Had a dream Joe Morgan caught two TD's this week.

I believe (and hope) that message has been drilled into everyone over the bye.

SFIAH

Question: When is the last Saints game that you've seen where that formula has actually been used? My memory is a bit hazy...

SFIAH

ha ha this is too funny! watch a saints game really? read my bio. not only am i a fan of the saints but i'm a fan of football. let me educate you (and others) about the concept of football. the teams that were dominant on offense always has and always will be the team that had or (in present day) has premier running back(s). now there is a combination of things such as having a decent qb, decent wr's, coaches etc etc. every position is important but how most historical teams that won superbowls had a good running back and or fullback. fullbacks, yeah some of you all dont even know what a fullback is. you think its a te coming off the line going into the back filed to help block. lol. but back to the topic at hand. name a team historically that was dominant on offense that won a sb and didnt have a running game? even the year the saints won the sb we had a very good run game whether it was coming from screens or draws to r bush. now lets go to modern day times, the dallas cowgirls is 5-1 not because of t nomo but because of d murray. now dont go give me this notion that every team is built differently and every team does this or does that.. every team in the nfl now want this premier qb. every team. name one that so much emphasis isnt placed on qb's and wr's? go ahead i'm waiting.............. thought so none! every sports analyst highlights the qb and wr position. meanwhile the rb position is down played and damn near a thing of the past. i garauntee if the saints start running the ball EFFECTIVELY, because that is the key is how EFFECTIVELY you can run the ball they will win games. if the dallas cowgirls continue to run like they're doing, they're going to the super bowl and i'll put a bet on that and i dont gamble!

but back to the topic at hand. name a team historically that was dominant on offense that won a sb and didnt have a running game? even the year the saints won the sb we had a very good run game whether it was coming from screens or draws to r bush.

I think you missed my point. I'm not arguing one way or the other if running the football is the path to success. I too believe that the Saints would benefit from both running the ball more and more effectively.

My point is you have an offensive brain trust in Payton, Carmichael, and Brees that's been in place for 8 seasons now. The offense is etched in granite. It's an offense that from 2006 on has piloted the team to winning, elite, and championship level football.

My point is that wishing for a fundamental change isn't going to make it happen. At this point it would literally take flushing out the entire organization to effect such a fundamental change.

Currently what the Saints do well is run the ball effectively. They are #2 in the NFL at 5.2 YPA.

Also we always have this discussion as if the Saints do not run the ball at all. Or that each and every pass isn't a screen or a long handoff. It isn't really like the Cowboys are having 55 rushes per game and the Saints have 3. The actual numbers up until now is 33 attempts vs. 25 attempts.

So will 8 more rushes per game really make the Saints offense the absolute unbeatable juggernaut that will only end at the Lombardi Trophy?

Now I will admit that sometimes Brees and Payton get a bit pass happy. 57 pass attempts in any game is way way too much.

But the perceived lack of rushing really isn't the problem for the offense. The real problems are failure to convert red zone opportunities into TDs and turnovers.

Fix those two, along with the defense getting a stop or turnover a bit more often, and you'll see more of the rushing attack because the team will be executing that rushing attack in the 8 minute drill in the 4th quarter of games.

BTW, I see what you did. You didn't answer my question...

SFIAH

I think its mush simpler than that.

We have an A offense and a D defense.

Its not too difficult to see which side of the ball needs the most attention.

I disagree. We have a B- offense and a D defense.


Both sides needs attention. An 'A' offense scores when the red zone and doesn't give the ball away. I really want the Saints to have an 'A' offense for the rest of the season.

A 'B' defense gets off the field on third down, doesn't give up the big play, gets a turnover every once in a while, like once a game, contains the run, and pressures the QB. At this point I'd take a 'B-' or a C defense that does many of these items on a consistent basis.

An 'A' offense wins games, not lose them. The offense was just as much to blame in the Atlanta and Cleveland losses as the defense.

I really hope not to see those kinds of mistakes going down the stretch.

SFIAH

Just my opinion, but you are out of your freaking mind if you think the offense was just as much to blame as our defense for those 2 losses, especially the Atlanta loss where our defense gave up nearly 600 yards.

Yards do not define wins and losses. Points do. Brees threw a red zone interception in the Atlanta game. He threw a pick-6 at Cleveland. Colston fumbled the ball in the Atlanta game. The only reason that we are not discussing the two awful interceptions in the Tampa game is that we finally walked away with a win.

I know that the team was up in both games up until the end of regulation. However, with mistake free ball by the offense, we may have been up enough that it did not require the defense to make a stop. The fact is that the defense was in exactly the same situation in the Tampa game because Brees threw those two terrible interceptions, including the pick-6. It just so happens that the defense did step up and get the safety that got us back in the game. But honestly if Brees had simply eaten the ball on those two plays, the game would not have been nearly as close a call as it ended up being.

Read it again, carefully please. I'm not saying that the defense is off the hook. They were terrible. I'm saying that the offense made critical mistakes to put the team in a position that winning the game depended on the terrible defense having to make a stop.

Regardless of the defense the offense has three jobs: score points, limit turnovers, and manage the 4 minute offense effectively. Those are their jobs to protect an inconsistent defense.

They have not been doing their job. So they deserve some of the blame.

SFIAH

But the flip side to the offense is true also. Throwing pick-6's and red zone interceptions and having critical drive killing fumbles and drops isn't real conducive to winning either.

The Saints need to play perfect football to be a great team. It may be too much to expect right now. But a team that simply cut down on mistakes on both sides of the ball could easily be formidable down the stretch.

I believe (and hope) that message has been drilled into everyone over the bye.

SFIAH