re: Where is Flacco in your NFL QB hierarchy?

quote:

---

offensive scheme - saints (pass) baltimore (run)

---

Saints averaged the same amount of ypc as the Ravens.

quote:

---

better backs - so you're telling me PT, sproles, and ingram > rice and bernard pierce? going with little ray on this one

---

Rice is the best back in that group, but Pierce is a rookie and didn't really start getting many touches til the end of the year. They have no one else of of any note at the RB position. The Saints are deeper and more diversified at the position. I'd put it as as a push.

quote:

---

better TE - graham > pitta, but pitta isn't some lowly TE. he's coming along just fine

---

Graham is a top 5 tight end and David Thomas a solid number two tight end. Yeah Pitta started to come along this year, but he's not in the top 10 of tight ends in the league and hell may not even be in the top 15.

quote:

---

better receivers - anquan boldin and torrey smith > marques colston and lance moore.

---

lol wut? Boldin and Smith as solid and all, but neither are true number one at this point. The Saints' receiving corps wasn't as deep as it was the year before with the loss of Meachem, but let's be real, you have to factor in Pierre Thomas and Sproles because they are great pass catchers out of the backfield.

If you looking at the starting 11's outside of the QBs, the Ravens have the better starting back and the better number 2 receiver (Smith over Moore, but only because of Smith's elite speed), but 7-8 of the other players are clearly better for the Saints.

Don't forget that even because Payton wasn't on the sidelines, it's not like he his gameplan wasn't used and he had no impact on their playcalling at all. If you seriously believe he had NOTHING to do with their gameplans or gameday operations, you are delusional. With all of the tech available today, he could call the game and run the practices from a poolside bar in Brazil if he wanted to.