Play to win the game....
 

This is what happens when you don't play to win the game.

1st and 10 on the 15 yd line and you run the kicker out, that's playing to not screw up. Taking the ball out of your Pro Bowl QB's hands and wanting to kick is not playing to win, it's worrying that you won't win. I have yet to ever see that mentality or coaching strategy ever serve a team well.

Something is off with Drew and Payton's play calling, lack of faith or something in their playmakers it seems. It doesn't help that ol' Stone Hands Henderson showed up today and for some reason Meachem isn't being allowed to stretch the field at all like last year.

1st down on the 11

It was the right call. What you have done if we fumbled or threw an int?
You'd be the first one saying we should have kicked the FG.

It was a team loss. We need to learn from it and move on.

I think you might be on to something Strat.

Still, there is enough blame to go around in that locker room. :doh:

Only Brees, Moore and Shockey can hold their heads up.
All would tell Hartley that it wasn't his fault.

No doubt Hartley blew the winning kick. I thought the interference call on Greer was another bone headed call by the ref that cost us the game too.

We lost as a team. Period. :bng:

coach made the right call. you dont try to score a td when you can end the game with a chip shot. if we go for the td and someone gets injured everyone would be saying "why didnt we kick it". hartley is absolute garbage. had someone not deflected his kick last week he would have missed that one too. what really sucks is, who are we going to pick up at this time of the year? if your not on a team its for a reason

Anybody think somebody got to Hartley about changing the outcome of the game?
New Orleans is a big Mafia town. Just saying...

http://images.icanhascheezburger.com...4082623247.jpg

Hell go for it what the worst that could happen the kicker miss the field goal. You Play to score a TD

God I love that picture of Selma Strato.

Totally agree. What ever happened to "Finish Strong"? End of 4th quarter they played for the field goal...poor clock management...wasted nearly 60 seconds on that last drive...backed themselves into that field goal corner and Hartley comes through. Overtime they drive all the way down the field then put it in neutral. The crap about the possibility of injury, fumble or an INT was no more possible than on any other play of the drive that got them down there. They had downs and clock to play with. Kick it on third down as your safety net. Even if he had he made the kick, I would still be spent by the raggedy play that's allowing teams to hang around close enough to leave doors/windows of opportunity open for stupid stuff to happen.

Did you do the Sig.

OK, can anyone tell me why Payton didn't try to center it up for the kicker? Does he have THAT much confidence in him?

I'm still trying to figure out what happened to the confidence in the number one offense and Drew Brees.

None of this we lost as a team **** Hartley misses a 28-29 yard FG. The TEAM put Hartley in a situation for a easy chipshot FG and he didnt pull through. Hartley lost the game!

Bingo we have a winner. Payton wouldn't kick on 1st down unless its a sure bet.

We? Me? I wasn't there.:hump:

Don't know what's up with Hartley. After that crappy kick in OT he stared at the spot that the football was held perhaps trying to sell Morestead out or maybe Morestead did screw it up. Laces out?

Payton did his part in losing this game that's for sure. Run the ball, Sean.
Ice the Falcons kicker? Try icing the Saints kicker. He seems to kick better under pressure.

Like you all stated, the Saints are on the Falcons 11 with a first down in OT and you put in a kicker that appears to give the team a 50% chance of making the FG? :confused:

That said, the Saints have drives and plays that are exciting and downright awesome. This team is going to the playoffs, they just have to clean a few things up.

Just my two cents, but by kicking a 'chip shot', aren't you calling that play to win?

Also, after being clutch last season, who would've thunk Hartley would be as inconsistent as he is this year. Might need some couch time with a therapist.

Just saying...

Yesterday felt like the old days... the old Curse, and all.

It was a glorified extra point. The only thing I would have done different is find out where Hartley wanted it placed and ran it to the right side or middle to get his desired hash. Other than that it was the right call and should have been a huge % to get a win. Hartley just blew it. Sigh.

Its never a sure bet. Our result proves it. You finish strong! They didn't do it in the 4th quarter and they didn't do it in OT. It was a TEAM loss. We take it to heart, avoid pointing fingers, learn from it, win the remaining games convincingly and close the door on luck, bad calls and late game heroics.

Team loss, it sure is. It's just when you're a kicker, mistakes are amplified on something like that. We can all blame players:

1. Brees' int's
2. Pass int penalties on Greer
3. Henderson dropping the deep pass, and another
4. Meachem dropping a pass after the deep pass
5. Bushrod allowing a sack which ended a drive pretty much
6. Greg calling aggressive blitzes allowing Gonzo to be a dump off

We can go on.

All good points Cory9289. There should have been an adjustment made for Gonzo. No one was even making a play on the ball on his catches. After the 1st 3 drive sustaining catches, or so, I think I would have to make Ryan beat me a different way, any way but Gonzalas, AGAIN. Pull out the old box-and-1, just to see if the other guys could make a play...we learned that he could.

We didn't get anybody in the off season that can cover a good tight end. Harper can't do it and our linebackers are just too slow to make a play.

Disagree Dale. Harper has done extremely well covering TE's this year.

Gonzalez had a great game, but it was mostly LB's on him all day. He also caught a lot of passes when we blitzed and didn't get to Ryan.

On some of TG receptions, there wasn't a defender within 5 yards of him.

They were ready for our gawdawful slow blitz.

i'm favoring you on this one strato. call me what they like.

if my man missed one from forty i would have been upset but not p.o.ed like now. he admitted he picked his head up as he kicked. a big no-no in football and in golf. i have forgiven him and we will kick asre come sunday.

The media are saying that Hartley is a bit too fond of partying etc and has a bit of an attitude. Not sure if this is true, but that's whats going around.

Pardon my error on the 15 yd line remark, that was based upon my listening to the game on Sirius and that's what they initially said. The timing of the broadcast is always a little off in accuracy and it skews the timeline of things happening a little. I hadn't watched the replay yet but just got to watch the CST Saints Report.

For the record, I never would have *****ed about them going for the TD, like others have written, injuries could happen every single play. You obviously run high percentage plays in that scenario trying to minimize the risk of turnovers. But to me, to go for it on 1st and 2nd and then kick on 3rd just in case would have been THE "IN IT TO WIN IT ATTITUDE!" I would like to have seen the team show.

And by the way, I think I'd rather listen to a CSPAN broadcast for 24 straight hours than listen to those two guys, they drive me friggin' nuts. I just have this overwhelming urge to punch my car stereo when Hokie is speaking!

if anything i hope that's not true, the partying anyway, attitude i can handle