The New Orleans have a bad defense and a decent offense. Yes, I called a team fielding Drew Brees and Adrian Peterson decent. The problem is that they have been left behind in a division where everyone is innovating this season. Dirk Koetter has created an offense for Jameis Winston. The Falcons have Matt Ryan and Julio Jones. The Panthers have McCaffrey. The Saints have an offense that won a Super Bowl nearly a decade ago, and they are still running the same thing all these years later. That should give you pause if you are a fan of the team, and it means that I think they will finish fourth in the NFC South.
Not a terrible fourth place finish, considering they are aging, outdated, and ready for a makeover.
Sean Payton
The simple fact is that Sean Payton never really came back from being suspended for a year. I know he wanted to get back to Drew and this offense that made him a premiere name in the NFL, but it is just not working. They have not been nearly good enough since they won the Super Bowl, and Bounty Gate made it that much worse. I have to wonder if he maybe needs a change of scenery. It worked for Urban Meyer when he went to Ohio State.
Drew Brees
I never said Drew was bad or failing or anything terrible. I am only saying that the offense he runs is old. The offense is not as innovative as other offenses in their own division.
Do we really think that this offense is as fresh as the one they will be running in Carolina, Atlanta, or Tampa? No, it is not. This offense is an olden thing that has not been effective in years. I love Drew Brees because I love his story, but that does not mean that I am going to sit here and pretend that he will tear up this division.
Adrian Peterson
Adrian Peterson could run for 2000 yards this season, but that will not put the Saints in the playoffs. They could go 7-9 on the strength of that, but they will be right behind Tampa, who will be very close to Carolina. I believe that it is easy for us to pretend that Adrian can make this offense work, but the simple fact is that he is a feature back.
Drew is a feature passer. They have to pick one, and the choice will obviously be Drew when the chips are down and this team is struggling to get into the playoffs.
The South is close
The Saints will be at 7-9, and the Bucs will be 9-7. The Panthers will be 10-6, and the Falcons will be 12-4 or 11-5. It is that simple. The NFC South is by far the toughest division in the NFL, and they will prove it by causing each other problems all season.
