SB Nation - Matt Lehr

Cut Day: Tracking the Players that Might Interest the Chiefs

Joel Thorman — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:42:26 -0000

Cut day is coming at 3:00 PM (CST) today. NFL teams must be down to 75 players. Most are currently at 80.

This will be used to track the players that are cut that the Chiefs could be interested in. We'll definitely be keeping an eye on the guys that have the Pioli/Haley/Parcells connection since it seems that the Chiefs have been targeting many of those players.

I will be updating this as the cuts come in so continue to come back.

Titans - C Matt Lehr

Lehr is intriguing because the Chiefs appear to have a need at the center position. He was drafted by the Cowboys in the 5th round of the 2001 draft and played under Bill Parcells for two seasons starting 18 games.

Here are his career stats.

Rams - TE Joe Klopfenstein

2006 2nd round draft pick, Klopfenstein is 6'5", 250 pounds. Chiefs appear to need tight end help.

Here are his career stats.

Broncos - WR CJ Jones

I don't think the Chiefs would be interested in Jones (again) but they did previously sign him so you never know.

Broncos - TE Jeb Putzier

Like I said above, the Chiefs appear to be looking for tight end help.

Here are his career stats.

Broncos - C Blake Scheuter

Scheuter was a 7th round draft pick of Josh McDaniels and, as we all know, the Patriots connection doesn't stray too far. The Chiefs also appear to be looking for help at center.

The Tennessee Titans Cut Four Players

Jimmy — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:03:58 -0000

by Mark Humphrey - AP

View full size photo »

Well, I was one for four. That's not too bad. The Titans, via Kuharksy, have cut wide receiver Dudley Guice, running back Rafael Litle, linebacker Tyson Smith and center Matt Lehr.

It has been quite a shift for Little, who many of us had pegged as LenDale White's replacement next season. It is pretty obvious that he has not fully recovered from the knee injury he suffered last year.

I am also surprised to see Guice on the list, who a lot of us were excited about when they signed him. His game just did not translate to the NFL apparently.

Addition by Subtraction or Addition by...Addition?

Saintsational — Tue, 26 May 2009 11:00:15 -0000

It's a fact that after every season, NFL teams begin the process of improving their roster during the long off-season months. These improvements can come about in two different ways: Getting rid of certain players/coaches and adding others. Most often, and rightfully so, it's the big name free agent signings or the top round draft choices that get talked about most. But after the Saints didn't re-sign Josh Bullocks and let go of Gary Gibbs this off-season, I started wondering if getting rid of a player or coach could be just as important to the betterment of a team as who they add.

We know defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs has been replaced by Gregg Williams and hope this is going to be an improvement for the Saints. If this turns out to be the case, which half of this defensive coordinator transition would factor most in the Saints defensive improvement; the absence of Gibbs or the presence of Williams? In reality, it's a combination of the two. But is it possible that one could play a larger role than the other? Perhaps Gibbs' system really was that bad and any new defensive coordinator would provide better results than what Gibbs was able to accomplish. If that was the case than I think it would be safe to assume that getting rid of Gibbs was more important than actually choosing the correct replacement, whoever that may have been. And this logic could just as easily apply to the players on the field. Anybody has got to be better than Josh Bullocks, right? Also remember that with a limited number of spots, roster re-arranging is a zero sum game. Every time the Saints sign a player, someone else has to go. Are the Saints getting rid of the right players or are they releasing a future Pro Bowler?

So let's get a little philosophical with this today. On the whole, have the Saints improved more because of the players they have added or because of the players they've gotten rid of this off-season? Are there at least specific instances where this was true this off-season? Is it even possible that getting rid of a player/coach is more important than acquiring one?

As a quick refresher and to help facilitate discussion, here is a list of some personnel that are not returning to New Orleans this season as well as some players who will be making their regular season debut with the team. This list is meant for illustration purposes only and is not making any comparisons.

Position	Former Player	New Player
Def. Coordinator	Gary Gibbs	Gregg Williams
CB	Aaron Glenn	Malcolm Jenkins
S	Kevin Kaesviharn	Darren Sharper
CB	Mike McKenzie	Jabari Greer
S	Josh Bullocks	Pierson Prioleau
TE	Mark Campbell	Darnell Dinkins, Dan Campbell
RB	Aaron Stecker	Lynell Hamilton
DT	Hollis Thomas	Rod Coleman
C	Matt Lehr	Nick Leckey
DT	Brian Young	DeMario Pressley
FB	Mike Karney	Heath Evans
DE	Josh Savage	Paul Spicer

Poll

Have the Saints added by subtracting this off-season?

Not at all

27 votes

Yes, slightly.

355 votes

Every cut they've made has been genius

233 votes

615 votes | Poll has closed

Will the Pioli/Parcells/Haley Connection Bring Any Remaining Free Agents to the Chiefs?

Joel Thorman — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 15:37:19 -0000

Note: Primetime did the leg work on the tables and I did the writing. -Chris

If you're been reading Arrowhead Pride for a little while now, you know that Scott Pioli and Todd Haley are big on bringing in coaches and players that they've worked with before. Which makes perfect sense. It's a natural human instinct to take the known over the unknown.

It's gotten to the point where as soon as we hear of a new player the Chiefs have signed or are interested in, we look for the Pioli/Parcells/Haley connection and it's inevitably there.

Why look for a Bill Parcells connection in addition to a Pioli/Haley connection?

Well because the legendary coach has had some big time influence on the Chiefs current GM and head coach.

Todd Haley began his career as the New York Jets' wide receivers coach under Parcells in 1997. Haley also coached under Parcells from 2004 to 2005 as the wide receivers coach for the Dallas Cowboys, while Parcells was the head coach.

Todd is the son of Dick Haley, who is the current Player Personnel Analyst for the Miami Dolphins and former Director of Player Personnel for the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Jets. Haley, his father Dick and Parcells all worked together in New York from 1997 to 1999. Haley was the Jets wide receiver coach; Parcells was the head coach; and Dick Haley as the Personnel Director.

Haley and Scott Pioli worked together from 1997 to 2000, when Pioli was the Director of Pro Personnel for the New York Jets.

As far as Parcells and Pioli go, both worked together in New York for the Jets in the late 1990s while Parcells was the head coach there. Oh, and Scott Pioli also married Bill Parcells' daughter. They're probably pretty tight.

So it's one big happy family over there at One Arrowhead Drive nowadays.

Every single coach hired by the new Kansas City Chiefs' brass has had some sort of Scott Piloli/Todd Haley/Bill Parcells connection.

Special teams coach Steve Hoffman (Parcells)
WR coach Dedric Ward (Haley, Parcells and Pioli)
Defensive quality control coach Pat Perles (Haley)
Defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast (Haley)
Offensive line coach Bill Muir (Pioli and Haley)
LB coach Gary Gibbs (Parcells and Haley)
Joel Collier (Pioli)

It's the same thing with the free agents the Chiefs have signed this off season:

LB Monty Beisel - Played for Arizona in 2008 under Chiefs' DC Clancy Pendergast
QB Matt Cassel - Former New England Patriot under Pioli
WR Terrance Copper - Signed to the Cowboys by Bill Parcells when Todd Haley was working with the wide receivers
CB Travis Daniels - Former Cleveland coach Romeo Crennel, who coached under Belichick and Pioli in New England, traded for him prior to the 2008 campaign
WR Bobby Engram -Played for the Bears when Todd Haley worked with wide receivers
LB Darrell Robertson - New England practice squad in 2008 and a former Georgia Tech player under Chan Gailey
TE Sean Ryan - Played last year in Miami for Bill Parcells and for Haley and Parcells in Dallas from 2004 to 2005
TE Tony Curtis - Played for Haley and Parcells in Dallas from 2005 to 2006

Is that enough evidence that these guys prefer working with people they've worked with before?

It makes sense to take a look at who the top remaining free agents and see where the Pioli/Haley/Parcells connection is. It's likely that any future free agent signings will come from this group.

The top offensive and defensive free agents connected to Pioli, Haley and Parcells are after the jump.

Offense
Name	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Age	Pioli	Haley	Parcells
Rex Grossman	QB	6'1"	222	28		CHI 03-04
Lorenzo Neal	FB	5'11"	255	39		NYJ 97	NYJ 97
Marty Booker	WR	6'0"	212	32		CHI 01-03
Kelley Washington	WR	6'3"	218	29	NE 07-08
Jerame Tuman	TE	6'4"	255	33		AZ 08
Brandon Gorin	RT	6'6"	308	30	NE 03-05
Rob Petitti	RT	6'6"	347	26		DAL 05	DAL 05
Terrence Metcalf	G-T	6'3"	325	31		CHI 02-04
Evan Mathis	G	6'5"	304	27			MIA 08
Grey Ruegamer	G-C	6'4"	310	32	NE 00-02
Matt Lehr	G-C	6'3"	300	30			DAL 03-04
Edgerrin James	RB	6'0"	219	30		AZ 07-08

Back on Monday, I asked you what was the biggest positional need for the Chiefs after the draft. You responded by saying that wide receiver, offensive tackle and outside linebacker were the Chiefs' biggest needs.

WR Marty Booker has already had a workout with the Chiefs and left without a contract offer (We assume).

Former 3rd round pick Kelley Washington is an option too I guess, although I'm not sure what he would bring to the table considering his poor career numbers.

At best, I think any of the offensive line free agents out there would be back ups to our current crop of linemen.

The defensive free agents are pretty slim pickings as well. Check them out.

Defense
Name	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Age	Pioli	Haley	Parcells
La'Roi Glover	DT-NT	6'2"	285	34		DAL 05	DAL 03-05
Chris Cooper	DT-DE	6'5"	275	31		AZ 07	DAL 04
Vonnie Holliday	DT-DE	6'5"	290	33			MIA 08
Rosevelt Colvin	DE-LB	6'3"	250	31	NE 03-08	CHI 01-02
Ebenezer Ekuban	DE	6'3"	265	32			DAL 03
Derek Smith	ILB	6'2"	245	34			MIA 08
Junior Seau	ILB	6'3"	250	40	NE 06-08
Willie McGinest	OLB-DE	6'5"	270	37	NE 00-05
Mike Brown	S	5'10"	210	31		CHI 01-04
Rodney Harrison	S	6'1"	220	36	NE 03-08
Lawyer Milloy	S	6'0"	210	34	NE 00-03
Roy Williams	S	6'0"	235	28		DAL 05-06	DAL 03-06
Keith Davis	S	5'10"	193	30		DAL 05-06	DAL 03-06
Terrence Holt	S	6'2"	208	29		AZ 07
Cameron Worrell	S	5'11"	199	29		CHI 03-04
Mike Green	S	6'0"	195	32		CHI 01-04
Deltha O'Neal	CB	5'11"	194	32	NE 08
Jason Webster	CB	5'9"	187	31	NE 08
R.W. McQuarters	CB	5'10"	198	32		CHI 01-04
Lewis Sanders	CB	6'1"	190	29	NE 08
Aaron Glenn	CB	5'9"	185	36		NYJ 95-00, DAL 05-06	NYJ 97-99, DAL 05-06
Roderick Hood	DB	5'11"	198	27		AZ 07-08
Travis LaBoy	DE	6'3"	250	27		AZ 08

Considering that the top remaining linebackers are all over 34-years old and that the Chiefs have already signed two veteran LBs, I don't see the Chiefs signing Junior Seau, Willie McGinest or Derek Smith. McGinest could theoretically fill at defensive end in addition to linebacker but his age prohibits most investments in him.

S Keith Davis left KC without a contract offer after a private visit to KC back in March.

DE Travis LaBoy, like Primetime wrote this morning, really does seem to be the most viable option for the Chiefs on this list, although I'm not sure what the odds of him coming to KC truly are.

Last year, we would have crossed off any one on this list that was over the age of 27 but that's no longer the case. Now, with the draft over and compensation for many of these players at a minimum, we could be looking at more signings.

Would you like to see any of these free agents signed by the Kansas City Chiefs?

Poll

How many of these free agents will the Chiefs sign?

0

52 votes

1

108 votes

2

212 votes

3

154 votes

4

71 votes

5+

86 votes

683 votes | Poll has closed

Saints Free Agent Review - Offensive and Defensive Line

Saintsational — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 13:00:09 -0000

Offensive Line

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

Jon Stinchcomb

UFA

I like Stinch cause he's always good for some straight talk after the Saints take a beating. But if I'm being honest, he's replaceable. Zach Strief, the biggest dude I have ever seen in my life, is the likely heir to the throne. More importantly, Strief would probably be cheaper.

CSC says: See ya!

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

Jahri Evans

RFA

Evans needs to stay and the Saints need to do everything within reason to make sure he does. He's been a cheap date so far so Evans looks to be poised to cash in this year. If the Saints don't, another team will.

CSC says: Keep him!

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

Zach Strief

RFA

Strief saw a fair amount of playing time last season and proved to be competent. Zach could definitely be a cheaper alternative to Jon Stinchcomb on the right side. He can also play the left side. Seriously though, he is gigantic.

CSC says: Keep him!

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

Matt Lehr

C, G

UFA

Remember that whole trial/murder/suicide/love triangle thing that went down last year? That was crazy. Geez. Anyway, Lehr did a pretty good job filling in under center, with a few exceptions. What really makes him valuable is his versatility and ability to play center or guard. He shouldn't cost too much so I say he's worth it.

CSC says: Keep him!

Defensive Line

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

Antwan Lake

UFA

There is a lot of competition at the defensive tackle spot but Antwan Lake has been consistently good. Lake made $1 million last year and the Saints already have a lot of money tied up with Brian Young and Sedrick Ellis. Also, 2008 draft pick DeMario Pressley will be ready to compete next season. So ss much as I like Lake, he may not be here next season.

CSC says: Keep him!

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

Montavious Stanley

RFA

The guy with the craziest name on the Saints is part of the same crowd at the defensive tackle spot. He would have to really impress during camp to earn a spot on the 53-man roster but if the Saints can get him cheap, it might be worth it.

CSC says: See ya!

Player

Position

Years Exp.

FA Status

Evaluation

James Reed

UFA

Who? Never heard of him. There are too many other talented defensive tackles in the Saints for this guy to have a chance. No way he's in black and gold next season.

CSC says: See ya!

Poll

Should the Saints cut ties with Jon Stinchcomb?

Yes. And that makes me sad.

16 votes

Yes. And that makes me happy.

8 votes

No. And that makes me sad.

6 votes

No. And that makes me happy.

12 votes

42 votes | Poll has closed

Saints 30 @ Chiefs 20: Breaking it Down - The First Half

Saintsational — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:00:07 -0000

1st quarter

The Saints start the game with the ball and go three and out.
12:49 Remaining - Payton challenges a catch made by Brad Cottam and - surprise, surprise - loses it. Another timeout wasted early.
12:05 Remaining - Thigpen tries for Gonazalez but amazingly, he is double covered. Holy crap! Incomplete. On the following play Thigpen then tries for Will Franklin down the left sideline but Gay is right there to make a beautiful deflection. Wait a minute. What the hell is going on? What happened to our secondary? Did someone replace them? This is crazy. A guy could get used to this. Chiefs punt.
11:13 Remaining - Stecker catches a pass for 12 yards and limps off the field. I'm not sure he ever returns. The next play Drew throws an interception intended for Devery Henderson who slips on the wet field and can't run the proper route. Wembley all over again. Announcer Brian Billick thinks Jarrad Page would have intercepted it anyway. I used to like Billick.
8:08 Remaining - 4th and one for the Chiefs. Out of the Wildcat offense Larry Johnson gets the direct snap, takes it up the middle and gets the first down. Didn't they know what play was coming?
5:36 Remaining - 2nd and Goal. Dwayne Bowe grabs the jump ball in the endzone for the first score of the game. Usama is tight on the coverage but he does not jump when Bowe jumps. In fact, he doesn't jump at all. He does attempt a swipe at the ball as Bowe heads to the ground. And to also give credit, Bowe continued to hold on to the ball with one hand as he we falling. Make of this defensive play what you will.
After the extra point, Courtney Roby returns the kickoff nicely for 54 yards. One of these days he's gonna take one of those back. Oooh, maybe it will be Monday. Lance Moore makes a nice initial blog to spring him.
The Saints start clicking on offense. Pierre is getting some touches and making some nice gains.
3:15 Remaining - 3rd and 1. Pierre gets the ball in an attempt to pick up just one yard. He runs right up the middle into a huge pile. At first glance it looks like he is stuffed for no gain or a loss but after a couple of seconds he miraculously comes shooting out the other end of the pile for a gain of seven. Watch this one again, it's crazy. I don't know how the hell he got through! Must have just been the angle. Oh wait they're showing the replay from the end zone camera...nope, still don't know how he did it.
2:33 Remaining - Matt Lehr botches a snap. I didn't remember this and erroneously referenced no botched snaps in the "Making the Grade" post. Drop that offensive line grade from a B to a C+.
0:31 Remaining - Hartley makes his third straight field goal. Barely.
The Chiefs get the ball back but the Saints play some pretty good defense. Randall Gay has good coverage on Dwayne Bowe and gets his hand out enough to distract Bowe just a bit.
0:10 Remaining - 3rd and 10 for the Chiefs. Shanle comes in untouched from the left side and gets his arms wrapped around Thigpen who squirms his way out. Will Smith cleans it up and gets the credit for the sack. Chiefs punt and the Saints start the second quarter with the ball.

The second quarter can be found after the jump.

2nd Quarter

14:52 Remaining - Saints decide to take a shot deep down field. McAllister and Brees flick their flea and Brees throws deep to Colston at the 5 yard line. Marques leaps over Legget to make the catch as the ball hits Colston right inside his arms and bounces away. I really think the old Colston would have caught that. Brian Billick mentions that the sun might have played a factor.
A healthy mix of Deuce and Pierre allow the Saints to move well down the field. Pierre had a big catch and run for 24 yards thanks to a missed assignment by a Chief. Deuce caps it off by leaping over the pile and into the end zone for his record tying score.
Garrett Hartley makes a nice kickoff and puts it through the back of the end zone. Certainly the wind played a factor, no?
11:23 Remaining - On a Tony Gonzalez reception, Jason David's attempt to tackle the much larger tight end is laughable. Gay comes in for support.
8:45 Remaining - Larry Johnson makes Jeff Charleston look like a beast by missing his blocking assignment. Because of that, Charleston is able to come in untouched on Thigpen's blind side and make the sack for a loss of 9.
7:32 Remaining - 3rd and 14. This play is typical Saints and it's what drives me mad! After doing a great job on the sack and holding KC to third down the Saints defense gives up a big pass for 42 yards by Will Franklin. ARGH!! Here's how I see it: Dwayne Bowe is covered by Usama at the line but cuts across the field and is wide open. It looks like Young passes him off to someone else, a linebacker maybe? Kaesviharn leaves his spot and comes in for support. Instead, Thigpen throws it deep to Kaesviharn's original spot (where he is not anymore) and Franklin slides in across the field to make the catch. Roman Harper is left to defend himself. Interestingly, Vilma is the next closest player.
5:33 Remaining - Thigpen tosses it five yards to Gonzalez at about the 1-yard line. He pushes and shoves but just...can't...get...across...the...goaline. This proves crucial because the Saints do a great job on the next three plays and shut down the Chiefs attempts for a touchdown including another jump ball situation in the end zone between Dwayne Bowe and Randall Gay. Bowe doesn't time this one as well but Gay does a nice job batting the ball away after Bowe bobbles it. Chiefs settle for a field goal. Bend but don't break.
1:50 Remaining - 3rd and 8. Lance Moore is wide open for the easy 17 yard catch that keeps the drive alive. Ricardo Colclough was the defender on Moore but he falls and leaves Moore wide open. Kharma's a bitch.
The Saints offense does a great job on this final drive. They moved the ball consistently for 62 yards and used up every last second of the half. Pierre and Lance made big contributions. Colston and Shockey also make catches. However, the drive stalls and the Saints have to settle for a field goal and the lead. Hartley, of course, nails it. 13-10 at the half.

Saints 30 @ Chiefs 20: Saints Start 7 Game Win Streak

Saintsational — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 23:42:38 -0000

I have to admit I am feeling less than fulfilled after the Saints victory today. A win is a win and it's nice to get one but I didn't think it was the Saints greatest performance by any means. However, in my attempt to be ever the optimist I am calling this the first win in a seven game streak.

On the whole this defense played a little bit better than it has in the past. We finally saw some good aggressive plays from the secondary and some pressure from the defensive line. They definitely gave up some frustrating big plays here and there but tightened up multiple times on the goal line to force field goals over touchdowns and staying true to their "bend but don't break" philosophy on defense.

Here are my notes on the game and initial observations.

Saints were wearing the all black pants. No stripe.
I am starting to like Courtney Roby. He has come up with some pretty big kick returns in his short time and he looks so fast.
Right off the bat Randall Gay looked better than he has been of late. He made some nice stops and break ups today. Jason David even had a nice break up of his own. Very weird to actually watch. You know it's going to be a long day if Jason David is breaking up your passes.
The field looked wet and/or sloppy. On Drew's interception it was Devery who slipped on a comeback route and allowing the Titan defender to make the play untouched.
I noticed Hollis Thomas is back.
The Chiefs first score comes on a jump ball to Dwayne Bowe in the corner of the end zone with Usama Young on the coverage. The Chiefs would score on the exact same play later in the game as well.
We finally saw a screw up from backup center Matt Lehr with that botched snap.
We also saw Will Smith actually get a sack, picking up the garbage after Scott Shanle missed his own opportunity on the play.
My boy Pierre had a big day today. The best day for a Saints running back so far this season in fact. But alas it was the Chiefs so I am not going to rant and rave. 88 yards on 16 carries and 56 yards from 4 receptions. It was also nice to see Payton use him late in the 4th quarter to pick up some yardage and eat up some clock.
Not to be outdone Deuce got himself a touchdown and is now tied for the lead on the Saints all-time touchdown list.
How about the new kicker? Garrett Hartley is still perfect and he had to kick a big one late in the 4th quarter. I think it's safe to say we've found our man.
The new punter Pakulak is looking pretty good so far too. 2 punts for an average of 48.5 yards.
Where did Jeff Charleston come from? He looked like our best DE today by notching two sacks on Thigpen. It's nice to get big performances our of younger guys who are filling in for injured starters. That is something a team needs to win a Superbowl.
Lance Moore had a nice day today as well. Even if you don't like the fact that Lance Moore doesn't get much after the catch he is still an awesome weapon to have on our team. And every now and then he surprises you with something amazing.
The announcers mentioned more than once that Deuce was not 100%. He's not? When will he be? I was under the impression Deuce was back.
I didn't like what I saw from Colston and Shockey. Something just seems to be missing when it comes to the Brees/Shockey relationship. They just can't seem to get on the same page. And Colston just continues to not look like his old self. He dropped at least two gauranteed catches. Marques is definitely overthinking or forgetting the basics or something. I really hope he gets this worked out quickly.

Hopefully we will have some field reports from some of our loyal CSC readers who were on location at the game today.

Here is the roll call for the open thread.

Total Users: 11
Total Posts: 368
Total Threads: 1

Name	# of Posts
xen-cuts	128
pukenbowl	57
Saintsational	50
Steve the fan	48
SpindianSaints	33
dicecar18	21
SaintBevo	11
dell00	7
Dave the Falconer	6
asaint	4
Chris	3

Poll

Who was the player of the game?

Pierre Thomas

30 votes

Lance Moore

16 votes

Drew Brees

2 votes

Garrett Hartley

4 votes

Randall Gay

6 votes

Jeff Charleston

8 votes

Roman Harper

0 votes

66 votes | Poll has closed

Saints 20 @ Falcons 34: Breaking it Down - The Second Half

Saintsational — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:00:06 -0000

Third Quarter

Falcons start the half with the ball and the Saints defense again start off nicely by forcing a three and out.
The Saints start using Pierre Thomas as he breaks off a run for 9 yards and makes a catch for another 9 yards. Pierre loses 3 yards on a run when Jonathan Babineaux beats a Jahri Evans/Matt Lehr double team. Sad.
10:51 Remaining - Colston slips behind some defenders and attempts to make an over the shoulder catch. The ball bounces off his fingers. Again, I can't make the call on whether the old Colston or any supremely talented receiver would have (or should have) made that catch but we have seen Colston do some pretty amazing things. Pakulak makes a not so great punt.
Falcons start moving the ball by keeping it on the ground. Turner runs the ball 7 times on the next drive.
9:11 Remaining - 3rd and 1. Turner takes is up the middle to try and gain the first down. The Saints do a good job stuffing it but the Falcons get enough for the first. The spot of the ball and the first down are questionable so Payton challenges and loses. Probably not the best use of a challenge.
4:15 Remaining - For all the bad we saw from Randall Gay so far this game he makes a nice play taking down Michael Turner by the ankles in the backfield for a loss of 5. Big play.
2:46 Remaining - 3rd and 6. Jenkins makes the reception but only gains 2 yards as McKenzie is there for the tackle. McKenzie is injured on the play and gets carted off the field. Falcons kick the field goal.
Courtney Roby receives the kickoff 4 yards deep in the end zone and debates on whether to take it out or not. Eventually he does and makes a nice return for 41 yards to the Saints 37 yard line.
1:59 Remaining - Drew Brees must quickly shovel the ball away before getting hit by John Abraham. Jammal Brown was just burnt. I am getting sick of this crap.
1:53 Remaining - More pressure from Abraham forces Brees to hurry an incomplete pass.
1:49 Remaining - 3rd and 10. Brees feels yet more pressure and has to scramble. Shockey drops a sure thing on a short route. He appears to give up on it. This play would start "The Blowup." Saints punt it away. Pakulak nails another nice one for 51 yards.
0:10 Remaining - 3rd and 8. Saints are in nickel with Usama Young out there. Matt Ryan somehow connects with Roddy White on the left side with Usama Young behind him and Kaesviharn to his side.

The final quarter can be found after the jump!

Fourth Quarter

14:53 Remaining - 2nd and 10. Vilma and Gay both blitz. Instead, Matt Ryan dumps it off to Jerious Norwood on the right side. Shanle is the only player in the area. Shanle just doesn't take the right angle on Norwood and his only chance to stop him is with a diving ankle biter. Norwood gets good blocking downfield and after 67 yards he is in the endzone. Ugh.
Time is running out so the Saints offense goes into full on pass mode now. Their next drive is 12 plays. 11 of them are passes.
13:49 Remaining - 4th and 1. The only run of the drive and Pierre Thomas gets the call and picks up 3 yards.
12:38 Remaining - Billy Miller makes a sweet looking catch over the middle for 23 yards on first down.
12:09 Remaining - Carl Nicks gets whistled for a false start.
11:48 Remaining - Brees hits Colston on the right for a nice pickup of 21 yards on first down.
10:29 Remaining - Yet another false start, this time on Matt Lehr. The offensive line is not helping this team win this game. Good thing for Drew on this one though because John Abraham was steaming toward him untouched on the play.
10:10 Remaining - 3rd and 9 from the Falcons 15. Deuce checks back into the game after a long while and catches a screen pass on the right side. He gets some good blocks and the benefit of a good play call as he gingerly walks into the endzone for the score.
9:54 Remaining - Payton decides to try an onsides kick using new kicker Garrett Hartley. It fails. There is a flag on the play and the Saints need to kick it again. They fake the onsides kick to the right then kick a short, out of bounds squib to the left that no one pursues. I am assuming there was some sort of miscommunication on that one. Regardless, the result of the combined plays is just pure garbage and stupidity. I also don't think it was late enough in the game to warrant an onside kick. I also don't think you should be getting fancy with a kicker on his first day on the job. After the out of bounds penalty the Falcons have it at midfield, which is exactly where you want your opponents offense to start their drive with 10 minutes left in the game down by two scores.
Saints do a good job on defense stopping Michael Turner twice and forcing a three and out. Ironic because had Payton trusted his defense to come up big there he probably would not have chosen the earlier on side kick attempt.
The Saints, now in full panic mode, go to the air again.
7:43 Remaining - Brees goes to Shockey again. Shockey drops it in good coverage. He limps off the field. Announcer: "That won't help the Brees-Shockey relationship."
Then, as if Drew felt his other receivers had done enough, he gets David Patten in the mix as well. Patten is the eighth Saints receiver to make a catch on the day. He hauls in a 16 yarder and a big 19 yarder on 4th down.
7:06 Remaining - After a Patten catch Jon Stinchcomb needs help getting off the field.
5:51 Remaining - Zach Strief is in for Stinchcomb. John Abraham switches to the left side. On a pass play to Lance Moore in the end zone Strief does a nice job blocking Abraham and putting him on the ground with his hands. Strief is a big dude.
4:36 Remaining - Carl Nicks gets called on a 10 yard pass interference penalty for being downfield on a pass play.
4:29 Remaining - Brees throws to the endzone for Lance Moore. The Falcons have two defenders on the coverage and pick off the pass. It appears that Lance Moore hesistates slightly in his route and so not only doesn't get to the ball in time for the catch but also allows Chris Houston to get in front of it and grab it himself.
The Saints burn the rest of their timeouts on defense but are able to get the Falcons off the field quickly and punting, thanks to a dropped pass by Roddy White for a sure first down.
Never giving up the Saints continue to move the ball down the field. Colston makes one of his trademarked awesome grabs right out of thin air with his crazy long arms. Brees then hits a wide open Colston again, this time on the left sideline for 48 yards.
1:30 Remaining - Brees tries for Devery Henderson at the left pylon. Instead Chevis Jackson picks it off and takes it all the way back for the score. Game over. It appeared to be a miscommunication on the route. Drew threw to the sideline and Henderson curled around Jackson and to the middle.
0:06 Remaining - Lance Moore comes up with a tipped Hail Mary pass in the end zone for a final touchdown with no time left on the clock. Absolutely meaningless.

Saints 20 @ Falcons 34: Breaking it Down - The First Half

Saintsational — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 12:00:07 -0000

I am going to try and do it differently this week. Let me know what you think in the poll.

First Quarter

Saints get the ball first and lead off the series with a deep play action pass to Devery Henderson on a post pattern. Payton trying to be tricky. The gamble doesn't pay off as Brees throws it into double coverage and gets picked off by Erik Coleman.
The Saints defense does a great job responding after the turnover and forces a three and out. Nice job stuffing Turner. Shanle makes a quick hit after a reception. Surprisingly decent.
12:04 Remaining - If you want an example of good passing coverage check out Domonique Foxworth's job defending Devery Henderson on another deep post pattern.
Saints go three and out themselves and Pakulak booms a nice 56 yard punt that ends with a 25 yard return.
10:29 Remaining - Ryan completes a short out route to Roddy White. Gay is on the coverage. They bump at the line and Gay is pushed backwards. White cuts to the sideline and now has enough separation to make an easy catch. Gay is behind him and has to pursue. Kaesviharn winds up making the tackle out of bounds.
10:00 Remaining - Here's another good one. Ryan throws to Michael Jenkins on the left side for 13 yards. I can't tell the coverage but Jenkins has a cushion of at least 5 yards at the line. When he makes the catch and the coverage is revealed, Kaesviharn is the underneath defender and Gay is over the top. I thought that was a little weird. Neither of them were close enough to Jenkins to make a play however.
9:12 Remaining - Roddy White finishes off Atlanta's drive with a touchdown by making a catch on his own post route. White just speeds past Gay and gets his body inside. Kaesviharn can't come over in time to make a play. Do we need to get Jason David in here?
8:19 Remaining - 3rd and 4. Brees finds Colston who makes a nice leaping catch for a clutch first down. Nice to have him back.
7:00 Remaining - Deuce gets a pitch to the right on 1st down. He has the chance to get it inside and turn it upfield but makes the wrong read and bounces it outside for just 1 yard.
8:19 Remaining - Brees hits Colston who makes a nice catch with his long out stretch arms. Only Marques is catching that. 16 yards. Man I missed him.
The Saints keep it on the ground for a good while. A couple of runs by Deuce. A Stecker hand off. Even Drew scrambles for a first down. Good commitment to the run.
3:42 Remaining - Brees attempts to Colston in the endzone. Drew threads the needle and Marques just can't keep it trapped between his two arms and his body. Says the announcer: "I've seen him make that catch."
2:57 Remaining - Drew barely gets a pass off in time to Lance Moore. It's not enough for the touchdown. Jammal Brown got beat and thrown to the ground by an Abraham spin move to the inside. Gotta give him credit it was a pretty sweet move. Saints settle for a Hartley field goal, his first in the NFL
Hartley's juices are flowing from the high of his first NFL points. He kicks in deep into the endzone on the ensuing kick off. Touchback.
0:57 Remaining - The Saints defense holds Atlanta to 3rd and 5. Ryan completes a short pass to Norwood for only 4 yards...but...Will Smith was offsides. Instead of 4th down its 1st.

Make the jump for the second quarter.

Second Quarter

14:21 Remaining - 3rd and 5 for Atlanta. I believe this is the now famous cushion play. McKenzie is lined up against Roddy White giving him at least 8 yards at the line. Remember...the Falcons only need 5 yards. Saints are giving an 8 yard cusion. Need 5 yards? 8 yard cushion. White just has to stop and turn to catch the pass and run out of bounds for the first down.
I guess picking on Randall Gay was getting too easy for Ryan so he starts going to Michael Jenkins who is lined up on Aaron Glenn. First for 11 yards then deep for a gain of 32. Glenn was tight on the receiver but wasn't watching the ball. Jenkins adjusted to an underthrown ball while Glenn continued downfield.Turner finishes the drive with a 2 yard run for touchdown.
Saints continue to do a nice job mixing run and pass. Devery picks up 30 yards on an end around. Pierre bounces off a couple of people for a nice 8 yard gain. Deuce catches a screen for another 8 yards. Lance Moore hauls one in for 11 yards.
The drive stalls when the offensive line begins to struggle. Matt Lehr can't contain Grady Jackson on a Pierre Thomas run. Thomas has no where to go. ThenJammal Brown just gets straigh up beat on the outside by Abraham, who gets to Brees for the sack and -6 yards.
Hartley nails another field goal. 44 yards.
7:54 Remaining - The Falcons continue their next drive right where they left off. McKenzie is giving Roddy White at least 6 yards. Matt Ryan runs a play bootleg and easily hits White on a comeback route along the sideline.
Just to mix it up and keep our defense on its toes (the way you're supposed to play) the Falcons start running the ball. Turner runs for gains of 7, 2 and 20 yards consecutively.
4:48 Remaining - Jerious Norwood flys out of the backfield and is wide open when Ryan hits him with a pass. Kaesviharn is called for an illegal contact penalty when he realizes he is going to get burned but its declined.
3:09 Remaining - Saints defense forces the Falcons to settle for a field goal.
2:39 Remaining - John Abraham gets right in Drew's face to force a bad throw. Jammal is still having trouble on that left side. Obviously.
2:00 Remaining - Matt Lehr is called for holding.
1:44 Remaining - Lance Moore makes a sweet 15-yard catch right along the sideline keeping both feet in bounds. The comparisons to Marvin Harrison begin.
1:08 Remaining - John Abraham was injured on the previous play so Saints fans every where would think this would be good news for Jammal Brown and this offensive line. Not so. Chauncey Davis fills in for Abraham and on his very first play gets a good push on Jammal Brown and gets his hand on the pass for a deflection.
1:04 Remaining - Instead of kicking what would have been a 44-45 yard field goal the Saints decide to go for it on 4th and 4. Brees throws to Colston along the left sideline. Colston turns inside to catch the ball but Chris Houston does a great job getting his hand in and disrupting Colston's catch. Can't say whether Colston could have possibly caught it.The Falcons take a knee to end the half.

Poll

How do you prefer "Breaking it Down?"

This way

9 votes

The old way

1 votes

Either way

4 votes

Neither way

6 votes

20 votes | Poll has closed

2008 Midseason: Making the Grade

Saintsational — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 12:00:07 -0000

Quarterback A+

		Passing									Rushing					Sacks
	G	Rating	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/G	Y/A	TD	INT	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	TD	Sack	YdsL
2008 - Drew Brees	8	101.6	210	304	69.1	2563	320.4	8.4	15	7	11	-7	-0.9	-0.6	0	7	48

I would have given Drew an A+++++ but that would have been plain ridiculous. Best quarterback in the league and quite possibly the MVP for the first half of the season. Praising Drew comes so easy and is becoming quite redundant so consider this matter closed.

Running Back D

		Rushing						Receiving
	G	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Y/G	Avg	Lng	TD
2008 - Reggie Bush	7	87	294	42.0	3.4	29	2	42	366	52.3	8.7	42	3

		Rushing						Receiving
	G	Rush	Yds	Y/G	Avg	Lng	TD	Rec	Yds	Y/G	Avg	Lng	TD
2008 - Deuce McAllister	6	68	263	43.8	3.9	12	2	8	53	8.8	6.6	11	0

The running game is just plain pathetic. Check out those rushing numbers. We all have our own thoughts and opinions on this matter and frankly they are all a little accurate. Whatever the reasons for a failed ground attack it all needs to change. Hopefully we will see more of a commitment to the running game and a more balanced offense from Payton.

Receiving B

Devery Henderson	Receiving						Kickoff Returns					Punt Returns
G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	Lng	TD	KR	YDS	AVG	Lng	TD	PR	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
8	18	499	62.4	27.7	84	3	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Lance Moore	Receiving						Kickoff Returns					Punt Returns
G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	Lng	TD	KR	YDS	AVG	Lng	TD	PR	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
8	38	431	53.9	11.3	33	3	1	36	36.0	36	0	0	21	10.5	11	0

Billy Miller	Receiving						Kickoff Returns					Punt Returns
G	Rec	Yds	Y/G	AVG	Lng	TD	KR	YDS	AVG	Lng	TD	PR	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD
6	23	323	53.8	14.0	41	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

The receiving corp has looked pretty solid so far this season but the production has not come from who we might have expected. Devery Henderson and Lance Moore have stepped it up in the absence of Marques Colston and David Patten. Billy Miller is quietly putting together a solid season while Shockey heals. With Drew Brees spreading the ball around to everyone and their mother this is more of a team effort with everyone doing a great job.

Offensive Line C

They've been doing a good job keeping Drew safe but a pretty horrible job making some room for Deuce and Reggie. Matt Lehr has filled in pretty seamlessly under center so thats a plus. Carl Nicks is also a bright spot in this unit.

Defensive Line C

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2008 - Charles Grant	8	3.0	20	0	0	0	26	7	33

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2008 - Sedrick Ellis	5	1.0	5	0	0	0	7	3	10

The big guys on the line have turned in pretty spotty performances. We have seen some good games from them but also watched them disappear for 60 minutes. The blueprint for this unit was the New York Giants Superbowl winning pass rush and it is safe to say the Saints are nowhere close to that point. Charles Grant is now lost for the season but his play up to this point was certainly not indicative of his fat contract. Worse could be said about Will Smith so far this season. Are we surprised? The upside is Sedrick Ellis, who was a good choice and a nice addition but I think we have yet to see his full brilliance.

Linebacker C

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2008 - Jonathan Vilma	8	0	0	1	8	0	53	19	72

Vilma is another one of the bright spots of this team this season. The guy is all over the field sniffing out tackles. Unfortunately one linebacker a defense does not make. Losing Simoneau for the season was a big blow to this unit and Fujita and Shanle have simply played mediocre. I would love to see more from these guys in the second half of 2008.

Secondary C

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2008 - Mike McKenzie	6	0	0	1	14	0	19	1	20

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2008 - Tracy Porter	5	1.0	8	1	25	0	23	2	25

		Sacks		Interceptions			Tackles
	G	Sacks	YdsL	Int	Yds	IntTD	Solo	Ast	Total
2008 - Randall Gay	5	0	0	0	0	0	19	1	20

Last year these guys would probably be getting an F so a C really isn't so bad. To be fair, this unit has definitely improved. It's also amazingly sad to say that the absence of Tracy Porter seems to have caused a drop in performance. There is still a lot of room for improvement as we saw last week against San Diego. Preventing big plays is one thing but completely shutting down a teams passing offense and creating game changing plays and turnovers is another.

Special Teams C-

		Field Goals								PAT
	G	0-19	20-29	30-39	40-49	50+	FGM	FGA	PCT	XPM	XPA	PCT	pts
2008 - Taylor Mehlhaff	3	0 - 0	1 - 1	1 - 2	1 - 1	0 - 0	3	4	75.0%	9	10	90.0%	1

I know you're probably thinking these guys deserve an F. The post-Carney kicking experiment is failing miserably but Reggie Bush and the return game is also part of special teams so that keeps this unit from getting a flat out F-.. Still, the inconsistency in the kicking game is most frustrating and I struggled even giving it the current grade.

Poll

What grade do you give the Saints for the first half of the season?

A

2 votes

B

7 votes

C

56 votes

D

10 votes

F

2 votes

77 votes | Poll has closed