Here we are supposedly starting a new era of Saints football, but I'm having a hard time getting there.
Every time I see Jameis Winston overthrow a wide open receiver, I think about Drew Brees, saying to myself: “No. 9 wouldn’t have missed that throw.” Every time I see Taysom Hill underthrow a deep ball, I say: “Drew would have been on time with that throw.” But hey, I’m only human.
Trust me, I’m not the only one. I’m sure Sean Payton has even whispered those same things to himself in practice. With Brees enjoying retirement while Winston and Hill fight to be the next QB in line, there are a lot of things you start to notice that he was able to cover up with a mastery of Payton’s offense.
To be fair, Brees had 15 years studying that course. Winston’s working off the year-long crash course, while Hill is in his first offseason as a full-time quarterback. This season it’s the coaches often correcting receivers after the play for not lining up at the exact spot needed. That’s the type of thing Brees would’ve corrected pre-snap. It’s just one of the many things you notice that look different about this offense with a QB not named Brees calling the shots.
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Another aspect that made the Saints offense so prolific: tempo. The Saints were in and out of the huddle so fast and practiced with a tempo that really stressed the defense. In games it caused opponents to have mental mistakes trying to keep up with the pace. Brees was masterful at getting to the line and preventing the defense from getting a good picture of the formation.
So far with Taysom and Jameis under center, the ball hits the ground way too often for a professional football practice. Over a dozen training camps, I could count on two hands the number of times I’ve seen a pass vs. air hit the ground. I’m well past that with both of the quarterbacks leading the Saints so far in camp.
Routes on air should be almost 100% completions for the QB and WR. The ball should rarely, if ever, hit the ground. That’s happened too often in camp thus far.
Another thing you’ll notice right away is the intensity of the offensive group. There was no, ‘oh man, that was close’ or ‘we almost got it’ kind of mentality when Brees was leading the black and gold offense. If on the occasion the defense got the better of Brees and his offensive teammates he would challenge them in the middle of practice, and more often than not his unit responded. The intensity is not at the same level with Jameis and Taysom. That’s hard to duplicate when you aren’t completely entrenched in the bells and whistles of the offense like Drew was.
Look, this might read like I’m just bashing Jameis and Taysom; I’m not. I’m just pointing out the noticeable differences in the offense two weeks into camp. To be honest, unless the quarterbacks name was Brady, Mahomes or Manning, most would struggle in the categories I listed. These observations are just affirmation for just how good the Saints and the Who Dat Nation had it with No. 9 behind the wheel.