Were you at the game? Mark's ole lady swears she talked to you as we were leaving, but wasn't 100% sure it was you. We were feelin no pain, as I'm sure you can imagine.
Nah, it must've been Brad Pitt or something. I need to pay Mark a visit sometime soon. Me and him haven't polished off a bottle of Jameson in a while.
ESPN named the Saints D as one of their six studs for week one (the rest were individuals), writing: New Orleans Saints defense In their debut under new coordinator Rob Ryan, the Saints turned up the heat on Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan in a 23-17 victory. Rob Ryan sent at least five pass-rushers 15 times Sunday and got three sacks out of it. (The Saints didn't sack Matt Ryan in two games last season when using added pressure.) Overall, the Saints had Matt Ryan under duress on 29 percent of his dropbacks, almost double what they managed in 2012. It's also worth pointing out the huge play that rookie safety Kenny Vaccaro made to break up a potential late touchdown pass to Tony Gonzalez.
Sports Illustrated names Saints D as one of their six stars of week one (the rest being individuals) writing: Defense won the New Orleans Saints a football game. Go ahead: Take a moment, rub the sleep out of your eyes and check that sentence again. Still true. Last season, the Saints allowed more yards (7,042) than any team in NFL history. In Week 1 of 2013, they denied the potent Falcons’ offense...in the game’s final minute to preserve a victory. Atlanta trailed 23-17 with 3:12 left when it opened a drive that took its offense all the way to the Saints’ 7. There, New Orleans stood tall...locking up a crucial victory ... “[The defense] did an exceptional job all day long,” Drew Brees said. “They put pressure on the quarterback all day long and put them in some difficult situations.” The significance of such a performance in Rob Ryan’s first game as the Saints’ defensive coordinator and Sean Payton’s first regular-season game back from suspension will not be lost. Payton opened the game by winning the toss and deferring to the second half, putting his defense to the test early. Ten minutes into the first quarter, he then opted to go for it on 4th-and-1 from his own 47. The Saints failed to pick up that first down, but the defense limited Atlanta to a field goal. The Falcons led 10-0 at that point ... They would score just one TD the rest of the way. “The guys up front did a great job today,” linebacker Curtis Lofton told the Saints’ website . “We got pressure on the quarterback, but it goes hand in hand. The secondary and linebackers had great coverage, which leads to sacks. That’s how we play as a defense.”
Sports Illustrated: "everybody knows it's the New Orleans' defense that will either make or break this Saints team. That's why New Orleans' 23-17 win over the division rival Falcons was so sweet, because new defensive coordinator Rob Ryan's guys had a very big say in deciding the outcome. The Saints turned Atlanta away on a fourth-and-goal in the final seconds, with safety Roman Harper intercepting a pass that rookie safety Kenny Vaccaro tipped away from Tony Gonzalez's waiting hands. The Saints put a steady amount of pressure on Matt Ryan throughout the game...and consistently came up with plays that helped limit...the Falcons' high-powered offense. Atlanta was just 3-of-12 on third and fourth down (25 percent) ... And holding the Falcons to just 17 points with all those weapons is the accomplishment that matters most, obviously. Despite all their injuries, the Saints played the aggressive, attacking style that Ryan preaches, and it worked to near perfection"
Posted in another thread, but it took them the first series to figure out what Cards were doing, then shut them DOWN rest of the way. They are FOR REAL. Side Note: Gabe, we happened to park next to Tyrann Mathieu's mom. Very nice lady.
