Eight in the Box: All Saints Day

It's been a long time coming in the Big Easy. (EPA/RHONA WISE)

With last night’s 31-17 victory over the Colts, the Saints became the 18th NFL franchise to hoist the Lombardi Trophy. It was an impressive performance by the Saints defense in holding the Peyton Manning-led Colts offense to only 17 points and an even more impressive performance from the uber-efficient Drew Brees. The once dismal Saints have now eschewed their 43 year history of failure and frustration and now their fans have gone from wearing bags on their heads to wearing championship gear as they traipse down Bourbon Street in what may turn out to be the most raucous Super Bowl celebration in the 44-year history of the game. So while the Creoles party it up in the French Quarter, excuse me while I wipe a tear from my eye as I say goodbye to the 2009 season and roll out the final 2009 edition of my fabled Eight in the Box column. Giddyup!

1.    First time for everything. The biggest topic of discussion this morning was how ballsy of a call it was for Saints coach Sean Payton to open the second half with an onside kick. I was shocked when it happened and I’m still amazed that Payton had the cojones to pull the trigger on a play that could have spelled doom for the Saints if it failed. But whatever thought process Payton had isn’t the most intriguing thing to me about that kick. What is even more amazing that the actual decision is that punter Thomas Morestead, who handles their kickoff duties, had never attempted an onsides kick in his entire life. Not only had he never tried one before, he had only began practicing it 12 days ago. When Payton let Morestead know they would be starting the second half with it he spent the rest of the extended intermission in paralyzing fear. Just a great story that adds to the intrigue of New Orleans first Super Bowl victory.

Miami brings out the best in Addai.

2.    Addai excels on ultimate stage. For some reason the Colts and all of their fans were really down on Joseph Addai before the season. The Colts even went as far as drafting Donald Brown in the first round which was basically a symbolic gesture signifying that Addai’s time in Indy was nearing its end. But I don’t understand where either party is coming from because he only seems to shine when the lights are at their brightest. In his first Super Bowl appearance three years ago he was superb (and maybe should have won the MVP award) with 77 yards rushing and 10 catches for 66 and then last night he was probably the Colts lone bright spot in what turned out to be a very disappointing end to their season with another 77 yards rushing on almost 6 yards a carry and another 58 on seven grabs, not to mention the filthy juke he put on Darren Sharper that basically left him with his pants down. Colts fans need to stop hating this guy because when they need him the most he becomes their most consistent player.

3.    Who is Jim Caldwell? I have no idea and I’m pretty sure he doesn’t either. Most coaches have a philosophy and are either conservative or aggressive while the best coaches are able to walk the thin line between the two. Caldwell unfortunately cannot. When he should have been aggressive he wasn’t and when he should have been conservative he made an ill-fated mistake. I understand handing off to the upback, which by the way I didn’t even know the Colts employed, on your first play from your own two yard line after a huge goal line stand, but wouldn’t it have been wise to try to get a first down there to keep the momentum on your side? Instead he opted to stay ultra-conservative and run three straight times which gave the Saints great field position which they turned into three points and the momentum had officially been swung in the Saints direction. Then when he had the chance to pin the Saints deep in their own territory he instead opted to have the geriatric Matt Stover attempt a 51-yard field goal? I would have trusted Manning on a fourth down attempt before I basically gave the Saints great field position that turned into a touchdown. Caldwell needs to decide who he is before he continues to kill his championship level team.

Sometimes Manning is so good it works to the detriment of the Colts.

4.    Manning too good for own good? For the second time this year the threat that Manning poses to an opposing defense has caused a coach to make an extremely ballsy call to mitigate the damage he can cause. Earlier this year Bill Belichick decided to go for it on fourth and two deep in their own territory in hope of sealing the game rather than punting the ball back to Manning with less than two minutes to go. The Colts defense stepped up and the move backfired. However last night Manning’s skill level worked to his detriment as Payton called the now legendary onside kick that turned out to be one of the biggest plays of the game and was an omen for the rest of the game. I wouldn’t trade Manning for any other QB in the league, but for once his acumen came back to haunt him.

5.    Freeney furious at first then flames out. All the talk about Dwight Freeney’s injured ankle seemed silly in the game’s opening minutes as Freeney looked just as quick and powerful as he has all season long. His ridiculous one-armed sack of Drew Brees was a display of pure speed and brute force. The way he threw him down with one arm was absolutely sick and was a testament to how disgustingly good he is. All worries about the ankle seemed to subside. But that was it for him. You simply didn’t hear from him for the rest of the game. I don’t know if the cortisone shot wore off but he admitted the elongated halftime gave his ankle time to swell up and stiffen and he was a non-factor the rest of way and that’s when Brees started to pick apart the Colts defense. Apparently the big to do in the two weeks leading up to the game were not for naught after all as Robert Mathis and Raheem Brock were unable to pick up the slack.

Porter, despite his stupid haircut, is quickly becoming a star.

6.    Porter making a name for himself. First Brett Favre and now Manning. In back-to-back games second year cornerback Tracy Porter has picked off two legends to basically end any hope his opposition had of winning the game. The pick in the NFC Championship was huge, but it pales in comparison to his pick six of Manning to seal the Super Bowl for the Saints. Coming up with the biggest play in the game in the playoffs is often a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence but Porter has made it seem routine. The future is now for the ex-up-and-coming star.

7.    Manning makes mistakes. Sometimes the great ones fail in the face of adversity and Manning is obviously no exception. There is something about the guy that makes everyone swoon over his stats and offensive command and overall greatness. I am definitely not immune to this as I thought he would be too good and too smart for the Saints but I was obviously wrong. But I think people have been going a little too far today in crushing him. Yes, Manning didn’t play great but he was very good. He made a few ill-advised throws and ultimately threw the Colts chances to the aforementioned Porter but let’s give the guy credit. They would have never even come close to Miami had it not been for him and he made some throws in that game that I don’t think anyone in the history of the game could have made. But everyone wants to crucify him today and call him a choke artist and say that he’s overrated. That is absolute hogwash. Yes, he’s 9-9 in the playoffs and that’s far from legendary but he ran up against some very good teams and he was never given a legitimate defense until recently. But does everyone forget that he led the Colts from down 18 against the Patriots before they beat the overmatched Bears in the Super Bowl? He may not have always come up huge in the playoffs, but to say he’s overrated is silly and he is far from a choke artist. He’s an all-time great that some people wanted to anoint as the greatest ever a little too soon. Let some time pass and wait until his career is actually over before passing final judgment. Just know that is you rail against him that you’re an idiot.

Just a meaningless picture of a hot chick that had something to do with the Super Bowl. (Ben Liebenberg/NFL.com)

8.    It ain’t always what it seems. When Payton decided to go for it on fourth and goal a lot of people thought he should have taken the points and they may have seemed right at first when the Colts defense stuffed Pierre Thomas and the Saints came up empty. But when the Colts went old school and ran the ball on three straight plays essentially giving up on the drive and handing the Saints excellent field position that they converted into three points to end the half it actually looked genius. Obviously Payton couldn’t have known they would have forfeited a chance at a first down, but he knew that if they were pinned deep with under two minutes in the half they would play it a little tighter. Now if he would have kicked the field goal and then kicked off to Manning with about two minutes to go in the half the Colts could have very easily marched down the field and got at least three because I highly doubt their play calling would have been nearly as conservative as it was with their backs against the goal line. So the score may have turned out to be either 17- or 13-6 and the field goal would have essentially done nothing for Payton. I wasn’t in his head when he made the decision but I guarantee he thought about this when he made the call.

And I know I didn’t mention Brees all that much but it’s not because I am downplaying what he did or ignoring his stellar performance, it just has been talked about more than anything else and I was trying to focus on some less publicized aspects. But I’ll give him his due. He definitely deserved the MVP award and his 32/39 for 288 yards was extremely efficient and downright spectacular. As a matter of fact it was one of the best games in Super Bowl history. It was the epitome of what he has been during his tenure as the Saints quarterback and now that he shined bright on the biggest stage maybe the whole country will now respect him and his game and put him on the same pedestal as Manning and Brady.

So that’s it, no more football. As sad as it is the world will move on and I will ensure that you get your football fix for the entire offseason as I’ll continue to keep football in the forefront with free agency, draft and other random musings. I’ll see ya’ll soon.