Merry Christmas! It’s nice to wake up on a Christmas morning right after a fun Saints game that ended in a win. Regardless of what that means for draft stock, 8-8 is a finish I really want at this point. The offense responded in a big way after getting embarrassed by the same defense in Tampa. The difference? A commitment to the run early and often. That meant a lot more balance, which meant success throwing the ball, and less turnovers. None, to be exact. That feat alone against this defense was significant. Normally the difference in close Saints game is the mistakes this team makes. This time they let Jameis Winston be the culprit while taking good care of the football. Below are the grades:
Drew Brees: B+ (2.96) A clean game with no turnovers. I think first and foremost you hoped for that and he delivered. A much better job against a tough defense this time around. He wasn’t beyond reproach, though. He throw two very dangerous passes to the sideline that almost ended up picked off (to Cooks and Ingram). He was guilty for a delay of game, and he was responsible for a couple sacks by waiting too long as oppose to just making the decision to take off and run. He finished 23 of 34 for 299 yards and 1 touchdown with no turnovers. There were five horrendous drops, though, that probably resulted in 50 passing yards lost. Not his most prolific game, but he was solid. I bumped his grade to B+ (from a B originally) because I thought his stats would have been much better if his playmakers didn’t miss so many easy plays.
Mark Ingram: A (2.78) He had 18 carries for 90 yards and 2 touchdowns. He added 2 catches for 3 yards which included a short gain on a sick one handed catch. He also added a 2 point conversion run. His power and fire during the game was excellent. He’s now just 60 yards short of his first 1,000 yard season. I really hope he gets it. He broke a lot of tackles, was physical to the second level and always falling forward. Tampa really lucked out that his toe was so much of an issue in the first meeting two weeks ago that the Saints couldn’t really use him. I felt he was the missing ingredient for the Saints to have the upper hand. His second half of the season has been largely tremendous. I almost gave him an A+ but he was flagged for a facemask – which was a weak call.
Tim Hightower: C+ (2.53) A decent showing with 8 carries for 29 yards and 1 catch for 11 yards on a beautifully designed and executed screen. Faster runners would have made a huge gain out of that play. Overall he wasn’t as powerful as Ingram but he kept the Bucs honest and did a good job effort wise.
John Kuhn: A- (2.84) A very solid day blocking whether it was in pass protection or paving the way for the runner. He also ran for 3 yards on a 3rd and 1 and made a really tough catch high with a cover guy draped all over him for a 7 yard gain. Another workmanlike performance.
Travaris Cadet: B (2.29) He finished with 2 catches for 16 yards and a touchdown. Modest stats, but both catches were impressive in their own right. The score was a classic Sproles type play where he made a fantastic cut/route. On his other catch, a simple out route, Brees had to hurry due to pressure and the location was a little off but he made a very good catch. He’s been playing well.
Coby Fleener: C (2.24) Ball security remains an issue. He finished with 2 catches for 30 yards, both good plays. The second was a pass down the seam where he took a huge shot and hung on to the ball. He had two drops, one on a free shot down the field due to offsides that was tough – but big tight ends with small guys in coverage have to use their body/leverage/hands to make that play – and the other was a huge hit that looked like a fumble to me. The Saints were extremely lucky that was ruled an incomplete pass after review because the result could have been very different if he fumbles there. Again, just way too inconsistent. He also drew a pass interference downfield for a nice gain.
John Phillips: B (2.10) Played a lot, blocked well, and finished with 2 catches for 15 yards. Both catches were in very tight coverage and he absorbed big contact while hanging on to the ball. An impressive contribution, probably his best showing as a Saint.
Brandin Cooks: B- (2.87) The stats were nice, 5 catches for 98 yards. He had two horrible drops, though, that are plays he makes in his sleep. One was a drive killer on 3rd down that forced the Saints to settle for a field goal. He also fumbled on a nice play near the sideline and was fortunate the ball fell out of bounds. That could have had disastrous consequences. Like Fleener he was too inconsistent in this game – though his production was heavier. The Bucs had trouble staying with him.
Michael Thomas: B+ (2.98) I would say he was awesome except for two end zone targets where Vernon Hargreaves kind of owned him. He had 6 catches for 98 yards. His long of 46 was his usual simple 5 yard slant where he did all his damage after the catch showing strength and speed. This guy is an awesome player.
Willie Snead, IV: C- (2.78) Just 2 catches for 21 yards on 5 targets, one of which was a comeback route on a flea flicker. I was surprised on a crossing route one on one with Kwon Alexander to see him get zero separation on that breakup. With that matchup he has to get a step. He had a horrible drop when the Saints were pinned deep in their own territory on what would have been a nice gain. Instead, the Saints went 3 and down, punted, and the Bucs would go down and score to make it 7-7. If he makes that routine catch… who knows?
Brandon Coleman: C+ (2.46) Played little, almost exclusively on running plays, but I thought he blocked well.
Tommylee Lewis: C (2.30) Was never targeted. All touchbacks and fair catches on returns. Played a decent amount on offense but was a decoy throughout, often running the jet sweep motion threat.
Andrus Peat: B+ (2.71) A solid showing. He gave up pressure a couple of times in pass protection but he was powerful, physical and showed real difference making in run support. A good game.
Senio Kelemete: B (2.48) His arm was heavily wrapped and braced, much moreso than Strief’s elbow. Not sure what’s going on, but he’s playing with one good arm for sure. He pulled many times on the Ingram runs with mixed results, but something it was great. Gave up some pressure on pass plays but handled himself well overall.
Max Unger: C+ (2.74) Gave up a sack, though the initial pressure was from Evans. Also had a bad exchange with Brees that ended up not resulting in anything bad as Brees was able to make something happen. Overall he was fine but those two plays stood out. I feel like his play has dipped a little since the injury.
Jahri Evans: B (2.69) The last two weeks I thought he’s played at a very high level. McCoy is no joke and Evans played well against him. He didn’t win every battle and he leaked pressure a couple of times, but overall a very solid day – particularly in pass protection.
Zach Strief: A- (3.00) After his play dropped off a good bit these last couple weeks, he stepped back up and played extremely well in all areas. Whenever there was edge pressure he recovered and Brees stepped up in the pocket. A real nice contribution in the run game too.
Landon Turner: C+ (2.44) I was surprised to see him out there in jumbo sets ahead of Lelito at times but he handled himself pretty well as an extra edge guy.
Tim Lelito: C+ (2.51) Not much impact in jumbo sets but had a positive block on a short yardage carry.
My Offensive Player of the Game: Mark Ingram
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