Happy birthday, T.O., courtesy of the Saints

By Randy  |   Tuesday, December 12, 2006  |  Comments( 5 )

New Orleans Saints
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It seems all the holiday cheer spawned by Romomania has, for now, come to a grinding halt in Dallas.

Yeah, it was a pretty bad week for the boys in royal blue and silver. Cowboy fans shouldn't take it too hard, though. It's not exactly a fair fight when six foxes and two chickens are voting on what to have for dinner. On Sunday night in Dallas, the Cowboys looked overhyped and outmanned in falling to the New Orleans Saints, 42-17.

The Dallas media had yukked it up all week about how Jerry Jones would be lavishing Sean Payton with expensive gifts for "discovering" Tony Romo. How no good indeed goes unpunished. They had a downright laughfest in the Big "D" at the Saints' expense. One columnist went so far as to say he was going to check out the league rules on NFL owners presenting gift checks to opposing coaches.

I guess that's why the games are played on the field instead of on the radio and in the newspapers.

While Terrell Owens confesses to sleeping during the speeches of Bill Parcells, it is apparent that Payton was paying close attention to his ex-mentor. During his three years as a Parcells assistant, the pupil took copious notes. He thirsted for knowledge. Paid attention to detail. Asked meaningful questions. The professor taught the student well. Maybe too well.

At about the same time the front wheels of the Saints' team plane touched down on the runway of Louis Armstrong International, a classic rock cover band faded from Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer" into Aerosmith's "Sweet Emotion." It was 2:30 a.m. on Bourbon Street. Just a few hours earlier, the Saints stunned a nationwide television audience with a 25-point win over one of the NFL's hottest teams.

Given the quality of the opponent and the margin of victory, this may have been the Saints' most impressive win in franchise history. As the final seconds ticked away, you half expected Al Michaels to exclaim, "Do you believe in Miracles? Yes!" At the post-game press conference, Parcells' lips were moving but no sound was coming out.

There will be some Saints fans that will tell you with a straight face they saw this coming all along. They are either lying or deluding themselves. The Cowboys entered this matchup on a roll - winners of five of their last six. After a last-second win over the New York Giants last Sunday, Parcells had pulled out his "What it takes to win a championship" speech." The same one T.O. slept through.

Yet it became apparent long before the final outcome that the Saints had come to town with a superior game plan and a better quarterback. Drew Brees did what no passer had ever done before him. Not Dan Marino. Nor Joe Montana. Nor Brett Favre. In the sterling history of the Dallas Cowboys, Drew Brees stands alone. Brees is the first quarterback to throw five touchdown passes against Dallas at Texas Stadium. He accomplished this feat by resorting to his trademarks- command in the huddle, keen pocket presence, good decision making and balanced distribution of the ball. Ten receivers caught 26 Brees completions. The veteran from Purdue finished with five touchdown passes and a 140 passer rating. Pretty heady stuff.

Meanwhile Tropical Storm Reggie evolved into a Category-5 hurricane after his second straight lethal performance. With the Saints clinging to a tenuous 21-10 early-third-quarter lead, Bush took in a pass from Brees in the left flat and shifted into high gear, racing 61 yards into the end zone. The play was the work of a one-punch artist and sent the Cowboys reeling to the campus like a drunk stumbling out of Pat O'Brien's at 3:00 a.m.

When Ali knocked out Foreman in the 1974 "Rumble in the Jungle," journalist Norman Mailer described Foreman's fall metaphorically. "It seemed like a tall building coming down in sections," Mailer said of Foreman's eight-round tumble to the ground. Had this been a heavyweight fight, the referee would have put a stop to it after Round Three. The Saints led 42-10 entering the final stanza.

In many ways, the Cowboys appeared to be a tall building crashing down in sections thanks to the cerebral Saints rookie head coach Sean Payton. Dallas came out fast, landing the first punch, a 77-yard Julius Jones scamper up the Saints' weakened middle. However, the Saints never seemed fazed. At that point, the Cowboys had to know they were in trouble.

Borrowing from lessons taught to him by Parcells, Payton didn't panic. He adjusted by taking the run away from Dallas and placing the burden of victory on young quarterback Tony Romo. Under pressure all night, Romo seemed to lose poise, underthrowing and overthrowing open targets for the remainder of the evening.

Former Saints quarterback Archie Manning, a man of quiet demeanor, not given to lavishing praise, confided recently to longtime Saints play-by-play voice Jim Henderson how impressed he was with Payton's aggressive play calling. This was never more evident than when Payton called a successful onside kick by former Cowboy Billy Cundiff with five minutes, 16 seconds to play in the third. The Saints followed with a Brees to Devery Henderson touchdown strike, the signature on a 42-17 win.

"I don't know that I've seen a better coached game in some time," said veteran NBC broadcaster Al Michaels.

"Sean Payton is doing an excellent job of calling plays," offered Hall of Fame coach John Madden.

"When is the last time you saw a Bill Parcells-coached team humiliated like that?" asked radio host Jim Rome.

"This was great coaching, just phenomenal coaching by Sean Payton," said ESPN analyst and former Cowboy Michael Irvin.

Maybe the Saints have arrived. Maybe they are the "team to beat" in the NFC. Few would argue that of the most serious Super Bowl contenders remaining, the Saints have the advantage at quarterback. Brees has the edge over contenders like Rex Grossman, Romo, Steve McNair and Philip Rivers. He is on pace to shatter Dan Marino's single-season yardage mark.

As for Payton, maybe he taught T.O. that he would be wise to stay awake the next time the Master speaks.

Rome may have summed it up best on Monday:" What a brilliant hire! That guy can call a hell of a game."

Read more of Randy Savoie's musings on the New Orleans Saints at RealFootball365.com
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CommentsComments: 5  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
fr8ttrain		11:01 AM
12/12/2006
This could be the week to clinch. Win at home vs Wash and Atl (Dal) and Car (Pitt) lose and its a done deal. #2 seed very likely,...
No.2
AnneTMF8		06:41 PM
12/12/2006
I want to see this Saints team (God's team, not Dallas anymore) win the Superbowl AND really had wanted Brad Pitt to be the king...
No.3
Sue		07:12 PM
12/12/2006
This was a really good and well-written article. Randy truly has talent and a very unique writing style. Easy to read,...
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