JudeThaddeus

It makes the entire week better when the Saints win on Sundays. Its even better when we can defeat an opponent with players who love to talk trash (see Warren Sapp). However, I am having a hard time enjoying this win as much as some people seem to.

First and foremost, full props to our defense. We got in Johnson's face and forced him to make some bad decisions, one of which led to seven points for us. We were able to hold Pittman in check in the running game. That is all good. Still, the Bucs managed to rack up a sizable number of yard against and we were fortunate to come up with fumbles and interceptions to stop several of their scoring drives in our red zone. Pretty simple to analyze this, we played hard and the ball bounced our way.

Our offense was pathetic. Once again the only bright spot was Deuce. Now before everyone jumps on the pessimism kick, the Bucs had SIX TURNOVERS! There is no way the Bucs should have even been in the game by the fourth quarter with six turnovers. If you look at the points-off-of-turnover stat, you will see our offense did not produce. Our offense could not do anything all day long and the only times we looked semi-professional was when we ran the hurry-up.

I am elated that we beat the Bucs and I hope to sweep them again this year. However, we still have a LONG way to go on offense. As an aside, the Saints who showed up to play the Bucs yesterday reminded me of the old days - defensive playmakers, and offensive fill-players.

Thank goodness for Deuce.

BrooksMustGo

Jude,

I totally agree with you. All the production was from the defensive unit.
I\'m not going to speculate on why Duece is the only guy getting it done on the other side of the ball, but I\'m glad we have him.

I think in the larger sense, we need Rick Venturi doing the playcalling. If Venturi were head coach, I think we\'d get more production from the offense. He could bring in his own O-coordinator and lead us to glory.

Venturi for the top job in 04!

SFinAustin

It\'s funny to hear guys calling for Venturi to be the head coach when 3 weeks ago, they were calling for his head. How fickle fans are!

DblBogey

SFinAustin -- I thought I was the only one that was thinking the exact same thing. Amazing what the thrill of victory can do to the minds of men.

saint5221

Nothing fickle from this fan I never have and still do not want Venturi. He has had a record of failure that is astounding, I respect his ability to relate to players and he seems to be a hell of a guy, but he has never got the job done.

lumm0x

I have to admit that I was down on Venturi not just this year but every year he\'s been here. I wrote him off and he has proven otherwise. I have to give him my apologies for underestimating him, but.....I will not overestimate him at this point and think he deserves a shot as head coach. I still think he\'s too much of a \"yes-man\" and not enough front man. We\'ll see... he may yet prove me wrong in that respect.

saint5221

I don\'t know LummOx, I like him as a position coach I\'m not sure he has what it takes at the cordinator level yet. Would love to feast on the tastiest crow ever and watch him push this D to the top and the Saints along with it.

[Edited on 11/3/2003 by saint5221]

saintfan

Something is showing, and it\'s not BMG\'s Underwear...

BABBLE is in full swing.

WhoDat

You guys need to get off the Rick Venturi kick real fast. Our defense played great against the Bucs last season also. Anyone think Rick should be head coach after last year\'s debacle? I hate to tell you guys this, but Rick Venturi is not a very good coach. And despite the offensive woes this season, I would still say that McCarthy is a better coach than Venturi is. I can tell you right now why the Saints beat the Bucs. First, the Bucs were dumb and didn\'t try to pound Pittman down our throats. Anyone that runs on us wins. Second, they killed themselves. They turned the ball over, missed open receivers, dropped passes, etc. Look at what happened when they clocked. They went 97 yards in the fourth quarter in 3 minutes! Then they got the ball back and scored again almost immediately.

Don\'t start getting excited b/c the Saints can hold Carolina to 19 and 23 points, or the Bucs to 14. Both have BAD offenses, and Stephen Davis had a career day the first time these teams met and then topped it the second time. You\'ve all seen what happens when we play teams with offenses, or do I need to dredge up memories of the Seattle and Indianapolis games? Bottom line is, if the Saints had to play teams like the Rams and San Fran more often, we\'d all be singing a different song right now.

Personally, I\'m really worried about how the D can hold up against teams like Washington, Dallas, and even the Giants. Those teams may be able to score a lot.

Here\'s the bottom line. If this team is going to the playoffs this year, it is going to be on the back of the offense. The defense will not take us there. If McCarthy, Brooks, and our receivers can all get on the same page and make this offense a little more explosive, then they\'ve got a chance. Otherwise, there\'s no hope. I think all of our expectations were a bit high after last season. It\'s hard to imagine any team averaging 30+ points a game for two straight seasons. I think we can return to that kind of form, and when it happens I\'m sure there will be a McCarthy for Head Coach thread too.

\"Excuses, excuses, excuses. That’s all anyone ever makes for the New Orleans Saints’ organization.\" - Eric Narcisse


\"Being a Saints fan is almost like being addicted to crack,\" he said.[i]\"You know you should stop, but you just can\'t.\"