re: NFL.com, "Saints will have 6th best offense. Pats/Steelers look scary"

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It's all about the D...yall know this

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Noooo way.... tell us more

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Glad you put downgrade in parentheses. In TGJs defense, he's never really had a decent QB. I know Ginn has had drop issues but let's see what he does with a guy who can actually throw to him

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Yep. Cam Newton isn't a very accurate passer. He misses open guys pretty regularly. When Cam is on, he looks like pro bowler...but when he's not on, he looks like 3rd string QB.

I realize that Ginn has some drops, but if he gets open...Brees will put it on the money much more consistently than Cam.

We also didn't have PT Bush's rookie year.

Kamara has two legit back in front of him. Payton isn't going to force feed him carries like he did to Bush his rookie year (plus Payton has learned a lot from things like that over the years).

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Yea. Subtracting a really good wide receiver and adding an injury riddled back up running back, an offensive lineman to "maybe" replace strief, and a rookie running back equates to possibly having best saints offense ever. Yet you shite on teams with a lot and even more coming back.

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Teams are more than just players; they are schemes too.

The Sean Payton/Drew Brees offense, at it's best, does not require a Cooks type of WR. Note that I put "WR", not just offensive weapon.

Cooks is a good deep threat. They do require 1 WR to stretch the field. You want the deep threat to be a true WR, to pull one of the corners in addition to forcing the safeties back.

Cooks is good in space; but again, he's a WR. Doesn't matter if you line him up in the backfield, he's going to draw a corner. So on shorter routes, the corner isn't being pulled out.

The Saints offense is best when the "good in space" guy is a RB. Your deep threat WR pulls a corner deep and pushes the safeties back. Your #1 WR (Colston/Thomas) and your possession WR (Moore/Snead) then have room in the middle of the field. Doesn't have to be much, but you need guys comfortable in tight spaces (this is where Cooks ran into trouble, he wasn't very effective in that role). When those guys are able to soak up catches in small windows, then the defense drops off more to defend against that, and THAT's when the RB becomes huge. You get a guy like Bush/Sproles basically 1 on 1 with a single linebacker, and the mismatch is complete.
The TE is a mix of possession and space guy.

Drew knows this system inside out, and it doesn't take him hardly any time to read- 1) deep WR 2) primary WR 3) possession WR and TE 4) "space" RB.

Cooks is wasted in this scheme; he's fine for deep threats, but that isn't the main focus. He's no good crossing in the middle, and when he is in a release/"out in space" role, he's got a corner on him, not a LB. It isn't the same rhythm, and above all, you want Brees in a rhythm.
Ginn is fine for the deep WR role. He'll do what Henderson did- pull a corner out of the play, and push the safeties back so Thomas and Snead can get established, and open up the potential for the backs to get single coverage in space against a linebacker.

Once that overall rhythm is in place, you can pound with the runs.

Good post

Fleener pisses me off though.

more of a Josh Hill fan myself.

i still feel like we tried too hard to make a splash at TE at the time of his signing.

I'm still amazed Ben Watson hit the fountain of youth one last time in 2015. I guess the Saints figured they could stick anyone at the position after the solid season he had that year.

well probably not... but just saying.

I think we just got spoiled after Shockey, Jimmy, and then Watson's surprise 2015 year.

i don't know

Man I really like the idea of playing 2 back sets with ingram/Kamara and Peterson. Seems a little college-y but man would it be dangerous. What do you even do as the defense? PA out of that formation... yowza