UPDATE: I’ve been graciously informed by reader Holly that “who dey” refers to the Bengals, while “who dat” is the Saints. Whoops. Thanks for the catch, Holly. Can’t keep my Southern team cheers straight. And if you don’t think Cincinnati is in the South, spend some time there. Right over the border from Kentucky. Anyway…
Hey everybody–Gene here, back from a couple weeks of vacation. Nothing too out of the ordinary went down, despite what you might read here. You shouldn’t believe all the legendary Gene Bosling stories you here. You should, however, believe some of them.
Anyway, just wanted to post my quick thoughts on the Saints/Pats game tonight. I only watched part of it, so I’ll keep it brief.
First, it was perversely flattering to watch the Saints construct their secondary out of the 2003 Packers (Mike McKenzie and Darren Sharper so far) and shut down the Patriots and Randy Moss. Makes you wonder why those guys could never do it, at least to that degree, with the Packers. Maybe, just maybe, it’s because Gregg Williams is a notch or two above Ed Donatell?
But that’s not the point of this post. It’s this: Perhaps some of you see the 10-1 Vikings and think Judas is going to get his way, lyin’ and grinnin’ and gunslingin’ and riverboat gamblin’ and actin’ like a little kid out there and doing all sorts of other things with the ‘g’ dropped from them because it’s part of his folksy charm, all the way to the Super Bowl. After seeing the Saints dismantle the Pats, I’ve come to this conclusion: It ain’t happenin’.
First, that offense. We all saw what Brees did to the Packers last season and how it changed everything the Packers would have done in response. And it’s well-documented, despite what the Judas acolytes were saying after the game, that the Vikings have trouble defending the pass. With those weapons, in the Superdome, can you imagine what Brees would do to that secondary? Now, some of it depends on how much time he can get. But he hit them for 330 in a Monday night game last year, and his weapons are even more diverse this year, with or without Reggie Bush. The Saints have given up just 13 sacks, and they’ll probably wind up with home-field advantage, which helps the pass protection.
The other reason this Saints team is so good, of course, is the defense. They led the league in offense last year, but went 8-8 because they couldn’t stop anybody. So they got Williams, who has rejuvenated Sharper’s career and made him a Pro Bowl safety again by letting him do what he does best — roam the secondary and pounce when he sees fit. Malcolm Jenkins is playing well, and the Saints have a solid 26 sacks. They’ve also notched 36 takeaways and scored seven defensive touchdowns. That’s a huge bonus with this offense.
And here’s the other thing, the reason I still don’t see this twisted fairytale working out for Judas. He’ll likely have to go to New Orleans and trade TDs with Brees. The Vikings aren’t built to do that, because it makes Adrian Peterson and their pass rush less effective, and we know what happens when Judas is forced to play that game. The Vikings aren’t built to come from behind, and Judas certainly isn’t wired to keep up with that kind of offense in the playoffs (St. Louis in 2001, anyone?). Maybe he truly is different. Maybe Brad Childress will somehow fail to make his usual allotment of egregious coaching boners lead the Vikings to the Super Bowl. I just can’t see it. I still believe Judas is sitting on at least one stinker of a game, and he’s plenty capable of cooking one up in January.
It’s well-documented among us at OBOD that we want to play Judas one more time — why not? We’d have nothing to lose, all the pressure would be on them and Aaron Rodgers is finally starting to establish a sense of timing with a short passing game. But even if the Packers don’t get another shot at him, I wouldn’t worry too much after seeing that tonight.
If it comes to it, the Saints should have enough to take him down.
–Gene Bosling
(Actually, Who Dey is the Bengals, while Who Dat is the Saints…small distinction in typography, huge distinction in character.)
Eh, I don’t know. I agree with FO when they say that the Vikings could take it to New Orleans. Maroney isn’t normally that good – the Saints are miserable against the run, it’s the one thing they don’t defend well. The Saints D was able to contain Brady because they dropped 8 into coverage — that won’t work against Peterson, but neither will stacking 8 in the box work against Favre.
I think the Saints’ best bet in that game would be turnovers, especially in the passing game. Sharper and McKenzie both know him well, and could anticipate some of his routes. On the flip side, Favre also knows that their secondary lacks cohesion and might try to take advantage.
I think it’d be a tough matchup, and one that would be “interesting” from a football standpoint. From a Packer fan standpoint, I’d cheer myself hoarse for Brees and the Saints, naturally. Let’s all just hope you’re right and the Vikes never make it that far.