In depth 2013: New Orleans Saints

by | Mar 19, 2013 | 2012 season, 2013 season, NFL Draft, NFL Free Agency, NFL Random Thoughts

The Bounty-gate driven absence of Sean Payton, discontent driven by Steve Spagnuolo’s newly-installed defensive schemes and the absence of other coaches and key players caused havoc on the New Orleans Saints in 2012 to the point where not even another exceptional season by Drew Brees could completely turn things around.

The Saints can put Bounty-gate behind them now. But questions still remain. Was Spagnuolo the issue on defense or was it a dearth of talent? Does Payton’s return bring normalcy back? And how long can Brees continue playing at an elite level? Travis Dauro, a contributing writer at Canal Street Chronicles, shared some of his observations with Zoneblitz.

Zoneblitz: How much of the Saints’ 7-9 season had to do with the coaching staff suspensions and how much would have happened anyway?

Dauro: Coming in to the season, I really did not expect for Sean Payton’s absence to affect the team as drastically as it did.  The team looked unmotivated, undisciplined, and just looked completely different.  Those three factors would have been different had he been around for 2012.  I would like to say that the defense would not have been as porous as it was, but I’m not completely sold on that theory. (more…)

ZB Notebook: 12-13-2012

by | Dec 13, 2012 | 2012 season, NFL Random Thoughts

Drew Brees and Roger Goodell far from burying the hatchet

New Orleans Saints players indicted and convicted by Commissioner Goodell had their suspensions overturned by Paul Tagliabue, who had been appointed to take another look at the BountyGate allegations.

But neither the commissioner, nor Saints quarterback Brees are backing down from the ongoing fight.

Brees chimed in shortly after Tabliabue’s ruling saying Goodell lacked credibility with players and fans for how he handled the incidents. The quarterback has been outspoken from the start about his frustration with how the allegations were handled.

Goodell responded via the Huffington Post article by saying he would not apologize for anything and indicating that he still believes the Saints employed a bounty system and that doing so was unacceptable.

I’m not sure either guy is completely right. I think Goodell has done a credible job since becoming commissioner of creating penalties for players who A) don’t conduct themselves well off the field and who B) carelessly put opposing players in danger with massive hits, etc.

But like many of his critics, I think Goodell has gone too far in appointing himself as accuser and judge. There needs to be a more equitable and fair process. And he has been less than forthcoming about any evidence that does exist against Saints players, executives and coaches.

Brees, meanwhile, has always conducted himself with respect and class. But he seems to have buried his head in the sand, at least to some respect, as far as BountyGate goes, seemingly denying that anything took place despite admissions from defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and others.

It’s understandable that Brees would be frustrated about how the season has unfolded. The 5-8 Saints are virtually out of the playoff race and he isn’t getting any younger. How many more chances he’ll have to chase a second Super Bowl is no guarantee.

But still, even if the evidence against the players wasn’t strong, penalties against Williams, Sean Payton, Joe Vitt and Mickey Loomis were warranted, whether the ones they received went overboard or not.

(more…)

NFL Picks, 2012 Season, Week 12

by | Nov 21, 2012 | 2012 season, NFL Picks

The New England Patriots scored a convincing win last weekend against Indianapolis, but it ended up being a costly one.

Star tight end Rob Gronkowski could miss a month or more with a broken arm suffered while blocking on an extra point late in the game.

Richard Hill, assistant editor for Pats Pulpit, acknowledges that Gronk is a tough loss to swallow, but adds that the team may be primed for another deep playoff run nonetheless.

Aaron Hernandez and three other lesser known tight ends will have to step up in his absence. And all three phases of the game will have to adjust and play better.

Nonetheless, the schedule plays out favorably for clinching a playoff spot, with two contests against Miami and single games against New York Jets and Jacksonville on the slate. A first-round bye, however, might be a tough get.

“It won’t be easy,” Hill says. “They’ll need the Ravens to either drop two games (likely) and beat the Broncos (possible, but it’s at Mile High), or they’ll need the Broncos to stumble along the way (not likely).”

Hill provided some longer thoughts that we’ve turned into its own post. He also joined us as our guest blogger for this Thanksgiving weekend’s slate of games.

Week 11 realistically saw a great week of picks across the board, but Andy’s 10-4 picks were far and away the worst of the week, finishing two games back of Derek Arnold from the Russell Street Report—who’s pick of Chicago on Monday night kept him from matching Tony’s 13-1 mark. The only game Tony missed was the Jets drubbing of the Rams, a game that Andy and Tony discussed as potentially going that way earlier in the week over lunch (you’re going to have to just trust us on that one, we really did discuss it).

That puts some distance between first and second place for the season:

Week 11 Season
Tony 13-1 105-54-1
Andy 10-4 102-57-1
Celebrity Bloggers 12-2 100-59-1

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NFL Best Bets: Week 11 – 2012

by | Nov 15, 2012 | 2012 season, NFL Gambling

Well, what do you know? We had a decent week. My 3-1 and Tony’s 4-0 make it look like we actually have a clue what’s going on in the NFL.

We were due. The wins bring him to 18-22 while I “improve” to 16-24. Are we about to get on that midseason roll? Time will tell.

Here are our picks for week 11. (more…)

NFL Best Bets: Week 10 – 2012

by | Nov 6, 2012 | 2012 season, NFL Gambling

Sure, when I go to Vegas, everything is normal, but the week after I leave all hell breaks loose.

“Books get destroyed,” screams the headline of a VegasInsider.com story that estimates gamblers took the city’s establishments for $7 million to $9 million over the weekend due to the success players had in betting favorites on parlay cards.

Nobody is going to feel sorry for Las Vegas sports books, however. Whether they lost $9 million or not, over time they’ll do fine. And they still did better than Tony and I did on our bets, which have been a struggle all season long.

I got a 2-2 for the week that probably would have netted a small profit with my success in nailing the upset of the week, Tampa over Oakland. It wasn’t a big spread, but the Raiders never should have been favored in that game, in my humble opinion.

Tony was 1-3, hitting only the Indianapolis win over Miami. So, for the season, Tony is a dismal 14-22 while I am a slightly even more pathetic 13-23.

So here’s your next chance to win money by doing the opposite of what we suggest… (more…)