It was like watching a movie that you’d seen before but you were hoping for a different ending. But that was not to be yesterday in the Caesars Superdome when the New Orleans Saints lost to the previous winless New York Giants. Let’s be clear about this - the Giants didn’t win - the Saints lost.
Once again “snatching defeat from the jaws of victory,” the Saints proved to be predictable as they let an 11-point lead disappear with less than 7 minutes to play. Whether you were in the Dome or listening to or watching the game, it was the same old storyline.
The gamewas hyped as a return home and the first time in almost 2 years since a full Dome was allowed due to the COVID pandemic. The Saints were coming off a very impressive win on the road last week against the New England Patriots, and the buzz was that the Saints would beat the Giants and be 3-1. Even the oddsmakers had the Saints as an 8-point favorite, which is high based on NFL standards. And that was the set up.
The Saints came out on fire and the crowd in the Caesars Superdome was alive. At one point I saw the decibel meter reach 127! It appeared that the Saints would do what they were expected to do - beat the winless Giants. But then it started to happen. After the initial excitement of the Saints returning to the Dome in front of about 60,000 fans, the Saints imploded.
[shortcode-inline-related expand="1" link="/wwl/local-sports/saints/bobby-hebert-really-disappointed-in-saints-defense" headline="Bobby Hebert: Saints offense should be better, "but I'm really disappointed in our defense"" image="/media-library/image.jpg?id=64233894"]What happened?
It seems like yesterday was the typical story of the Saints thinking that this game was won before it was played. And with an 11-point lead with less than 7 minutes to play, the Saints appeared to get complacent. Quarterback Jameis Winston and running back Alvin Kamara were among the players who had a good game, but the collective effort of the Saints defense was pathetic. Giants’ QB Daniel Jones started to shred the Saints defense, and players were missing assignments and bouncing off Giants’ receivers and running backs like they were imitating a pinball game.
When the Giants tied the game and overtime began, I had that sickening feeling that the Saints had lost the passion they had early in the game. The Giants won the toss in overtime and the Giants player, Jabrill Peppers #21 emphatically said the Giants would receive and his comment was audible: “We want the ball - F*** ‘em.” And that’s exactly what the Giants did to the Saints.
As great a coach as Sean Payton is - there have been countless times when he seems to have reflected an overconfident team attitude. There is little doubt that Payton was out-coached, and the Saints AGAIN played down to the level of their opponent rather than playing up to their potential. The Saints will NEVER win another Super Bowl or even advance in the playoffs if Sean Payton fails to make his team mentally tough.
The lesson for all of us is that in life we should never meet the moment with only what it takes to win or succeed - we should meet every moment with the attitude that we are going to be the best we can be regardless of the challenge. Want some advice on having that attitude? Talk to QB Tom Brady.
