This past Saints season saw some improvements and a lot of disappointment. You had the offense one game score at will, then the next game they couldn’t sniff the redzone.
Let’s take a look back at the Saints 2016 season.
Best Moment: Circle of Life
Before the New Orleans Saints game against the Los Angeles Rams, head coach Sean Payton tweeted out the theme song from the Disney film “The Lion King.” It seemed strange for him to post that online, but it wound up making sense after the game when Payton said he had played throughout practices that week. It also became obvious why he did that when the Saints were taking on former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and the offense lit up the scoreboard with a blowout win over the Rams.
Worst Moment: Offensive Inefficiency at Wrong Time
One week after that convincing victory over the Rams, the Saints took on the Detroit Lions and were riding high. Then the Saints got completely dominated by the Lions and the offense was inefficient, seeing Drew Brees throwing three picks and zero TDs in this and the next game against the Buccaneers. The way the Saints looked against Los Angeles gave fans hope that a wild card berth could actually happen. However, much like previous teams in the history of the franchise, that would quickly turn into disappointment and another 7-9 season.
MVP: Cool Brees
How can Brees not be the MVP? Yes, those two aforementioned games were bad but when you talk about a player that has performed extremely well and has led teams to victory he is head and shoulders above the rest. The narrative of the last few years of his career is that he is getting old and his arm strength is diminishing. How is 5,000 yards for the fifth time in his career underperforming? If not for a poor defense and some wild endings to ballgames, these offensive numbers would equal a playoff berth.
Breakout Player: Michael Thomas WR of the Future
If this team performed better, Ezekiel Elliot and Dak Prescott would have some tough competition with the Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas. The former Buckeye wowed people during training camp at the Greenbrier and further proved why he is one of the better wideouts in the league. He also shattered a ton of rookie records for the Saints franchise that had been held by Marques Colston. A lot of pundits viewed Thomas as a replacement for the wide receiver that left the team after a decade, but he has broken out of that shadow and made an immediate impact. Also, he has lived up to his Twitter handle @cantguardmike.
Play of the Year: Willie Beamen
I can’t help but to go back to that Los Angeles Rams game if only for one play. The game was already out of reach, but Payton wanted to get one more score to essentially give Williams the finger. That is exactly what happened when Willie Snead threw a deep ball for the final score of the game. It was a thing of beauty when you realize that he hasn’t thrown a whole lot since his time at Muskegon Heights.
Look Ahead to 2017:
The crystal ball for the New Orleans Saints in 2017 is pretty murky. There’s rumors abound that Sean Payton may be traded. The draft is a long ways away and based off of some past acquisitions, it might not be pretty. However, the future looks bright with Dennis Allen hopefully still the DC, Sheldon Rankins hopefully around for a full season, and most of the offense will be back. It all depends how the offseason goes and if Payton remains the head coach.
-Clint Domingue