June 11, 2020
TODAY’S COLUMNS: Scott discusses Arik Gilbert and other LSU newcomers in the context of the Saints and the Tigers offensive philosophy
Dennis and Jon both discuss #9… Please scroll down for our columns.
OUR THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS GO OUT TO ONE AND ALL AS WE TRY TO MAKE OUR WAY SAFELY THROUGH THE PANDEMIC. WE STAND WITH THOSE THAT ARE PEACEFULLY PROTESTING AGAINST POLICE BRUTALITY AND RACISM.
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Big Mike’s Sports Bar & Grill
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LSU, SAINTS AND MUCH MORE
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THE WIZARDRY OF OS
One of the aspects I most enjoy about offense in basketball and football is the difference personnel can make to a single play or formation.
Sean Payton and the Saints are the masters at using different personnel and formations. One minor change can change the pressure points on the defense and take advantage of mismatches or weaknesses of the defense.
The Saints like their tight sets where they bunch 3 players outside the tackle on one side of the formation or they balance the formation with two on either side.
When the Saints group Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas on the same side, the defense cannot double both players like some teams tried to do in the past. The same formation presents different challenges when Taysom Hill and Michael Thomas are used on the same side as those are two very physical, effective blockers on the edge of a formation that need to be covered by smaller defenders.
Taking this information into account, I actually want to discuss the possible development of LSU’s offense this year. At this point, everyone throws in the disclaimer that it will not be last year’s offense. But as I see that disclaimer, I rarely see details about what changes we may see.
Last year, LSU used one tight end, Thad Moss. LSU didn’t have other options at tight end, and therefore were somewhat limited with the options in their formations. To be clear, the versatility and skill of Edwards-Helaire and Moss allowed LSU to do plenty to keep defensive coordinators up at night. But, LSU did not use formations with two tight ends.
The name Arik Gilbert is one that every Tiger fan should learn fast. He is an exceptional prospect who is easily the most athletic tight end that has ever been on LSU’s campus. He will be a true freshman, but he won’t be asked to do everything that Thad Moss was asked to do.
Another name to learn at tight end is Kole Taylor. Kole is 6’7” and around 250 pounds. He is a true freshman, and may not play much early in the year. Though, he will certainly add depth.
Then there is Jamal Pettigrew and Tory Carter. Both had injuries last year, but are veterans. Pettigrew was highly recruited out of high school and has injury issues his whole career. Carter came to LSU as a fullback, but has the skill set to be a great blocker and an effective receiver in the flat if the defense forgets about him.
With this group, LSU can challenge defenses in different ways with the same formations and the same concepts as last year. I am sure Coach Ensminger will have new twists, but my point is that keeping many of the same concepts will help as LSU tries to replace extremely talented players.
LSU is deep at wide receiver as well, but one way to replace Justin Jefferson in the slot is to use another tight end in the spot. So when you hear college football experts talking about the great players LSU lost on offense, you can realize that LSU might not have the ame weapons, but they will have a wider variety of weapons this year.
HEY REF
It was one of the saddest things I’ve ever watched and keep asking myself how we got here. Just one day after New Orleans Saints’ QB Drew Brees opened up his heart and gave his reasons why he couldn’t agree with many of the NFL players kneeling during the National Anthem he was FORCED to grovel and ask for forgiveness. It was a complete 180 degree reversal from the way he feels and he should get the Oscar for best actor since we all know he wasn’t being honest. He looked as if just off camera somebody was holding a.44 magnum to the side of his head.
It’s a very sad day in America when speaking from your heart isn’t tolerated. Watching Drew’s performance reminded me of my favorite scene from one of my favorite movies; The Outlaw Josey Wales. In the first few minutes of the movie some Confederate soldiers are massacred after surrendering to the Union Army. The senator responsible for the slaughter says the soldiers were treated well, fed then given an honorable death.
And there has never been a better line in all the movies I’ve seen as the response given the senator is “Senator, don’t P*SS on my back and tell me it’s raining”! If ever there was a better response to the dribble that had just come from Brees’ mouth this was spot-on! And I wish I could tell it to Drew personally. He’s not a good liar and I feel he shouldn’t get into the habit of lying since telling the truth fits him better.
So what I’ll do is offer a compromise. “Hey Ref’s” compromise will satisfy both sides of this dispute. What we’ll do is before the coin toss everyone will stand at attention during the playing of our National Anthem. The captains will then do what they’ve always done, decide who’ll kick and who’ll receive, etc. Then what follows is “Hey Ref’s” answer to those that want to protest a happening or a law or whichever floats their boats.
Once all 22 players are on the field of play and lined up by their respective choices a signal will come from the sidelines and all 22 players will kneel for one minute. After the minute of protest is over all players will stand and the game will then proceed normally. How simple is that? Everybody wins! Respect is given our country, its armed forces, its veterans and its citizens.
Players get their time in the sun and can announce either before the coin toss or right after it. They’ll be allowed time to announce their reasons for kneeling before the game and could even have those reasons printed in the game day programs. That way nobody has to ask “why” or “what” is being protested nor the reasons the players are doing what they’re doing. I don’t want anyone to think “Hey Ref” isn’t allowing the fans their say in this matter.
I mean after all they only make everything possible. They’re the ones that buy the tickets, T-shirts, jerseys, etc., etc. Making sure not to keep the game from starting on time and possibly getting the TV networks upset, fans will be allowed to voice their opinions during the one minute while the players are kneeling. I mean there’s no better way for the players to hear how the fans feel. Don’t the players and the league want to hear from its fans? Of course they do. So, I hope the fans and players will decide that “Hey Ref” has truly come up with a plan everyone can love since everyone gets what they want!
Till next week…
FINE IDEAS
Why does Drew Brees where #9? It has to do with baseball and there may be a connection to his grandfathers.
The 41 year old New Orleans Saints quarterback has been in the news recently. Last week, Brees responded to a question about NFL players kneeling during the national anthem by condemning the action. He reiterated the stance he has taken every other time he has been asked about this topic the last 5 years. Last Wednesday, he said he could “never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States… ”. Brees’ 2 grandfathers served the country in World War II, one in the army, the other in the Marines. This has spawned the patriotism in Brees and his feelings about the preeminence of the flag.
This issue first came into the public’s consciousness in 2016 when San Francisco 49’ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick initially sat during the national anthem and then, in subsequent games, kneeled during the Star-Spangled Banner, before games. Kaepernick said that he did this to protest Black people being oppressed in this country, including police brutality against people of color. A number of other players, mostly Black, followed suit and also have kneeled during the national anthem since Kaepernick took his stand. Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since the end of the 2016 season.
Although some players continued to kneel during the national anthem in 2019, the numbers had dwindled substantially and it, by and large, became a non-story. Fast Forward to the present time. The nation watches in horror the video of George Floyd being murdered by Minnesota police. This ignites protests and rallies throughout the country with calls for reforming police and attacking the root problem of systemic racism. There is a symbolic comparison that is made by many between Kaepernick’s knee in protest and officer Derek Chauvin’s knee on the back of the neck of Floyd for 8:46, which proved to be fatal. Brees’ comments drew swift condemnation from both Black and White football players and many people of all races throughout the world. He also received a supportive response from others. Yet, with Floyd’s murder bringing Kapernick’s kneeling back into the public mindset, Brees’ comments elevated this to the forefront of people’s awareness.
Kaepernick’s stance was applauded by most Black players, but often not publicly, in 2016. Four years later, he has the vociferous support of most Black players and several White players as well. The narrative has changed.
The exploration of this whole matter of kneeling is fascinating. Does the Star-Spangled Banner and the flag confer love for the country and respect for those who have fought for or died for the United States of America? Many people, including numerous veterans and military families, espouse this point of fe, w. Anything but standing and saluting during the national anthem is deemed sacrilegious, as it shows disrespect for the flag, the anthem, our veterans and the United States of American.
There are many others who say that the flag and the anthem are just symbols. Some veterans maintain the right of Colin Kaepernick to kneel is what they fought for—the freedom of expression that allows a democracy to prosper. Taking it a step further, as detestable as it is to burn the flag, what is even more unconscionable is to prevent someone from the right to perform this admittedly despicable act.
Do Kaepernick and others have the First Amendment right to kneel? Yes, in that the government can not pass a law to abridge a citizen’s freedom of speech. The key word in this last sentence is government. A private entity like the NFL is not the government. So, the NFL has the right to outlaw its employee’s kneeling from taking place. If the NFL feels that this action runs contrary to the way they want to operate, it is their prerogative to ban kneeling (or other players’ expressions like uniform code violations). This would be the NFL’s figurative statement, which is protected by the First Amendment.
Less than 24 hours after his interview last week, Brees issued a 180 degrees retraction, publicly apologizing for being tone-deaf to what he said was the real meaning of the national anthem and the flag. “Through my ongoing conversations with friends, teammates and leaders in the Black community, I realize this is not an issue about the American flag. It never has been. We can no longer use the flag to turn people away or distract them from the real issues that face our black community.”
Skeptics have said that Drew Brees’ capitulation was just his effort to save face, keep his endorsements and business interests intact and restore his place as the leader of the New Orleans Saints. Is this true or did Drew Brees suddenly have an epiphany less than 24 hours later?
Drew Brees has been a dream come true for New Orleans, both on and off the field. He has been the consummate professional and a tremendous person.—Brees has built up an abundance of good will for he and his family in the 15 years he has been in the crescent city. So, an argument can be made he should, thusly, get the benefit of the doubt when evaluating his rationale for his swift, far-reaching and, ostensibly, genuine contrition. Yet, only one person truly knows the veracity of Brees. That would be #9 himself.
There are numerous questions that should be answered starting in September, when one would think that all players of color and a majority of white players will be kneeling during the Star-Spangled Banner.
What does Brees do? If he should kneel, will there be an outcry that he is a hypocrite who just yielded to public sentiment? If he stays upright, does an entirely different group of people question his authenticity, no group more so than the Saints locker room? How are his business interests effected? For someone who I think is on track to be a future Governor of Louisiana if he should be politically inclined—if he should ever retire from the NFL--does he maintain his overwhelmingly positive reputation in the state?
How does the NFL handle its nuanced dance around the Anthem? On the one hand, you have players, now galvanized in unprecedented numbers, who will be kneeling. Yet, how will this play among the luxury box owners/jet set crowd—the big money people in the NFL—many of them corporate sponsors of the league? And, how about the lilly-white NFL ownership? Jerry Jones has said in the past that if a player wants to kneel, he will be an ex-Cowboy. Does Jones still have this posture? Yes, the white nation’s perspective on race has shifted. But, how much? Will this whole kneeling controversy serve as sort of a de facto racial litmus test?
Then again, might the NFL suspend this test? Would the NFL try to avert all of this potential recurring public relations nightmare by just canceling the national anthem at NFL games, giving the NFL plausible deniability of the pandemic as the pretext for this? Or, perhaps, play the national anthem when players are still in the locker room?
Will Colin Kaepernick be afforded an opportunity to make an NFL team?
One question we think we know the answer to is why Drew Brees wears #9. It is because of his love of Baseball growing up, with Ted Williams being his baseball hero.
First, being silly… Ted Williams last year with the Red Sox was in 1960. Drew Brees was born in 1979. So, how can Brees idolization of Williams be reconciled? Perhaps Williams and Brees are kindred spirits. After all, Williams’ family had his body cryogenically frozen after he died, with hopes to resuscitate him when science finds a way. Is Brees the polar opposite? Was he previously alive in the body of another person and able to witness Williams tearing up American League pitching? And, now this person has been reincarnated as Drew Brees?
There is a serious viable explanation. Both Brees and Williams were born in San Diego. Brees’ fraternal grandfather, who served in the Army, lived in San Diego. Brees’ maternal grandfather, Ray Akins, was a Marine. Remember that Williams served in the marines and navy from 1943-1945, years he spent away from the BoSox. Brees had great admiration for his grandfathers, both now deceased. Brees says that he admired Williams for his being the best pure hitter ever. Yet, one would think his family background had to play a role into his hero worshipping of Williams… and ultimately wearing #9.
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Some of the great athletes of yesteryear had several colorful nicknames. Jerry West was Mr. Clutch, Zeke from Cabin Creek and The Logo. Ted Williams was Teddy Ballgame, The Kid, The Thumper and The Splendid Splinter. The latter was one I have retroactively given myself for my high school basketball career. Williams got the Splendid Splinter nickname for his prowess with the bat, (as Drew Brees says) arguably the greatest hitter ever. I’ve given myself this sobriquet for the figurative splinters I picked up on the bench as, arguably, the worst high school basketball player ever.
I’m hoping that as I’m writing this, Baseball is getting its act together and coming to an agreement so we can have the national pastime this summer. So, I hope the following point is moot… or mute as some of my Louisiana friends might say. Getting an amended collective bargaining agreement can be easy. The solution? Binding Arbitration. Let both sides submit their best offer to a mutually agreed upon arbitrator. The Arbitrator then gets to decide. If their impasse has not been resolved by next Thursday, I’ll further elaborate on this process next week. This is a FINE IDEAS column that I hope I don’t have to write. It would be real nice if the players and owners somehow come to terms sometime in the next 7 days, rendering this subject matter mute (sic).
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