LSU pounds opposition as NSU continues to struggle to stay afloat

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

Quarterbacks: Drew Brees was 31-of-35 with 325 yards and five touchdowns. He didn’t even have a perfect quarterback rating. If that doesn’t prove the system is flawed, I don’t know what does.

Grade: A+

Halfbacks. Mark Ingram, Pierre Thomas and Darren Sproles all had big days on the ground in this onslaught. It’s amazing how much easier offense is when you make an attempt to run the football.

Grade: A

Wide receivers. Four Saints players had five or more receptions in this blowout and eight total players caught passes. The Saints have unbelievable wide receiver depth. That, to me, is the most impressive thing about this team.

Grade: A

Offensive line. The Saints are playing on the road next week against the St. Louis Rams. If not for that, there would be no reason to even wash Drew Brees’ jersey because he was hardly touched by the Colts’ defense.

Grade: A

Defensive line. In this rout of routs, the Colts did find a way to run the football effectively. Curtis Painter was only sacked once in the game, as well. It’s hard to split hairs in a 50-point drumming, but the team’s defensive line could have been better.

Grade: B+

Linebackers. The Saints’ linebackers had a good day at the office, bottling up the Colts’ playmakers as best as could be expected with the scoreboard as lopsided as it was.

Grade: A

Defensive backs. Before I say great things about this mostly inept group, let me preface by saying Curtis Painter is maybe the worst quarterback in NFL history. But with that out of the way, the Saints’ defensive backs made his life miserable in their most impressive showing of the season aside from the Bears game.

Grade: A

Special teams. How does one judge a special teams unit that hardly ever punted and spent most of its time kicking extra points? That’s a tough task.

Grade: B+

Coaching staff. Sean Payton is pretty much a genius. I think that’s pretty common knowledge. But let’s give some kudos to his staff. With Payton upstairs supervising, the team’s assistant coaches handled the game day responsibilities without a hitch. The end result was one of the biggest routs in Saints history. Great job to the lesser known coaches who never get any love.

Grade: A+

Overall this is the easiest grade of the week. When an NFL team wins by more than 50 points, they get the highest grade possible.

TEAM GRADE: A+

LSU TIGERS

Quarterbacks: Jarrett Lee now has 13 touchdown passes with just one interception. That’s an eight-game ratio of success that is unheard of among LSU-land. So far, the two-quarterback system has worked just fine.

Grade: A+

Halfbacks. Make no mistake about it, Spencer Ware’s a good player. But so are Michael Ford, Kenny Hilliard, Alfred Blue, etc. LSU is loaded thick with halfbacks with a few more coming in the team’s 2012 recruiting class. Scary.

Grade: A+

Wide receivers. Rueben Randle continues to be the unsung hero of the entire team, making play after play without any mainstream love. Something tells me the NFL may be interested in his services.

Grade: A

Offensive line. Credit is always given to Jarrett Lee for the team’s offensive success, and rightfully so. But when was the last time you can remember Lee being heavily pressured? LSU’s offensive line has been absolutely super protecting its quarterback.

Grade: A

Defensive line. Auburn gashed LSU for what felt like 1,000 rushing yards in last year’s meeting. This year, they got 89 yards on the ground and had to watch their quarterback get sacked six times. What a 180.

Grade: A+

Linebackers. The linebackers could have been better disciplined on a few outside runs, but by and large, the group kept the Auburn skill players in check.

Grade: B+

Defensive backs. With two secondary contributors out, Auburn was sure to attack the LSU defensive backs, right? They tried, not that their efforts worked. Tyrann Mathieu’s replacement, Ron Brooks scored a pick-6 in the rout. Not bad for a backup.

Grade: A

Special teams. When LSU got on a roll and scored a bunch of third quarter points, didn’t you just feel sorry for the Auburn return team? Those guys were getting pummeled on special teams in some of the loudest pad-popping hits of the year. Imagine how good the unit would be if LSU actually had a special teams coach.

Grade: A+

Coaching Staff. In the face of both inner adversity and a trap game, LSU stood large. Through suspensions, two quarterbacks and a murderer’s row schedule, the Tigers are now 8-0 with every win coming by a double digit margin. You show me a coach hotter than Les Miles right now and I’ll show you a coach that is either running a fever or doesn’t exist.

Grade: A+

Overall, well, it’s now time to get ready for the big showdown. Give me LSU. I like this team’s chances against anybody. The Tigers have now won four-straight SEC games by 28 or more points. That’s not even including the rout of Oregon and also West Virginia. These guys are good.

TEAM GRADE: A+

NSU COLONELS

Quarterbacks: LaQuintin Caston and Landry Klann shared reps all throughout Saturday’s game. They also shared a beating, getting sacked a combined seven times. They shared ineffectiveness in an embarrassing loss.

Grade: D

Halfbacks. Marcus Washington has been solid for most of the season. He was bottled up real nicely Saturday, getting just 21 yards on 11 carries. The worst part is he was one of the bright spots of the team’s day.

Grade: C-

Wide receivers. In fairness, Caston and Klann were getting sacked far before a receiver could get down the field. But history has shown so far this year that even if circumstances were different, the group wouldn’t make plays.

Grade: D

Offensive line. LSU fans watched in awe Saturday as the Tigers sacked Auburn’s quarterbacks six times. Too bad the Colonels’ offensive line allowed Stephen F. Austin to one-up the Tigers and record seven sacks.

Grade: F

Defensive line. The Colonels did OK in rush defense, holding Stephen F. Austin to 3 yards per carry. That’s about the only thing the group did well defensively.

Grade: C+

Linebackers. Stephen F. Austin paper cut the Colonels to death in the short passing game. The Colonels’ linebackers don’t get the majority of the blame for that, but they do deserve some.

Grade: D+

Defensive backs. The Lumberjacks’ starting quarterback threw for seven touchdown passes. That’s not a type-o. Dude had seven touchdowns. That should never happen against anyone, much less against a team that is in the bottom half of the Southland Conference.

Grade: F

Special teams. The good news is the Colonels ran two kicks back for touchdowns. The bad news is returnman Chika Madu had what felt like 15 cracks at it amidst the team’s embarrassing effort. That’s not Madu’s fault, though, he deserves love for an unbelievable day.

Grade: A

Coaching staff. The Colonels appear to have given up and seem content to mail it in and lose every game handily for the remainder of the season. That’s not good enough. I’m a huge Charlie Stubbs fan, but losing by 30-plus points to a 2-5 team on homecoming? That’s just embarrassing.

Grade: F

Overall the Colonels aren’t very good. There’s no way to sugar coat it. Offensively, they can’t protect the passer. Defensively, they can’t stop the pass, allowing 57 points to a lowly 2-5 team. Did I already mention that it was homecoming and the team had every reason to be motivated? They weren’t. Another fail-job for the Colonels.

TEAM GRADE: F