New Orleans Saints @ St. Louis Rams: Chat with the Enemy
by Saintsational on Nov 13, 2009 6:00 AM CST
19 comments
Welcome to the latest edition of my weekly chat with an SB Nation NFL colleague. Because the Saints will be in St. Louis this Sunday to take on the Rams, I talked with VanRam from SB Nation's Rams blog, Turf Show Times. Naturally we discussed the threat of Steven Jackson and the possibility of this being a trap game for the Saints but you won't want to miss what VanRam had to say about former Saints Mike Karney and Jim Haslett.
CSC: A couple of years ago the winless Rams came to New Orleans following a bye week and defeated a hot Saints team on a four-game winning streak. Any chance of that happening again this year?
TST: I wouldn't bet on anything like that happening again. In 2007, we still had Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce paired with Steven Jackson to give the Rams some offensive weapons. We still have Jackson, but the receiving talent isn't there anymore. Basically, we have some possession guys and a deep threat, Donnie Avery, miscast as a #1 WR. Something else to consider is the decline of Marc Bulger since then.
CSC: What do the Saints need to do to shut down Steven Jackson?
TST: Most teams stack the box with 8-10 players, daring him to run through the mass of bodies. That's just about all you can do, and even then Jackson is going to put up some nice numbers. Opposing defenses feed off the offensive imbalance between the Rams running game and the passing game
CSC: What do you expect the Rams defense to do to try and shut down the Saints offense?
TST: The best they can do is play mistake free, aggressive football. I'll be honest, it's a tough matchup because we lack talent along our defensive line, and I think the key would be to get pressure on Drew Brees. Hopefully our secondary is well rested, and our #1 CB Ron Bartell is over a nagging thigh injury that's made him susceptable to getting burned by QBs. We're without rookie surprise Bradley Fletcher who suffered a nasty hyperextended knee injury against the Colts, but we do have some speed guys in Jonathan Wade and Justin King who could matchup decently against the Saints speedy receivers. They'll need to play the ball better than they have, and that means we need to see more from FS O.J. Atogwe who hasn't been the ball hawk he usually is.
CSC: How is Mike Karney working out for the Rams?
TST: Wonderfully. He's been a big factor in a run blocking unit that is really starting to gel. Watching him take linebackers out of plays is very refreshing since the Rams mysteriously cut Madison Hedgecock under Linehan.
CSC: Tell us something about the Rams that Saints fans would be surprised to learn.
TST: We don't hate Jim Haslett, but we're glad he's not our head coach.
TST: I'd like to predict a close game, but I cannot. I'll be anxious to see how much momentum the first win gives us and a bye week to rest help out embattled players. I just don't think our offense, outside of Steven Jackson, can make it happen.
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Rams Running
Glad to see Karney still doing good things.
Who Dat!!
by FLDune Patrol on Nov 13, 2009 7:57 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
3k from TST
What’s good, CSC. The only Creole Rams fan on the planet here; just wanted to second what Van said above. Our holes are gaping, but we still have some solid guys to build on. And yes, Steven Jackson is a manhorse. The only person that can stop him is Pat Shurmur, our OC.
So here’s to a clean, injury-free game…which, like Van, I expect to be pretty ugly for us Rams fans.
You don't seem to want to accept the fact you're dealing with an expert in guerrilla warfare, with a man who's the best, with guns, with knives, with his bare hands. A man who's been trained to ignore pain, ignore weather, to live off the land, to eat things that would make a billy goat puke. In *St. Louis* his job was to dispose of enemy personnel. To kill! Period! Win by attrition. Well, *Steven Jackson* was the best.
by 3k on Nov 13, 2009 8:56 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
As much as it pains me to say this...
my Mom is also a Creole Rams fan, so you’re not alone on that one. But she was never a real football fan though, she just likes the mascot (she’s an Aries). Funny how this all turned out, she was born and raised in N.O. and became a L.A. Rams fan, I was born and raised in CA and only lived in N.O. for a few years when I was a teen, but I’m a die-hard Saints fan. I guess that’s the way the universe balances things out…
by ArithMattic on Nov 13, 2009 9:40 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Come back later today for our prediction contest
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by Saintsational on Nov 13, 2009 10:28 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
VanRam
sounds like a cruel Stephen King reference, imo.
"I was not on the boat in question." -Darren Sharper
by coldpizza on Nov 13, 2009 9:22 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
yay Karney
Sucks to see him on another team, but i’ll take what i can get. Karney is one of my favorite guys in the nfl right now….WOOT fullbacks. One of our linebackers is gonna get roflpwnt on sunday. Other than that though this should be a pretty good win.
by fruly on Nov 13, 2009 12:22 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
I'm scared of Steven Jackson
Our run D is going to need to come up big because this can easily be an upset. Perfect example is the Bucs-Packers game last week, huge upset.
WHO DAT
by AKAY47 on Nov 13, 2009 12:35 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
what i was thinking
everyone seems to think one man can’t win football games but i’d like to disagree. Jackson could win this game, along with some good D
Superbowl bound!!!...I know! do you?! Go Saints!!
by skinnykinney on Nov 13, 2009 12:45 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
He can win it
if Bulger doesn’t lose it…
You don't seem to want to accept the fact you're dealing with an expert in guerrilla warfare, with a man who's the best, with guns, with knives, with his bare hands. A man who's been trained to ignore pain, ignore weather, to live off the land, to eat things that would make a billy goat puke. In *St. Louis* his job was to dispose of enemy personnel. To kill! Period! Win by attrition. Well, *Steven Jackson* was the best.
by 3k on Nov 13, 2009 1:39 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Well you just contridicted yourself.
“Along with some good D” says he can’t do it by himself. Unless of course he plays D. And do you think if they just handed him the ball and everyone just stood still that he could win? He has to have those lineman blocking for him. Ultimate team sport. One person can’t do it.
"Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." --Mike Tyson
by vicvega26 on Nov 14, 2009 4:41 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Got to love the Karn
I miss Karney. It sucks big time how the Saints released him the day before his wedding. I expect him to be a little extra motivated Sunday to give Payton a headache. I’d be willing to bet he doesn’t much care for Payton anymore.
Despite the Rams record and dismal performance this year, it would be foolish to think this will be an easy win for our Saints. I hope it turns out to be a blowout, but I won’t count on it. Teams coming off a bye week to face us make me nervous. Their head coach was a defensive mastermind at New York, so I expect him to come in with a solid game plan for disrupting Brees and Co.
"I said this early on that this was a good football team, they just maybe had to have a stick put in certain parts of their body to play a little harder in certain places to where we’re able to take interceptions and score touchdowns."--Gregg Williams
by satchmo26 on Nov 13, 2009 12:51 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
Jackson
is arguably the best running back in the league. What he has done on a, sorry Rams fans, pretty bad team is impressive. Jackson, Peterson, or Chris Johnson. How could you decide?
"Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." --Mike Tyson
by vicvega26 on Nov 13, 2009 3:20 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
Peterson
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by Saintsational on Nov 13, 2009 5:57 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Are you sure?
Why? I’ll definitely go Peterson over Jackson but Chris Johnson has better numbers and I believe Peterson has a better offensive line. Peterson does have him in TD’s by a good bit but he’s had pretty much a season longer and Lindell White was getting the goal line carries last year (I don’t know why White lost all that weight. There was never a chance he was going to be the “speed” back on that team) while Peterson was all the Vikings had on offense for his first two seasons. Despite having a season less to do it in, Johnson already has more receptions and receiving TD’s. It’s minimal but still has to mean something. And the main selling point, FUMBLES!! Peterson is fumble prone. Chris Johnson has fumbled twice so far. Peterson has fumbled twice this year. Not to mention the 9 he put on the carpet last year. Peterson does break tackles better than Johnson but Johnson doesn’t get hit. Sorry I keep rambling but I just feel there are two reasons people jump on the Peterson boat: 1. Big School. He had a lot of hype coming into the league and he has lived up to it. 2: His big runs look nothing short of amazing. The way he bounces off people and keeps moving effortlessly is impressive. Like I implied up top you really couldn’t go wrong but I would have to go with Chris Johnson as the best running back in the league today.
"Everyone has a plan 'till they get punched in the mouth." --Mike Tyson
by vicvega26 on Nov 13, 2009 11:27 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
No dis on Jackson...
…but with the anemic passing game in STL, count on the Saints D stacking 8-9 in the box and DARING Bulger and what passes for a receiver corps in STL to even think about trying to fool Darren Sharper.
If I were the DC for NOLA, I’d put Harper in the box, and have him shadow everything Jackson does.
Irony: An atheist Saints fan.
by GSO Saints Fan on Nov 13, 2009 4:01 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
The best way for the Rams to win this weekend is.........
To get better players
by andyp111 on Nov 13, 2009 4:09 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
NEED HELP IN NORTH LOUISIANA. the local fox tv station is running a vote wheather to show the cowboys or the SAINTS game . right now the SAINTS HAVE 46% of vote..PLEASE GO TO, .kmsstv.com/ AND VOTE SAINTS.
pass this along anyway u know how..email,twitter,whatever. any help will be very much appreciated…thanx
i believe voting ends at 8.00 tonite
by nwlasaintsfan on Nov 13, 2009 4:46 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
Post a link.
"I said this early on that this was a good football team, they just maybe had to have a stick put in certain parts of their body to play a little harder in certain places to where we’re able to take interceptions and score touchdowns."--Gregg Williams
by satchmo26 on Nov 13, 2009 5:34 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
(S)he, or someone likeminded, did.
It fell off the fanshot sidebar in like one day. It’s an all-out spam-blitz. Should be over soon, though. The voting has ended, I think.
"I don’t know if there’s a good time to play the New Orleans Saints this year to be quite honest with you."-Steve Spagnuolo
by FuSoYa on Nov 14, 2009 11:41 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
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