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Originally Posted by detltu
The Bye will help out a lot. Really as long as you keep your lead over the Vikings (and Carolina might be helping you out with that tonight) you should be fine.
It's hard sometimes when you run a precision passing offense like NO does. If they get out of rythym it isn't always easy to get it back. That's why it's nice to have a veteran like Brees running the show.
Nothing better than to watching Jerry Jones losing.
The key is, you have to put the team with the "precision passing offense" (N Orleans) in "catchup" mode. You have to score first, and you have to keep the ball away from their high powered offense as much as possible. The Cowboys did that successfully last night. After falling behind and experiencing a couple of 3 and outs, Brees and company had trouble establishing any offensive rythym until the 4t qtr.
HD
I think Peyton has been really smart this year about injuries. If anyone was even remotely hurt they have sat out. I fully believe that if that game last night was a playoff game you would have seen Shockey and some of the other guys out there. Bush would have probably returned (although he probably wouldn't have helped and we still don't know the extent of his injury).
I may be crazy but I also think the Saints brought a fairly vanilla package both offensively and defensivly against the redskins and rams and maybe a few other low quality teams this year. You play to win the game but I think we held back a little trying not to show our hand for some of the better teams. I am not sure about atlanta 2.0. I am sure that that was not the case last night. That is kind of why I think that was such a bad performance for us. I don't think it was a vanilla game plan that hurt us. It was just being out played and not executing.
You are right and I would say getting ahead and then running the ball well and chewing up the clock was the key. I think we were still in that game at the end. The Cowboys just ate up way too much clock for us to have time for a comeback. The fact that we were down 21 points at the start of the 4th quarter and scored twice and didn't attempt an onside kick speaks volumes. That last drive when Dallas missed the field goal was pretty crucial. Had we stopped them on 3rd and 5, I like our chances of tying it up. We have to do a better job of handling Ware though. He reminded everyone that Bushrod is a backup. I am not sure Jamaal Brown would have done much better though.
The Running back's get just as much credit as he does. 3 different times he got a sack and was UNTOUCHED. I think at least twice it was Pierre Thomas that should have picked him up, but instead he went inside to help double team someone in the middle. REALLY bad pass blocking.
Yeap. Our center going down in the 1st qtr killed us as well as having to start our 3rd string LT. Shockey shows up game time on inactive. Then we lose Bush. Oh well. Beat Tampa, rest our starters that are not on IR and hope the inactive starters make it back in time.
That's exactly what they need to do. Peyton Manning said it best the other day when he said going undefeated isn't the goal. Winning the Super Bowl is. So what if the Saint's lose the last game of the year. Play everyone this week. Wrap up homefield advantage, then sit everyone the last week. The game is meaningless who cares if you lose? Rest up another week with the BYE and then be ready to kick some tail in the playoffs. There is no reason to roll out those starters, even the healthy ones, for that last week.
Two very interesting articles for this week.
links
Jerry Jones won't waste time deciding on Phillips
Mark Cuban unhappy about Cowboys' playoff schedule
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