Panthers coach, "I hope we don't have to play them"

WhoDat!656 · 01-02-2012, 01:24 PM

It comes up a lot, the comparisons to the 2009 team, but this year's New Orleans Saints are different in a lot of ways than that team that won the franchise's first Super Bowl.

The Saints lost three straight to end the '09 regular season and didn't seem to be playing their best football.

"We kind of had our crisis situation at the end of the season," said linebacker Scott Shanle. "This year it was early in the season against St. Louis. i think since that game we've gotten better every week. It feels good to be peaking right now, but we have a whole new season ahead of us. We'll have to put this season behind us and get ready for the new season."

That will probably be easy to do, at least according to Carolina coach Ron Rivera.

He says the Saints are a team nobody wants to face at this point.

"We caught a football team that is on a roll," he said. "When you put the tape on and watch how they played against Atlanta and watch how they played against us and the first thing you say to yourself is 'I hope that we don't have to play them.' That's what's going to happen.

"Whoever is playing them is playing a very good football team on a hot roll right now. They are gong to have a lot of momentum going forward."

New Orleans Saints are a different team going into the playoffs than 2009 - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com

foreverfan · 01-02-2012, 01:34 PM

Anything less than a Superbowl victory would be a disappointment.

Danno · 01-02-2012, 03:41 PM

Originally Posted by foreverfan

Anything less than a Superbowl victory would be a disappointment.

An appearance simply isn't enough anymore is it?

My my my how times have changed. Dare I say we're spoiled rotten now?

FinSaint · 01-02-2012, 05:57 PM

Originally Posted by Danno

An appearance simply isn't enough anymore is it?

My my my how times have changed. Dare I say we're spoiled rotten now?

Yeah, I think it's asking for much to evaluate the success of a given season simply by if a team wins the SB.

My own personal expectation for the season was for the Saints to reclaim the NFCS title - which they did - and secondarily to beat the Failclowns both home and away - which they also did.

So, in my opinion the season is a successful one and any achievements beyond what the Saints have already reached will be just icing on the cake.

Maybe not the most popular perspective, but a fairly humble one at that.

Danno · 01-02-2012, 06:00 PM

Originally Posted by FinSaint

Yeah, I think it's asking for much to evaluate the success of a given season simply by if a team wins the SB.

My own personal expectation for the season was for the Saints to reclaim the NFCS title - which they did - and secondarily to beat the Failclowns both home and away - which they also did.

So, in my opinion the season is a successful one and any achievements beyond what the Saints have already reached will be just icing on the cake.

Maybe not the most popular perspective, but a fairly humble one at that.

It certainly beats earning a top five selection in the NFL draft thats for sure.

iceshack149 · 01-02-2012, 06:19 PM

The Saints are clicking better than any team in the NFL. It's no wonder that a head football coach announces that he doesn't want to play the Saints. Think the rest of the league heard that?
Keep rolling and scaring your opponents, Saints.
Whodat!

SaintFanInATLHELL · 01-02-2012, 05:41 PM

Originally Posted by foreverfan

Anything less than a Superbowl victory would be a disappointment.

Like every other team in the NFL playoffs, the Saints are not complete. We are too dependent on our offense to presume to sweep into and through the SuperBowl. One bad game with a few drops and a few turnovers is all it takes to walk away unhappy.

Let's not forget that two of the Saints 3 losses were against teams that are going to pick in the top 5 of the draft in April. Also all three losses were on the road, and the Saints will have to win 3 games on the road to win the SB.

The team is hot, but there are no guarantees. We have a good chance to get deep into the playoffs as long as the team plays with the same consistency as the last 8 weeks.

SFIAH

jlouhill · 01-02-2012, 03:55 PM

I agree this team is totally different than 09. Looking back on the 09 team we caught some breaks along the way. Don't get me wrong, we got what we deserved, The Lombardi and I am proud as hell of them. But if Favre doesn't do what he did best, throw when he doesn't need to to the opposing team, we don't even get to the Super Bowl. During that 13 game winning streak we won a few games we had no business winning. That 09 team gathered itself just in time in the playoffs and did what it had to do. The difference between then and now is the 09 team peaked early. We peaked on Monday night against New England in 09. This team is peaking right now. I think this year's team is a lot better than 09. Yes, we could stumble in the playoffs and not make it. Any team could. But if we keep playing like we are now, then the Bensens need to start dusting off the space in the trophy case for Lombardi No. 2. TWO-DAT!!!!!!

Danno · 01-02-2012, 04:02 PM

Originally Posted by jlouhill

I agree this team is totally different than 09. Looking back on the 09 team we caught some breaks along the way. Don't get me wrong, we got what we deserved, The Lombardi and I am proud as hell of them. But if Favre doesn't do what he did best, throw when he doesn't need to to the opposing team, we don't even get to the Super Bowl. During that 13 game winning streak we won a few games we had no business winning. That 09 team gathered itself just in time in the playoffs and did what it had to do. The difference between then and now is the 09 team peaked early. We peaked on Monday night against New England in 09. This team is peaking right now. I think this year's team is a lot better than 09. Yes, we could stumble in the playoffs and not make it. Any team could. But if we keep playing like we are now, then the Bensens need to start dusting off the space in the trophy case for Lombardi No. 2. TWO-DAT!!!!!!

Yep, anything can happen. There are numerous teams that can beat us if we slip.

But if we play our A-game, there isn't a team in the playoffs that can beat us.

Our A-game > All 11 playoff teams

RailBoss · 01-02-2012, 04:55 PM

A good running game, Drew hitting receivers, the O line blocking and the D coming up with a few more turnovers.
The team is playing at a good level right now.
Let's not overlook the Lions, young team that plays with a lot of emotion and pretty fast Linebackers.

01-02-2012, 01:24 PM	#1
WhoDat!656 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Shreveport,Louisiana Posts: 16,085	Panthers coach, "I hope we don't have to play them" It comes up a lot, the comparisons to the 2009 team, but this year's New Orleans Saints are different in a lot of ways than that team that won the franchise's first Super Bowl. The Saints lost three straight to end the '09 regular season and didn't seem to be playing their best football. "We kind of had our crisis situation at the end of the season," said linebacker Scott Shanle. "This year it was early in the season against St. Louis. i think since that game we've gotten better every week. It feels good to be peaking right now, but we have a whole new season ahead of us. We'll have to put this season behind us and get ready for the new season." That will probably be easy to do, at least according to Carolina coach Ron Rivera. He says the Saints are a team nobody wants to face at this point. "We caught a football team that is on a roll," he said. "When you put the tape on and watch how they played against Atlanta and watch how they played against us and the first thing you say to yourself is 'I hope that we don't have to play them.' That's what's going to happen. "Whoever is playing them is playing a very good football team on a hot roll right now. They are gong to have a lot of momentum going forward." New Orleans Saints are a different team going into the playoffs than 2009 - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com Halo likes this.
	"A Veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" for an amount of "up to and including my life."

01-02-2012, 03:41 PM	#3
Danno Truth Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Spanish Fort, AL (via NO and B/R) Posts: 24,748	Originally Posted by foreverfan Anything less than a Superbowl victory would be a disappointment. An appearance simply isn't enough anymore is it? My my my how times have changed. Dare I say we're spoiled rotten now? Halo, RockyMountainSaint, TheKillerBs and 3 others like this.

01-02-2012, 05:57 PM	#4
FinSaint Site Donor 2015 Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Finland... formerly Southern Virginia Posts: 4,963	Originally Posted by Danno An appearance simply isn't enough anymore is it? My my my how times have changed. Dare I say we're spoiled rotten now? Yeah, I think it's asking for much to evaluate the success of a given season simply by if a team wins the SB. My own personal expectation for the season was for the Saints to reclaim the NFCS title - which they did - and secondarily to beat the Failclowns both home and away - which they also did. So, in my opinion the season is a successful one and any achievements beyond what the Saints have already reached will be just icing on the cake. Maybe not the most popular perspective, but a fairly humble one at that.

01-02-2012, 06:00 PM	#5
Danno Truth Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Spanish Fort, AL (via NO and B/R) Posts: 24,748	Originally Posted by FinSaint Yeah, I think it's asking for much to evaluate the success of a given season simply by if a team wins the SB. My own personal expectation for the season was for the Saints to reclaim the NFCS title - which they did - and secondarily to beat the Failclowns both home and away - which they also did. So, in my opinion the season is a successful one and any achievements beyond what the Saints have already reached will be just icing on the cake. Maybe not the most popular perspective, but a fairly humble one at that. It certainly beats earning a top five selection in the NFL draft thats for sure.

01-02-2012, 05:41 PM	#7
SaintFanInATLHELL The Professor Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Lithonia, GA Posts: 2,781	Originally Posted by foreverfan Anything less than a Superbowl victory would be a disappointment. Like every other team in the NFL playoffs, the Saints are not complete. We are too dependent on our offense to presume to sweep into and through the SuperBowl. One bad game with a few drops and a few turnovers is all it takes to walk away unhappy. Let's not forget that two of the Saints 3 losses were against teams that are going to pick in the top 5 of the draft in April. Also all three losses were on the road, and the Saints will have to win 3 games on the road to win the SB. The team is hot, but there are no guarantees. We have a good chance to get deep into the playoffs as long as the team plays with the same consistency as the last 8 weeks. SFIAH
	Super Bowl Championships: New Orleans Saints:1, Carolina:0, Atlanta Chokers: STILL ZERO Only Atlanta choked in an unchokable situation... Life is definitely good.

01-02-2012, 01:34 PM	#2
foreverfan 12,000 BS Posts Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Metairie, LA Posts: 13,457 Blog Entries: 5	Anything less than a Superbowl victory would be a disappointment.

01-02-2012, 06:19 PM	#6
iceshack149 1000 Posts + Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 4,339 Blog Entries: 1	The Saints are clicking better than any team in the NFL. It's no wonder that a head football coach announces that he doesn't want to play the Saints. Think the rest of the league heard that? Keep rolling and scaring your opponents, Saints. Whodat!

01-02-2012, 03:55 PM	#8
jlouhill 500th Post Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Denton, Tx. Posts: 692	I agree this team is totally different than 09. Looking back on the 09 team we caught some breaks along the way. Don't get me wrong, we got what we deserved, The Lombardi and I am proud as hell of them. But if Favre doesn't do what he did best, throw when he doesn't need to to the opposing team, we don't even get to the Super Bowl. During that 13 game winning streak we won a few games we had no business winning. That 09 team gathered itself just in time in the playoffs and did what it had to do. The difference between then and now is the 09 team peaked early. We peaked on Monday night against New England in 09. This team is peaking right now. I think this year's team is a lot better than 09. Yes, we could stumble in the playoffs and not make it. Any team could. But if we keep playing like we are now, then the Bensens need to start dusting off the space in the trophy case for Lombardi No. 2. TWO-DAT!!!!!! Danno and DrewDat like this.

01-02-2012, 04:02 PM	#9
Danno Truth Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Spanish Fort, AL (via NO and B/R) Posts: 24,748	Originally Posted by jlouhill I agree this team is totally different than 09. Looking back on the 09 team we caught some breaks along the way. Don't get me wrong, we got what we deserved, The Lombardi and I am proud as hell of them. But if Favre doesn't do what he did best, throw when he doesn't need to to the opposing team, we don't even get to the Super Bowl. During that 13 game winning streak we won a few games we had no business winning. That 09 team gathered itself just in time in the playoffs and did what it had to do. The difference between then and now is the 09 team peaked early. We peaked on Monday night against New England in 09. This team is peaking right now. I think this year's team is a lot better than 09. Yes, we could stumble in the playoffs and not make it. Any team could. But if we keep playing like we are now, then the Bensens need to start dusting off the space in the trophy case for Lombardi No. 2. TWO-DAT!!!!!! Yep, anything can happen. There are numerous teams that can beat us if we slip. But if we play our A-game, there isn't a team in the playoffs that can beat us. Our A-game > All 11 playoff teams jlouhill likes this.

01-02-2012, 04:55 PM	#10
RailBoss 5000 POSTS! + Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: South Of The Mason Dixon Line Posts: 7,113	A good running game, Drew hitting receivers, the O line blocking and the D coming up with a few more turnovers. The team is playing at a good level right now. Let's not overlook the Lions, young team that plays with a lot of emotion and pretty fast Linebackers.

LinkBacks (?) LinkBack to this Thread: https://blackandgold.com/saints/39739-panthers-coach-i-hope-we-dont-have-play-them.html
Posted By	For	Type	Date	Hits
Panthers coach, "I hope we don't have to play them"	This thread	Refback	01-02-2012 01:40 PM	2