Tigers reinstate Hill to team
August 13, 2013
199 Years of Memories: Lafourche sisters recall their century (so far) of living
August 13, 2013
It wasn’t always pretty – NFL preseason action rarely ever is.
But the New Orleans Saints started their 2013-14 campaign with a win.
The Black and Gold bested the Kansas City Chiefs 17-13 on Friday night in each team’s opening preseason game.
The scoreboard was tight throughout, but the Saints dominated the game statistically, outgaining the Chiefs 427-215 and also controlling time of possession by nearly a two-to-one margin.
“It was sloppy,” Saints quarterback Drew Brees said. “But it’s always good to win.”
The low-point of the night for the Saints was probably the play of their starters.
Kansas City got the ball to start the game.
Their new-look first string unit marched the ball 80 yards on 14 plays – a drive capped by a one-yard run from halfback Jamaal Charles.
New Orleans’ defense struggled to stop Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith on the drive. He completed 7-of-8 passes for 68 yards.
“They set a fast tempo and we adjusted accordingly,” Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan said. “They made some small completions and gave us some wear and tear.”
Following Kansas City’s touchdown drive, New Orleans’ first offense failed to answer, getting just one first down on a six-play drive.
Following a punt and a Chiefs field goal to make the game 10-0, Brees found his rhythm in a second drive, orchestrating a 10-play drive that was capped with a field goal – the final scoring in the first half.
That drive was against a mix of Kansas City’s first and second team defense. It cut Kansas City’s lead to 10-3.
The Saints’ All-Pro quarterback finished the game 7-of-10 with 65 yards in his two drives.
“We got some momentum during the second drive,” Brees said. “I thought the overall efficiency was pretty good. The tempo wasn’t quite where we wanted. We had some mental errors here and there. We were not as crisp as we would want.”
In the battle of the backups, New Orleans took control of the game.
Saints’ reserve quarterback Luke McCown caught fire in the third quarter to turn a seven-point deficit into a seven-point lead.
McCown hit receiver Preston Parker on separate two-yard touchdown strikes to put New Orleans in front 17-10.
The big day by McCown and Parker may both have implications on the team’s final roster.
McCown is competing with veteran Seneca Wallace for the backup quarterback gig.
Parker is one of a slew of receivers aiming to be New Orleans’ slot guy – a ground that also includes Nick Toon, Andy Tanner and Kenny Stills.
Parker had four grabs for 43 yards with the two scores.
Toon caught four passes for 66 yards.
Tanner had three receptions for 59 yards.
“I thought Preston Parker played well,” Payton said. “You saw him step up and the other guys had their flashes, too.”
With the lead in hand, New Orleans’ defense stiffened and secured the win.
Following the opening 80-yard trek, the Chiefs didn’t have another drive of significance on the night.
“I thought we had good energy to the ball,” Payton said of his defense. “We got our hands on it. I thought that was certainly evident for everyone watching.
“That was good news.”
So with the first game out of the way, the Saints will spend this week trying to get better.
Payton said he will really challenge the team’s coaching staff in the coming week to try and get the team playing at an elite level.
The coach pointed to a handful of alignment errors and pre-snap penalties in Friday’s game and said those things have to change if the team wants to be a contender in the NFC.
“I didn’t want to come in and be so negative, but there are a lot of things that I think we need to clean up,” Payton said. “In the last game I coached, it was a playoff game, so you have this expectation and yet it’s preseason, but we have just 10 guys on the field (on one play) and then can’t get the right personnel out there.
“There were a ton of little things that we have to be better at. We have to be better starting with the coaches, myself and everyone else. I just thought it was sloppy out there.”
Brees agreed with his coach’s assessment that things need to get better going forward.
He said that his teammates have to have the mindset that the regular season is just around the corner.
“We expect a lot of ourselves,” Brees said. “It’s not just the coaches putting it on us – it’s ourselves. There’s a sense of urgency. Although we’ve got three more weeks of preseason, the regular season will be here before we know it.”
New Orleans will get their second crack at game action this Friday when they host the Oakland Raiders.
That game will kickoff at 7 p.m. and will be played inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Like New Orleans, the Raiders are 1-0 in the preseason.
Oakland scored a 19-17 win against the Dallas Cowboys on Friday night.
The game will mark a Louisiana return for Oakland starting quarterback and former LSU star Matt Flynn.
The former Tiger was 4-of-5 with 37-yards passing in his preseason opener.
But he also lost a fumble deep in his own territory which allowed the Cowboys to grab an early lead in the game.
New Orleans Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro makes a tackle during the team’s preseason game with the Kansas City Chiefs. The Saints won the game 17-13. They said they will try and polish some of their mental miscues in the second preseason game of the year – a 7 p.m. home tilt with the Oakland Raiders.
