But if I lied and said the saints were the better team then I would suddenly have class and knowledge ?:p

oh come on iceshack, don't you get it?!

"oh come on iceshack, don't you get it?!"

Sure I do, and I'm guilty of egging him on. I had hoped that he would read the post and one of two things would happen.

1) He'd realize that his posts were weak and devoid of any substance and therefore try harder to become a better poster.

2) He'd realize that his posts were weak and devoid of any substance and therefore beat it and impress his friends on whatever forum the Panthers run.

Maybe you're right, I don't get it.

Iceshack,

Neither of those things are going to happen. So why don't we simply enjoy the distraction and use him as a foil to discuss what we think will happen this season.

SFIAH

You're basing this on the fact that you have a new backup QB? Or replacing one long rangy WR who played at USC with a younger model?

So what would have happened to your Panthers in 04 if the injuries had not hit? You would have won the SB of course, right?

The Saints had the #1 offense in the NFL last year. The offseason filled the only two open positions of need. Unlike the Panthers, the Saints are completely overloaded at WR. Hell you may be picking up the guys we cut at the end of training camp.

The OL comes back completely intact. We have two tackles that will be coming into their second full year on the job.

The Saints' defense had holes last year. Through free agency and the draft, virtually every need was addressed. I think you can debate how the Saints match up at DT, but the CB,S, and MLB positions all were addressed.

The team was very smart and resigned all of their critical FA. We could have lost Hollis Thomas, Grant, and Stinchcomb. They are all back with long term deals.

Most importantly you have a coaching staff and veteran leadership on the team that realizes that nothing that was accomplished last year matters anymore. Payton has stressed this point. Take a read of the Joe Vitt Bear Balls article down the forum to get a sense of urgency the coaching staff feels.

You don't have a leg to stand on barring injury. The Saints' offense one weakness last year was outstanding top 5 defenses. In playing the AFC South and the NFC West this year, this offense won't see any such defenses until potentially the last game of the season. And yes I'm specifically excluding the Panthers off of this list.

My predictions for the Saints:

Division: 5-1. Not 6-0 simply because it's crass to think a team is going to sweep their division. The Bucs rise up and find a way to steal one! :D

AFC South: 4-0. We get Indy first up and win in a shootout. Jacksonville still won't be able to effectively score. Houston and Tennessee still won't be all there year and won't have the defense to hang

Other #1s from last year: 2-1 This year we may give the Bears the last game of the season, but only because the #1 NFC seed and HFA is already locked up. Philly has been dominated. Seattle doesn't have the defense.

NFC West: 2-1. I'm hedging my bets here. Each of the three teams left in this division can sling it. Figuring that in three shootouts, one will figure out how to shoot more bullets. Probably the Rams though that's a home game.

13-3. #1 seed and HFA. SB bound.

All of course barring massive injuries during the season. That's a joker that you never know will be dealt.

BTW I don't know where the Panthers will finish. But with the record above, does it really matter?

SFIAH

A quick followup:

Here's a quote from Brees that illustrates this point

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2892963

It's that type of leadership that will keep the Saints moving forward instead of falling back.

SFIAH

So everyone at B&G is supposed to excuse you for injuries and putting players on IR because you're already out of contention after a 1-7 start (then won 6 of 8..... uh-huh), but we don't get a break from you for enduring the worst natural disaster in US history...:rolleyes: thanks.

Gruden's first year 2002 12-4 Superbowl Champs. Mora's first year 2004 11-5 Lost conf champ. Fox's first year 2002 7-9 (next year super bowl). Payton first year 2007 10-6 Lost conf champ.

Gotta admit genghis, it does look like a pattern here.... Hell, even Haslett won a playoff game in his first year. Guess we gotta fire Payton?? This is what makes the offseason so interesting.... the "wait and see". No matter what happens, we're in for one heck of a season. :handguns:

BTW I'll be at the CAR vs NO game. Can we sit together??;)

Someone call Canton
 

Guys y'all are forgeting something here. The Panthers have Delhomme and Carr. Those are two GREAT QBs. This way if one starts to suck they've got another one to come in and blow.

Well obviously if the panthers hadnt been injured in 04 we would have at least made a deep run in the playoffs and probably would have won the super bowl. Duh! It doesnt take a genius to figure that out!

As for you being "overloaded" at receiver, having a rookie WR that shows up 20lbs over weight and "overloaded" doesnt count.:phat: Because other than Colsten you have nothing that even comes close to sniffing the talent that the panthers have at this position.:p

Sure dude!:)

Can someone just lock this guy out?

It's a friendly debate... he hasn't done anything wrong. Besides, it's boring around here during the offseason.

Saints vs. Patriots

Yea,except when some new moderator dumps the Super moderators thread just because he can. LOL. Glad you did it,I was to lazy.

Hey he posted it first...

=]

That's no excuse! LOL

There's no favoritism!