Saints must go 6-0 in the division

CHA_CHING · 09-13-2019, 12:32 PM

Originally Posted by SaintFanInATLHELL

Note that the Patriots last year went 5-1 in the division losing to Miami on that last second miracle play.

No matter how awful teams are relative to one another, because of familiarity, division games are always a tough out. The Saints have to look back no farther than last year's opener as an exhibit.

Game importance is driven by playoff tiebreakers. Within the division it's head to head first then division record. So while 6-0 is ideal, 5-1 or 4-2 is fine so long as the head to head is at least 1-1 and the losses are against the #3 and #4 teams.

But honestly, as bad as the competition has looked so far, the record against common opponents in the NFC West and the AFC South will be more than enough for the Saints to finish out ahead of the rest of the division, never getting to the division tiebreaker.

SFIAH

Great points here and the AFC East being weak is really overstated. New England dominates the entire NFL, not just those 3 teams. They boast a ridiculously high win percentage ratio vs every other division, AFC and NFC since 2001. The only team the Pats have struggled with in the Belichick/Brady era has primarily been Denver, but since 2016 that has changed and they've been beating them at ease since then. Every year we hear all this BS about how tough the AFC West and AFC North are, but the Pats have historically steamrolled through those teams.

The true worst division is the AFC South and it has been since it's inception. Now with an Andrew Luck-less Colts team, people are going to see how trash it truly is yet again, but we won't hear about it much. All the focus will be on NE and the myth of them only being good cause of the AFC East.

One more thing about New England - someone in that division usually gives them a run for the money at least once. The Jets and Dolphins usually play NE very close in one game and then get blown the hell out in the other match, usually at Foxboro. The Jets have a track record of this, but most people just don't pay attention to it. If internet and social media existed in the 80s, we would've heard this same dumb crap about the 49ers and "how the NFC West is the worst division and that's why the Niners are good" even though we usually played the Niners pretty tough when we lost. The Niners also had issues with the Rams and Falcons giving them tough games, even if they were winning them.

I don't see us going 6-0 in the division. 4-2 sounds more realistic.

09-13-2019, 12:32 PM	#4
CHA_CHING 1000 Posts + Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Mobile, AL Posts: 1,159	Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division Originally Posted by SaintFanInATLHELL Note that the Patriots last year went 5-1 in the division losing to Miami on that last second miracle play. No matter how awful teams are relative to one another, because of familiarity, division games are always a tough out. The Saints have to look back no farther than last year's opener as an exhibit. Game importance is driven by playoff tiebreakers. Within the division it's head to head first then division record. So while 6-0 is ideal, 5-1 or 4-2 is fine so long as the head to head is at least 1-1 and the losses are against the #3 and #4 teams. But honestly, as bad as the competition has looked so far, the record against common opponents in the NFC West and the AFC South will be more than enough for the Saints to finish out ahead of the rest of the division, never getting to the division tiebreaker. SFIAH Great points here and the AFC East being weak is really overstated. New England dominates the entire NFL, not just those 3 teams. They boast a ridiculously high win percentage ratio vs every other division, AFC and NFC since 2001. The only team the Pats have struggled with in the Belichick/Brady era has primarily been Denver, but since 2016 that has changed and they've been beating them at ease since then. Every year we hear all this BS about how tough the AFC West and AFC North are, but the Pats have historically steamrolled through those teams. The true worst division is the AFC South and it has been since it's inception. Now with an Andrew Luck-less Colts team, people are going to see how trash it truly is yet again, but we won't hear about it much. All the focus will be on NE and the myth of them only being good cause of the AFC East. One more thing about New England - someone in that division usually gives them a run for the money at least once. The Jets and Dolphins usually play NE very close in one game and then get blown the hell out in the other match, usually at Foxboro. The Jets have a track record of this, but most people just don't pay attention to it. If internet and social media existed in the 80s, we would've heard this same dumb crap about the 49ers and "how the NFC West is the worst division and that's why the Niners are good" even though we usually played the Niners pretty tough when we lost. The Niners also had issues with the Rams and Falcons giving them tough games, even if they were winning them. I don't see us going 6-0 in the division. 4-2 sounds more realistic.