Ball or Nuthin' » Drew Brees

Packers Outlast Saints, 42-34

T Lamont — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 04:43:09 +0000

What better way to open a season that was threatened to be nonexistent by channeling the Super Bowl champs from the past two years.

In 2009, the Saints captured the hearts of the nation by lifting a New Orleans area that had been ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, and having a magical season. Drew Brees became the poster child for everything that was right in the world, and had his Disneyland moment after winning the 2010 Super Bowl as camera flashed when he hoisted his son over his shoulders amidst the streams of confetti. There couldn’t have been a better time for New Orleans to be rewarded with their first NFL championship.

Last year, it was the Green Bay Packers that played the role of Cinderella. The team, which was expected to achieve big things from the onset of the campaign, was decimated by injuries, but somehow managed to earn a wild card berth into the NFC playoff scene. Aaron Rodgers cemented his name atop the hot quarterbacks list with three dazzling performances that earned the Pack its first title in 14 years.

Two great quarterbacks, two magical teams. We all knew that tonight would be special. And it was.

Green Bay lit up the scoreboard early and often, putting up 21 in the first quarter alone. Three TD tosses from Rodgers indicated that his little star was still blinking, just as it was at the close of last season.

New Orleans worked hard to overcome that 14 point deficit, and closed to 35-27 late in the third quarter. But behold – Sean Payton made ‘the decision.’

After moving the ball effectively, and deeply into Green Bay territory, the Saints faced a 4th and 1. Given an eight-point deficit, the air-it-out mentality of both teams and the frantic pace of the game, the choice was clear to Payton: he chose to go for it.

With over 18 minutes of game clock left in regulation, each team would take possession of the rock multiple times. While placing the automatic three points on the board would have made the most sense, New Orleans attempted to ride its current streak of momentum to produce an unanticipated strike.

Payton's peculiar decision may have costed the Saints a season-opening victory.

But they didn’t. And the Pack gained enough juice from their miscue to take that turnover, march down the gridiron and turn it into seven points.

To their testament, the Saints never waived the white flag. Trailing by 15 with less than five minutes to go in the final quarter, Brees led his team to a quick score. A defensive stand allowed them to get one final possession. The Saints marched all the way down the field, and time ended with New Orleans’ rookie running back Mark Ingram being tackled on the Green Bay one yard line.

What can we take from tonight’s track meet?

Well, New Orleans and Green Bay will be able to put up points without question. And let’s not put to much emphasis on the fact that they combined to yield 876 yards of offense. These squads are the cream of the offensive crop in the NFL, so each team’s defense will look measurably better against human foes.

The more appropriate question may be this one…

Will either of these two teams make it to Disneyland again in 2012?

NFL Lockout Makes Owners Look Like Villians

T Lamont — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 18:58:06 +0000

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As summer formally approaches, NFL fans would all normally be intrigued by the buzz around football camps nationwide.

But this year, we are unfortunately relegated to keeping track of the state of the NFL as it continues to unfold in the judicial system.

The NFL lockout is still in session, and resolutions to all of the major issues – revenue distribution, expanded regular season schedules, post-retirement medical coverage and reduced offseason workouts – have yet to be agreed upon between the owners and players.

Owners have been clear on their stance in this stalemate. They have steadfastly claimed that expenses are increasing at a rate that does not agree with their revenue generation, thus mandating their need for a greater portion of the profit.

The logic appears to be sound. But as financially prudent as they may be, the owners will always be hard pressed to enlist the support of the common fan.

American football has become the nation’s most popular sport. It’s truly a team sport, it cannot be insensibly dominated by the talents of one player, and it rarely has repeat champions. It’s an extremely successful formula that cannot be duplicated by any of the country’s other beloved sports.

And with this unbridled love comes the obvious – an understandable connection with the athletes who perform the game at its highest level. As with any corporation, we develop relationships with those on the front lines…the Ray Lewises, the Drew Bresses…those who we see day-in and day-out, going through the struggle, those who are the facial representation of the corporate giant. And make no mistake about it – - the National Football League is a corporate giant.

But the biggest mystery that the owners within this giant are maintaining are the ones that its employees need to see: the hard financial figures. The owners have remained reluctant to share its financial standing with the players. And with revenue sharing being one of the agendas that need to be panned out, this reluctancy is clearly not a good thing.

Drew Brees is one of the guys in the trenches who we've come to appreciate.

In today’s corporate America, it’s an unspoken rule that information regarding a company’s earnings and/or financial state be cascaded down to its staff. Given the incidents of executives running off with retirement accounts of hard-working individuals, sharing those details have become commonplace. Therefore, deductively, we can reason that if they are not being shared, somebody is trying to hide something. And the owners have the benefit of being able to hide behind their collective union, preventing the pressures of the lockout from falling on one or two of them.

Without knowing the particulars of the court proceedings, the fans of this exciting game have a skewed view. Football players are not struggling monetarily, but they certainly put their physical well-being on the line to provide some of the best entertainment that money can buy. Considering that these men have a decade (or less) to assure their financial security, the least that they could know is how much they are making relative to the corporation which employs their talents.

The whole situation is quite strategic, perhaps too strategic for most to comprehend.

But to those connoisseurs of the NFL’s product, the appropriate strategy is clear. Be open and honest, because, in actuality, neither side has anything to really complain about.

Saints Edge 49ers, 25-22

T Lamont — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 04:24:53 +0000

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Tonight, the San Francisco 49ers hosted the New Orleans in a crucial early-season statement battle for both teams. Let’s breakdown the action:

First Quarter:

As the game started, things couldn’t have appeared any worse. The Niners looked like a lamb being led to the slaughter in the game’s first few minutes. After having a nice kickoff return voided by a holding penalty, the Saints stopped them cold on their first two downs. On third down, Niners center David Baas commenced to audition for the long snapper position. The former Michigan guard sailed the ball over quarterback Alex Smith’s head into the end zone. Smith smartly slapped the football out of the end zone to avoid a touchdown recovery by the visitors, but the Niners already found themselves behind by a safety – and had to prepare to free kick to the Saints (which gave them the ball on a shortened field).

And as New Orleans does so well, it converted its first drive into seven points. On a steady drive that featured running and passing balance, Drew Brees saw a mismatch as the Saints approached pay dirt. On a second and goal at the San Francisco 6, Brees located Reggie Bush coming out of the backfield on a choice route – being covered by linebacker Patrick Willis. Now Willis is a fine player, but there probably isn’t anyone who could cover Bush on a choice route. Bush shook Willis and was on the receiving end of a 6-yard TD pass from Brees.

Meanwhile, for the vast majority of the first 15 minutes, the home team’s offense was on life support. Alex Smith wasn’t even looking downfield, and because of that, power back Frank Gore couldn’t find any running lanes. But the one bright spot for the Niners is that they prevented the Saints from putting any more points on the board.

Score: 9-0, New Orleans

Second Quarter:

As the game progressed, Alex Smith's confidence grew.

As the first quarter ended, Smith started to inch the ball down the field. He completed a few passes to former Virgina Tech player Josh Morgan. The 49ers had no confidence in looking downfield, so they adopted another philosophy – dump the ball off close to the line of scrimmage and let the receiver do the rest. Thus, a momentum change came about, resulting in a 12-play, 82-yard drive that climaxed with a 12-yard TD reception for Gore.

The Niners defense continued to stifle Brees and the Saints. San Fran came with some pressure to actually penetrate the New Orleans wall of protection around Brees and drop him for a sack.

With the momentum clearly on their side, the Niners began to embark on another drive midway through the quarter. They continued to employ the mix of power runs by Gore with short passes to move the ball into New Orleans territory. With the Niners threatening to take the lead – either by touchdown or field goal – the Saints opportunistic defense came up with a huge play. On a pass caught by back Delanie Walker, linebacker Jonathan Vilma stripped the ball loose and it was recovered by N.O.’s Malcolm Jenkins.

Score: 9-7, New Orleans

Third Quarter:

Although they experienced heartbreak to close the first half, the Niners kept the pressure on New Orleans. In New Orleans’ opening series after the break, the 49ers held them in check. The Saints converted a couple of third downs on the drive, but couldn’t overcome a second down sack by Willis, as he came unblocked through the offensive line.

Then, San Francisco took over – and instantly put the ball in the air. Alex Smith’s newfound confidence was evident, as he connected with Michael Crabtree – and Crabtree gained several extra yards on the play after making a couple of members of the Saints secondary look foolish. Smith then hit tight end Vernon Davis for a 41-yarder, carrying the Niners inside the New Orleans 10-yard line. Three plays later the home team punched it over the goal line to surge ahead.

But in the ensuing possession, the Saints demonstrated the resiliency of a Super Bowl champion. Brees carefully moved the ball down the field, mixing runs, passes and penalties in an attempt to regain control of the game. The Saints did so successfully, as Brees ended the touchdown drive with a 4-yard pass to David Thomas. And just like that, New Orleans was back on top.

The momentum shift continued as the quarter closed. San Francisco was unable to convert on a third and eight, and punted. But they made the mistake of not properly covering the punt, giving Bush time to survey his running lanes. The dangerous special-teamer returned the kick 43 yards to set his team up with a short field to begin the game’s final 15 minutes.

Score: 16-14, New Orleans

Fourth Quarter:

In what was perhaps the most significant defensive series of the game for the Niners, they quickly defused any threat of a New Orleans touchdown. But due to the good field position obtained by the punt return. Garrett Hartley nailed a 46-yard field goal to push the Saints advantage up to five with 13 minutes left in the contest.

A 30-yard reception by Marques Colston set up Hartley's game-winning kick.

From here on out, it’s more missed opportunities for the Niners. They moved the ball down the filed admirably, only to see a tipped pass get intercepted by Tracy Porter.

San Francisco held the Saints offense at bay on a couple of different occasions in the quarter. With five and a half minutes to go, they were on the receiving end of a punt by New Orleans. The 49ers Phillip Adams muffed the punt, and it was promptly recovered by New Orleans Courtney Roby deep in San Francisco territory. But once again, the Niners defense does what it can to keep them in the game. They stuff the Saints at the goal line on third down, forcing N.O. to settle for three points - keeping the deficit at one possession with a little over two minutes remaining in regulation.

Alex Smith marches the Niners down the gridiron so cool and calm that - at least for that moment – he could have been mistaken for Joe Montana. Finding the open man time after time. And he also did his best impersonation of Michael Vick, escaping the Saints’ pass rush and using his feet to gain a couple of first downs. The crowd went into a frenzy as Frank Gore ran a draw play into the end zone to bring the Niners within two. Smith has experienced the moment of his NFL career.

But wait – San Francisco still had to convert the two-point conversion. Out of the shotgun, Smith caught Davis on a hitch. Davis had one foot over the goal line as he gained possession of the catch, but his momentum carried him out of the end zone. The call on the field was that the conversion was not converted. But on call that will be the subject of much debate, the officials reversed the call after reviewing the play – and the game was tied with one minute to play in regulation.

We all know that one minute is plenty of time for New Orleans’ usually high-powered offense to strike. And after some small catches by Pierre Thomas and one big reception by Marques Colston, Hartley lined up for a game-winning 37-yard field goal. With the odds stacked against them, the Niners continued to battle, as defensive tackle Ray McDonald actually tipped the football on its path through the goal posts.

Final Score: 25-22, New Orleans

An epic Monday night showdown couldn’t have come any closer than a tipped field goal, but what did it tell us about these teams?

San Francisco has lots of heart. We could expect that from a team with Mike Singletary as its head coach. Frank Gore is the sole of the team, but the offense revolves around Alex Smith’s level of confidence. When he stands strong in the pocket, the 49ers can put points on the board. Their defense is going to fight and keep them in ball games, just like it did tonight…so any consistent offensive output will go a long way.

New Orleans is still New Orleans, but they have faced two of the better defenses from last year. They gutted out two tough wins to start the season, and although every team will be giving them their best shot, things figure to get a little easier. The Saints simply need to remain injury-free, and not let complacency set in as the campaign progresses.

NFC Powerhouses Struggle in Season-Opener

T Lamont — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 04:38:34 +0000

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Prior to kickoff, the New Orleans Saints figured that their home debut would be a tough one – after all, they were battling the team that they faced in the NFC Championship, the Minnesota Vikings.

After their first possession, things appeared that they would be much easier than they anticipated. The home team gave their fans what they were looking for, driving down the field in 2009 Saints’ fashion. The drive totaled plays for yards, and ended with a shocked Viking defense yielding a touchdown on a 29-yard connection between Drew Brees and Devery Henderson.

But the Minnesota defense stiffened, stopping the Saints on their next possession. And the Vikings began to use their All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson to take the air out of the ball. Peterson pounded New Orleans on a long, 66-yard drive that culminated in a Ryan Longwell 41-yard field goal for the visitors.

The Minnesota ground game slowed the pace of the battle, and actually shifted the momentum of the contest into the Vikings favor. There weren’t any points scored, but the lack of offensive dominance gave Minnesota a chance to get back into the game – which they did. Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre got into a bit of a rhythm with tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. Shiancoe made two catches with his hands (the latter being a 20-yard touchdown) that sparked the Minnesota offense, temporary potting them into the lead going into the half, 9-7.

The third quarter saw New Orleans regain the advantage after an 11-play, 74-yard march down the gridiron. The drive saw the Saints run the ball seven times, ending with Pierre Thomas crossing the goal line on a 1-yard scamper to put the Saints ahead 14-9.

Adrian Peterson was looking for some help from the Minnesota passing game.

In the fourth quarter, Drew Brees was poised to put the game on ice for the Saints. After a 40-plus yard drive, the Saints were presented with a key third down situation. Leading 14-9, a touchdown would have given the Vikings a tough deficit to overcome. Brees uncorked a pass into the end zone – over a couple of Viking defenders – and into the hands wide receiver Robert Meachem. Meachem jumped and extended for the pass (which hit him in the hands), but could not hold on to the ball as his body came into contact with the turf. The missed opportunity turned even more dreadful when New Orleans kicker Garrett Hartley shanked a 32-yard field goal attempt, keeping the game within 5 points for the Vikings.

However, Favre and company were unable to capitalize and punted the ball back away to the Saints. The Saints constructed a drive that took minutes off of the game clock. New Orleans effectively mixed up its offensive playcalling, inserting some key running plays that caught the Vikings off guard. The home team keep churning out the first downs to keep the game clock moving, and the Vikings were unable to get another chance to score the football.

Tonight’s game was competitive, however, in a way that most did not expect. Two of last season’s most prolific quarterbacks – Brees and Favre – were far from spectacular. Brees completed 26 of 37 passes for 237 yards including one touchdown. Favre never really established the Minnesota passing game (he was 15-27, 171 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT), and in the end, Peterson’s first half surge could not be supported by an air attack.

Favre’s rustiness will most certainly be attributed to his abrupt decision to join Minnesota in the middle of the preseason. The Super Bowl champion Saints were also not efficient as usual. But the bottom line is that Favre wasn’t sharp, and the Vikings lost this game because of it.

Saints Go All The Way With Super Bowl XLIV Victory

T Lamont — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 04:21:42 +0000

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Two weeks ago, it was New Orleans cornerback Tracy Porter who intercepted Minnesota’s Brett Favre to seal the Saints place in Super Bowl 44.

Tonight, Porter was up to his old tricks again – this time his victim was 4-time NFL MVP Peyton Manning.

Porter’s late fourth quarter interception return for a touchdown provided the final margin in Super Bowl 44, as the New Orleans Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts, 31-17.

In a game between two teams noted for their extraordinary offenses and top-notch quarterbacks, neither failed to live up to the hype. After a slow start to the game, both signal callers combined to complete 63 passes.

The Colts led the game 10-6 at the half, as neither team could sustain any momentum. So, coming out of halftime, the Saints went with an unconventional onside kick. Indianapolis just missed recovering the ball, but it went under the hands of a Colts player and the Saints were able to recover it. This controversial choice paid off for New Orleans. Drew Brees got on a roll and led his team on touchdown drive by completing a 16-yard screen pass to Pierre Thomas.

Drew Brees celebrates his new Super Bowl trophy with his son, Baylen.

Indianapolis responded with a 76-yard drive. The drive ended with Joseph Addai scoring on a 4-yard TD run which put the Colts ahead 17-13.

But that would be the last time that the Colts would score in the contest. First, the Saints Garrett Hartley answered with a 46-yard field goal. After keeping the Colts at bay, the Saints scored with 4:57 left in the game to put them ahead 24-17.

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning began to lead his troops on a drive to tie the game, moving the ball into Saints’ territory. A key 3rd and 5 pass was intercepted by Tracy Porter, providing the game with its biggest play.

Manning tried to quickly get another score for Indy, but the drive stalled when the Colts couldn’t push the ball in the end zone on a 4th and goal with slightly over a minute left in the contest.

Drew Brees, who was named the Super Bowl MVP, downed the ball to seal the New Orleans’ victory in their first trip to the big game. Here’s the quarterback’s take on their journey this season:

”We just believed in ourselves and we knew that we had an entire city and maybe an entire country behind us. What can I say? I tried to imagine what this moment would be like for a long time and it’s better than expected.”

Now, Brees, the Saints and the city of New Orleans no longer have to imagine.