Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

All 3 teams are a complete joke.

This is gonna compete with the AFC East for worst division in football.

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

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

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

Saints vs Tampa will be difficult.

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

You are so correct... Consider... the Saints usually start the season slowly... What makes you think the rest of the division can't? :shock:

Still if we plan on going 19-0, we will certainly have to go 6-0 in the division. :bng:

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

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.

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

Exactly.
Records don’t mean a thing in division play. Both teams turn up the heat. Tampa always gives us trouble and I can see Atlanta going on a run.
Our division games will be tough, even if all the other teams have really ****ty records.

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

Back in the Mora-era the Saints would have owned the NFC West if Mora would have played to win instead of playing not to lose. I hated for the Saints to get a 3 point lead on any team, because Mora would get conservative as hell. I have said it before, the team the Saints had in the 80s should have had multiple SB wins.

Re: Saints must go 6-0 in the division
 

6-0 vs our division
4-0 vs AFC South

Then figure out a way to split the other 6.

Rams
Seahawks
Cowboys
Bears
Cardinals
49ers

So 13-3 is now very realistic again.

Even if you go 5-1 in the division and sweep the AFC South, just need to go 4-2 in those other games and if you count 49ers and Cardinals as wins, then really only 2-2 for the 4 toughest games we will play all year.