LT Sports

Coming into this NFL weekend, everybody was anxious to see the Giants and Saints tussle in the Big Easy. Right from the

start, the game was full of action, and NFL fans, especially Saints fans, got exactly what they wanted.

Drew Brees came out on fire, as he led the Saints on 5 touchdown drives in their first 6 possessions. The Giants’ defense, which is no doormat, nearly gave up a touchdown on every single Saints possession in the first half.

Prior to the game, Brees said that he expected to have 40 points against the Giants. It looks like that bold prediction wasn’t bold enough, as the Saints were able to put up 34 points in the first half alone and 48 in total.

Brees tested the Giants secondary early and often, and he let his big-play receivers make plays on the ball. To me, it looked like the Giants sorely missed their safety, Kenny Philips, for the first time since they lost him in week 2 against Dallas.

When you play against a guy who is as good as Brees is, he is going to take advantage of your weaknesses, and he is going to expose you wherever he can. And also, when you have a coach like Sean Payton, who was formerly a coach with the Giants, he is not going to let up with his offense. He is going to order his team to score everytime out there, and he is going to treat every possession as a challenge unto itself, regardless of the score.

Some people might say that he is disrespecting his opponents by having Brees throw the ball on 3rd 8 up by 21 with 7 minutes to go, but I see it as something totally differently. Payton’s job as a head coach is to get his team prepared for any challenges that lie ahead during  a long and grueling season. He feels that just because he has a big lead, he should not have to compromise his offense getting important reps that will help them in the long run. Especially when you play a defense that is as tough as the Giants, you should try to get in as many plays as possible. As long as there is time left, they are entitled to score as much  as they like. Plus, these guys have been waiting for this one game for 2 weeks, and they do not want to only play half of the game, they want to play it in its entirety.

The Giants also have a job to stop the Saints’ offense, so it is not as if the Saints are the only team benefitting from this choice of play. Who knows? Maybe the Giants’ defense can gain a lot of knowledge from facing a potent Saints offense for almost a full game.

In my opinion, any way you slice it, both teams can grow from a game like this. It should fuel both teams as they progress forward into the rest of the season, and I would not be shocked if these teams met again somewhere down the line.