Halo

The weather was pleasant, considering the possibilities of New Jersey in November. Still, it was chilly, in the mid 40's.

This looked like the 2012 Saints, a team making mistakes and a defense that was gashed all afternoon long.

The Jets lost to Cincinnati 49-9 a week ago. This is the NFL. Every week is different. These are paid professionals. If you don't show up with your best effort, you will lose. The Saints indeed lost in a sloppy 26-20 contest.

New Orleans made a talent evaluation to go with their clear miss investment in Mark Ingram over Chris Ivory. Does anyone think Ingram is a better runner than Ivory? Anyone?

The Saints were defined by their two plays on third and inches in the fourth quarter. First, you throw to the fullback in the flat. He drops the ball. Then, a tight end around? With Josh Hill? Seriously? This team cannot run the ball and has no confidence to even try to run. You needed an inch and had two downs to get it. I love Sean Payton's ability to call plays but this was a bit ridiculous. The fourth down call brought back memories of "Superdome Special." Again, I ask the question—why trade up and draft Mark Ingram in the first round if you don't trust him to make an inch?

Given a chance to win late, the Saints were simply not good enough to get it done. There were key injuries but the Jets had injuries as well. When you are favored to win, you have to take care of business. The Saints did not.
- See more at: Quick Takes: Saints errors before, during Jets game costly

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