Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Lots of injuries right now. Most seem to be minor.

I think teams have recognized that players playing through the pain doesn't help the team effort.

Favre proved that with the Jets and the difference in Will Smith this year versus last year is proof that a small injury is enough to make a good player average.

The Saints are 8-0. They can afford the risk of sidelining players with minor injuries to give them time to heal. The schedule is fairly easy the next two weeks and neither team will affect the tiebreakers except for conference losses.

I hope the coaching staff has decided to get to the post season as healthy as possible. Of course, it is a risky road, because the Saints haven't reached the postseason yet. However, with a three game lead in the division and a one game lead on home field advantage the Saints are in a position to risk allowing players to heal.

The Saints have to smell the post-season about now. One game away from a winning season. The division crown is a maximum of 5 wins away, probably less. Home field advantage is what this team is fighting for at this point unless there is a major collapse. A .500 record for the rest of the year wins the division unless Atlanta wins out. These Saints aren't a .500 team, especially when you consider the remaining schedule.

Of course everyone will continue to repeat the mantra of "one game at a time" but you know a coaching staff this savvy is thinking tactically week to week and strategically looking forward to being the best team possible when it counts.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

If we end up tied with Minnesota, we lose HFA (if we lose to an NFC team)

They lost to an AFC team. Conference record would give them the tie breaker.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

I think there is small chance of Minny ending the season 15-1. There isn't much chance of the Saints finishing better than 14-2 for that matter.

The most meaningless game remaining on the Saints schedule is the New England Monday night game. They are the only non-conference game remaining. The biggest two games left are Dallas as a potential HFA competitor and Atlanta, as our competition for the division.

I can see the coaching staff getting guys healed up over the next four games. The Saints have to be able to win short-handed against the Rams, Tampa and Washington and New England is the least important game on the schedule.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

While I concur with your assessment that the NE game is the least important relative to seeding, any unnecessary loss could hurt seeding. The "any given Sunday" theory, where even a team like the Bucs can win only because the Pack gave them 4 turnovers inside the Pack 20, has to give anyone pause in taking even the lowliest team lightly. The great teams treat every game like it is an opportunity to humiliate and destroy. No weeks off. The Patriots haven't been the winningest/most dominant team in the decade because they let their players take a week off. Every game means something. Find that something and win.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Sitting injured players down isn't "letting them take a week off"

Favre played with a bad shoulder and destroyed a playoff season for the Jets. I recall a Saints QB doing the same thing.

Will Smith played with a sports hernia last year and was average. A fully healthy backup probably would have played better. Maybe the Saints missed the playoffs last year because of it?

Playing through injury has been held up as a goal in the NFL and I think teams are realizing that an injured star is not going to play better than a healthy backup.

The Patriots are the masters of this. Their signature is plug and play with anybody in the position (other than Brady).

I'm hoping the Saints do the same.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Not so sure Minnisota will wind up 15-1, they still have a few games with teams on the bubble...

Saints still have away games with Division teams that believe they can beat them and a couple with other playoff teams...

It will be a week to week thing until teams start clinching playoff positions.....

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

\

They did pretty well without Brady last year.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Patriots game is a bench mark game, its the test that can get the team over the hump in terms of respect and to see how far this team has come in the NFL. I heard Brady this morning say that he loved playing the Colts because it let his team know how good they were in the NFL since Brady sees Peyton as a rival.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Patriots-Colts is a conference matchup that usually determines home field advantage in the AFC.

Patriots-Saints is non-conference, the only non-conference game left. The media will hype it up but out of the 8 remaining games for the Saints this one is the least important to win.

That doesn't mean the Saints won't be playing all out but if you have players with small injuries that could get worse THIS is the game to sit them down. Beating Saint Louis is more important than beating New England.

Of course, I'll take wins in both.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Agreed Ragin, the Pats game is important. Let's just say the Saints make it to the SB. Their likely opponent would be a team with a recent SB win (Pats, Steelers, or maybe Colts if their D holds up). If our boys have already beaten one of the top AFC teams, that is a huge confidence boost. If not, all the confidence rests with the AFC champ. The Monday night game is a big-time statement game.

As to "resting" players, we are seeing the advantage of depth this year. The backups are almost as good as the starters, which allows the starters to rest at times during games and stay fresher, also less likely to get hurt. Team depth has been one of the secrets of success for the Patriots and is now paying off for the Saints as well.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

Gumbeau I'd like to see your list of players that Payton should sit ad for what games...

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

My list is very short.

Sit the players that have injuries affecting performance on the field and can benefit from a game or more off. Sit them during this 3 game stretch.

An injury requiring season ending surgery would not qualify nor would a paper cut.

And nobody knows if the staff is doing this or not but the injury list this year sure is weird.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

I've been doing some thinking on this issue. While normally I would think that HFA would be crucial, it may be just a bit less so this year because the only other contender at this point are the ViQueens. So if by chance the Saints do end up the #2 seed, it would leave the potential of having to play the NFC championship game on the road in a Dome on a fast track. That's not anything like having to be in Philly, New York, or Chicago in mid January.

So while I would prefer, and fully expect, to play all playoff games in the SuperDome: Payton's House of Pain (I just love that song!), I think this is a workable scenario.

However, there is no way we're going to give Dallas a shot. So we need to stomp them CowGirls into submission on December 19th, at which point the playoff picture may be all but wrapped up with the Viking having to take on the Bengals the previous Sunday.

So to rank the importance of the games that the Saints have remaining:

1) Clowns (put away the division)
2) CowGirls (ensure they are in the rear view)
3) Pats (national statement game)
4) Panthers (may or may not be a moot point. But still want the season sweep)
5,6) Bucs I and II (division games. Cannot let up)
7A,7B) Washington, St. Louis should be easily handled.

That's my take on it.

SFIAH

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

I'm all for letting the injured players sit to start the game. If the backups aren't performing well then put in the injured starters. I don't necessarily want to deactivate them, just sit them to start the game. Our backups have been doing an adequate job of filling in so far and as long as the Saints aren't fielding too many supporting players then we should be fine.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

I think its perfect to sit a few players with minor injuries this week. As long as we don't lose the fact that we must win games that we should win - Rams.

Sit Sharper, I think we'll be ok without him this week. I don't see them keeping up with our offense and let our offense win this week for us for a change, lol.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

I agree with that. Suit 'em up just in case the backups can't handle the Rams or the Bucs... maybe just let them play a couple plays just to maintain continuity.

Re: Injury Bug or getting ready for the post-season?
 

This thinking is similar to the team that has it's playoff spot locked at the end of the season wondering if they should play the starters and risk injury. (Hopefully we will have that discussion here with 2-3 games left in the season.)

The opposing thought is do you rest the starters and therefore risk the continuity that had brought you all those wins in the first place.

The Rams don't have a great team (YES!) but they are an NFL team with some talented players so the do have the ability to give the Saints fits, especially with their run game. A loss to the Rams would be short of devastating for the Saints and other teams in the NFL would feel a lot more confident when they play against the Saints.

So I think that if the player can play, even if he's a little dinged up, he's going to play and the Saints will hopefully beat the crap out of the Rams.