Tag Archive | New Orleans Saints
08/31/14  

NFC East Preview

By Jack Allen
The Philadelphia Eagles are coming off a great season. Last year, rookie head coach Chip Kelly reinvented his up tempo Oregon offense in Philadelphia and lead them to the playoffs. Midway into the season, starting quarterback Michael Vick got hurt opening the door for University of Arizona graduate Nick Foles. Foles had a great year and was rewarded by starting a playoff game at home against the New Orleans Saints. They lost in heartbreaker, but due to the experience, Nick should adapt into being able to step up in big games. Lesean McCoy holds high expectations this year coming off a career year. Losing Desean Jackson will not hold up this offense. The Eagles still have weapons like Jeremy Maclin, McCoy, and Zach Ertz. Many are expecting a breakout season from the young tight end Ertz. It should be a good season for the City of Brotherly Love. I’m going to predict a Wild Card Weekend win, and a Divisional Round loss.
This maybe a surprise to many of you. Yes, the New York Football Giants are back. By signing former Raiders RB Rashad Jennings and drafting Heisman candidate Andre Williams from Boston College, I think that the final hole in their offense has been filled. With a proven clutch quarterback in Eli Manning and good wide receivers Victor Cruz and Ruben Randle, the G-Men look very intriguing. Defensively, losing Justin Tuck wasn’t great, but they still have some good assets there as well. With a season that begins at Ford Field in Detroit under the Monday Night lights, my belief is that the Giants will make the playoffs in the Wild Card slot on the backs of Eli and head coach Tom Coughlin. They’ll probably make an early exit, but the fans will be happy to be there.
This next part was very hard. For me, it came down to the Giants or Redskins for that final NFC playoff spot. Washington had a magical run two years ago with Robert Griffin III HEALTHY. When he wasn’t healthy, it was another miserable season in DC. With him at 100 percent, it’s hard to keep them out of the post-season with Alford Morris and other offensive weapons. Newly acquired Desean Jackson should put up some good numbers with the young quarterback. With a tough division and a long season, it’s going to be a close finish if Griffin is healthy. It’s very possible they clinch a playoff birth if RG3 can stay healthy. I say, they fall just a little short.
Finally, “America’s Team,” the Dallas Cowboys. With chances over the last three seasons to sneak into the playoffs in week 17, my belief is that the Cowboys will not have that chance for a long time. Definitely not in this era, with the up-and-coming Redskins and Eagles, will Dallas find their way through. With a much needed improvement on defense and a quarterback with a high tendency to choke, they need serious changes in Texas. Is Tony Romo the future? I know he didn’t play in the win and in game last season, but I’m not so convinced he would’ve won it himself. Jerry Jones was recently in the news regarding his frustration with Romo and his worries about passing on QB Johnny Manziel in the draft. With good division opponents, the Cowboys antics will be unheard and ignored while the other teams are all having over .500 seasons. Im predicting the firing of Jason Garrett after this season.
Jerry Jones can prove to be a distraction to the Cowboys this season (Via AP)

Jerry Jones can prove to be a distraction to the Cowboys this season (Via AP)

Prediction
Eagles- 10-6
Giants- 10-6
Redskins- 9-7
Cowboys- 7-9

Jack Allen is a writer for dabuzzza.com. He is a fan of the New York Mets, New York Islanders, New York Knicks, New York Jets, Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Mariners, Queens Park Rangers, and West Virginia Mountaineer football and basketball. His favorite athletes are David Wright, John Tavares, Geno Smith, Allen Iverson and Charlie Austin. He is a very passionate and determined fan. You can follow him on twitter @JackAllen99.

05/08/14  

2014 NFL DRAFT

The NFL Draft starts at 8:00 PM EST tonight. You can follow the draft coverage here

Pick Team Player Position College
1 Houston Texans Jadeveon Clowney DE South Carolina
2 St. Louis Rams (From WSH) Greg Robinson OT Auburn
3 Jacksonville Jaguars Blake Bortles QB Central Florida
4 Buffalo Bills (From CLE) Sammy Watkins WR Clemson
5 Oakland Raiders Khalil Mack OLB Buffalo
6 Atlanta Falcons Jake Matthews OT Texas A&M
7 Tampa Bay Buccanners Mike Evans WR Texas A&M
8 Cleveland Browns (From MIN) Justin Gilbert CB Oklahoma State
9 Minnesota Vikings (From CLE) (Via BUF) Anthony Barr OLB UCLA
10 Detroit Lions Eric Ebron TE UNC
11 Tennessee Titans Taylor Lewan OT Michigan
12 New York Giants Odell Beckham Jr. WR LSU
13 St. Louis Rams Aaron Donald DT Pittsburgh
14 Chicago Bears Kyle Fuller CB VA. Tech
15 Pittsburgh Steelers Ryan Shazier LB Ohio State
16 Dallas Cowboys Zack Martin OT Notre Dame
17 Baltimore Ravens CJ Mosley LB Alabama
18 New York Jets Calvin Pryor S Louisville
19 Miami Dolphins Ja’wuan James OT Tennessee
20 New Orleans Saints (From ARI) Brandin Cooks WR  Oregon State
21 Green Bay Packers Ha-Ha Clinton Dix S Alabama
22 Cleveland Browns (From PHI) Johnny Manziel QB Texas A&M
23 Kansas City Chiefs Dee Ford DE Auburn
24 Cincinnati Bengals Darqueze Dennard CB Michigan State
25 San Diego Chargers Jason Verrett CB TCU
26 Philadelphia Eagles (Via CLE) (From IND) Marcus Smith DE Louisville
27 Arizona Cardinals (From NO) Deone Bucannon S Washington St.
28 Carolina Panthers Kelvin Benjamin WR FSU
29 New England Patriots Dominique Easley DT Florida
30 San Francisco 49ers Jimmie Ward S Northern Illinois
31 Denver Broncos Brandon Roby CB Ohio State
32 Minnesota Vikings (Via SEA) Teddy Bridgewater QB Louisville

 

Draft Day Trades:

  • Bills acquire No. 4 Pick (Sammy Watkins) from Browns for No. 9 pick (Anthony Barr), plus 2015 1st & 4th round picks
  • Browns acquire 8th pick (Justin Gilbert) from Minnesota for 9th pick (Anthony Barr)
  • The Cardinals traded No. 20 (Brandin Cooks) to New Orleans for No. 27 (Deone Bucannon) and their third-rounder, Pick No. 91.
  • The Browns traded Pick No. 26 (Marcus Smith), and their third-rounder, Pick No. 83, to move up to No. 22 (Johnny Manziel)
  • Vikings acquire the 32th pick (Teddy Bridgewater) for the 40th pick and 108th pick
Amid all of the hype for other players this season, expect Clowney's name to be called first at the NFL Draft (Via Jeff Blake/US Presswire)

Amid all of the hype for other players this season, expect Clowney’s name to be called first at the NFL Draft (Via Jeff Blake/US Presswire)

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Brett Malamud is a Computer Science Major at Binghamton University. He is the co-founder of dabuzzza.com. His favorite athletes are Derek Jeter and Todd Bertuzzi. You can follow him on twitter at @brettnyy

 

11/21/13  

Thursday Night Football Preview: Saints vs Falcons

By Matthew Wieselthier

Before the season, this game was circled on the calendar as a game that could decide the NFC South.  The Saints heading to the Georgia Dome to face the Falcons was to be a top game of the season.  However, the Falcons have looked terrible.  They’ve been bruised up at the WR position with Roddy White being on and off the field and Julio Jones being on the IR.  The RB position has been inconsistent with no option looking great and maybe could there be regrets on losing Michael Turner.  Whatever the case may be, the RB turntable of Stephen Jackson, Jacquizz Rodgers, and Jason Snelling has been far from good.  And now, a Super Bowl favorite has turned into the laughing stock of the NFL.

Sean Payton is back on the sidelines and the Saints are back to their winning ways (Via SI)

Sean Payton is back on the sidelines and the Saints are back to their winning ways (Via SI)

The Saints are one year since “Bountygate” and cannot be more thankful.  At this point in the season last year, they were 5-6 and missing Sean Payton, who was suspended due to the bounty problems of the past.  This season, they got their head coach back and have been successful ever since.  The Saints are 8-2 and are on top of the NFC South.  They are averaging 28.8 points per game, which is good for 2nd in the league.  Drew Brees has the 4th best passer rating in the NFL (106.7) and the defense is 5th best in the league, giving up 18.8 points per game.

In this preseason-hyped game that has turned sour, the Saints should be able to march into the Georgia Dome and take the win with ease.

Prediction: Saints 31- Falcons 17

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Matthew Wieselthier is the Sports Director at WPOB 88.5 FM, Plainview.  He is also the PA announcer at all sporting events at POBJFKHS.  You can follow him on twitter at @wieselsports66.