Seven weeks into the season and the New Orleans Saints remain undefeated at 6-0, having pulled themselves out of the cellar on Sunday in a challenging contest against Miami. The Dolphins spent the first half of the game throwing all sorts of defensive schemes at Saints quarterback Drew Brees and the Saint's O-line, racking up sacks, fumbles and interceptions from Brees. Facing a three touchdown deficit going into the half, Brees talked head coach Sean Peyton into calling a fourth-and-goal quarterback sneak -- with Brees leaping to break the plane of the goal line, in what Jeff Duncan of the Times-Picayune called an imitation of the Dolphin's logo. According to Duncan, this game cements the fact that the Saints are in a "special" season.
Even before the first kickoff, Drew Brees commissioned T-shirts with the word in big block letters across the back -- SPECIAL -- and distributed them around the locker room to teammates. Now we know why. If any doubts remained that the Saints are in the midst of one of the truly special seasons in club history they melted in the sultry South Florida heat and white-hot fury of their stunning come-from-behind victory against the Dolphins on Sunday.
Going into the locker room at half time down 24-10, some Saints players were reportedly heard saying they had the Dolphins right where they wanted them.
Stellar play by the defense made up for a weak offensive performance (and shaky work on special teams) in the first half, keeping the game closer than it might have been. In the second half, the Saints leaned on the fresh legs of Mike Bell to establish a running game, putting the Dolphins blitz-happy defense on a more conservative footing. The Saints outscored the Dolphins 43-10 in the second half, cementing their sixth straight victory of the season. Only Denver (6-0, bye week) and Peyton Manning's Indianapolis Colts (6-0) remain undefeated after handing the St. Louis Ram's their seventh defeat of the season.
So what did this game mean? Some have described this game as (what would have been) a classic Saints loss -- the week after a big win over the Giants, the Saints would often have stumbled against a underdog like the talented Dolphins, who had little to lose... and a determination to throw the kitchen sink at them. The Dolphins are also a team managed (from the executive box) by a former boss of Sean Peyton's -- Bill Parcells -- and a team of coaches who, arguable, know a little something about how Peyton's mind works.
In recent seasons, with Brees off his game, a one-dimensional Saints passing game would not have come back for the victory, but would have abandoned the run and stumbled through increasingly desperate four- and five-receiver sets in the second half -- and three-and-out series.
But this 2009 Saints team has two interesting additions -- a defense that plans to go to the Super Bowl this year (they're willing to let the Saints offense come with them if the O is interested...) and a youthful cadre of healthy running backs. This year, the Saints aren't going to rely solely on offensive "playmakers" like Reggie Bush, but rather on a full team of talented folks on both sides of the ball.
Hard, smart play by the Saints secondary, for instance, kept the Dolphins running game in check, taking the "wildcat" offense out of the second half strategy and forcing Dolphins quarterback Chad Henne to throw to a wobbly set of receivers, a few of whom had trouble holding onto the ball. Then the secondary kicked in, making 90% of the plays they needed to. The only real disappointment for Saints fans in the second half of the game was special teams, and even it had a few moments of glory.
There's still cause for concern, such as 10 more games of teams throwing everything they've got at the Saints, which brings the specter of injuries and flukes into the game. Yesterday's game even featured some bad calls and unlucky breaks -- such as an inoperable replay system in the first quarter -- that stopped a Saints challenge which would have overturned a key early reception by the Dolphins. It looked -- for about 15 football minutes -- like that those breaks wouldn't be overcome.
But in spite of all that, the Saints pulled it out and remain undefeated. Last week, they showed they could win a high-stakes game against the Giants; this week, they showed they can overcome adversity, perhaps building some determination in the process. (Brees both spiked and "dunked" the ball over the crossbar, and was high-fiving Saints fans in the stands after the game. He's pumped.)
Next up? The division rival Atlanta Falcons, fresh off a loss to the Cowboys, head to New Orleans for Monday Night Football on ESPN.
Who dat?
Previous Commentsshow
What's this?More like this story
Support our reporting -- Follow the MFP.
Comments
Use the comment form below to begin a discussion about this content.