BakoSaint

I think more accountability could have played a role in our improved performance. 2023 was the offseason of zero accountability with players who didnt contribute at all being universally handed extensions for financial reasons and Cam Jordan getting a golden parachute inflated deal, as well as Cesar Ruiz being extended before week 1 as a reward for mediocrity. This year the Saints could not fully clean house but at least they did use their two post-June-1 designations. They got Davis, Mathieu, and Ram to agree to pay cuts. They didn't give Kamara or Lattimore extensions. They are asking players to actually prove it. That could be having a positive effect on the team.

I think Young is a big part of the Panthers problems. A good QB could not be consistent on that team but at least they could flash a little. Young looks like a shrimp out there, imposes no fear, and throws directly to the defense. He is a college system QB without NFL skills. Remember that when Brees came to the Saints he was undersized too, but he took a 7th round college TE and made him a #1 WR. Young just doesnt have it.

Boston Saint

After doing a little math (not my best subject) I’ve observed the following; going back to last season’s bye week (so a total of 8 games including yesterday) Derek Carr has some pretty good numbers….

70% completion percentage
15 TD passes
4 INT
201 YPG

Certainly things get tougher the next few weeks. But I don’t feel hopeless with the QB situation.

P.S. If I would have been told before the game started that our backup QB was going to be playing in the 4th Q I’d have been upset!

iceshack149

Chase Young is going be really good this year if he stays healthy.
Injuries were ugly yesterday and I hope that Marshon can play a full season. If not, this defensive backfield is the best the Saints have ever had and they should still be very good.
The offensive line played well yesterday. I hope the LG's toe injury isn't terrible. Penning played well.
I'm glad the Saints QB doesn't wear fingernail polish like the Bears QB.

Crusader

* Divisional win. Always important!

* The team rushed for 180 yds on 37 carries for a 4.9yd average. I'll take that any day. O-line did a great job as a group. Loved to see how much they got downfield and after defenders.

* Carr was effective with an 82% completion rate. Didn't seem that streesed in the pocket and didn't force stuff. I won't expect him to keep that percentage up but would be happy if he could stay around 70%.

* Distribution of the ball. 9 WRs were targets for a pass. 4 RBs carried the ball. It makes it harder for a defence to isolate a certain players when other guys can produce too.

*Playcalling was creative. Last year I could call out pretty much what every play was gonna be beforehand. That didn't happen this game. And if I could do that at home in my couch you can bet opposing defences could too.

* Davis still brings the lumber on defence.

* 3 takeaways is huge on defence.

* D-line was getting some decent pressure but needs to start producing som sacks. Sure the shrimp is mobile but its not Vick they were trying to contain. I hope the D-line coach gives them some crap for letting a CB out-sack the unit, I want them to play angry against the Cowboys.

* ST looked good in all phases. I am glad we got a new punter.

* Penalties needs to be cleaned up. 10 for 95yds are too many. We still dominated this week but that can cost us games.

W.T. Sherman is my favorite General. After all he did order Atlanta to be burned to the ground.

iceshack149

My favorite part of the game yesterday was Jaycee Horn popping off to Carr and Carr obviously saying "I got three touchdowns on YOU".

AsylumGuido

BakoSaint

We'll see what happens in the coming weeks. One problem is that a good Carr maybe gets us a wildcard but does not get us a ring, unless we have the right team around him. And if Carr is good, he will insist on collecting that $40 million in 2025 and $50 million in 2026 and more beyond that, he won't give us any breaks, he said in an interview that he told his agent when he signed with the Saints 'I don't care about money I just want to win' and then he signed for the same per year as Aaron Rodgers when clearly his resume is much less, so Carr is going to get every dime he can for average to above average play and make it harder to put a great team around him. I worry that even if Carr is good, we end up in a trap like Jax with Lawrence or Lions with Goff or Falcons with Ryan, where paying an above average QB who is not clutch in the playoffs championship level money gets us nowhere but maybe a wildcard if we are lucky.

This is not to say you can't win with a Goff type QB. Its really hard but you can. But to do so you need a great coach and Hutchinsons, Sewells, St Browns, etc in their prime all around him, many producing far above their contract prices, and we have been mortgaging the future on players near the end of their career and often drafting poorly. Overall, even if Carr can produce above average, I like our odds long term better if we are not paying him $40-50 million a year long term. For Carr's contract to truly be a win, he needs to not only play up to it, but play above it, to be great. And I am skeptical of whether he can do that. He lit up a bad team, but so did Sam Darnold, for a lot less money.

If Carr has a good year and gets us deep in the playoffs, great, do everything to build around him. But if he has a good year but we still struggle, then focus on cleaning up the cap by moving on from other struggling vets like possibly Ram, Lattimore, and Jordan, and put a younger higher upside team around Carr, while having more financial options for the future.

AsylumGuido

This Kubiak led offense scored on their first NINE possessions. That is extremely impressive against ANY NFL team.

AsylumGuido

AsylumGuido