New Orleans Saints: 2011 Season in Review

The ride was fun while it lasted, Who Dat Nation, but all good things have to come to an end, and they did with a bang. I'm sure I wasn't the only on the edge of their seats for that last one. Where I watched the game at, I don't think anyone has heard more four letter curse words since a viewing of Casino.

I am, and always will be, proud of this team. They never quit fighting; down 17, didn't matter. They never quit during the season, either.

At the halfway part of the season, this team resembled those '07 and '08 teams to the tee: all offense, no defense and a team that thought they were just going to coast on expectations alone. But this team, and not to mention this city, has one motto: Finish strong. And they did, all the way to the bitter end, with a whole bunch of records broken on the way.

This season began all the way back at the draft. When DE Cameron Jordan fell into the Saints' lap at No. 24, they got their bookend for Will Smith. Then, they surprised everyone, jumped in at No. 28 and took Alabama RB Mark Ingram, giving up their second-round pick and a future first-round pick. I think they were overreacting to the injuries that plagued their RB depth at the end of last season, but Ingram had feature back written all over him, and the Saints haven't had one since Deuce McAllister. The move looks a little silly now that Darren Sproles was on a different planet, but I don't think the Saints knew they could get him.

Future starters were also found in the third round in OLB Martez Wilson and CB Johnny Patrick, and Nate Bussey, one of their seventh-rounders, also made the active roster down the stretch. Don't forget about S Isa Abdul-Quddus and WR Joe Morgan that were found after the draft and were diamonds in the rough. (Be on the lookout for Morgan. I think he could be the next undrafted sensation like Victor Cruz  minus the salsa dancing.)

In the shortened offseason, the Saints struck quickly and added quality starters. They struck before the lockout and picked up Shaun Rogers, who constantly collapsed the middle of the opposing line.

Then, the fun began after the lockout. When the Saints traded Reggie Bush after five up-and-down years to Miami, they looked for a replacement. And what would you know, they didn't find a replacement, but an all-around better player who took Bush's role and exploded. (That's how you were suppose to perform in that role, Reggie. Too bad you didn't want to go "forward" with your talent.)

After the Sproles pickup, I think everyone thought the Saints were done with FA's. Wrong! They snuck in and signed Aubrayo Franklin to a one-year contract to shore up the defensive line. He didn't quite live up to expectations.

The 2011 season is a tale of two halves, which, in turn, is a microcosm of how the Saints performed in games: Slow to start, but finished strong. The first part of the season, this team had new starters in key spots that were all getting used to each other. Nobody knew how good Jimmy Graham was; same with Sproles and Ingram. Ingram turned in a reasonable 500-yard, five TD season considering the fact that injuries limited him to only 10 games.

The defense also had a rocky start, giving up 42 points to Green Bay and 33 to Houston, and it came to a head by allowing 31 points to lowly, winless St. Louis and losing to a Rams team that was 2-14 and only averaged 12 PPG and were shutout twice.

After that loss to St. Louis, the defense only allowed 19 PPG en route to a division championship despite being in the bottom third of the NFL in turnovers. They weren't getting the turnovers like in '09, but this defense had a bend-but-don't-break approach that had them keeping their opponents mostly between the 20's.

On the offensive side, Drew Brees and Co. rebounded from that St. Louis loss and began a tear, obliterating all defenses in his path. The offense averaged 36 PPG and ended the season with three straight 40-plus games. The end of the regular season also saw the team rewriting team and NFL record books. There were too many to name. (You would've thought that Papermate White-Out would have bought naming rights to the SuperDome, not Mercedes-Benz.)

The success continued into the playoffs with their rout of Detroit, but ended in break-neck pace that no one would have seen coming: a shootout in San Francisco.

All in all, it was still a 13-3 season. I think a lot of fanbases would be very happy with that. It was a surprise to me, honestly. I was the guy who was predicting a 10-6 season after what I saw in the preseason, and at the halfway point of the season, with the Saints sitting at 5-3 with defensive issues, it looked like i was going to be right. (Trust me, I didn't want to be.)

This team showed a lot of people that they could overcome those lapses (Tampa Bay and St. Louis) and win out. In the end, though, the defense was the weak link and cost this team a chance to host the NFC Championship for the second time in three years.

This team has major decisions (Brees, Carl Nicks, Marques Colston) and holes to fill in the upcoming draft in the next few months to stay at the top and get back to the Super Bowl, which happens to be held in New Orleans next year. So I think I speak for Who Dat Nation by saying let's make this a Black and Gold Super Bowl, literally.

Who Dat!