Buccaneers 16 @ Saints 27: The View from Section 140

by Dave Cariello on Nov 7, 2011 9:00 AM CST

Yesterday was alumni day at the Superdome. Former players were introduced walking out of the inflatable tunnel and former Saintsations danced with the current squad before the game, while the newest Saints Hall of Fame inductee, Sammy Knight, paraded around the field in a convertible and was honored with his portrait on the field at halftime.
Saints rally towels were being given out free to fans inside the stadium.
I brought my buddy and proud CSC member, Chad, with me to the game. He's from Lake Charles and has lived in Louisiana almost all of his life, yet this was his first Saints game ever. I love helping create memories.
There's always an amalgamation of smells that hits my nose hard as I walk through the plaza level concourse to my seat for the first time. Most of the time it's the different foods that are being served around me but there's also a hint of poop as I pass the bathroom and body odor when I'm stuck downwind of a smelly beer vendor.

The pregame ceremonies had a slight patriotic feel, with a member of the Marine Corps singing the National Anthem and others holding up strips of American flag banners across a portion of the field.
Much of the crowd appeared to arrive a little bit later than usual but they were in their seat by kickoff. They could have been a bit more lively throughout the game also. Must have been that LSU hangover.
Did the Saints lose the coin toss again?
Tight end John Gilmore led the Who Dat Chant.
On the second play of the game Tracy Porter made a nice tackle on Bucs receiver Mike Williams but injured his neck on the play. He needed to be placed on a stretcher and carted off the field. You never like to see that.
The Saints started off the game with three straight run plays. Surely this was a sign of things to come because the Saints would rush 28 times for a total of 195 yards (second most this season) and an average of 7 yards per rush, making it their most efficient rushing performance this season. The play calling was pretty balanced as well with a 44%-56% run/pass ratio. Time of possession, however, was virtually dead even.
Much of that success can be attributed to great play by the offensive line, perhaps the most valuable players in this game. Not only was this arguably their best run blocking performance of the season, but they shined in pass blocking also, keeping Drew clean the entire game.
The defense played well overall and came up with big plays when they needed them, in particular the early fourth down stop. It may be frustrating to watch them give up big plays by allowing the wide open underneath stuff, but I think it's time to accept that it's just part of their identity.
Brees overthrew a wide open Devery Henderson on the Saints first series. It would have been a sure touchdown.
An outsider might not be able to tell from the final score but the Saints were in complete charge of this game the entire time. Never once did it feel like Tampa Bay might have a chance to win. A nice, relaxing, stress-free Sunday afternoon for Saints fans.
Just think about how good Jimmy Graham will be when he develops some moves and jukes in the open field. Scary.
I don't think it was as obvious to fans in the stadium as it was on television but there were quite a few questionable penalties called against the Saints. The most blatant to me personally was the bullcrap pass interference call on Leigh Torrence late in the game but apparently the holding call on Devery Henderson negating Sproles' scoring play was also criminal. The defensive delay of game penalty also left everyone wondering and was the topic of conversation at the bathroom urinals.
Drew Brees has now thrown a touchdown pass in 36 straight games. He is currently tied with Brett Favre and still behind Johnny Unitas with 47. He is also now the first quarterback to throw more than 3,000 yards in the first 9 games of the season.
Roman Harper had a monster game with a team-leading 9 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.
This is what my wife said to me tonight after the game: "Pierre played well today. Man, he just doesn't stop. How does he do that if he's so little?"
Welcome back Zach Strief. His mere presence seemed to kick the overall performance of the offensive line up a notch.
Jabari Greer is quietly putting together a very solid season.
The re-introduction of Chris Ivory into the Saints offense continues to go well. After a dull first game back last week, Ivory led the team with 15 carries for 67 yards yesterday. Next week, Ivory gets better acquainted with scoring touchdowns.
Will someone, for the love of all things holy, please teach Drew how to slide feet first after a run? The head first diving is just frightening.
Just a minor nitpick but Devery Henderson should have gotten his ass out of bounds after that catch just before the half; instead the Saints called a timeout to stop the clock. They might have been able to get seven points before going into the locker room instead of three if they hadn't needed to waste that timeout.
Newly re-elected governor Bobby Jindal and his family were watching the game with the Benson's in their suite.
As is usually the case during games when the Saints have a comfortable lead, the fans in the plaza and club levels got the wave going in the 4th quarter.
Vendors outside of the Superdome were selling 'New Orleans F***** Louisiana' shirts after the game. The back of the shirt said, 'If you don't bleed black and gold, take your b**** ass home.'

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, take your b**** ass home.’

I don’t get it.

I'm living in the material world

by stujo4 on Nov 7, 2011 9:11 AM CST reply actions

Maybe

The slang for a female dog?

I like Hamburgers!

by Grumps on Nov 7, 2011 9:14 AM CST up reply actions

My question is....

Who would buy one of ’em?

Some people are born to fame; others achieve it, while celebrity is thrust upon a few. "T'is a consummation devoutly to be wished for" Col. Joe Rickey

by Tac Hammer on Nov 7, 2011 9:18 AM CST up reply actions

Young men with attitude. Also young white men fronting as if they had sufficient attitude.

I'm living in the material world

by stujo4 on Nov 7, 2011 9:23 AM CST up reply actions

Possibly old white men that ride motorcycles

Whats for dinner, dad?
Wookie Steak.
Is that good?
It's a little chewy.

by WestBank on Nov 7, 2011 9:26 AM CST up reply actions

This guy?

Trying to open a can of beer with a corkscrew only scratches the surface.

by Just 'Nother Day on Nov 8, 2011 1:17 AM CST up reply actions

That’s much less offensive than what I had in mind. I thought they’d gone all F*** Tha Police on us.

I'm living in the material world

by stujo4 on Nov 7, 2011 9:18 AM CST up reply actions

I heard that the towels read “Go Saints” rather than “Geaux Saints”. Somebody needs to call Stuttgart and hip them to the local flavor. Or something.

I'm living in the material world

by stujo4 on Nov 7, 2011 9:16 AM CST reply actions

I'll do it.

I live in Suttgart now. Just moved from Guam two weeks ago. Might take me some time to find the office, though.

Saints fan in Stuttgart, Germany! The beer is AWESOME here!

by s88fan on Nov 7, 2011 1:43 PM CST up reply actions

Danke

I'm living in the material world

by stujo4 on Nov 7, 2011 1:46 PM CST up reply actions

With you on the O-line comment

Quote from Nicks – “We just wanted Drew to be clean,” guard Carl Nicks said. “There shouldn’t be any turf marks, scratches on his helmet or anything.”

lol – hope so after last week

Whats for dinner, dad?
Wookie Steak.
Is that good?
It's a little chewy.

by WestBank on Nov 7, 2011 9:32 AM CST reply actions

The officiating sucked!

But, it’s not just our games where the refs are sucking. They suck for pretty much every game. Questionable calls all over the league yesterday. Why can’t the league remedy this?

I enjoyed this game much more than the Saturday night game. That’s right, I’m a Bama fan. I guess we’re out of the national championship hunt now. Nick Saban will be working on finding a reliable kicker once the season is over.

"As soon as Tony (Dungy) said we had no chance, I knew we had 'em right where we wanted 'em"--Coach Sean Payton right after Super Bowl XLIV with the Lombardi Trophy firmly in hand. WHO DAT!!

by David "Satch" Kelly on Nov 7, 2011 9:32 AM CST reply actions

I thought Alabama won that game, except for the score. They moved the ball and had more scoring opportunities than LSU!! LSU!! That should count for something in the BCS calculations. Not that I care about it anymore than I care what Lito Sheppard is doing to make a living these days.

I'm living in the material world

by stujo4 on Nov 7, 2011 9:38 AM CST up reply actions

Agreed

Bama moved the ball better than LSU between the 20’s throughout the game. LSU did a great job of stopping them in the red zone and forcing Bama to run their horrible kickers out there. Then in OT, another Bama missed kick sealed the win for LSU. I knew the game was over before LSU even took their first snap in OT. Those two Bama kickers won’t be at all popular on campus this week.

LSU should easily win the national championship.

"As soon as Tony (Dungy) said we had no chance, I knew we had 'em right where we wanted 'em"--Coach Sean Payton right after Super Bowl XLIV with the Lombardi Trophy firmly in hand. WHO DAT!!

by David "Satch" Kelly on Nov 7, 2011 10:04 AM CST up reply actions

How does #42 Ford step out of bounds?

as little as he is, and as much room against the sideline he had, that was maybe the only TD all nite, would’ve given us a little breathing room.

You think you know, and you don't know, and you never, ever, will.-Jim Mora Sr.
I understand ....nothing.-Michael Scott
The Future is Unwritten.-Joe Strummer
"First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win."-Mahatma Gandhi

by metryman on Nov 7, 2011 6:01 PM CST up reply actions

I've got two sets of two words for you...

1. Special Teams

LSU has dominated special teams all season long…especially with Wing and the coverage teams.

2. Big Plays

That play by Reid and the sack in OT were timely plays that really made the difference in this game. I wonder if the LSU D gets some respect for keeping Richardson in check after that game. Reid a few times did what many have failed to do all season long – take Richardson down by himself.

That said, these two teams are clearly head and shoulders above the rest of the FBS and should be ranked 1 and 2 when all is said and done. There are going to be two blowouts in the Superdome come bowl season…because there is no way there will be a rematch. I’m convinced that is there ever is a playoff, the SEC will either get locked out of having 2 teams in the championship or that they will have two teams there at least half of the time.

by BlackandGold4ever on Nov 7, 2011 10:15 AM CST up reply actions

LSU/Bama?, I imagined you over on ABC with K-State/Okie St

and a bowl of Chicken Noodle soup.

by metryman on Nov 7, 2011 6:16 PM CST up reply actions

T-Shirt "Vendors"

“Vendors” is too legitimate of a noun to use to describe these trash pushers. We tailgate on a regular basis and have kids with us and these guys crash the tailgate hawking – and when I say hawking, I mean yelling at the top of their lungs trying to guilt you into buying this crap by telling us we’re not “real” Saints fans if we don’t buy a shirt! – their junk.
When we say there are kids present and tell them to take their profanity laced t-shirts elsewhere they get indignant. I’m not a prude and I realize that I can’t control all of the content the kids will be exposed to at a venue such as this, but dealing with these guys (and all of the other junk “vendor” selling there wares or begging for money for one of their “charitable” causes) gets old.

And speaking of old, the wave needs to be permanently retired. It is line dancing for ignorant fans. Why else would you see it start while the Saints are on offense?

by flyinbayou on Nov 7, 2011 9:43 AM CST reply actions

I can't believe those guys

I was in St Louis last week and they were selling “St. Louis F****** Missouri” shirts. Come home this week and they’re selling “New Orleans F****** Louisiana” shirts?

You telling me these hawkers have some kind of nationwide syndicate to make and sell crappy t-shirts? I couldn’t believe it.

And I was so mad when the crowd did the wave on an offensive series- one that went 3 and out, too!

by ungarsfragile on Nov 7, 2011 2:58 PM CST up reply actions

I have to find that T-shirt...

" I’ve never done drugs but I think watching Matty Ice stare blankly towards the field as Drew Brees kneels down while clock hits zero in a playoff game would be like doing cocaine off a strippers @$$#….yeah that good.
Yes my hatred for Atlanta is unhealthy/ possibly illegal" - Malbrough

by born in areacode 318 on Nov 7, 2011 9:55 AM CST reply actions

Think I could have done without the ...

reference to the smelly vendors.

To me, the linebackers brought speed and hitting the entire game. Who would have thunk. I have been a big Vilma fan, but with Casillas and Dunbar in the game together, the flow to the ball and the arrival at point of impact with force was huge. Both units were more physical than the Bucs.

And the holding call on Henderson at the end of the game was major league whiff by the Field Judge. Henderson pancaked the Buc DB. Unless there is a penalty for pancaking, that was a clean and impressive block.

"I have had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it." Groucho Marx

by BenDerDonDat on Nov 7, 2011 10:08 AM CST reply actions

Really?

You find the smelly vendor reference more off-putting than… whatever-the-hell-that-is in the skirt?

And will someone catch a damn ball? It's like watching a bunch of retards trying to hump a doorknob out there!

by Doc Boudin on Nov 7, 2011 11:05 AM CST up reply actions 1 recs

BOOM! Rec'd!

That’s the scariest Halloween costume I’ve ever seen.

"As soon as Tony (Dungy) said we had no chance, I knew we had 'em right where we wanted 'em"--Coach Sean Payton right after Super Bowl XLIV with the Lombardi Trophy firmly in hand. WHO DAT!!

by David "Satch" Kelly on Nov 7, 2011 11:09 AM CST up reply actions

Point taken..

I could have done without both.

"I have had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn't it." Groucho Marx

by BenDerDonDat on Nov 7, 2011 11:26 AM CST up reply actions

That's Mousy

He costumes and dances between the 3rd and 4th quarters, Plaza level Poydras side.

by flyinbayou on Nov 7, 2011 12:12 PM CST up reply actions

God help us all.

And will someone catch a damn ball? It's like watching a bunch of retards trying to hump a doorknob out there!

by Doc Boudin on Nov 7, 2011 12:38 PM CST up reply actions

I thought that was one of the retired cheerleaders, horribly gone to seed.

That could`ve been me,a useless gnome* fishing
for turds in a birthing pool.

by saint_chew on Nov 7, 2011 11:17 AM CST reply actions

I don’t think it was as obvious to fans in the stadium as it was on television but there were quite a few questionable penalties called against the Saints. The most blatant to me personally was the bullcrap pass interference call on Leigh Torrence late in the game but apparently the holding call on Devery Henderson negating Sproles’ scoring play was also criminal. The defensive delay of game penalty also left everyone wondering and was the topic of conversation at the bathroom urinals.

AND… the offsides call against us after the TB LT jumped (false started) TWICE!!!!!!!!!!!

SAME GUY….. MOVED TWICE!!

He slightly flinched (which we’ve been called for in the past) and they he blatantly lifted his head, long before Cam Jordan (I believe) moved across the line.

WTH!!

R.I.P. Steve Jobs

by Dan Kelly on Nov 7, 2011 12:55 PM CST reply actions