The New Orleans Saints (11-0) made a big statement with their big win over the New England Patriots (7-4) Monday night.  The Saints pretty much proved they are the best team in football, as the undefeated Colts got an almost lucky one-point win over the Patriots a few weeks ago.  The Saints didn’t need luck and won by 20 more points than the Colts did against the Pats.  Drew Brees played the quarterback position about as good as you can play it against the Patriots, throwing for 371 yards and 5 touchdowns on 18/23 passes.  He completely outplayed Tom Brady, who finished with no touchdowns and 2 interceptions while only passing for 237 yards on 21/36 passes.  Pierre Thomas and Mike Bell ran the ball well for the running game, which was without the electric Reggie Bush.

The Saints offense were not the only ones to make a statement in this win, because the defense played great as well.  Not only did they keep Tom Brady out of the endzone and intercepted him twice, but they pretty much shut down Wes Welker.  Brady and Welker have been ripping apart secondaries, but the Saints held Welker to a season low 36 receiving yards on 6 catches.  They also held Randy Moss to only 3 catches.  The Pats did get 122 rushing yards as a team, but it was a good effort overall by the defense and the Saints have now proved they are playing at an elite level.

The New Orleans Saints (10-0) are hosting the dangerous New England Patriots (7-3) on Monday night in what should be one of the most exciting games of the regular season.  The Patriots are the only team to go 16-0 in the regular season, and they want to keep it that way.  If the Saints win, they have a great shot and tying that record as the Dallas Cowboys would be the toughest opponent left for them.  Drew Brees and the Saints’ offense should be able to have success against the Patriots, but the Patriots do have a solid defense.  Brees should be able to eclipse the 187 yard average that the Pats’ defense is holding opponents to, but he will need that running attack to continue to do what they do.  The Patriots are giving up 109 rushing yards per game, so Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell, and Reggie Bush should find success.  Field goals are not going to cut it in this matchup though, so they need to make sure they get into the endzone.

The Patriots offense can be just as good if not better than the Saints’ offense at times.  The Saints can’t guard Wes Welker in single coverage all game, as Brady finds him too easily when he is in single coverage.  It’s almost like picking your poison though, because when Wes Welker gets too much attention it opens up the long ball for Randy Moss.  The Patriots are going to put up some points, so the Saints’ offense is going to need to stay on top of their game.  This one looks like it is going to be an offensive battle, and it may come down to who has the ball last.  I think the Patriots are going to put an end to the Saints’ undefeated season though, as they want to stay the only team in NFL history with a 16-0 regular season record.  I see it coming down to a late field goal.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  New Orleans Saints 31, New England Patriots 34

The Saints have signed 33-year old CB Mike McKenzie.  McKenzie played in 7 games for the Saints last season and he had 22 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 3 passes defensed and 1 interception.  McKenzie has now played in 133 games in his major league career and he has 470 tackles, 120 passes defensed, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble and 27 interceptions (4 returned for TDs).  This was a good move for the Saints who really have been ransacked by injuries in the secondary.

The Saints have lost 27-year old back up CB Leigh Torrence for the season due to a separated shoulder.  He played in 5 games for the Saints this year and he made 10 tackles and 1/2 a sack.  This further depletes the depth of the secondary of the Saints.

The Bucs scored first in this game and that appeared to piss the Saints off as they beat them up the rest of the game.  Drew Brees was very effective today completing 19 of 29 passes for 187 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Pierre Thomas was awesome today with 11 carries for 92 yards (8.4 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 11 yards (3.7 avg).  Mike Bell was also very effective for the Saints today with 13 carries for 75 yards (5.8 ypc) with 2 TD carries.  Marques Colston led the way in the passing game for the Saints with 5 grabs for 74 yards (14.8 avg).  Back up TE David Thomas also had a nice game with 4 catches for 66 yards (16.5 avg) with a TD grab.  WR Robert Meachem only caught 2 passes for 10 yards but they both went for TDs.  The Saints finished up with 370 total yards on offense (183 rushing, 187 passing) today.

The defense baffled rookie QB Josh Freeman and the Bucs’ offense today.  CB Malcolm Jenkins led the way for the Saints today with 7 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception.  Jonathan Vilma pitched in with 6 tackles, 1 pass defensed, 1 QB hit and 1 interception.  The Buccaneers finished up with only 219 total yards on offense (119 rushing, 100 passing) today.  The Saints are now 10-0 on the year.

The Saints will be without RB/PR Reggie Bush tomorrow against the Buccaneers.  The Saints won’t miss Bush too much as Pierre Thomas and Mike Bell will carry the load in the running game.  Devery Henderson, Darren Sharper or Pierre Thomas will return punts tomorrow.  The reason I don’t think the Saints will miss Bush too much is because he’s a overrated player.  He has carried the ball 55 times for 277 yards (5.0 ypc) with 5 TD runs and he has caught 29 passes for 207 yards (7.1 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Bush has been better this season offensively than he has been in some time but he’s still not someone the Saints can rely on.  Bush will be easy to replace on punt returns as he has returned 21 punts for only a paltry 80 yards (3.8 avg).

The Saints are sitting at 9-0 on the year and you would think that this week would be a laugher for them against the 1-8 Bucs.  It won’t be as easy as most people think it will.  The Saints are having big defensive issues as of late due to injuries so they will likely try to dominate this game on offense.  Drew Brees will likely have a lot of time to throw against a Bucs’ D that is lacking pass rushers.  That is bad news for the DBs of the Bucs in having to deal with Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, Jeremy Shockey and Robert Meachem.  The Bucs are allowing 211.9 yards passing per game so the Saints will likely have a good day throwing the ball.  But, don’t think for a minute that Pierre Thomas, Reggie Bush and Mike Bell won’t get to have their fun too against a Bucs’ D that is allowing 167.3 yards rushing per game and 4.9 yards per carry.

The Bucs look like a different football team with rookie QB Josh Freeman under center.  The Bucs would still likely want to get a running game going in an effort to keep the Saints’ offense on the sideline.  That means that Cadillac Williams, Derrick Ward and Ernest Graham will have to run hard against a Saints’ D that is allowing 115.3 yards rushing per game and 4.5 yards per carry.  If the Bucs are effective running the ball that will open up some play action passing for Freeman against a Saints’ D that is allowing 227.7 yards passing per game. 

PREDICTION:  SAINTS 35, BUCCANEERS 27

The Saints have signed 32-year old CB Chris McAlister.  McAlister played in 6 games for the Ravens last season and he made 16 tackles, defensed 7 passes and he had 3 interceptions.  He has now played in 135 games in his NFL career and he has made 427 tackles, defensed 137 passes, forced 1 fumble and he has 26 interceptions (five of which he has returned for TDs).  The Saints hope that McAlister still has something left so that he can help cover for Tracy Porter’s injury.

The Saints will be without starting CB Tracy Porter for the next 4-8 weeks with a sprained MCL.  This will hurt the Saints’ D big time as Porter has been a playmaker this season.  He has played in 9 games for the Saints this season and he has 43 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 8 passes defensed and he has three interceptions (one of which he returned for a TD).  Rookie CB Malcolm Jenkins will replace Porter in the starting lineup.  Jenkins has played in 7 games for the Saints this season and he has 10 tackles and two forced fumbles.  Teams will be attacking Jenkins early and often in games so the Saints need him to step up.

The Saints weren’t expecting a fight in St. Louis but that is exactly what they got.  Drew Brees was so-so in this game as he completed 18 of 26 passes for 223 yards with 2 TD passes and 2 interceptions.  Reggie Bush had by far his best game of the year for the Saints as he carried the ball 6 times for 83 yards (13.8 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 15 yards (7.5 avg) with a TD grab.  Pierre Thomas pitched in with 37 yards rushing on 11 carries (3.4 ypc) today.  Devery Henderson led the way in the passing game for the Saints with 72 yards on 4 catches (18.0 avg).  Robert Meachem made a huge impact despite only touching the ball twice as he caught 1 pass for 27 yards and it went for a TD.  Meachem also carried the ball 1 time for 41 yards today.  The Saints finished up with 420 total yards on offense (203 rushing, 217 passing) in this game.

Roman Harper (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed) and Jonathan Vilma (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss) led the way for the Saints on D in the game today.  The Rams finished up with 434 total yards on offense (141 rushing, 293 passing) in this game.  KR Courtney Roby also had a huge impact in this game for the Saints as he returned 3 kickoffs for 146 yards (48.7 avg) including 1 that he returned 97 yards for a TD.  The Saints are now 9-0 on the year.