2010 Regular Season
SAINTS @ CARDINALS PREVIEW

Overview
Last Game
Meet the Saints
Cardinals Roster
Cardinals vs. Saints Matchups

Overview:
The Saints beat the Vikings and the Niners, lost to the Falcones and pulled out a 16 - 14 squeaker vs. the Panteras to give them a 3 & 1 record. The Cardinals were flat-out embarrassed by the Chargers and wind up tied for first in a weak NFC West Division at 2 & 2. (Frankly, based on their caliber of play, the Cards could just as easily be 0 & 4).

The Cards figure to have blown all or most of their home-field advantage. Normally, a team should look forward to coming off a road trip to play before hometown fans. Unfortunately, the Cards return to Glendale with their tails between their legs, facing a fan-base that, at best, figures to be "concerned" &, at worst, hostile.

Different games have different flavours of spin leading up to them. Some games are "must games." Some determine playoff eligibility or survival. Some are considered "trap games." Some define "who a team is." This is one of those rare "Let's see how the kid does" games. Max Hall has gotten the starting nod for this Sunday. (Let's see how he does).

Last Game:
Saints won a pitchers dual. They appeared to have had the game under control only to be repeatedly undone by turnovers & dropped passes. (When you go through the play-by-play log, you see the same relentless short-pass offense that chewed up NFL teams (including the Cardinals a year ago). It's just that the Saints kept failing to put it across the goal line. Other than uncharacteristically giving up a couple of big plays (One when Malcom Jenkins let  the receiver get behind him and the other when the run defense failed to keep D'Angelo Williams bottled up & allowed him to cut back en route to  a 39 yard TD) the NO continued its stout play. Notable big defensive plays: Usama Youn'g stuff of  Williams for a 4-yard loss and Jenkins' sack of  A 16-play 4Q scoring drive with Brees patiently pecking away was pretty impressive:

First Quarter

• There was no scoring in the 1Q. On their first offensive series, the Saints made it all the way to the Panther 12 in 14 plays, but Moore's fumble at the one-yard line resulted in a turnover and touchback. They held Carolina to 3 & out and (aided by 2 defensive penalties) made it to the Panther 4 in seven plays as the quarter ended.   First Quarter Score: New Orleans 0 - Carolina 0.

Second Quarter

• On the eighth play of the series, Brees hit Moore for a 4-yard TD.  New Orleans 7 - Carolina 0.

• On the 5th play of the next series, Jimmy Clausen hitJonathon Stewart for a 55 yard score. New Orleans 7 - Carolina 7.

• Brees moved his team to the Carolina 36 in 6 plays, but C Ivory (after rambling 13 yards around RE fumbled. Carolina ball. Panthers could gain much traction and eventually punted. Starting on his own 23, Brees led his team on a 13-play drive capped by a 32-yard Carney FG with 1:17 left on the clock.  New Orleans 10 - Carolina 7.

• Panthers went 3 & out. Saints - with 0:42 to play with - made it to the Carolina 46 with 0:18 left before Brees was sacked and turned over the ball. Halftime Score: New Orleans 10 - Carolina 7.

Third Quarter

• Saints received and punted 7 plays later. Panthers took over on their own 20 and opened up a lead when D Williams circled LE for a 39-yard touchdown.   Carolina 14 - New Orleans 10.

• The Saints were unable to move the ball, but got it back on a contested muffed punt  Starting on the Pantera 29, they managed to get inside the Carolina 10 before settling on a 32 yard Carney FG.  Carolina 14 - New Orleans 13.

• The two teams exchanged 3 & outs. Carolina managed to pick up a 1st down on the following series to end the quarter.  Third Quarter Score: Carolina 14 - New Orleans 13.

Fourth Quarter

• Carolina ran out of steam and punted 4 plays later. Starting from their own 7-yard line, the Saints reeled off 16 (yup 16!) plays to move into FG position at the Panther 7. (Longest play of the drive was a 16-yard Brees-Thomas pass). Carney booted home another one from 25 yards.. New Orleans 16 - Carolina 14

• Just 3:55 left on the clock. Four consecutive Carolina running plays put them on their own 46 yard line at the 2:00 break. They got to the NO 36 at 1:35 with no time outs, but a 4-yard loss on a run by D Williams and a minus-4 yard sack of Clausen brought the clock to 0:08 when he threw his final pass of the contest (which fell incomplete).  Final Score: Orleans 16 - Carolina 14

Highlights/Lowlights

• Turnovers - Three fumbles/2 for losses (but both were at or near the enemy goal line). No picks, though.

• Only 4 penalties.

• 121 yards rushing (They gave up 118 to a rush-oriented Carolina team).

• They were 8 for 14 in 3rd down conversions.

• They passed 50 times (vs. 29 running plays)

• NO ballcarriers were tackled 5 times for losses.

• Brees was sacked twice. (NO pass rushers racked up 3 sacks)

• No picks by either team.

• Ivory and Betts were the two main NO ballcarriers (Ivory gained 67 yards on 12 carries. Betts gained 47 yds on 13 attempts).

• Six NO receivers had at least 4 catches. Henderson led the team with 6 catches out of 9 targeted. Shockey (another freakin' TE!!!) was second with 6 for 8. Thomas and Moore had 5 catches apiece, followed by Betts (4) and Colston (4)

• As a punter, Morstead had a big gross yardage figure (53.3) but his net yardage was down to near-average at 40.3.

Meet the Saints
Super Bowl champs. Start with that. But, as NO Times Picayune beat-writer, Jeff Duncan puts it, he can't quite put his finger on the problem, but the Saints thus far have not played with the same kind of edge that won them the Super Bowl last season. While fans can receive some solace from the fact that, despite turnovers and less than perfect play, the Saints are still 3 & 1. (What seems to bother Duncan is the way the Saints have won those games - not in the dominating fashion characteristic of 2009-2010 but relying on the field goal to pull out close games).

 Quarterbacks
09 Brees, Drew QB 6-0 209 31 10 Purdue
10 Daniel, Chase QB 6-0 225 23 2 Missouri
For those of you who question Max Hall's size, check Check Brees' height (6 freakin' foot-zero)! Yet we're talking about a QB who completes nearly 75% of his passes and has a QB rating north of 100. He is the master of the short pass (aka "death by a thousand cuts") spreading the ball around to a (dare we say) plethora of receivers (including his RB's and TE's). He is relentless and unstoppable, though turnovers have helped keep NO's scoring down this season. Daniels has looked sharp in a backup role.

Running Backs
25 Bush, Reggie RB 6-0 203 25 5 Southern California
23 Thomas, Pierre RB 5-11 215 25 4 Illinois
29 Ivory, Chris RB 6-0 222 22 R Tiffin
21 Wynn, DeShawn RB 5-10 232 26 4 Florida
46 Betts, Ladell RB 5-11 224 31 9 Iowa
44 Evans, Heath FB 6-0 250 31 10 Auburn
It's unclear who is or isn't injured. Bush is listed atop the depth chart, but Ivory and Betts saw most of the action last Sunday. When healthy, this is an underrated group of backs, with Bush a scatback with surprising pop between the tackles leading the way. Evans is a seasoned 10-year lead-blocking veteran.

 Wide Receivers
12 Colston, Marques WR 6-4 225 27 5 Hofstra
16 Moore, Lance WR 5-9 190 27 5 Toledo
 xx Adrian Arrington
19 Henderson, Devery WR 5-11 200 28 7 Louisiana State
17 Meachem, Robert WR 6-2 210 26 4 Tennessee
15 Roby, Courtney WR 6-0 189 27 5 Indiana
Colston leadsa deep group of receivers in numbers of catches, but Moore is their home run guy. Arrington is listed on the depth chart, but not the roster.

 Tight Ends
88 Shockey, Jeremy TE 6-5 251 30 9 Miami (Fla.)
85 Thomas, David TE 6-3 248 27 5 Texas
80 Graham, Jimmy TE 6-6 260 23 R Miami (Fla.)
84 Humphrey, Tory TE 6-2 255 27 4 Central Michigan
Shockey is this week's Zach Miller or Antonio Gates if you know what I'm sayin'. He will be next in a series of "challenges" for Adrian Wilson.  Thomas is also a receiving threat. Humphrey is listed on the roster, but not the NO depth chart.

DE - 93 Campbell, 79 Iwebema
NT - 97 B Robinson, 98 Watson, 92 D Williams
DT - 90 Dockett, 78 Branch
These guys are (a) inconsistent and (b) get rattled easily when things aren't going right. Result - they're inclined to get caught out of position, bite on fakes and overrrun plays. And (are you listening D-Dock?) they jump offsides too often.

OLB1 - 55 Porter
ILB  51 Lenon, 52 Obiozor
ILB- 58 D Washington, 56 Walker,
OLB2 - 53 Haggans,  59 W Davis
Our inside backers (Lenon and DWash) had atypical "bad hair days last Sunday (So did Porter and Haggans but  their lack of production was unfortunately more typical. The entire unit tended to run themselves out of plays, fill the wrong gaps and get lost in space covering passes.

RCB - 28 Toler, 37 McBride, MacDonald
LCB- 29 Rodgers-Cromartie, 27 Adams   
SS-  24 Wilson,  22 Ware, 41 Abdullah, 40 Tillman
FS- 25 Rhodes,  49 Rash Johnson
Last Sunday you could make the case that our best DB was Toler. DRC has been a less reliable tackler and has given up more big plays than he's made. A-Dub contines to be undressed by opposing TE's (i.e. Zach Miller and Antonio Gates) - and this week draws (yippee!) Jeremy Schockey (a very scary thought indeed). Rhodes will occasionally fall victim but has been making more big plays than he's given up. His fumble recovery and TD run last week was arguably the only Cardinal highlight of the afternoon.

K-04 Feely
P- 05 B Graham,
H - 05  B Graham
LS- 82 Leach
KR - 37Stephens-Howling
PR - 12 Roberts, 18 Komar, 15 Breaston, 37Stephens-Howling
Feely and Graham are fine. So is LSH (who has Sproles-style home run potential returning KO's). Our punt return game has continually been an adventure, but Roberts did have one good one near the end of last week's fiasco vs. the Chargers.

   Cardinals vs. Saints Matchups

Injuries:
Cardinals:  DNP: Doucet (groin), Breaston (knee), Iwebema (knee), Ware (ankle) . LP: Lenon (pelvis) Probable: TBA  

Saints: DNP: Bush (fibula),Pierre-Thomas (ankle), W Smith (groin), T Porter (knee) . LP: Harper (hammy), Prilolieau (chest), Schockey (knee) . Probable: TBA .

New Orleans  Passing Attack vs. Cardinal Pass Defense
Cardinal pass defenders have been undressed when they have to cover quality TE's in addition to other receiving options. Adrian Wilson bolo'd against Zach Miller and Antonio Gates. This week he draws Jeremy Schockey (albeit a gimpy version).  The NO offensive attack run by Brees is relentless - consistently moving down the field like a giant centipede. Brees spreads the ball around to several receivers, his RB's and his TE's. He makes decisions and gets rid of the ball quickly which, in turn keeps him generally upright (he's been sacked a reasonable 7 times in 5 games). Going into the season, a Cardinal defensive strength appeared to be its mix & match versatility, manouverability & aggressiveness that would enable them to gang up on an opposing weakness. The mutli-threat attack of the Saints pretty much negates this, because our defenders will be too preoccupied with various threats to scheme against one. The Cardinal secondary will have its hands full and its pass rushers figure to be one or two steps late getting to Brees before he gets rid of the ball.

New Orleans Running Attack vs. Cardinal Run Defense
The Saints don't run a lot, but when they do, they can gash you. They lack the big pounding presence of a Jackson, Gore or Snelling but have guys who can take it to the house if you don't maintain gap and contain-discipline. Reggie Bush and Pierre-Thomas did not practice Wed. and didn't play last week. Saints relied on Ivory and Betts). Card run defenders must be careful not to abandon their assignments and run themselves out of plays. Our LB's and DB's must break down properly in order to bottle up any breakaway threats (i.e. no lunging and whiffing by DRC or Joey P one-on-one in the open field).

Cardinal Passing Attack vs. New Orleans Pass Defense
Hall gets the starting nod. We imagine he'll be given a more Brees-like game plan - i.e. lots of short, horizontal, move-the-chains, manage-the-game type safe stuff relying on his quick release/decision-making along with a more balanced run/pass mix than we've seen to date. Cardinal pass blockers will have to do a better job containing the Saint inside pass rush (especially by Ellis) and - if it's Hall in there - an assortment of blitz packages. A bunch of NO defensive backs (Prioleau, Harper, Porter) are banged up.

Key to the success of our passing attack is to keep it simple and minimize the risk of turnovers (both picks and sack/fumbles)

Cardinal Running Attack vs. New Orleans Run Defense
When you review the NO stats (553 rushing yards allowed), you come to the logical conclusion that  the Saints can be run against.  Beanie should be healthy. THT should be healthy. When we brought in Hall, we demonstrated the willingness to look for answers outside our normal offensive box. So go it one better and run the ball and run it some more - even if the yardage is paltry at first. At the very least (assuming that Hall gets the nod), the threat of the run figures to afford the passer some degree of sack-security and could be instrumental in setting up the pass & establishing some rhythm. In addition, our O-line might enjoy a nice day of ramming the ball down the other team's throat instead of becoming exhausted filling the role of "dancing bears." 

Special Teams
Excuse me for stating the obvious, but, each week, it seems as though at least 2 or three games are influenced in a big way by special teams - either a long return or a blocked punt or FG. The Cards have kick blockers galore (C Campbell, DRC, A-Dub and others) and they have a return guy with home run potential in LSH. As the Chargers discovered in Seattle a couple of weeks ago, big special teams plays can be the Great Equalizer. One way to bring the Saints back to earth could be via special teams. Of course, this can work both ways - a lackadaisical approach to kick coverage by the Cardinal coverage unit could result in happy times for Reggie Bush, so we'd better be careful.

Final Word
3 & 2 going into Bye Week sounds a lot better than 2 & 3. But I'm afraid scary times lie ahead for the Cardinals; happy days for the Saints. But more often than you'd think, strange things have been known to upset the fiercest of forecasts in the NFL. One thing's for sure, however: Pleasant surprises cannot occur unless the team on the good end of a surprise plays hard and keeps its cool for the entire game. "Opportunities will pass you by unless you remain ready and poised to pounce on them." (Fingers crossed).