Robert Meachem Saints MVP Vs Redskins

Now that my heart is back in its rightful place and not beating faster than a Humming bird flaps its wings its time to name this weeks Saints MVP. 

The competition is a little thin on the ground following an abject performance in some areas of the field (cups hand to your ear and whispers Defense) but there were two contenders who stood out and one of them won it last week so it can't go to him for ethical reasons... 

So without further ado I hereby give it to the Saints number 17 ace in the pack himself R. Meachem... for two game changing moments in the tighter than newly washed underpants game that was the Saints Vs Redskins.

Robert Meachem Saints MVP - To witness the Saints struggling to get back in the game before half time was hard enough.  To then watch Drew Brees throw a pick under pressure made it worse still.  But to suddenly realise that the Saints team were following Robert Meachem down the sidelines was something beyond unexpected.

My brain took a few seconds to process what was going on and before I could say 'Er, like what's going on' the Saints were dancing in the end zone and the World seemed that bit brighter for a good few minutes thanks to Mr Never Quit himself, Robert 'You Beautiful SOB' Meachem.

Talk about hustle play.  The guy had no right to make that happen and yet he did and it helped keep the Saints in with a fighting chance for the second half.  Without Meachems intervention the Redskins could very well have got a few more points on the board and made things that extra touch more difficult than they already were... Which is to say very difficult indeed.

To add excitement to ecstasy he then elected to throw the double fake of his life on his way to the post on the 52 yard game tying touchdown with just 1.27 on the clock.  Talk about hero making.  Cometh the hour, cometh the Meachem.  He ended the day with 142 yards off 8 receptions and 2 touchdowns... and my undying debt.

Honourable mentions to...

Drew Brees Saints Legend - Not quite at his pinnacle best of the Patriots game (but then how do you better perfection) yet still a more than decent game by the Don of the Saints O.  What I love about the guy is you always have faith that he will either find a way to pull it out the bag or die trying.  And he certainly never gave up on his way to 419 passing yards off an incredible 49 attempts (that tells you the story of how effective the running game was) and 2 TDs.

Garrett Hartley Saints Kicker - How can you not pay thanks to the man who kept his cool in overtime to seal an incredible come back victory?  Yes it was only 18 yards away, yes my Granny could have kicked it but still it takes some guts to step up having watched one of your kicking brethren looking desperately for a hole to hide in having shanked his game ending field goal down the other end not long before.

Never the Worlds safest or appreciated profession but I for one thank you Mr Hartley for letting my heart beat normally again after, oh I don't know, 3 hours of nerve shredding tension.

Darren Sharper Saints Safety - Now some may wonder how a Saints Defender gets in the list this week after some of the worst tackling since I last chased a chicken round a coop but I tell you if it wasn't for number 42 the game would have been over long before.

Cast your mind back to the start of the 4th Quarter and the Redskins are driving deep in Saints territory.  Their running backs are breaking point of contact hits and getting 4/5/6 yards every carry and the goal line is beckoning.  Up steps Darren Sharper on 3rd and 1 to cut down Mason in the back field to stop a key conversion.  The Redskins duly kicked a field goal instead of putting an extra 4 on the board.

For that play alone Sharpy McSharp Sharp makes it onto this weeks winners board (although the less said about him tackling Mike McKenzie just as Old McKee boy was about to stop a touchdown by the Redskins Thomas the better).

Please, please, please will the Gods of injury smile on our stricken Defense and get some more starters back in time for the playoffs.  I'll eat my greens for a whole month or something.

Saints Vs Redskins 3rd Quarter

Welcome to the 2nd half of this tight game between the Saints and Redskins.  The Redskins are getting to Drew Brees more than is healthy and the Saints secondary is being exposed by Jason 'I'm not very good' Campbell.  Fingers crossed for some much needed improvements in the 3rd. 

Saints 17 Redskins 17

1st down Redskins at their own 25.
Cartwright picks up 5 on a right sweep.  2nd and 5.
Campbell throws towards Kelly but it goes out of bounds.  Good coverage by McKenzie.  3rd and 5.
Campbell to Randle El for 12.  Campbell was under pressure and stepped up to avoid the rush.

The Mike McKenzie Jersey - Not As Tight As That Coverage

1st down Redskins at the 43.
Campbell down the left sidelines completes to Thomas over Malcolm Jenkins.  Great throw into tight coverage.

1st down Redskins at the Saints 28.
Campbell to Thomas who beats McKenzie with a step and picks up 6.  2nd and 4.
Cartwright runs through a BIG hole before Hargrove brings him down.

1st down at the Saints 16.
Campbell to Moss but he can't hold on.  2nd and 10.
Campbell under pressure gets it out to Cartwright in the flat and picks up 6.  3rd and 4.
Campbell pressured by Darren Sharper and unloads incomplete.  4th and 4.
So the Redskins have to settle for a field goal.

Saints 17 Redskins 20

Courtney Roby continues his excellent day with a big return out to the Saints 48.

1st down Saints.
Pierre Thomas up the middle for 2.  2nd and 8.
Mike Bell up the middle for a good 7 yards.  He hit that hole hard.  3rd and 1.
Mike Bell again and he bounces on a second effort close to the marker.  The chains will come into measure and...  The Saints are short by half a yard.  So it brings up 4th down and the Saints are going for it.
Mike Bell again but he's stopped well short.  That looked far too complicated for a short yardage pick up with Nicks pulling around right.

1st down Redskins at their own 44.
Campbell goes deep down the right sidelines to Thomas all the way to the Saints 16.  A 40 yard pass play.

1st down Redskins.
Cartwright carries for 3.  2nd and 7.
Campbell under pressure and...  It goes in and out of Malcolm Jenkins hands.  Oh man he had the whole field ahead.  He would have gone untouched for 6.  Good pressure by Will Smith.  3rd and 7.
Campbell to Thomas who breaks two tackles and tip toes down the sideline for a Touchdown.  Oh man that was poor.  It looks like Darren Sharper knocked Mike McKenzie over just as he was about to make the tackle.

Saints 17 Redskins 27

1st down Saints at their own 27.
Mike Bell cuts back and picks up 7 after the inside was closed off.  2nd and 3.
Drew Brees completes to Jeremy Shockey at the 46 for a pick of 12.

1st down Saints.
Brees to Shockey on a slant for 8 more.  2nd and 2.
Mike Bell out left and he's up ended spectacularly for no gain.  3rd and 2.
Brees play fakes and finds David Thomas all the way down at the 26.  Great pass in good coverage.

1st down Saints.
Brees drops back and finds Devery Henderson at the 12.  This is more like it.

1st down Saints.
Pierre Thomas up the middle for 3 good yards.  2nd and 7.
Brees to Colston in the end zone... but it's broken up.  3rd and 7.
Brees to Henderson on a screen but no gain.  4th and 7.
So Garrett Hartley comes in for a 27 yard field goal attempt and...  It's good.

Saints 20 Redskins 27

We need a good stand by the D now to pull this back level as the longer this goes on the more it feels this is not going to be our day.  The Redskins have an answer to most things we are doing today.

1st down Redskins at their own 35.
Cartwright carries for 5.  Again we has him closed for no gain and he was able to make a cut and pick up 5.  That epitomizes our day so far.  2nd and 5.
Campbell to Randle El for 5.

1st down Redskins.
Cartwright is stopped by Bobby McCray in the back field for a loss of 1.  Finally some penetration to stop the run.  2nd and 11.
Campbell to Randle El again but it goes incomplete.  3rd and 11.  Come on D, we need a stop here.  Big play coming up.
Campbell steps up and completes to Randle El all the way down to the 14 yard line.  He was wide open.  This is not good as we end the 3rd Quarter.

Drew Brees Saints MVP Vs. Patriots

The Saints team put in a performance to remember against the Patriots on Monday night.  They dominated New England on so many levels that I ended up wondering why I had been so tense during the Saints pre game chant.

As a result there are MVP candidates throughout the roster.  However there was one man who raised his game to such a plateau that it's hard to think of anything more he could have done.  I am of course talking about the Saintsational Drew Brees my MVP for Week 11.

Drew Brees Saints MVP - Words fail me when it comes to describing our Quarterback and leader.  He played out of his skin from the get go completing down the left sidelines to Devery Henderson and never let up thereafter.

All Hail Drew Brees 

He inspired his team pre kick off with the now famous Drew Brees chant and then proceeded to maul the Pats secondary into submission.  His passing was accurate beyond belief, he read the Pats D making adjustments on the fly and he had the mastering of everything Bill Belichick could throw at him.

Some of his connections to the back shoulders of his receivers were simply the work of genius and it must have totally demoralised the Pats at times because the coverage was often pretty good.  He simply had the tenacity and ability to exploit any small hole and so proved to the nation what an incredible Quarterback he is.

Drew Brees Saints MVP

Mr Drew Bees take a bow before the Who Dat Nation because you have once again displayed that you are a genius and a Saints legend in the making.  The numbers don't lie and to end the day 18 of 23 for 371 yards and 5, repeat that, 5 Touchdowns against the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football is some feat!  Incredible.

Honourable mention must go to...

Just about everybody else on the roster!  From the offensive line to the coaching staff, from the backup secondary personal to the return team, everyone showed up with their A game and deserve all the plaudits they get.

Fronting the cue for special mention however must be the returning hero Mike McKenzie.  To be out for so long and then be thrust into the action against the likes of Welker, Moss and Aitken is hard enough but to have the beating of them?  Well that takes a special kind of competitor and a special kind of heart and I hereby salute you my man.  You kept the jam in the doughnut, the burger in the bun and the beer in the bottle so to speak.  The shootout was kept for one team only thanks to some veteran reading of the game and a classic break on a Brady ball for a decisive interception.   

Before I go just one final shout out... to you, the Who Dat Nation.  Those of you in the Super Dome on Monday played your part with non stop ear splitting sound.  I love the fact we have the best fans in the World and just hope we secure home field advantage all the way through the post season because then we can continue to play our part in supporting the team in the only way we can.  Big love.

Who Dat Nation Raising the Roof

Saints Vs. Patriots 3rd Quarter

Welcome back to the second half with the Legendary Saints in the making ruling the roost against the nation’s darlings, the New England Patriots.  Finally a national audience is seeing just how unbelievable Drew Brees is with an almost perfect game to date.  Contrast that to Tom Brady who has over thrown receivers on a number of occasions and maybe, just maybe, the World will wake up to the fact that Drew Brees is the best quarterback in the league, the end, good night... although we still have a half to play so I hope my words don't come back to haunt me.

The Patriots will start at their own 20.
Brady to Maroney who takes it 5 and... Scott Fujita strips the ball and Sedrick Ellis recovers... but then he fumbles and the Patriots have it back.  Ah man.  That could have been such a great start.  Sean Payton is going to challenge the Sedrick Ellis fumble... and we loose the challenge.

Scott Fujita Forced Fumble

1st down Pats at their own 19.
Brady completes to Watson for 11.

1st down Pats at the 30.
Brady throws incomplete but a flag comes out... but fouls cancel each other out so they'll repeat 1st down.
Brady to Moss who fumbles but then recovers at the 40.

1st down Pats.
Morris up the middle and Scott Fujita tackles hard for a stop of 1.
Flags come out against the Pats for illegal formation so it's 3rd and 9.
Brady to Aitken on the sidelines and... Connects.  Damn.

1st down Pats at the Saints 47.
Maroney runs into a Jonthan Vilma wall and stuffs him for a loss of 2.  Great tackle by the Saints D captain.  2nd and 12.
The crowd noise is awesome.
Brady looks deep, looks deep and connects with Randy Moss all the way to the 2.

Saints Fans Raising the Roof

1st down and goal Pats.
Maroney takes the ball and runs in untouched for a touchdown.  Wow that fumble by Sedrick Ellis really cost us.

Patriots 17 Saints 24

1st down Saints at their own 25.  I said the winner of the turnover battle would win this so please no fumbles or picks.
Drew Brees to Marques Colston on the sidelines and... Makes a move and takes it all the way down to the Pats 6.

1st down and goal Saints
Mike Bell up the middle for 3.  2nd and goal.
Brees drops back and... Saints legend Darnell Dinkins falls over as he grabs the TOUCHDOWN!!  The 19th Saint to score a touchdown this season!!  3 plays 75 yards in about 1 second, no problem.

Air Dinkins - Saints Darnell Dinkins Slam Dunks

Patriots 17 Saints 31

1st down Pats at their own 18 after Hamilton nails the Pats kick returner for the highlights reel.
Wes Welker reverse and takes it 10 yards before Jonathan Vilma decides to say hello out of bounds and draws the personal foul pen for 15 on top.

1sr down Pats at their 44.
Morris through the middle for 6.  2nd and 4.
Faulk cuts back and takes it all the way to the Saints 36. 

1st down Pats.
Brady to Watson for a couple before he's wrapped up by Roman Harper.  2nd and 8.
Brady to Aitkens but... Mike McKenzie breaks it up.  Great read and play on the ball.  He's doing a terrific job tonight.  3rd and 8.  Come on D!!
Brady to Aitken and he breaks the McKenzie tackle and takes it to the Saints 16.

1st down Pats.
Morris for 3. 2nd and 7.
Brady throws it away after pressure from the Saints front.  The crowd want intentional grounding but don't get it.  It's soooo loud.  3rd and 7.
Brady to Welker after pressure and only pick up 3 to bring up 4th and 4.  The Pats will go for it.  This is a decisive moment in the game.
Brady to Moss and... Mike McKenzie breaks it up.  What a great game he is having.  Huge, huge play.

1st down Saints at their own 10.
Mike Bell up the middle for 6.  2nd and 4.
Pierre Thomas to the right for 3.  3rd and 1.
Mike Bell up the middle for 4 and moves the change.

1st down Saints at the 24.
Brees play action to Robert Meachem who makes a heck of a move and gets extra yards to pick up another 1st.

1st down Saints at the 37.
Brees drops back and is sacked for the first time tonight.  2nd and 14.
Pierre Thomas on a draw play that goes nowhere.  3rd and 12. 

And that's it for the 3rd.  The Saints still lead 31 to 17.

Saints Vs. Patriots 2nd Quarter

Welcome to the 2nd Quarter of the Patriots Saints game with the Pats leading by 7 to 3 and New Orleans driving. 

1st down Saints at the Pats 30.
Mike Bell hammers through the middle for 1.  Oh no… Mike Bell is on the floor after that.  He hits so hard he knocked himself out.
Drew Brees to Robert Meachem on the right sideline for a pick up of 6.  3rd and 3.
Pierre Thomas takes it 2 over left tackle.  4th and 1 and... We’re going for it.  Come on Saints!!!
Pierre Thomas goes through a Jermon Bushrod hole and... Picks up the 1st.

1st down Saints at the Pats 20.
Brees drops back checks off and sees Pierre Thomas in the flat and... Thomas breaks tackles all the way for a Saints TOUCHDOWN!!  Great run by Thomas.  Genius!!

The Pierre Thomas jersey moonwalks into the end zone

Patriots 7 Saints 10

1st down Pats at the Saints 25, 12.49 on the clock.
Wes Welker on a reverse for 3.  2nd and 7 and a Pat goes out injured... excellent... sorry but we need every edge we can get.
Brady to Welker (wonder how often I'll write that tonight) and he takes it to the Pats 40.

1st down Pats.
Maroney for 4.  2nd and 6.
The Super Dome is LOUD... and the Pats will take a timeout.
Brady to Morris and the doof drops it.  Perfect drop, love it.  3rd and 6.
Brady to Aitken and Mike Mckenzie hits him before he can turn so he is short by 3.  Great play McKenzie!! 
Pats punt.

1st down Saints at their own 25.
Drew Brees to Devery Henderson and... TOUCHDOWN!!!  OH MY GOOD GOD!!  Henderson was wide open and took it at the 50 and went totally untouched all the way.  It must have been a busted play for him to be that open.  LEGENDS!!!

Drew Brees to Devery Henderson Touchdown - Henderson feels lonely

Patriots 7 Saints 17

1st down Patriots at their own 24, 9.48 on the clock.
Maroney runs over Harper and co. for 10.  He should have been wrapped up at the line but beat Vilma with a cut and then knocked Harper over.

1st down Pats.
2 yard run by someone or other.
Tom Brady drops back and... Will Smith sacks him with Bobby McCray!!  3rd and 12.
Brady to Aitken and... he connects big all the way to the Saints 35.

1st down Pats.
Maroney runs left for 3. 2nd and 7.
Brady to Welker and... It’s dropped!!  Malcolm Jenkins got away with blatant pass interference there.  Fantastic.  3rd and 7,
Brady looks but can't find anyone so steps up to run and... Scott Fujita comes in and wraps him up but... oh no Roman Harper is called for illegal contact.  So the Pats have a 1st down at the Saints 25 and karma has come and bit us in the ass for the Malcolm Jenkins pass interference that wasn't called.

1st down Pats at the Saints 25.
Hand off to Maroney who takes it for 4.  2nd and 6.
Maroney up the middle but Scott Shanley wraps him up for just 1.  3rd and 5.  Come on Saints.  Deeeeeeee FENCE.
Brady to Welker but he's hit short by Roman Harper and it brings up 4th and 3.  Huge play by Harper.
Patriots go for a field goal and get it.

Patriots 10 Saints 17

1st down Saints at their own 23, 4.07 on the clock.
Brees to Pierre Thomas who weaves his way for 3.  Great effort.  2nd and 7.
Brees to Devery Henderson on the sidelines who takes it short but makes a move and moves the chains.  Great play Devery.

1st down Saints at their 35.
Pierre Thomas up the middle for 2.  2nd and 8.
Drew Brees pumps two fakes and stops the D and... Finds Saints legend in the making David Thomas for 25!!

1st down Saints at the Pats 38.
Drew Brees drops back and looks deep... and hits Robert Meachem for a Saints TOUCHDOWN!!  Awesome, absolutely awesome.  Now Drew Brees should get the recognition he deserves.  That was just sensational.

Robert Meachem Touchdown - 'Hey 24, watch this catch'

Patriots 13 Saints 24

Come on Defence.  Let's stop them scoring before the half.

1st down Patriots at their own 20.
Brady to Maroney on the screen for pick up of 9 and gets out of bounds.  2nd 1.
Brady hit by Anthony Hargrove as he throws and it falls incomplete.  Great pressure Hargroves you legend!!
Brady to Aitken and they convert.

1st down Pats at their 35, 1.07 on the clock.
Brady hit by Bobby McCray as he releases and falls incomplete.   But Malcolm Jenkins is called for holding in the secondary so the Pats get a 1st down at their 40.

1st down Pats.
Brady to Welker on the sidelines for 8.  2nd and 3.
Brady to Moss at the Saints 42.

1st down Pats with 46 ticks left on the clock.
Brady to Faulk who gets jacked up by Darren Sharper.  That was HARDDDDDD!!  Faulk is being checked on the sidelines.

1st down Pats at the 32.
Brady down the middle and... it's broken up.
Brady to the end zone and... it sails over the receiver.  3rd and 10.  Come on D.
Brady down the middle and... it sails incomplete again.  Beautiful.  The Saints secondary are doing an outstanding job on coverage.
So they go for a 50 yard field goal and... It goes wide left!!

Still Patriots 10 Saints 24 to end the 1st half.  Everyone has played just great so far.

Saints Vs. Patriots 1st Quarter

Welcome to the first quarter of the showdown of nerves between the New England Patriots and the famous New Orleans Saints.  The Saints come into the game 10 and 0 but with a secondary ravaged by injuries.  Let's hope Will Smith and co. can get to Tom Brady enough times or this could be a tense shoot out.

And the Pats will kick us off...  Courtney Roby takes it at the 7 and runs it straight up the middle to the 35.  Great start my man.

Saints Courtney Roby - Redefining the 1000 yard stare

1st down Saints.
Brees to Devery Henderson down the left sideline and... Connects for 33 yards.  Outstanding throw by Drew Brees.

1st down Saints at the New England 32.
Drew Brees to Marques Colston to the right sideline this time for a pick up of 6.
2nd 4.  Brees to Pierre Thomas for a further 2.
3rd and 2.  Pierre Thomas over left guard and the pile drives them through for a first down.  Great start.

1st down Saints at the NE 21.
Mike Bell takes it for 6 off a great cut back.  Hammer Bell hit hard yet again.
2nd and 4.  Brees to Henderson but it's broken up on the goal line.  3rd and 4.
Pierre Thomas reverse picks up 3 so caught just shy.
So the Saints will bring in John Carney for a 31 yard field goal attempt... and after hitting the upright it goes through.

Patriots 0 Saints 3

1st down Pats at their own 20.
Brady 1st pass goes incomplete.  Excellent, more like that please Tom.  2nd and 10.
Maroney cuts back and breaks one for 22. Darren Sharper with the tackle.

1st down Pats.
Brady to Maroney for 9.
Maroney again up the middle and converts.

1st down at Saints 45.
Brady to Welker for 5.
Maroney up the middle for 4 more.  3rd and 1.  Big, big play.
Brady low to Moss and... Incomplete.  Excellent.  Darren Sharper takes Moss out after the drop.
The Pats go for it on 4th and... Convert up the middle.  Damn.

1st down Pats at the Saints 33.
Maroney to the left runs into Area 51 and wraps him up for only 1.  2nd and 9.
Brady to Faulk who beats Scott Shanley to turn the corner and breaks it to the Saints 14.

1st down Pats.
Run to the right picks up 5. 2nd and 5.
Maroney breaks through (again) and takes it for 4 more.  Big 3rd and 1 now.  Come on Saints.
Maroney goes over left guard and... It’s close, they're going to measure... and they are a yard short!!  4th and 1.  And the Pats will go for it again.
Maroney bursts over right tackle and... Runs in from 4 yards out for a touchdown.  Damn it.

Patriots 7 Saints 3

Courtney Roby takes it to the 25.

1st down Saints.
Brees to Jeremy Shockey who takes a shot but holds on for a first down at the Saints 40.

Pierre Thomas takes the ball and runs hard up the middle for 6.  The pile moved hard there.  2nd and 4.
Devery Henderson comes on a reverse but is stopped for 0 gain.  3rd and 4.
Brees throws to Robert Meachem and... Just misses him.  Damn he was wide open.  Just a yard over thrown.  It would have gone to the house.
Saints will punt and...  Wes Welker takes it all the way back to the Saints 45.

1st down Pats.
Brady looks to Moss and Mike McKenzie steps in front to pick off chisel boy and returns it to the Saints 41.  Great play McKenzie and welcome relief as the Pats had good field possession there and could have jumped out to a big early lead.

Mike McKenzie stares down Tom Brady

1st down Saints.
Bell takes it and runs into every one for a gain of 4.  2nd and 6.
Pierre Thomas over left tackle and... Bursts through into open field all the way to the Pats 30.  Great hole and run to end the first Quarter with the Patriots leading the Saints 7 to 3.