Panthers take all 30-7
In writing this article I feel the same way I felt back in September of 2007 when the Indianapolis Colts defeated the New Orleans Saints 41-10. There was a lot of expectation and excitement to start the 2007 season, just like there was for the Saints/Panthers matchup this past weekend.
The Saints were coming off their best performance of the season routing the Oakland Raiders and having both wide receiver Marques Colston and Jeremy Shockey back and healthy to play a team who they had beaten six out of the last eight times they played in Charlotte.
It all looked good on paper, but games are played on the field.
In the 30-7 loss to the Panthers, I can’t think of one area the Saints out performed Carolina. They were beat in every football category and left battered and bruised by a very physical and hungry Carolina Panther squad.
Despite making some solid strides on the defensive side of the ball in run defense and adding a very good football player in middle linebacker Jonathan Vilma, the Saints just don’t have enough talent on defense to win just with their defense like the Tennessee Titans.
And what makes matters even worse is that at the present time they are not getting their money’s worth out of defensive ends Charles Grant and Will Smith.
I have the utmost respect for Panther quarterback Jake Delhomme, but he got little pressure put on him by the tandem of defensive ends who together in the course of their contracts will pocket over $120 million dollars.
For the Saints to win and become a force on defense the Saints need Will Smith and Charles Grant to play at a very high level and right now while they are playing good, they are not playing great.
It is also obvious that if quarterback Drew Brees does not play great the Saints have little to no chance to win.
Brees has played better than any other quarterback in the NFL so far this season, but he did not have good game against the Panthers because of constant pressure, defensive linemen getting their hands up to block down three passes and numerous drops, two by wide receiver Marques Colston.
The NFL game is centered around quarterback play and no matter how good you might be in other spots, you better have someone who is a playmaker each and every week at quarterback.
Just watch the New England Patriots and see how much they miss the passing skills of Tom Brady. Watch the Indianapolis Colts and see Peyton Manning, who is coming off of two knee surgeries struggle to get his passing groove back.
After a fast start the Dallas Cowboys have started to crumble when Tony Romo hit a bump on the NFL road and later broke his pinky finger.
Just like it’s the economy on who people will vote for in the upcoming presidential election, the key is the quarterback in the NFL.
The news doesn’t get any better also from the injury front as halfback Reggie Bush and center Jonathan Goodwin went down in the Panther game due to knee injuries and their availability for the London game against the San Diego Chargers and the next few games are questionable at best.
Not to mention tight end Jeremy Shockey throwing the Saints medical staff under the bus after the game by saying that the team mis-diagnosed his groin injury in the summer and that he would never trust a team doctor again without getting at least two other opinions.
The bottom line is that the Saints need to have quarterback Drew Brees, defensive ends Charles Grant and Will Smith and wide receiver Marques Colston playing at a very high level if they are to dig themselves out of the hole they are now in.
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