Saints vs Chiefs - Preview
November 14, 2008 by Jeff Lalonde
Filed under NFL Football, Saints
As the Saints try to climb their way out of the NFC South division cellar they will be forced to do so without the help of Reggie Bush. Bush has been ruled out for Sunday’s game and Deuce McAllister, Pierre Thomas, and Aaron Stecker will be forced to share the rushing load once again. The Saints are in a must win situation but if there is ever a good time for Bush to miss a game and get back to 100 percent health it’s this one. The Saints are facing the 1-8 Kansas City Chiefs in week 11 who rank dead last in the NFL at stopping the run. The Saints should be able to move the ball on the ground in this game as the Chiefs scramble to stop Drew Brees and the Saints’ potent passing attack.
It looks like the Chiefs have finally found a quarterback in Tyler Thigpen. Thigpen is a mobile quarterback and has passed for 6 touchdowns and zero interceptions in his last 3 games. On top of that the Chiefs will insert former all-pro running back Larry Johnson back into the lineup after being inactive for 4 weeks. Johnson should be well rested and will be a tough test for the Saints’ banged up front seven. Johnson’s absence has been a blessing in disguise for the Chiefs. Early in the season the Chiefs ran a very vanilla offense and ran the ball much more than they passed, even when playing from behind. With the suspension to Larry Johnson and the team’s poor record the Chiefs began to play with nothing to lose and decided to open things up by using a spread offense. As a result Chiefs have been moving the ball very effectively and Sunday’s game could be fairly evenly matched.
The Saints have been a model of inconsistency this season and have yet to string together two consecutive wins. Part of the reason for this is injuries and the other part is inexperience and a lack of execution. The Saints are generally a young team and have given away numerous close games this year due to turnovers and penalties. On many occasions this season it appeared as though the Saints lacked the killer instinct to be one of the elite teams in the NFC. This can be attributed to the inexperience of the players as well as the coaching staff. Sean Payton loves his fancy passing plays and it looks as though the Saints will lead the league once again in pass attempts. With so many intricate passing plays in the playbook you have to wonder who many hours of practice are actually spent on the fundamentals of football, you know the little things, like not taking penalties. There have been times this year where the Saints had been experiencing success running the ball but abandoned the run for no apparent reason. As I’ve said before, this defense is not built to engage in shootouts with other teams and the Saints should be playing more of a clock management game. Until this happens we will continue to see Drew Brees put up over 400 yards passing in a losing effort.
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Last post (s) by Jeff Lalonde
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November 14th, 2008 at 7:00 pm
Is Shockey worth picking up in my fanasty league or is he completely hopeless?
November 15th, 2008 at 7:41 am
Jeremy Shockey is gonna have a huge game against KC, in my opinion at least.
November 15th, 2008 at 9:02 am
I have Heath Miller but he’s not playing this week, it’s either Jon Carlson or Shockey, who’s the better pick up?
November 15th, 2008 at 10:18 am
Between those two I would have to go with Carlson. Shockey is too injured and only seems to play half the snaps for the Saints. Even when he is on the field he’s mainly a blocker.
November 15th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Shockey will have a better game then John Carlson. Jeremy Shockey wants to prove that he’s not useless and that him and Drew are on good terms.
But in the end Adam, do what you want..
November 15th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Seattle has Hasselbeck back in the line up so I see where Jeff might think Carlson would be a decent sleeper, but I agree with you that Shockey has something to prove and might break out of this slump at anytime.
November 15th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
I hope Shockey has something to prove although you would think that would have been the case all year after the Giants dumped him for a pick. After watching the Saints games this year it’s clear that Shockey is banged up. He’s slower than ever and only plays limited snaps. Besides I dropped him in my fantasy league so he’s not allowed to have a good game!