Which Saints Team Will Show Up?

August 29, 2011 – The question that burned in my mind for last night’s game was which New Orleans Saints team would show up to face the Oakland Raiders?  Would it be the Saints who dominated the San Francisco 49ers?  Or would it be the Saints who got rolled by the Houston Texans?

Well, both of those teams showed up.  Drew Brees played up to his standard and led all three drives he played in to touchdowns.  However, the defense looked like a high school team at times.  Michael Bush was running like Reggie was supposed to and Jason Campbell picked the secondary apart, making key passes to Derek Hagan, including one for a touchdown.  Several of the Raider’s big plays were due to poor tackling by the Saints.  However, the Saints starting defense did later regroup and play better. 

In the defense’s defense, Cris Collinsworth correctly noted that Shaun Rogers was getting penetration, but Bush, and later Taiwan Jones against the backups, would cut against the grain and turned losses into gains.  He also noted some “veteran holds” that went uncalled, which included some that helped Oakland get decent gains. 

Note to the refs:  When an offensive lineman is grabbing the back side of a defender’s jersey, in this case, Will Smith’s jersey, and is practically trying to rip it off and tackle the guy, it’s okay to throw the flag.  The Saints’ offensive line had some of those uncalled holds, too, but the way Smith was being held was rather obvious.

Although the 2-1 Saints dominated Oakland, who is now 0-3, the Raiders can be a better team than in previous years.  If Campbell can play with the poise he had last night, then Oakland will have a dangerous, speedy offense, and Terrelle Pryor can sit on the sidelines and learn.  If not, then they will be just another 8-8 team or worse.  Brees exposed the secondary’s weaknesses, which may be the Raiders’ Achilles heel this season.

Mark Ingram showed flashes of being a dominating running back by making good runs and pushing a pile into the end zone for a touchdown.  However, the offensive line needs to make some holes for him to run through.  Chase Daniel is proving to be a solid backup to Brees and can manage the offense when needed.  Joique Bell had some good gains, but that was against the Raider backups.  Is this the team that can win a second Super Bowl for New Orleans?  Only time will tell.

Oakland hosts their former AFC West rival Seattle Seahawks on Friday.  Next up for the Saints are Chris Johnson and the Tennessee Titans in the Dome on Thursday. 

Again, which Saints team will show up?