I very passively watched the games yesterday still distraught over how the 49ers game ended, but my disgust took a whole new level when I found out the Giants demolished the Packers 37-20. What that means is if the Saints’ defense could have just held on on that final drive, we’d be hosting the NFC Championship this coming Sunday in the Superdome against a team we beat by almost 30 in the regular season. I had tickets to that game too. My wife said it best: “the Saints broke my heart and the Giants stomped it to pieces”. The way the Saints have played at home all season I have zero doubt they’d be punching a ticket to the Super Bowl if they had just stopped Alex Smith with 90 seconds left from going over 80 yards. We are all left to wonder the what ifs. Would’ve, could’ve, should’ve.
What makes this loss so much more hurtful is the uncertainty that surrounds the offseason. Gregg Williams is likely gone and we can’t be sure who will replace him. The only candidates named so far are Steve Spagnuolo of the Rams who was just fired as head coach. While he had a miserable season, he did coach the defense that did the best against the Saints’ offense in the regular season. Mike Nolan who is the current defensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins is the other. Nolan is a 3-4 guy, so it remains to be seen if his scheme would even fit the Saints, or if they would be prepared to change personnel to suit his scheme. Another guy with local ties I’d like to see considered is Jack Del Rio (yes, just about every blogger has said the same thing), but so far he has not been mentioned. Add to that the very real possibility that Marques Colston and Carl Nicks could both be lost with no compensation. It’s already been reported that Colston won’t give the Saints a hometown discount, and it’s also been apparently claimed as a foregone conclusion that Carl Nicks won’t come back. I would have been nice to have a deeper run into the playoffs before dealing with that mess.
I’m sure some of you were expecting grades today but you’ll forgive me for putting it off a day. I’m sure you’ll understand my relunctance to promptly tackle that task. They’re still coming, unfortunately.
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