How Will the Saints Roller Coaster Season End?
The Saints have their work cut out for them, yet again, as their roller coaster season continues on. There's several elements that make a good ride. Theming is one of the top ones, because it showcases a good product that's interesting. There's speed, which obviously gives off the impression of a thrill that gets your heart and adrenaline pumping. Lastly, there's excitement, which by definition is a feeling of great enthusiasm and eagerness.
The 'roller coaster' that is the Saints season is in its final stages. Visually, it was appealing to start. Fans waited in line a long time, and there was a lot of excitement building up to it. Unfortunately, the ride itself has been tremendously underwhelming, lacking that punch that makes a thrill ride stand out.
The moves made in the offseason were upgrades, with extras added in to make it even better. The team believed solving the quarterback spot was the most important thing in the offseason, and they feel like they accomplished that. There was belief and a true level of talent that we haven't seen on past rosters. Sadly, despite the visual appearances, the product has remained the same, no matter what has been said and done.
Let's just be brutally honest. A win is a win in the NFL, but of the teams the Saints have defeated this season (Titans, Panthers, Patriots, Colts, Bears), their combined record is 16-39. Only the Colts (6-5) have a record over .500 currently. Their final six games feature one opponent with a winning record, and that's the Lions at 8-3. The opportunity, as it has been there all season, is right in front of Dennis Allen's team.
While the masses gather and continue to voice their displeasure, the Saints maintain that they aren’t letting the outside noise get to them and feel like they can turn around the sinking ship with some patches. The problem is that that strategy is going to blow up in their face when they can't prove the outside voices wrong.
When you win, you can justify the cap strategy, backloading deals, voiding out years, and doing whatever you have to do to put yourself in a space to compete. When it doesn't work, the criticism is warranted. Things that plagued the Saints last year are still evident this year, and some of the same things that were said last season are still being said.
- They beat themselves.
- They can't play complementary football.
- The execution isn't there.
- The penalties hurt us.
- The turnovers hurt us.
- The play calling wasn't as good as it needed to be.
The roulette wheel of excuses have been used up, and this clearly points to a larger problem. Unfortunately, there's no magic bullet here. There's not going to be any firings with six games to go. This is the coaching staff that is going to have to get the team over the hurdle. When Week 18 season is over, they will either accomplish it or not.
Can it magically come together and work? Sure. Will it though? That's what we're going to find out. If they get it done, then that buys some more time and still should prompt changes. If they can't get it done, then the writing is on the wall for the Saints. Three straight years without a postseason appearance with this talented of a roster just doesn't cut it in today's NFL with a 'What have you done for me lately?' mentality.
When you loosely say this might be the most important six games of the future of the Saints franchise, you aren't out of your mind. The pressure is at its highest level right now, and those seats feel like they're starting to get pretty hot. The temperature can be controlled though with a positive end result, but given how things have transpired this season, that's a lot easier said than done for New Orleans.
