Tag: Sean Payton (Page 13 of 13)

      NFL power rankings for MVP, Rookie and Coach of the Year

      October 10, 2009 /

      We’re going to start something new this week….individual power rankings in the NFL for MVP, coach of the year and rookie of the year. We may expand this to separate entries, since frankly it’s difficult picking just three of each. But here is what we’re thinking so far after the first quarter of the season….

      MVP

      1. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—With all due respect to Drew Brees and Peyton’s little brother, there is no way in hell the Colts would be 4-0 without Peyton. And he’s doing it with young receivers not named Harrison and Gonzalez.

      2. Brett Favre, Minnesota Vikings—Favre mostly handed off to his stud RB Adrian Peterson the first two weeks, then made himself comfortable with a game winning pass with 2 seconds left against the Niners, and a fierce performance including 3 TDs against his former employer Monday night. Again, without Favre, is this team 4-0? Probably not.

      3. Steve Smith, New York Giants—Are you kidding me? This guy has not only made everyone forget about Plaxico Burress, but he’s on pace to catch 136 passes, which would be second in NFL history for a single season. Smith is the only receiver in the league averaging 100 yards per game (102.8) and has 4 scores.

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      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, NFL

      What is going on with the Saints’ running back situation?

      September 23, 2009 /

      According to Saints’ beat writer Jeff Duncan via his Twitter page, Lynell Hamilton took the first-team reps for New Orleans during practice on Wednesday. Duncan expects Hamilton to see a heavy workload against the Bills, which begs the question: What is going on with the Saints running back situation?

      My question revolves around Sean Payton’s obvious hatred (okay, so I’m exaggerating) for Pierre Thomas, who practiced on Wednesday but who still isn’t seeing first-team reps in practice. I understand that he’s been battling a knee injury, but if he went through practice on Wednesday with no complications, why is Hamilton expected to get the majority of the rushing load on Sunday?

      It stands to reason that the Saints may have possibly soured on Thomas, whom many people (me included) thought would have a breakout year in 2009. Thomas was supposed to be New Orleans’ every down back this year and the perfect complement to Reggie Bush. But whether it’s his knee or the possibility that he egged Payton’s house at some point during the offseason, Thomas has taken a backseat to other backs like Hamilton.

      Just to get you up to speed on Hamilton, he went undrafted in 2008 and spent the entire season on the Saints’ practice squad. He made the team this year as a fourth back despite fumbling twice in the team’s preseason opener. Had Thomas and Bush not been dinged up entering the season, it stands to reason that Hamilton may not have even made the final roster.

      And with that, it’s perplexing that Hamilton would get the start over Thomas this week. Again, maybe Payton and the Saints are still worried about Thomas’ knee and they’re taking it slow with him. But if they’ve soured on him being a No. 1 back, then do him (and fantasy football fans for that matter) a favor and either release him or trade him to a team that could use a runner with his skill set.

      Here’s hoping Thomas eventually gets to shine in this league, because he certainly has the talent.

      Unless this sorts itself out by week’s end, the message is clear: Stay away from Thomas/Hamilton this weekend if you can. The Saints might be taking it easy on Thomas during the week so that he can start on Sunday, or maybe they don’t feel good about his knee and are planning to give him another week by getting Hamilton ready to start. Hopefully, the Saints’ beat writers will get some answers for us, but HC Sean Payton is tight-lipped about injuries, so we may not get any before kickoff.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      When NFL coaches get too cute with their play calling

      December 12, 2008 /

      Sean PaytonThere’s an epidemic that continues to grow every year among NFL head coaches called, “cuteplaycallingitis”. I thought maybe the strain had subsided, but after watching the Bears’ 27-24 overtime win last night over the Saints, I realize the disease continues to grow.

      In short, “cuteplaycallingitis” is when an NFL head coach decides to get cute with his play calling and/or approach within a game. There were several examples of this Thursday night.

      The first example came in the fourth quarter with nine minutes remaining in the game and the Bears up 21-17. On a fourth and four from the Saints’ 47-yard line, Lovie Smith decided to fake a punt instead of pinning New Orleans deep in their own territory and forcing them to drive the length of the field. Adrian Peterson dropped the fake punt pass (which was more controversial than it should have been) and the Saints got the ball back at the 47-yard line and began to drive.

      Of course, that’s when Sean Payton caught “cuteplaycallingitis” and decided to run a freaking sweep with Pierre Thomas on a fourth and one from the Bears’ 38-yard line. Why would you ever run a sweep wide against the Bears’ defense on fourth and one? Or any defense for that matter? How many examples do coaches need that a play like that doesn’t work before they stop running it? Payton has one of the most complex passing games in all of football, yet he decided to run wide with Thomas (who the Bears completely stuffed for a five-yard loss)? Okay, maybe he doesn’t put it in the air in that situation. There are still several better play calls than a sweep on fourth and one. It might have been the worst play call of the year.

      But of course, that play didn’t wind up dooming the Saints because Lovie and his coaching staff caught the strain again on the Bears’ next possession. Instead of trying to run out the rest of the 5:29 remaining on the clock, Chicago decided to get cute and put the ball in the air on first and second down. The first play netted in an incomplete pass, which of course stopped the clock…the last thing the Bears needed up four points in the fourth quarter…while second down resulted in a Kyle Orton interception. The Saints eventually went down the field, scored the go ahead touchdown and then spent the rest of the game choking away a much-needed win.

      Hey, I get it. If Peterson hangs onto the ball on the fake put, Lovie looks like a genius. If Thomas picks up the first down on the sweep, Payton looks like…well no, Payton would still have been a moron. But if Orton doesn’t throw the pick, the Bears might be applauded for staying aggressive late in the game. It’s easy to play Friday morning quarterback but even at the time, it appeared that both coaches got way too cute when they didn’t need to.

      NFL

      Saints find offensive balance, keep postseason hopes alive

      December 7, 2008 /

      Reggie BushNew Orleans Saints’ head coach Sean Payton was rightfully criticized throughout the week for not maintaining enough offensive balance this season. While the Saints statistically rank as the best offense in the league, they entered Sunday’s game against the Falcons as a 6-6 team with slim playoff hopes. No offense – not even the best in the league – can win consistently if they can’t run the ball. But the Saints rushed for 184 yards and beat division rival Atlanta 29-25 on Sunday.

      Their running game was essentially the key because it opened everything up for Drew Brees and the passing game. Outside of the opening drive of the first quarter and most of the third, the Falcons’ defense looked befuddled at what Payton was throwing at them. They had no answer for New Orleans’ offense and allowed Pierre Thomas to rumble for 102 yards on just 16 carries. If Payton can keep himself from going Andy Reid on everybody, the Saints are going to be tough to beat the rest of the way.

      For the Falcons, their loss cannot be placed on rookie Matt Ryan (24 of 33 for 315 yards, 1 TD) and the offense. Ryan was unbelievable and got a ton of help from Roddy White (10 catches, 164 yards) and Michael Jenkins (5 catches, 69 yards), who made the rookie quarterback look good on a couple of errant passes. Outside of a rookie mistake on an interception thrown in the first quarter, Ryan was damn near perfect and constantly kept drives alive with pinpoint passes.

      The Falcons really put themselves in a hole with this loss, however. At 8-5, they’re still very much alive in the playoff race, but they host a tough Buccaneers team next week and then travel to Minnesota before finishing with the hapless Rams. They’ll have to win at least two of their next three games to make the playoffs, so a win over the Saints could have gone a long way.

      We’ll see what Ryan and the young Falcons are made of over these next three weeks.

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      10 Best and Worst NFL Coaches

      November 13, 2008 /

      Jason Whitlock of FOX Sports.com ranked the 10 current best and worst NFL head coaches. His list for top 10 worst had some intriguing names.

      Top 10 Worst:

      Andy Reid1. Eagles Andy Reid: Twice this season Reid has taken the game out of the hands of Donovan McNabb and tried to win at crunch time with his running game. Here’s a coach who loves to throw on damn near every down except when the game is on the line. I also blame Reid for the Eagles failing to trade a second-round draft pick for Tony Gonzalez. Other than the one season with Terrell Owens, McNabb has made a living throwing the ball to the James Thrashes of the world. It’s ridiculous. I’m convinced the Eagles don’t want to win it all.

      6. Packers Mike McCarthy: With Brett Favre at the helm, the Packers were one play from the Super Bowl. With Favre run off to New York, the Packers are 4-5 and in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. You have to blame McCarthy and general manager Ted Thompson for Favre’s absence. Aaron Rodgers has been pretty damn good. He’s not the problem. Apparently he’s not the answer either. McCarthy wanted to be the big hero for letting Favre go, well now McCarthy and Thompson look like fools.

      7. 49ers Mike Singletary: The end of the “Monday Night Football” contest against the Cardinals is all the evidence you need to understand why I wanted Singletary to pass on the San Francisco job. Singletary has a chance to be a great NFL coach. Unfortunately, he took a head-coaching job before he was ready. Singletary can’t manage the clock. All the whining about the refs spotting the ball wrong or too quickly just points to Singletary’s inexperience and the folly of having Mike Martz as an unsupervised offensive coordinator.

      10. Saints Sean Payton: Someone has to take the blame for New Orleans’ 4-5 record. I don’t have a real problem with Payton. It’s impossible to win in the Big Easy. There are just too many distractions in NO to build a successful football franchise.

      Whether you like Whitlock or not (I can take or leave him), you have to appreciate how he didn’t just rank his top 10 worst head coaches because they were on the hot seat or list the ones that have terrible teams. As much as Singletary deserves a shot to be a head coach, he and Martz screwed the pooch on Monday night and deserve to be called out for it. And while criticizing Reid is nothing new for the media, Whitlock has some balls ranking him as the worst coach in the league, especially considering the Eagles could still viably make the playoffs this season.

      I don’t know if it’s fair of Whitlock to say that Aaron Rodgers isn’t the answer though. Remember, it’s only his first year as a starter and he’s been phenomenal.

      NFL

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