Panthers 33 @ Saints 31: Making the Grade
by Saintsational
on Dec 30, 2008 6:00 AM CST
4 comments
Quarterback
A-
Here I am again trying to find more words to adequately express Drew Brees' greatness and here I am again, coming up short. You all voted him as the games MVP so he deservedly receives an A. But I have to drop it down a bit because of the interception. All in all though, this guy is the New Orleans Saints.
Running Back
C
Deuce actually ran the ball well on the rare occasions he actually got the chance. I still haven't forgotten about that dropped pass though. But Payton was pretty much in pass-mode with Brees and never really got a ground game established. Certainly not enough to be a threat to the Panthers on Sunday so I can only give the running game a C here.
Receiving
B+
We have rarely seen big games from both of these guys on the same day but that's exactly what we got this weekend from Colston and Moore. It's also interesting to note that Brees spread the ball around to eight different receivers as is customary. Jake Delhomme, by comparison, only used three. I'm a tough critic and still think the drops are too prevalant so I only gave them a B+.
Offensive Line
C
Even though the line did a pretty good job holding off Julius Peppers and not letting him dominate, Brees get sacked twice and was hurried often - more than usual for this unit. Zach Strief came in often for support. Mediocre. Congrats to these guys though for breaking the franchise record for sacks allowed.
Defensive Line
D
Pure crap. They got no pressure on Delhomme and left him an "inordinate amount of time" says Payton. The only sack of the day came from Scott Shanle...a linebacker. I know they are battling injury but these guys have to be better.
Linebackers
B+
As they have been all season, the Saints linebacking corp was the best and most consistent aspect of this defense. Vilma had an awesome game running all over the field. Scott Shanle made the Saints only sack of the game but it came at a great time.
Secondary
D
Like the defensive line, these guys played like crap. Don't let the above stats fool you. The only reason Harper and Gay racked up so many tackles was because the Panther running backs got to the second level so often.
Special Teams
D
Sean Payton said himself in his press conference that Hartley didn't look great on kickoffs this Sunday. But it's Skyler Green's untimely fumble that really screwed the pooch for the special teams unit this week. That's why these guys get such a bad grade.
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They lost so it can't be higher than a C
I can’t give the Saints any higher than a C because they lost. The mission was to win, they didn’t accomplish the mission. Nothing else matters. They actually hardly beat any good teams this season, except Atlanta. Green Bay, San Francisco, Oakland and Detroit are lousy teams with lousy records. Washington and Kansas City mostly weak.- San Diego- kind of mediocre and inconsistent, but at least they are going to the playoffs. Chicago, Denver and Tampa – not impressive. Tampa lost last 4 games of the season. If we had beat them the second time, they would have finished 0-5 but they beat us playing awful. We didn’t play many good playoff caliber teams except Carolina (No Eagles, Giants, Patriots,Titans, Colts,Steelers, Ravens or Dolphins). I guess you have to call Minnesota playoff caliber, but they are going nowhere and don’t seem like they should be included in that list.
by Philinwood on
Dec 30, 2008 7:03 AM CST
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until the 4th quarter
Carolina was doing to the Saints exactly what the Saints did to Detroit a week earlier. It was embarassing, and the game wouldn’t have been so close had the fumble call on Colston not been overturned. This team shouldn’t take any false hope from the 4th quarter.
Really, how many people thought the Saints would actually win when Lance Moore scored and there were a full 3 minutes left on the clock? Or 2 weeks before in Chicago, when Colston scored?
Seen this movie too many times before the past 2 seasons, with the same damn ending every time. They get a D instead of an F for not quitting on the game, but that’s the best I can muster.
by MobileSaint on
Dec 30, 2008 10:07 AM CST
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They get a D?
They NEED a D. I hope they get one.
TIME TO CLEAN HOUSE!
by MtnExile on
Dec 30, 2008 10:30 AM CST
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I think C-
I graded the team’s performance as a C-. I think the team’s total performance was way too inconsistent for anything higher. They had a tiny bit of defense at times in holding Carolina to only field goals the first quarter when they were near the red zone and making one or two crucial 3rd down stops during the game but all in all the defense did not perform well (defense graded D-). The offense had a great 4th quarter scoring three touchdowns and coming back from a 20 point deficit, but fell short at times when they needed conversions which contributed along with special teams and the defense to the 20 point deficit and ultimately the loss (offense graded B).
by narco301 on
Dec 30, 2008 2:04 PM CST
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