The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?

The New Orleans Saints are in dire need of a winning season. Might they get one?

by Allen Strk@Allen_Strk Jul 6, 2017, 12:00pm EDT

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The NFC South is starting to gain recognition as the toughest division in football. Based on the last two NFC champions and NFL most valuable player’s coming from the division, it deserves great respect. Every team has an excellent, franchise quarterback as their leader. There are countless explosive playmakers between all four teams. Notoriously bad defenses (excluding Carolina) are showing signs of improvement, as well.

Atlanta’s stacked roster makes them clear favorites, but repeating as divisional champions, much less win the conference. Tampa Bay had another productive off-season for the umpteenth year. Unlike previous seasons, they are ready to challenge for a playoff spot following last season’s success. Carolina isn’t far removed from being a Super Bowl caliber team. They will command plenty of attention led by Cam Newton and their stout front seven.

That leaves one team falling under the radar. The New Orleans Saints had an eventful off-season, which has left their fans cautiously optimistic. Spending in free agency and adding more draft picks bolstered their roster on both sides of the ball. Unfortunate injuries may have altered some plans, but it shouldn’t drastically change expectations. This is a playoff-caliber team, if their defense progresses and Drew Brees continues to play at an elite level.

Traditional offensive powerhouse

Despite relying on a more balanced attack rather than a high-octane passing offense, the Saints should remain as an efficient unit. Brees is starting to lose some arm strength at 38 years old. It hasn’t affected his production, but they can’t keep putting him in unfavorable situations. Facing double digit deficits on a consistent basis will eventually take a toll on any quarterback. The front office has been committed to adding weapons and strengthening their offensive line.

Trading away Brandin Cooks shouldn’t be a significant loss. His role in the offense deteriorated over the last month of the season. With Michael Thomas’ rapid emergence, it made the speedy playmaker expendable. For all his shortcomings as a pass catcher, Ted Ginn Jr. possesses game changing speed that fits well in Sean Payton’s offense. Brees has built a strong rapport with Willie Snead over the past two seasons. The former undrafted free agent is the perfect possession receiver for Brees at this stage in his career. Brandon Coleman and Coby Fleener are decent complimentary pieces to Brees’ arsenal.

After several forgettable off-seasons, the Saints made some wise personnel decisions. Signing Larry Warford could prove to the biggest of them all. One of the main elements to Brees’ success consists of having a top-tier interior line. The duo of Carl Nicks and Jahri Evans did wonders for him. With stout pass protection, it allowed Brees to feel comfortable in the pocket. Allowing a future Hall of Famer the opportunity to survey the field usually never ends well. Warford isn’t quite on the level of Evans (in his prime) or Nicks. It’s still a significant upgrade to a once problematic position.

Max Unger is expected to be healthy before the regular season. A trio of Warford, Unger, and Andrus Peat should provide much-needed stability. Losing Terron Armstead is a notable loss, but it’s not an insurmountable one. Brees has plenty of experience without the outstanding left tackle. Rotoworld’s Evan Silva posted an impressive stat about New Orleans averaging more points per game without Armstead last season. Whether Khalif Barnes or Ryan Ramczyk starts at left tackle, they will inevitably experience some issues. Brees has endured these problems before and still managed to be productive.

How they incorporate Adrian Peterson into the offense is the most glaring question. It was a puzzling, albeit low-risk signing. Pairing a two-down running back with Mark Ingram seems confusing on paper. There is still upside in this move. Don’t rule out Payton’s knack for getting the most out of limited offensive weapons. The offensive mastermind may not know how to find a defensive coordinator that can improve his team’s defense. He does know how to utilize one-dimensional players such as Devery Henderson and Robert Meachem. Tim Hightower turned out to be a pleasant surprise as well. If Peterson can stay healthy, he should find a role within the offense.

Slowly rebuilding defense

A once perennial playoff team transformed into Jeff Fisher’s worst nightmare. From horrific personnel decisions to underwhelming free agent signings, a porous defense has been the main reason behind three consecutive losing seasons. They have become the biggest punchline in the NFC South. It takes something remarkable to keep an elite quarterback out of the playoffs for an extended period. The Saints managed to achieve an unfortunate feat.

The defense simply lacked talent at every level. Cameron Jordan’s excellence couldn’t make up for a mediocre defensive line. Jonathan Vilma was their last above-average linebacker. A mixture of two-down players and journeymen created one of the worst linebacker units in the league. The same can be said at cornerback, where they haven’t had two capable starters since 2013. Keenan Lewis and Jabari Greer proved to be a formidable starting duo for that one season.

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Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

I didn't know Jeff Fisher was in the NFC South!?

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

If you read the article it has a link on that statement. It refers to all of Fisher's 7-9, 8-8 and 9-7 teams over his career. The writer probably lost many at that point. Bad construction on his part.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

basically it was a fair write up

under the radar baby

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Yeah I get a little bit giddy thinking about the possibilities. Trying to temper my expectations since a few are coming back from injuries, but it's an exciting group.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Falcoholic, what a dumb name.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Yet another article totally glossing over the new coaching staff. So because of that, just another pos article written by a moron.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Dude, it's a Falcon fan. Nuff said there. Lol.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Enough said...

https://cdn-s3.si.com/s3fs-public/20...alcons-win.gif

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Okay, yeah, and the big ol' capital F fits in there too....

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

That loss has to hang over. You weren't beat, you blew it lol. And your O coord didn't help throwing the ball when he should have been running

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

I think they were beat. They were fine during the cruise, but were out coached by better coaches and outplayed by better players when it mattered. And they were totally in every way shape and form beat by the end of the game.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

I thought the points were all very relevant. It was was written with a fair and unbiased opinion. I actually thought it was more accurate and well written than most of our beat writers. He didn't mention coaches but that is understandable. They are harder to evaluate and it's the players we see on the field and follow throughout their career. Not some new position coach. Just sayin.......:cool:

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

I agree. It seemed more objective than others I have read, yet still somewhat uninformed. The lack of factoring in what the new coaching has to offer throws most of the evaluation off by a large degree. Once again, the changes related to the defensive and special teams have been passed over.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

For the most part, it was a decent written article. It is was at this point where it started going downhill:

"How they incorporate Adrian Peterson into the offense is the most glaring question. It was a puzzling, albeit low-risk signing. Pairing a two-down running back with Mark Ingram seems confusing on paper."

Are we the only people that realize AP is a replacement for Hightower? We don't need him to be AP of the past. We need him to backup Ingram.

And his take on the defense is only partially right. Yeah, we haven't had a LB on D worth a poop since Vilma. I will give him that but as far as DB's. C'mon...you can't just skip over the fact that we had street free agents starting because of injuries, and not think that would effect a defense performance.

But I guess it is what it is. A divisional outsider opinion that matches the majority of other outside opinion.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

well they lost so yeah. lol. But they were up by what 25 points in the 4rth quarter? You lose a game like that and you have no one to blame but yourself.

Out coached absolutely and their defense was exhausted by the end

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

I guess there's just no way I can admit that they could've ever won that game. :-) Not even close to the best game I've ever watched, but it sure was up there.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

That was a monumental collapse by the filthy birds that had a team defeated. Yeah I agree, that's gonna sting for a while.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Cpl that with the loss of Shannahan..yeah..they in for a rude awakening.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Our greatest upgrade this off-season involved coaching changes. Their greatest downgrade involved coaching changes. Rude, indeed.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Yep. Not to mention they have a new OC who hasn't called a play in NFL level yet. The fans in ATL are kidding themselves if they think they are going to insert a new OC & duplicate 2016 offensively.

The NFL is hard.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Yeah. The Failclown fans I know keep saying, "But it's the same system." Idiots.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

The Vilma remark seems weird since he was replaced by Lofton, who the Falcons themselves tried to re-sign.

Although not a superstar, he certainly was an above average MLB.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Newly hired Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian said he remains in treatment to battle alcoholism, and he expressed gratitude toward the organization for giving him an opportunity.

"Everybody has issues that they have to deal with -- some physical, some mental," Sarkisian said Thursday. "This happens to be an issue of mine that I work on daily. That is important to me so I can be the best person I can be, the best father I can be, the best coach I can be. And I'm diligent in that.

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Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

In the NFL, success is often followed with failure. :bng:

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

I keep forgetting about him......not that he was forgettable. He played well for us. There was just no talent around him.

Re: The Falcoholic: Could the New Orleans Saints present a bigger challenge than expected?
 

Lofton is also a very good person. He lives next door (still in New Orleans metro) to one of the swimmers that my son coaches in USA Swimming. He gave my son a signed game jersey of his when he found out a jersey my son had of Joe Horn's had been damaged.