The Saints post-season run collapsed before it got started in
a 26-20 overtime loss to the Minnesota Vikings in a raucous but ultimately
deflated Superdome.
The Saints defensive line has been dominate all year. In this game, they got dominated.
The Saints offensive line has been dominate all year. Not on this day.
Drew Brees has been nearly flawless all year. Not this time.
The Saints had only turned the ball over 8 times all
year. Brees had a fumble and an
interception, both at crucial junctures.
The Saints best sequences during the game involved Taysom
Hill.
The Saints took their only lead of the game at 10-3 early in
the second quarter when Hill played quarterback for two straight plays. The first was an 11 yard run. The second was a 50 yard bomb to Deonte
Harris. Kamara ran it in from the 4 to
finish the drive.
The most devastating sequence occurred right before halftime, and accounted for a huge swing of the pendulum.
The Saints put together a goal line stand from their 2 yard
line. The Vikings were forced to kick a
field goal bringing the score to 10-6 with 2:54 remaining in the half. The Saints were looking at plenty of time to
drive it down the field, then come back and start the second half with a
possession. Two touchdowns on two straight
drives and the Saints would be up 24-6.
It would have been over.
Instead, disaster.
From their own 24 Brees throws a perfect pass down the
middle that hits Tre’Quan Smith in the hands at the 50. It was a game changing drop. It would also be Smith’s only target.
On the next play, Kamara catches a 3 yard pass. On 3rd and 7, Brees got greedy and
threw into double coverage for Ted Ginn at midfield. Harrison Smith picks it off and brings it
back past mid-field. Then, with Cousins
throwing to Adam Thielen on several big plays, the Vikings drove in for a score
with Cook taking it the last 5 yards for the Vikings first touchdown and a 13-10
lead with 23 seconds left.
No time for the Saints to do anything, right? Wrong.
Harris runs the kickoff all the way back to the Vikings 45. Brees throws 20 yards to Thomas. A quick time out and Wil Lutz lines up for an
improbable 43 yard field goal with 4 seconds left to tie the game.
He misses it. It’s
the kind of miss that kills playoff dreams.
Unlikely errors by Brees and Lutz and the Saints go in at halftime down
13-10, and with Dalvin Cook having rushed for 84 yards.
To the second half.
The Saints drive stalls when on 3rd and 1 they make the
dumbest play call of the day with some kind of shuffle pass to Kamara, instead
of bulldozing for a first down. They punt.
The Vikings took a 20-10 lead into the 4th quarter. Then it became the Taysom Hill show. The Saints put together their best drive of
the day and Hill caught a touchdown pass to pull within 20-17. Later the Saints drove down to the 20 and
were in position to take the lead when Brees made his second big mistake. He fumbled to kill the drive.
The Saints had one last chance. The Saints got the ball back at the 2 minute
warning and Brees worked his usual 2 minute magic to work the Saints into position
for a tying field goal. That would be
the last time he touched the football.
Tied at 20, the game moved to overtime.
The Vikings won the toss and moved quickly to the winning
touchdown, a jump ball to Kyle Rudolph over PJ Williams. Adam Thielen made the big catch, his 7th
catch of the day, equaling Michael Thomas.
But Thielen’s were for 129 yards to Thomas' 70. Thielen toasted Marshawn Lattimore all day, but this catch was against
Patrick Robinson who was in for an injured Lattimore, who was conspicuously
limping around the sideline. The game
was not a good look for Lattimore who had gone ballistic on the coaches earlier
when he had gotten burned. Ask Brandin
Cooks how that turns out.
I was apprehensive all week about this game for one
reason. Dalvin Cook. The Saints haven’t faced a super quick
running back all year. But Cook was the
nightmare I was afraid he was going to be.
He shredded the Saints defense all day, allowing the Vikings to control
the clock. All the talk will be about Kirk
Cousins getting the “big-game” monkey off his back. But it was old time football that beat the
Saints.
There is a tried and true formula for winning football. Run the ball, and stop the run. Control the clock, and pressure the other quarterback
up the middle. It’s in Vikings’ coach Mike
Zimmer’s DNA. When you run the Ancestry
DNA test on Sean Payton you will not find it.
Count the times that the Saints ran the ball twice in a row this year,
this game. It’s a real small
number. Real small. When it’s all said and done, this is why the
Saints have only one year of post-season success. They’re pass happy. Pass Happy sets records. Pass Happy is thrilling. Pass Happy wins divisions. But Pass Happy is not Championship football.
Yes, Brees is usually terrific. But when he isn’t, the Saints have no where
to turn. And it’s not that unusual. The NFL just picked their top ten quarterbacks
of all time and ridiculously, Brees wasn’t on it.
Let’s look at the Super Bowl era Quarterbacks that were:
The Great Tom Brady.
Almost a free pass to home field advantage and the Superbowl every year through
a horrible division, and with a great defensive coach. 6-3 in Super Bowls, usually with a consistent
running game. No one can deny he’s a
great clutch performer.
The Great Peyton Manning.
Two Super Bowl wins (and a loss) in which he was less than stellar. Both were defensive wins. Mostly disappointing post-seasons.
The Great Brett Favre. Only one Super Bowl win to show for
his career Mostly disappointing post seasons. .
The Great Jon Montana.
Yea, actually he was great in a revolutionary offense, but he had runners
like Roger Craig to compliment Jerry Rice.
The Great Dan Marino.
No Super Bowls
The Great Roger Staubach.
Two Super Bowl wins.
The Great John Elway.
Won Super Bowls in his last two years when he got a running game, after
going 0-3 previously when he was pass happy.
And one who didn’t make it on the list.
Aaron Rogers – one Super Bowl Win.
It’s not unusual for great quarterbacks to be lacking in
championships.
In each of the last three seasons, Brees has been standing
on the sideline watching at the end. Terry
Bradshaw (absent from the NFL’s list) won 4 Super Bowls. He had a guy named Franco Harris to hand the
ball to.
Cousins played a Bradshaw game Sunday. Pound, pound, pound, control the clock, and
mix in a bomb or two. Is actually the
kind of ball the Saints played during the five games Bridgewater started when
Brees was hurt.
Will the Saints ever learn?
Probably not.
It will
be an interesting off-season. Those
great draft choices of recent years are going to want paid. The Saints will want to keep Janorius Jenkins
as an upgrade over Eli Apple who is a free agent. Brees, Bridgewater, and Taysom Hill are all
free agents. The Saints will have to
pick one, maybe two. In fact, the Saints
early exit is going to make it tempting for Jerry Jones to make a run at Sean
Payton. Someone named Skyler will have a
hand in that decision, but there’s no question that Payton had a tough
year. He got out-coached Sunday, and he even
had problems with butchers. Radio call-in
show criticism is supplemented by social media hysteria. Knowing that there are
two types of head coaches (those that have been fired, and those that will be
fired) does Payton change ships, or does he continue his quest to be the New
Orleans version of the Great Don Shula.
(2-6 in Super Bowls in 31 years as an NFL Head Coach.) I hope he stays. They don't grow competent NFL Head Coaches on trees.
There’s film to watch and decisions to make.
Here’s the film they need to watch most. A few years ago, for the only time in the
Brees/Payton era, something strange happened.
The Saints went to Buffalo and put together a long drive where they ran
the ball on every play. It was crunching,
crushing football. The kind of football
that wins playoff games.
It is going to require a DNA transplant. Under Payton the
Saints are now 7-5 in the postseason, and that’s not good enough. But we have to remember they were 2-7 before
Payton. Just trying to keep some
perspective through a January calendar that has just been cleared.
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