Raucous. You know the
Superdome is loud when the announcers are having to yell over the noise. Sunday's game, won by the Saints over
the Steelers 31-28, lived up to the advanced billing, the importance, and the
growing reputation of the Superdome as the most difficult place to visit in
sports.
The Steelers faced an unheard-of situation. They came into the game leading their
division by a half game (or whatever a tie game represents) but a loss could
mean they don’t make the playoffs. So,
the Steelers came, they saw, and they fumbled.
Two fourth quarter fumbles proved costly. One happened before, and one after a decision
to run a fake punt on a fourth and five at midfield. The Steelers only gained 4 of the 5 yards
they needed, turning the ball over back to Drew Brees and the Saints
offense who were down 28-24.
The Saints drove down and Michael Thomas caught a touchdown
pass just under the 2 minute mark.
Ben Roethlisberger, who was brilliant all day, drove the
ball effectively with no timeouts left, only to have Ju Ju Smith-Schuster fumble
after a catch. The Saints have one
glaring vulnerability – trouble covering two elite wide receivers, and Smith-Schuster
and Antonio Brown lit them up all night.But the defense continued to force fumbles
The Steelers scored 28 against a Saints defense that has
been brilliant over the last 6 games.
The Saints scored in bunches. When
the Steelers tied the game at 14 late in the first half, it took Brees and mostly
Alvin Kamara only 40 seconds to drive into field goal range, which Wil Lutz
converted for the 3 points that would eventually be the difference. Since the Saints had deferred at coin toss,
they took the opening kickoff and drove down for a touchdown to take a 10 point
lead at 24-14. Then the offense slumbered
til the last drive of the game. The
Steelers dominated the second half and took a 28-24 lead until they lined up to
punt and made the controversial decision to try to preserve their
possession.
Thus the Saints preserve their top seed in the NFC with a
13-2 record. They secured home field
advantage until the Super Bowl. They
should be able to rest some starters next week, although there’s also a shot at
their best regular season record in franchise history. They will probably rest Drew Brees against
Carolina in the closer, providing a showcase for Teddy Bridgewater. This also allows them to rest most of the banged
up offensive line, giving them 3 weeks to heal up.
The case for Drew Brees as MVP has now been made. The Saints got Ted Ginn back from injured
reserve and it was a huge addition.
Brees has been throwing to the great Michael Thomas and 2 rookie wide
receivers: the drafted Tre’quan Smith and the undrafted Keith Kirkwood. It looks like Kirkwood has supplanted Austin
Carr in the lineup, and Tommylee Lewis has not contributed. The tight ends have been sporadic at best. Who has ever heard of a team playing this well
with 2 rookies at wide receiver? The productivity
of the offense is Brees, Moore and Alvin Kamara. Sean
Payton usually doesn’t play rookies, much less two of them in this super
complicated offense. Allegedly, Brees
calls three plays in the huddle and picks the one to he wants at the line. So, what Brees has done with this
inexperienced receiving corps is a marvel.
The next time the Saints leave town, could be, should be to travel to the Super Bowl.
Let's go.
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