of caffeine.  And two:  you can’t tell anything!  What I do know is that statistics can be deceiving and this is a complex game.   The symbiotic relationship between QB and offensive line is hard to quantify and maybe it can best be described in song….

It’s time to “Lay it on the Line”…or will they “Hold the Line”…will Brees be forced to “Walk the Line”…”It’s a Thin Line Between Love of Hate”….Okay, I’ve said enough!

…an dat’s dat.

24 to 3….18 blitzes in the first half….Brees below stellar….Daniels looking good….Ingram, Morgan, King….stats, schmats, we don’t care about that…or do we?

It’s the preseason after all.  We have gone 4-0 and 0-4.  In the end, no one cares.  Nobody counts how many sacks you had in the preseason - nobody looks at those numbers.  Preseason statistics, wins and losses, and good calls, bad calls, missed calls, don’t win superbowls.  This has been my mantra for years. The preseason is a time to bask in the glow of the boys of fall.   Seeing our squad go toe to toe to with some other riff raff – it reminds us that fall is around the corner and the long, bleak offseason has come to a close. 

But this year preseason does have greater purpose.  It is more than a thinning of the roster and down to the wire decisions about whose career continues or begins, and whose stalls or ends.  This year’s preseason is more about developing cohesion.  In years past, teams have endured mini-camps, endless team meetings, team workouts, and rigorous preparation.  The lockout prevented the team from coming together in their normal offseason capacity.  While individuals and segments of the team have been rehearsing their lines, they are only now having their dress rehearsals just weeks before curtain call.  As Sean Payton aptly stated in his quote on neworleanssaints.com “We’re not a team yet.  We’re a roster”.

I, for one, put my faith in a Payton/Brees/Williams/Vilma system.  If anyone can pull a squad together in such short order it’s these guys.  They lead, we follow.  In Payton and Brees we trust.

....an' dat's dat! 

“Cha-Ching Moment”: Could rookie Joe Morgan from Walsh University be our next Michael Lewis?  That’s something we could all raise our beet to.