New Orleans Saints Review

Finally, we can put all the questions and speculation to rest.  After the Saints’ convincing 45-14 victory over the defending NFC champion Arizona Cardinals, we can now move past the team’s 3 game losing streak at the end of the regular season.  When the Superdome lights were turned on for Saturday’s NFC divisional playoff, the Saints flipped a switch of their own.

Of course, the game started out a little roughly when Cardinals running back Tim Hightower ran virtually untouched for a 70 touchdown on the first play from scrimmage.  After that, the Saints took over, never relinquishing control.

One of the key players I wrote about in my preview of this game was Reggie Bush.  You could just see how well he played during the second half of the season.  He ran the ball with the kind of passion and authority that had been lacking throughout his career.  On Saturday, Bush looked like a man possessed.

His thrilling 46 yard touchdown run in the second quarter, his equally thrilling 83 yard punt return for a score in the 3rd quarter, and even the way he carried a baseball bat out onto the field showed Bush at his absolute best.  He led the Saints in rushing with 84 yards on just 5 carries.  Bush played with such focus and passion.  It was clear that he wasn’t going to let anyone of the Cardinals defense stop him from taking over the game.  Whoever the Saints play next week in the NFC Championship game had better gameplan for #25.

Not to be outdone, Drew Brees was also right on top of his game.  He threw for 247 yards, 3 TDs and had an outstanding 125.4 QB rating.  The Cardinals are a defense that can bring pressure, but the Saints offensive line did a fantastic job of keeping Brees upright.  There was one scary moment, when an Arizona defender fell at Brees’ knees, and was called for a roughing the passer penalty.  Thankfully, Drew was fine after the play.

The receiving corps made big catch after big catch on Saturday, highlighted by Devery Henderson’s great adjustment on a 44 yard flea-flicker pass from Brees for a score in the 3rd quarter.  Henderson had 4 catches for 80 yards and a touchdown, Marques Colston had 6 catches for 83 yards and a score, while the Saints welcomed tight end Jeremy Shockey back into the lineup with 3 catches for 36 yards and a touchdown.

On defense, while things started out a little shaky after Hightower’s touchdown run, the Saints quickly found the magic that helped them win their first 13 games of the season.  Arizona’s second drive began with quarterback Kurt Warner firing a bullet to receiver Jerheme Urban, but Saints cornerback Randall Gay punched the ball lose and it was recovered by safety Darren Sharper.  The Saints’ offense took advantage and, before you knew it, the early 7-0 deficit became a 14-7 lead for New Orleans.

For the first time in quite awhile, the Saints had a healthy secondary and it showed.  Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was very aggressive and, although they only had one sack on the day, consistently pressured Warner.  Corners Gay, Jabari Greer, Tracy Porter and company more than held their own in the secondary.  Arizona’s All-Pro receiver, Larry Fitzgerald, didn’t have a catch until late in the 2nd quarter.  He finished with 6 catches for 77 yards to lead the Cardinals.  Quite a different story from what Arizona did to Green Bay’s defense a week earlier in the Wild Card round.

Perhaps the biggest game-changer for the Saints defense came midway into the second quarter.  Warner was flushed out of the pocket and threw the ball right to defensive end Will Smith, who tipped the ball up in the air and proceeded to make the interception.  As Smith was returning the ball, Warner went to attempt to make the tackle when Saints defensive end Bobby McCray leveled a violent hit on the unsuspecting Warner.  He left the game for the Cardinals’ final series of the half before returing for the 3rd quarter.  The hit clearly rattled Warner, although you’ve got to give him credit for coming back out there and playing.

This game was a complete team effort and proved that the Saints weren’t negatively affected by the 3 game losing streak, the bye week or any of the talk questioning their ability to win.  Offensively, New Orleans did what Saints fans have come to expect.  They spread the ball around, ran the ball effectively and found a way to throw the element of surprise at their opponents.  Defensively, Williams had his full arsenal and used it wisely.  There was no way the Saints defense could allow Kurt Warner to have time in the pocket.  And, even when he did make some throws, the New Orleans secondary had tight coverage on the talented Arizona receiving corps.  On special teams, Reggie Bush made his presence felt with the electrifying punt return, Thomas Morstead punted very well and Garrett Hartely made his only field goal attempt.  The coverage units were also strong.

Next week the Saints will host either the Dallas Cowboys or the Minnesota Vikings for the first ever NFC Championship Game played in New Orleans.  Enjoy every single moment Saints fans!

Who Dat Awards:

• Sean Payton – The coach had this team very well prepared.  Other than Arizona’s opening score, you didn’t see any rust out there.
• Reggie Bush – The word BEAST comes to mind.  He ran like a man who wants to win a championship.
• Drew Brees - We are spoiled with how well he plays.  He made every throw and was so calm and collected in the pocket.
• Devery Henderson – His TD catch was outstanding, but it wasn’t his only big reception of the day.
• Jeremy Shockey – He played hurt, but was fired up and made a real contribution.
• The Offensive Line – Every one of them did their job.  Brees wasn’t sacked all day and they also opened up some big holes for the running game.
• Will Smith – Played with a lot of passion and his interception was a huge play.
• Randall Gay – Led the team with 7 tackles and his forced fumble in the 1st quarter gave the Saints an opportunity to gain momentum.
• Jabari Greer – Had great coverage and didn’t look like he had missed so many games due to injury.
• Bobby McCray – His hit on Kurt Warner was heard from miles away.
• The Fans – It was incredibly loud on TV, I can’t imagine what it sounded like for those of you inside the dome!

Rating:

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 17th, 2010 at 9:13 am and is filed under Opinion, Super Bowl Season. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.