Tag: saints news
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Saints | May bring John Kasay back
The New Orleans Saints may consider re-signing impending free-agent PK John Kasay this offseason so ...Click to read the original Saints article by TOP 50 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS NEWS
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February 9, 2012
Posted by Dave Cariello in Canal St. Chronicles, New Orleans Saints News, Saints Blogs
What Up With Dat?: Submit Your Questions
We took the week off to celebrate the Super Bowl but we're back again with another spectacular edition of our "What Up With Dat" mailbag series, where you guys submit questions and I answer them. Did you guys miss it? I know you did. It's okay to admit, you're in a judge-free zone here.
So if you've got a burning question you've been dying to know my answer to, send an email to [email protected], send me a tweet @csctweet, post on our wall at Canal Street Chronicles Facebook page or just ask me in the comment section below. They can be about the Saints, the NFL, the blog or even personal. Don't forget to leave your first name and last initial so we can give you credit for your question if we wind up using it. I will round up the best questions and answer them in a timely fashion in a second follow-up post.
Click to read the original Saints article by Canal Street Chronicles
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Saints | Devery Henderson could be released
The New Orleans Saints may decide to release WR Devery Henderson this offseason if they ...Click to read the original Saints article by TOP 50 NEW ORLEANS SAINTS NEWS
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February 9, 2012
Posted by New Orleans Saints Newsc6ab36 in New Orleans Saints News, Topix - Saints Search
A look at the top unrestricted free agents on offense
It remains to be seen how big of players the Lions will be in free agency this offseason.
Click to read the original Saints article by New Orleans Saints News
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February 9, 2012
Posted by New Orleans Saints Newsc6ab36 in New Orleans Saints News, Topix - Saints Search
Top 50 free agents: Former top pick Williams is top player on open market
My rule when ranking NFL free agents: Nobody age 30 or over in the top 10 -- unless you are a quarterback.
Click to read the original Saints article by New Orleans Saints News
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February 9, 2012
Posted by Dave Cariello in Canal St. Chronicles, New Orleans Saints News, Saints Blogs
Dear Sean Payton: Stop Punting and Start Going For It!
Anyone watch HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel? I'm a big fan myself and thanks to TiVo, I never miss an episode. One of the four stories from the most recent installment, which first aired about a couple of weeks ago, I found particularly interesting.
It was a profile of high school football coach Kevin Kelley and his Pulaski Academy football team from Little Rock, Arkansas. If you didn't see the episode, perhaps you've heard of them anyway. Sports Illustrated wrote an article about them a little over two years ago. So what's so special about them?
They never punt.
That's right. Every single time their offense faces fourth down, the Bruins go for it, even in fourth and long situations. This probably sounds completely insane to a lot of football fans but to Kelley, it would be insane not to go for it.
I don't believe in punting and really can't ever see doing it again...
...It's like someone said, '[Punting] is what you do on fourth down,' and everyone did it without asking why.
Not only do they never punt, but each time they kick off it's almost always an onside kick. The team has an entire package of onside kick types and specific kickers to execute each one.
It's simple math really. Statistically, it makes more sense and is more valuable to hold onto the ball and go for that first down, which the Bruins pick up about half the time, than give their opponent back the ball. Here's a slightly more detailed example:
Consider the most extreme scenario, say, fourth-and-long near your own end zone. According to Kelley's data (much of which came from a documentary he saw), when a team punts from that deep, the opponents will take possession inside the 40-yard line and will then score a touchdown 77% of the time. If they recover on downs inside the 10, they'll score a touchdown 92% of the time. "So [forsaking] a punt, you give your offense a chance to stay on the field. And if you miss, the odds of the other team scoring only increase 15 percent.
And that's just the extreme scenario. The statistical advantage of going for it is even greater when a team is between the 40-yard lines. Similar statistics support the decision to always onside kick as well.
But these are just numbers. The real question is whether or not this theory actually works on the field in real life football situations. Unfortunately, Pulaski Academy is the only barometer we have to measure because they're the only team bold enough to actually execute it. Since Kelley took over in 2003, though, he's led his team to a record of 104-19 and won three state championships. I'd say that's a ringing endorsement.
So why hasn't this caught on and why does every other coach, particularly those in the NFL, choose to spit in the face of probability, regularly defying the odds? In short: they're yellow-bellied cowards.
Despite cold hard facts that prove otherwise, NFL coaches allow their emotions to get in the way and cloud their on-field football decisions.
Subject as they are to scrutiny, coaches have incentive to err on the side of conservatism. No coach gets fired or ripped on talk radio for punting on fourth-and-four. Most do when they go for it and fail.
That's where Real Sports and Sports Illustrated leave the story, however, and where I pick it up. Because I think it's about damn time at least one NFL coach stop using his heart and start using his head. While I absolutely understand how tough it is to buck the trend with a career and a family to think about, the numbers just don't lie. So who is going to be the pioneer?
The truth is, it's going to take a coach with huge cojones to eventually attempt this unthinkable strategy at the sport's highest level and make my dreams come true. A coach who already has enough moxie to try something like, say, an onside kick to start the second half of his life's biggest game. You guessed it, I'm talking about Sean Payton.
Which is why I don't think it's a coincidence that the one NFL coach featured in Real Sports' piece about Pulaski Academy was none other than our very own Saints coach. Because let's face it, if there is a current coach in the NFL right now who might actually try something like this, it's our Payton. Reporter Jon Frankel with Real Sports must have been thinking along the same lines...
Jon Frankel: How tempting is it go for it on fourth down?
Payton: Well, I think it's extremely tempting.
So let's see it, coach! We know you've looked at the numbers and you want to. If there's any team well built to execute this no-punting philosophy at the NFL level it's most likely the Saints, with their dynamic and powerful offense that would assuredly benefit from the extra down. Otherwise, somebody, somewhere will eventually take the risk and become the NFL's guinea pig, most likely with great success. It might as well be the Saints.
What do you guys think? You scared, too? Or are you ready to see the Saints completely change the way everyone looks at football?
Click to read the original Saints article by Canal Street Chronicles
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February 9, 2012
Posted by New Orleans Saints Newsc6ab36 in New Orleans Saints News, Topix - Saints Search
Saints QB Dree Brees tops Sporting News' Top 100 NFL free agents
Vinnie Iyer of the Sporting News with a look at the top 100 NFL free agents. The New Orleans Saints, armed with their high-powered offense, had their Super Bowl dreams dashed in a divisional playoff loss in San Francisco.
Click to read the original Saints article by New Orleans Saints News
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February 8, 2012
Posted by New Orleans Saints Newsc6ab36 in New Orleans Saints News, Topix - Saints Search
New Orleans Saints Jo-Lonn Dunbar ready to lead linebacker corps?
New Orleans Saints linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar runs after picking up a fumble by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on December 2, 2011 When linebacker Jonathan Vilma was sidelined by a knee injury this past season, the New Orleans Saints turned to an untested player to lead his position.A Could linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar be the answer in the near future? ... (more)
Click to read the original Saints article by New Orleans Saints News
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February 8, 2012
Posted by New Orleans Saints Newsc6ab36 in New Orleans Saints News, Topix - Saints Search
New Orleans Saint Lance Moore congratulates Madisonville milk-drinkers
Is Rick Santorum another political abberation or asterisk passing through the national GOP scene or is he the right conservative and the right GOP candidate "The bottom line is the governor appoints people who support his agenda for moving the state forward, not the other way around."-Jindal spokesman Frank Collins, Maybe now we know why the ... (more)
Click to read the original Saints article by New Orleans Saints News
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