Going Back To The Big Easy - Saints Talk

[ice grillin you]

I wouldn't read too much into this game from what happened damn near three months ago

i would completely agree with this under normal circumstances...but its even more true when you add in the atmosphere that will be present down there...everyone remembers the falcons monday niter....well times that by 100 and thats what you have sat nite

if the eagles can be in this game at halftime i actually see them winning...but the more likely scenario is them getting steamrolled out the gate ala pittsburgh in 04 or the colts this year...where the high level of competition multiplied by the road atmosphere just overwhelmes them

[phillywin2k5]

Hanson is going to maul him at the line.  I can feel it now.

I'm really worried about the homefield factor for the Saints.  The Iggs are going to have to play so carefully not to get some really ticky tacky calls.  Though this past weekend's game proved that the refs suck no matter where they are.  I figured we'd have that whole "we're at home so we'll get some calls our way" thing going but that never really happened.  I know the yellow hankies will be flying everywhere in NO.

seemed like the NFL really wanted one of the NY teams to win for better ratings. I mean cmon 2 missed PFs against Garcia and non call on a clear Pass Int. Eagles may be in for the same shtein this week because of the New Orleans recovery factor.

[PhillyPhreak54]

They don't have to sack Brees, they just have to get him uncomfortable. Although sacking him, obviously, would be better. They cannot let him get set in the pocket. Payton is going to three-step drop that defense to death. If the zesty taterskins can get after Brees, so can this team.

If they have to employ a 'mush rush' then so be it. That usually works best when a QB is taking short drops anyway. Clog up the passing lanes and get the hands up to knock shtein down. If you clog the passing lanes he has to move and then he might be brought down.

[phillywin2k5]

Eagles need to improve on stopping the outside runs and tell Considine to be patient, he got burned a couple times last week coming in too early to try and stop Barber. He needs to stay in the area at the Line of Scrimmage especially with the swing and screen passes coming this week.

I like he Eagles secondary this week even though Lito is out. Hanson has improved and with Brown, Hood, and James in there along with game film of the Saints WRs they should be able to stop the big gains.

[ice grillin you]

Eagles need to improve on stopping the outside runs and tell Considine to kill himself

[PhillyPhreak54]

Listening to 950 on the way home and they have a writer from the NO Times-Picayune on. He e-mailed them to tell them he was coming to Philly to write the obligatory hatchet job on Philly fans and they have him in studio. His name is Chris Rose and he'll be walking around the city in a Saints jersey. He wants people to blast him.

[PhillyPhreak54]

 When Reggie Bush is in the game FORCE HIM TO BLOCK. Wanna eliminate him from the passing game? Show blitz and have Brees audible the protection. We see this a lot and you know its happening when, for instance, the backs are in an I formation and then they split out to a pro-set (side by side). By showing blitz it will make them keep Bush in to block. If they back out of the blitz and Bush leaks out - have a spy on him. If they blitz then have the extra rushers going to Bush's side.

Also - Dirk better not punt the ball to him. Kick that motherfarger out of bounds or into the endzone.

[MURP]

a lot of talk going on, all I have to say is that the Saints are doomed. 

[PhillyGirl]

Was this posted?

[RezRob]

Who can forget the Reggie Ricky Williams debacle with Mike Ditka wearing dreadlocks??

Fixed.

[SunMo]

Retrial and errors
Eagles hope they have learned from mistakes in rematch with Saints
By LES BOWEN
bowenl@phillynews.com


THERE ARE two plays that everybody in Philadelphia remembers from that Oct. 15 game in New Orleans, two plays that defined the Saints' 27-24 victory, and presaged changes that eventually took place on the Eagles' defense.

On one, Eagles strong safety Mike Lewis bit on a double move by wide receiver Joe Horn, and Horn blew past Lewis for a 48-yard touchdown catch from Drew Brees that tied the game at 24, after the Eagles had scored 21 points in a row to take the lead. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson replaced Lewis with Sean Considine after that play, which occurred with 12 minutes and 52 seconds left in the final quarter. Considine remains the starter, as the Birds prepare to visit the Saints Saturday in the divisional round of the playoffs, though Lewis plays a lot in special packages.

The other play came with 3:08 left. Trent Cole sacked Brees for a 7-yard loss on third-and-10 from the Eagles' 35, almost certainly pushing the Saints out of field goal range, with the score still tied at 24. But rookie linebacker Omar Gaither, playing on the weakside for the first time because of a shoulder injury to Matt McCoy, hadn't left the game when the team's "dime" personnel came on. The Eagles were playing with 12 defenders. Flags flew. Given another chance, third-and-5 from the 30, Brees converted the first down, and the Saints ultimately ran the clock all the way down, before John Carney kicked a 31-yard field goal on the final play, for the win.

It was an isolated rookie mistake for Gaither, who overcame it and eventually took over McCoy's starting job, in the aftermath of the 45-21 loss at Indianapolis Nov. 26 that was the genesis of the Eagles' unlikely resurgence.

Lewis, a fifth-year veteran who played in the Pro Bowl 2 years ago, has thrived lately, after accepting a lesser role. Teammates and coaches give Lewis and Gaither credit for moving on in the wake of their missteps against the Saints.

Yesterday, both players said returning to New Orleans held little significance for them.

"I wouldn't say I've 'adjusted,' " said Lewis, who almost certainly will leave the Eagles in free agency in the offseason. "I'm a team player. Whatever they see fit for me to do right now, I'm willing to do it... I'm out here trying to win games... I think about coming back to New Orleans to get a win... I'm not worried about this [possibly] being my last Eagles game; my whole focus is trying to help this ballclub win.

"As a DB, you're going to give up some plays, things are going to happen in the game. You've got to put those things behind you as quickly as possible. A lot has been said about me losing confidence. That wasn't the case. It's just one of those things. It happens."

Gaither was asked if the penalty was the low point of his successful rookie season.

"I guess you could say that," he said. "It was just something that happened. There's nothing I can do about it now. We're where we wanted to be, which is in the playoffs, so we're just moving on from that."

Pressed for a detailed rememberance of his reaction that day, Gaither said he couldn't provide one.

"Honestly, that seems like it was 2 or 3 years ago... I can't even remember a lot of things from that Saints game, without going back and looking at film," he said.

A questioner wanted to credit Gaither with standing up and taking responsibility for the mistake after the game that day. Gaither didn't seem to think he'd done anything praiseworthy.

"I was responsible. There's no other way to look at it," Gaither said.

Free safety Brian Dawkins said that wasn't entirely true.

"I don't believe that was just his mistake, that was all of ours," Dawkins said. "Somebody should have seen that and been able to help him get off the field... For him to be able to come back and contribute as a rookie after all that scrutiny and people talking about him like they were talking about him - it's huge for him. And as far as Mike goes, I've talked about what Mike had to go through and what he's doing for us now and what we count on him for when he touches the field - to make plays for us.

"That built something up in both of those guys, that they can go through tough ordeals and still come out smelling pretty sweet."

Not every Eagle who misstepped that day has gotten a chance to redeem himself, by the way. Another key play came when second-year running back Ryan Moats, back with since-released Dexter Wynn on a punt return, ran into Wynn as Wynn caught the ball, causing a fumble at the Birds' 19. The Saints quickly moved in for a touchdown that gave them a 17-3 halftime lead. Moats was active the next week, then did not play again until the regular-season finale, when he subbed for Brian Westbrook in a meaningless game. That mistake seemed to underscore Moats' lack of a sense of the game, which has kept him off the field for most of his Eagles career, despite his impressive talent.

Overall, the Eagles' defense will have to play a lot better than it played in its last visit to New Orleans. Brees completed 27 of 37 passes for 275 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. The Eagles did a decent job against the run, at least until the final drive, holding the Saints to 97 yards on 30 carries. New Orleans hadn't fully integrated rookie Reggie Bush into its offense at that point; the Birds held Bush to 25 yards on 11 carries and 35 yards on four receptions.

Dawkins said Saints coach Sean Payton "brought [Bush] in slowly, so now they've expanded it. I think that, if possible, they're going to try to expand it a little more with all this time they had off."

The Eagles backslid a bit last week on their recent commitment to gap control; Tiki Barber gained 137 yards on 26 carries.

"A guy like Reggie Bush, or Deuce McAllister, can hit it anywhere, on any given play, they can cut it all the way back or they can take it frontside. You have to stay in your gaps and stay disciplined," Gaither said.

Johnson talked this week about how hard it is to get pressure on Brees, because the Saints often use three-step drops.

"It's tough, because they get the ball out quick, and sometimes they keep extra blockers in. A lot of times you try to come up with coverage sacks - stay in coverage, and hopefully, the d-line can get there," Gaither said.

"It's very difficult," Lewis agreed. "It's just one of those things where we have to get our hands up. The guys up front, they're just going to have to do a great job of getting their hands up and getting some pressure on him."

Birdseed

As successful as they were this season, the Saints still only compiled a minus-four turnover ratio. The Eagles were plus-five... Both teams were 10-6 and both were 9-3 within the NFC... Under Andy Reid, the Birds have not won a playoff game in which they've allowed 20 points or more (0-3).

0-3 when the other team score more than 20 points?  that's probably not a great stat for the Eagles.

[ice grillin you]

saints over/under for the first quarter is 20

[methdeez]

Just watched the birds falcons game on TiVo. I must say that I was fairly impressed with the eagles backups. Hanson and the other DB's did pretty well, avant, baskett and GLew looked like real players. It gives me some confidence about the depth on this team. Atlanta, while 8-8, is not a bad team.

[ice grillin you]

not taking anything away from the eagle back ups but atlanta is a terrible team who had quit before the game even started

[SD_Eagle5]

not taking anything away from the eagle back ups but atlanta is a terrible team who had quit before the game even started

Couldn't agree more, and I do give our backups who don't play in gameday situations at all througout the year credit for beating them. For some reason I just wanted to get to 10 wins despite it not meaning anything, I don't know if its because its the double digit factor or what, but 10 wins to me says 'good team' whereas 9 wins says 1 game above .500