rich006

Thoughts on the Saints' Last Game of the 2004 Season

-Charles Grant looked like Lawrence Taylor out there.
-Tebucky Jones looked pretty good--not good enough to be the highest paid player at his position in the league, but pretty good.
-Mike McKenzie was a great pickup. I hope he still plays as hard after he gets a new contract.
-Where has Fakhir Brown been for the last couple of years? He looked good too.
-Overall the defense tackled well and played with discipline and intensity.
-Darren Howard is going to make some team very happy next year.
-Aaron Brooks made some great throws but he looked indecisive under pressure, often throwing the ball away when he could have gained a few yards running had he made the decision to run a second or two earlier. He also failed to resist the temptation to talk trash with Panthers defenders, thereby losing control of the game and wasting a timeout. Overall he looked like an inexperienced QB with a great arm, which is what he has always looked like.
-Deuce McAllister was in true form, good for an extra yard or so on every down.
-Aaron Stecker is a high-quality backup RB.
-Donte Stallworth made a clutch reception when he knew he was about to get nailed.
-Victor Riley and Wayne Gandy held their own against the best. Also, we had no false starts, but there were at least 3 defensive offsides called against the Panthers in the first quarter. If any OT's looked like fools out there, it was the Panthers' OT's.
-Special teams kick coverage was scary. I thought one was going to come back for a Panthers TD until I saw #84 in coverage. Then I knew we were OK.
-Jake Delhomme was nothing special. He could have burned us a few times but couldn't put the ball on target.

And finally:
-It was heartbreaking watching the Rams beat the Jets to keep us out of the playoffs, but at least we have some success to build on for next year. I know, it's not much, but it's a lot better than we've had the last few years.