GC: Saints at Colts

[TaDa]

WOO HOO! Going up against LT and Brees this week, and Brees only scored him 7 points. NOICE!

[treat24]

Just picked up Colts D in all of my Yahoo leagues. If they can totally shut down one of the most potent offenses in the NFL, they should be solid all year.

Note on Eric Johnson: I really think he caught so many passes tonight simply because the game was out of hand and the Colts were giving Brees 10-15 in the middle and Johnson was squatting down there. He caught like 5 or 6 passes in the last drive or 2. Unless you expect the Saints to get blown up weekly, I'd temper my expectations on Johnson.

what kind of league would allow you to pick up the colts D already... dumb setting having FA open 24/7

[TruNinerFan]

I would start every Saint next week. They are going to be pissed after their performence. I predict Brees, Bush and Colston will all have moster weeks.

[PMoneyTKE]

Defense. I realize it's just one game, but it was against the best offense in the NFC. Everyone said we'd be worse off because of all the offseason losses on defense. I've said it for months that we're better now than we were with last year's players. Keiaho, Marlin, Hayden...all improvements. I hope this is just the beginning.

Exactly, i've loved Keiaho from the moment he stepped on the field. Did you see that play where he blew up the blocker and knocked him back into Bush for the tackle and the 5 yard loss? Just ridiculous, i'm stoked for the rest of the season!

[onnestabe]

Am I the only one who thinks the offensive line for the Saints was total junk tonight? Maybe the Colts D is THAT good but I think the Saints were also just playing absolutely horrible football.

saints were junk all over

Yeah I agree. Was it more of great Colts defense or sucky Saints offense? Saints were dropping passes left and right, they were getting tackled in the backfield every other rush attempt, Brees' timing was off it seemed. Overall I guess it's a combination of both, I am really shocked how horrible the Saints played though.

Painful stuff last night for me.

First off, the Saints offensive line isn't as good as the commentators have been saying all offseason. Jamall Brown probably wasn't deserving of the Pro-Bowl nod last year. It was more of a function of there not being that many well-known tackles worth selecting and the amount of hype that was around the Saints at the time. Payton was able to hide a lot of defficiencies in the O-line with quick passes and misdirection plays. They will get better as the season progresses, but it is not a top-tier line by any stretch of the imagination.

The Colts beat the Saints using the game-plan that the Saints were supposed to use against them. They ran the ball to keep Brees and Co. off the field, and shortened the game. The Colts D played into it as well by not allowing anyone to get open over the top and forcing them to put together long drives without mistakes. There aren't many offenses in this league that can put together a 15 play, 80 yard drive for a TD without committing a turnover or a procedure penalty. The Colts may be the only offense that could do it.

My preseason fears about Jason David were validated. He didn't appear to be that much of an upgrade over Fred Thomas. Unless they can find a way to get him help it's going to be another long season. Expect big fantasy days out of whichever WR lines up on the left side of the formation against the Saints.

The good news about this is that you can expect a lot of shootouts for the Saints this year, so you can start all your Saints players with confidence. The offense will rebound and get back to what made them so successful last year, and it looks like the defense is going to be pretty much the same thing it was last year, too - solid for the most part, except for the huge hole where Jason David/Jason Craft/Fred Thomas is standing.

[Ironhorse75]

Do you guys think Johnson is going to be catching a decent amount of balls throughout the season?

Even without the yards or the touchdowns, he could prove to be useful in my PPR league.

[maddog60]

Do you guys think Johnson is going to be catching a decent amount of balls throughout the season?

Even without the yards or the touchdowns, he could prove to be useful in my PPR league.

Even liked him as a sleeper TE all off-season, especially in PPR.

[Dr. Duran Duran]

Defense. I realize it's just one game, but it was against the best offense in the NFC. Everyone said we'd be worse off because of all the offseason losses on defense. I've said it for months that we're better now than we were with last year's players. Keiaho, Marlin, Hayden...all improvements. I hope this is just the beginning.

Exactly, i've loved Keiaho from the moment he stepped on the field. Did you see that play where he blew up the blocker and knocked him back into Bush for the tackle and the 5 yard loss? Just ridiculous, i'm stoked for the rest of the season!

Yes, that play in particular certainly opened my eyes. Just exploded right through the blocker and made a great play on the tackle. Rob Morris also looked mighty impressive, making several key tackles at or behind the line of scrimmage. Paired up with Gary Brackett, it's a nice trio of defenders to have patroling the middle. All-in-all, I'm very excited. We all know the offense is good to go, it all depends on how much the defense gives. They didn't give much last night against one of the league's best offenses. Very impressive.

[Cleokatrah]

Off Topic: How many quarterbacks have essentially caught their own passes and rushed with them?