I like Jason David, and I can understand why the Saints signed him. On paper, he has the tools to be a pretty good player: he's got pretty good speed, some quickness, some agility and scrappiness to return from a broken forearm in four weeks. On paper, Jason David should be a pretty good cover corner, in the mold of a guy like Dre Bly or Antoine Winfield.
Nevertheless, the Jason David experiment must end. Upon further review, the offensive gameplan drawn up by the Colts in Week 1 -- stop the Saints' front four, find Jason David, throw at Jason David -- is the same one that's been killing the Saints all season-long. That's the gameplan the Rams executed to perfection (by my unofficial count, the Rams hit six immense plays against David -- just many in a steady pattern of picking on him).
If I was an offensive coordinator -- and don't kid yourself, they are all thinking this -- I would remind my quarterback all week to throw at 42. Hell, I would make one of my scout-team corners wear a 42 jersey, just to force my quarterback to get used to throwing at 42. I don't know if David is impressive all week and just struggles on gameday; if that's the case, the Saints should probably cut the third-stringer who can't burn David on a consistent basis.
Take the third down, 40-yard Holt reception, for instance: The Saints had bracket coverage, with David over the top and Bullocks underneath. Bulger made a perfect throw, to be sure, but David stumbled out of his break, allowing the window to open.
Same thing with the Bruce touchdown -- David looked to be manned-up on Bruce. Bruce ran a simple out route, David was late, the ball was thrown perfectly and the result was a score.
Look, by all accounts, Jason David is a good guy in the locker room. He's certainly got heart and some physical skills. In the right system, he could probably be a pretty valuable asset. He clearly doesn't fit in this system.
Meanwhile, both of Brees' interceptions and his fumbles happened against the blitz. I'm not sold on that fourth-quarter comeback, Haslett clearly called off the dogs. The Saints had obvious protection issues when faced with the St. Louis blitz.
The first interception looked like a miscommunication -- Patten zigged right, Brees thought he would zag left, the Rams brought heat and the throw was clearly offline. The Saints had Patten manned up against the safety, so I don't fault the read, just the execution.
Against the blitz, Drew must be more willing to eat the ball for a sack, or to throw quickly to his hot receiver for the short gain.
The Saints were just beaten by a team that started two street free agents on their offensive line. That's not a punchline.