“We shocked the world!” I heard New England Patriots player Willie McGuinest utter these words in jubilation the last time the Patriots were in the Super Dome. The Pats DE/LB shouted those words a few moments after the Patriots upset the heavily favored St. Louis Rams 20-17 and won the 2002 Super Bowl (2001 season).
Monday night, the Patriots returned to the Super Dome for the first time since their historic Super Bowl victory. But, this time it was the New Orleans Saints who shocked the world in their 38-17 dismantling of the Patriots. Shocking as in:
–258+. I give Drew Brees a mark of 258.3–100 better than a perfect 158.3 quarterback rating! An amazing stat provided by the MNF crew: Brees passed for over 5,000 yards in 2008, without a 1,000 yard receiver! We saw this in Brees’ performance on Monday night. Whether it was Colston or Henderson or Meachem or Pierre Thomas, Brees would find an open (or for that matter covered) Saints receiver with unerring accuracy. Heck, I think I even saw Touchdown Moses, Whistle Head and the resurrection of Fetch Master catch some passes!
–The Mac Attack. The Saints sign, activate and play Chris McAlister and Mike McKenzie. They excel. What’s truly amazing is both are in their mid-30’s and had not played this year. Apparently, they both have some fuel left in the tank and have overcome their injuries. What’s amazing, though, is their ability to fit into Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams’ intricate system on such short notice. Sure, they got help from a good Saints pass rush and the Dome crowd. But, these savvy veterans come off the street and help shut down the best wide receiver combo—Randy Moss and Wes Welker—in the NFL.
–Who are these guys? Sure, there is Brady, Moss and Welker. Some good running backs, including former LSU great Kevin Faulk. But, there are very few other recognizable names on offense. Defensively, there are even more unrecognizable names. Vince Wilfork is a stud. Adalius Thomas can have an impact. That’s about it for star power. McGuinest, Bruschi, Seymour, Vrabel, Harrison, Law, etc. These are all Patriots memories. Bill Belichick is a great coach. But, he doesn’t have a galaxy of great players any more, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, ironically, maybe Belichick’s 4th and 2 decision against the Colts was validated. Apparently, he felt this was a good gamble given the state of his defense. One more thing, though, pertaining to Monday night: Personnel aside, Belichick got schooled Monday night by Saints coach Sean Payton. And, with Brees executing the way he did, you can take all of these aforementioned Pats defensive players in their primes, throw in an Andre Tippett, put them on the field Monday night, and the Saints still win!
Is this the greatest moment in club history? If not, it’s right there with the team’s first playoff run in 1987, their first playoff victory in the 2000 season over the Rams, the MNF Katrina Domecoming vs Atlanta, and the last playoff victory in 2006 over Philadelphia. That’s about it. How great is it nationally? Right now, it is the talk of the country. Will it stand the test of time? Certainly it will be an everlasting MNF memory. Does it go down as one of the all-time great NFL victories? That depends upon whether the Who Dats register a win in another game: Sunday, February 7, 2010, in Miami—the Super Bowl. And, if the Saints victory in that game should result in a 19-0 season?…Given the MNF stage, a 10-0 Saints team coming in, the ignominious history of the Saints franchise, the Patriots being the team of this decade, the Brady-Brees match-up, and then, ultimately, it being part of the first ever 19-0 NFL season and the second ever perfect season in the 90 year history of the league…I truly don’t think, given these circumstances, I’m being hyperbolic in saying that WHAT WE SAW MONDAY NIGHT MAY BE REGARDED AS THE MOST STORIED REGULAR SEASON GAME IN THE HISTORY OF THE NFL!!!
Wake up Saints fans. Quit dreaming. That’s Sean Payton sounding the figurative alarm. All we have to be worried about is Sunday, December 6, Noon, at Washington! One game at a time!
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I thought LSU’s coaching left a lot more to be desired in the last minute of the Arkansas game than the Ole Miss game. As discussed last week in FINE IDEAS, the only major mistake Les Miles made (and it was egregious) in the Ole Miss game was the 17 second lapse. In the Arkansas game, LSU threw 2 swing passes behind the sticks in the last minute with no time-outs and a good 20-30 yards to navigate to get into field goal range. They ran the ball on 3rd and 2 in the last 30 seconds, not being in field goal range. Credit Steven Ridley with making the plays…abetted by a very fortuitous out-of-bounds call by the official on the first swing pass. In the aforementioned situations, you must throw ahead of the sticks or, if not, right at the sideline to let your receiver get out of bounds. Josh Jasper kicked a 41 yard field goal to tie the game with :04 left. If 1 or 2 of those ill-advised plays worked against the Tigers, there is a good chance the Tigers would have lost the game in regulation.
I’m also not a big fan of the prevent defense, which LSU used on Arkansas’ last 2 big passes in regulation, including the go-ahead touchdown with just over 1 minute left. In all fairness to the Tigers, though, they had used this defensive scheme a number of times in the game previously to thwart the Hogs. But, late in the game? Against a supposed big-time quarterback Ryan Mallet?
So, why the hailstorm of criticism against Les Miles last week and virtually none this week? Ole Miss 25 LSU 23. LSU 33 Ark 30 (OT).
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Steve Johnson, of THE High School Sports Show fame, in the aftermath of the LSU football team’s loss to Ole Miss, said he has found the perfect tonic to take one’s mind off of LSU football: LSU basketball!!
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I like Florida in the SEC championship game. No way Alabama can move the ball consistently against Florida’s defense with Greg McElroy at quarterback. The Tide’s defense is terrific. But, Tim Tebow will make enough plays to be the difference…Of course, this comes from the genius who thought the Saints were going down last Monday night!!
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When does one eat a lot of the answer to a sports trivia question? Last week! Our Thanksgiving fill-in-the-blank trivia question:
Former NFL Defensive End Joe “__________”Jones Turkey
Baseball Third Baseman __________ Traynor Pie
Steel Curtain LB Jack ________ Ham
Winner was Dick from Baton Rouge, who won a $25 gift certificate from Tramonte’s Seafood & Meat Market/Restaurant.
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THE WIZARDRY OF OS
By Scott Osborne, Color Commentator, Central HS Football on SportsGumbo.net
There is a song by Howard Jones from the 80s titled “No One Is To Blame”. The song has been bouncing around in my head since Saturday morning. Here are some of the lyrics: You can see the summit but you can’t reach it
it’s the last piece of the puzzle but you just can’t make it fit
No one ever is to blame
I think the reason I have been hearing these words is that I have been looking for someone or something to blame from the moment Central lost to Westgate Friday night. After all the great comebacks and great plays, a numb, disbelief had taken over my body. Consequently, my mind was looking for a scapegoat. Unfortunately, by the time Saturday rolled around, I realized that no one is to blame.
Westgate outplayed Central. I am sure there are those that will always find room to question and second guess (officials, coaches, players). In addition, I have heard many stories of bad mojo against Central from Friday night. The fact is that Westgate and Central played a great high school football playoff game, and Westgate won.
As for a quick analysis of the game, Westgate did a great job of controlling the ball. Central only had the ball for a season low of 13 minutes and 5 seconds. The biggest reason for that was that Westgate converted 6 out of 7 fourth down attempts. The other culprit was Westgate’s quarterback Diontae Spencer. Central kept tailback Brandon Malveaux under wraps as he gained only 80 yards on 28 carries (a 2.8 yard per carry average). Spencer on the other hand gained 137 yards on 19 carries (7.2 yards per carry) while completing 8 of 11 passes for 108 yards.
Now it is Tuesday night and Howard Jones’ song continues to echo in my head. Maybe I can let the song go if I can just find someone to blame. I guess I will blame Westgate for losing four regular season game and Diontae Spencer for being a great football player…no one ever….is to blame…darn, still there. My mind is ready to move on, but my heart wants to keep seeing these seniors play football for Central.
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I have some random thoughts about college and professional sports to get off my chest:
Someone needs to tell Pete Carroll, “King of College Coaches” that apparently gets to declare what other teams should and should not do in late game situations, to shut up. Apparently, the only right decision is for his team to win and for him to act like a spoiled little kid on the sideline. It is amazing how he only has a problem with everyone when his team is average and can’t make the BCS.
I wonder if Byron Scott was given a second chance, would he play Darren Collison and Marcus Thornton?
Someone let me know when the Nets win a game.
Does anyone not affiliated with Notre Dame think that a new coach will make them a national contender?
I was told that the Saints led the NFL in players on injured reserve. Yet, they played a beautiful game against the Patriots that left me smiling in my sleep Monday night and all day Tuesday. Still, I think the Vikings would win a playoff game in the Metrodome and the Saints would win against the Vikings in the Superdome.
Last thought, is there anything that can be done about removing the ACC champion as an automatic qualifier for the BCS?
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Jon Fine, Producer, SportsGumbo.net
Jon Fine CO-hosts and produces SportsGumbo M–F, 8am-9am on radio stations in the River Parishes/Baton Rouge (KKAY, 1590AM), New Orleans (ESPN, 1560AM) and Lake Charles (KEZM, 1310AM). Most weeks, Jon is on Monday–Thursday…Jon also produces and calls play-by-play for Denham Springs HS football and basketball …and is the producer of THE High School Sports Show (all on The Score, 1210AM, Fox Sports Radio, in Baton Rouge). With Rick Cantu, Jon was co-founder of the SportsGumbo.net Broadcasting Network
