Thoughts from Week 13
Let’s start with Brandon Browner.
In the offseason, the Saints, already in the midst of a cap nightmare, decided to sign him to a three-year deal with a decent chunk of guaranteed money. There’s a great, wonky, piece about it here. Since then, Browner has been on a mission to be the most-penalized player in NFL history.
He was jaw-droppingly bad on Sunday. On at least four different occasions I thought, ‘They have to bench him now,’ only to see Browner trot out there and get burned again. He did this to his defensive coordinator and STILL went back into the game:
#Saints‘ Brandon Browner and Dennis Allen exchange pleasantries https://t.co/gIJHwJSmhj
— John Hendrix (@JohnJHendrix) December 6, 2015
That leads into my next thought: As long as Sean Payton is the head coach of the Saints, I don’t think the Panthers need to consider them a legitimate threat.
Carolina laid an absolute egg in the first half, committing three turnovers, missing an extra point (returned for two points) and getting burned all over the place by Brees. The halftime score? 16-13.
In the second half, the Saints had the Panthers in 3rd-and-long multiple times, only to then take penalties to keep drives alive. They gave up over 100 yards on 11 penalties. They are ill-disciplined, sloppy, and riddled with bad attitudes. This shouldn’t be a surprise when you consider Payton was suspended for an entire NFL season and has been implicated in a lawsuit regarding Vicodin abuse. The bad news is Payton is likely to leave and the Saints might improve.
I’m now entirely convinced Cam Newton will win MVP. But do you know what is interesting? He’s pretty much the same guy statistically he’s been the last three seasons.
Completion percentage, passing yards, interception rate, QBR, even rushing yards and yards per carry are all basically flat. The one statistical area of growth? Touchdowns. He’s finishing drives. I’m a bit of a stathead, but you only have to watch Newton to see his growth. The statistics, in this case, are not quite telling that story.
On to Week 14
Who do Panther fans hate more, the Saints or Falcons? For me, it’s the Saints, but I suspect I may be in the minority. Regardless, here’s a picture of Matt Ryan holding a Luke Kuechly jersey:
Remember this? I bet the Panthers do:
Arizona’s win on Thursday night means the Panthers’ ‘magic number’ to clinch home-field advantage remains 2. It’s some season when you probably have to go 15-1 to get the No. 1 seed.
But it’s good the Cardinals are keeping the Panthers sharp. 16-0 is entirely in reach. And what an achievement that would be–some would say it’d be bigger than winning the Super Bowl.
We’ll be at the usual tailgate spot on Sunday, and we’ll have some visitors stopping by from “Inside The NFL.” Come out early and you might just get on TV.
These are strange, delightful and heady times, Rioters. Soak it up.
DO YOU RIOT?
