Saints 49ers Preview

September 26, 2008

WWL – AM870 • FM105.3 | News • Talk • Sports – Saints 49ers Preview

Deke Bellavia Reporting
New Orleans SAINTS (1-2) vs San Francisco 49ERS (2-1)
Deke Bellavia reporting 9-25-08
Sunday September 28, 2008 Louisiana Superdome
9AM First Take / Noon Kickoff on WWL 870 AM / FM 105.3
Series Record: 49ers lead series 45-22-2
Last Meeting: October 28th, 2007 Saints 31 – 49ers 10
Last weeks Results: Denver beat New Orleans 34-32 and San Francisco beat Detroit 31-13
The Line: New Orleans minus -5 ½ and 48

THE 49ERS BREAKDOWN
Conference: NFC
Division: NFC West
Head Coach: Mike Nolan (4th Season)
2007 Record: 5-11
The 49ers come into their game with the Saints with a lot of confidence riding a two game win streak with victories over Seattle and Detroit. San Francisco shook off a poor outing in week one of the season as they lost at home 23-13 to divisional foe Arizona.

Since then the 49ers Offense has found their groove, scoring over thirty points in each of their last two games. Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz has been using his weapons wisely the last two games.
Journeymen QB, J.T. O’Sullivan and RB Frank Gore have been shouldering the load for the 49ers and both have been playing well. Martz has had an equal balance on offense the last two weeks rushing and throwing the football.
Sullivan has completed 50-of-75 pass attempts for 705-yards with three TD’s to just 1 interception, and Gore averages 20 carries per game and 4.8-yards per rush with three TD’s to his credit.
O’Sullivan completed passes to eight different receivers last week and he has gotten into a comfort zone with veteran WR Isaac Bruce and Bryant Johnson. TE Vernon Davis is more involved in the offense and the O-Line hasn’t been bad either.

Look for Martz to try and establish Frank Gore early in the game against the Saints Defense. Although Gore is one of the top RB’s in the NFC, he has not been a factor in the last two meetings between the Saint and 49ers.
In 2006 Gore rushed for 40-yards on 13 carries for an average of 3.1-yards per attempt, and last year Gore had 41-yards on 12 carries for 3.4-yards per pop. With that said that does not mean that Martz will not try and establish his primary ball carrier in the early stages of the game.

One key to look for as far as offensive success is concerned for San Francisco is field position. The 49ers have one of the most dangerous kick returners in the NFL in Allen Rossum. Rossum averages 26.5 yards per return, which is third in the NFC. If Rossum has a nice day, it could lead to very short fields that the 49ers Offense has to work with.
The 49ers Defense is better and look for LB Patrick Willis and CB’s Nate Clements and Walt Harris to present some match-up problems for the Saints Offense.

THE SAINTS BREAKDOWN
Conference: NFC
Division: NFC South
Head Coach: Sean Payton (3rd Year 19-18 overall)
2007 Record: 7-9

The Saints need this one bad. Is it a must win? Probably not, but wins in this league are like those “golden tickets” you need to get into Willie Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Without wins you can’t get to the playoffs.
The Saints Offense found its groove last week as far as the passing game is concerned, but New Orleans must find some balance on offense if they want to be in the hunt for the playoffs. New Orleans is averaging just 81.3-yards rushing per game, which is 28th in the NFL.

The Saints have passed the ball 122 times and rushed it 69 times in their first three games, so Coach Payton and his Offense need to continue to work on rushing the ball with consistency. The Saints continue to be plagued by the injury bug’ this week they found out that TE Jeremy Shockey is out for about a month and starting Offensive Guard, Jamar Nesbit has been suspended by the league.

The late great Bill Walsh said that you don’t have to run the ball to be successful on offense. He used the short passing game to set up his West Coast Offense, but Walsh always had a commitment to the run. If the Saints are going to be a playoff caliber team, they need to be able to move the ball on the ground.

Reggie Bush has been on fire and he is happy with his start to the 2008 season. “I feel like Coach Payton is definitely doing a great job of putting me in situations and positions to score with mismatches with defenders to give me the best chance possible to make plays. I feel like the offense is going pretty well and we’re getting better and better every game,” Bush said.

The Saints will be able to pass on the 49ers, and they should be able to run some too. Frisco allows 131.3-yards per game, which is one of the worst in the NFC. The Saints WR’s will have a tough match-up against the 49ers CB’s as Walt Harris and Nate Clements look more acclimated to Coach Mike Singtletary’s Defense this season.

The Saints Defense needs to be able to shut down Gore like they’ve done the last two times. That task may be more difficult this year with Mike Martz calling the shots for the Frisco Offense.

The Saints should be able to get some heat on J.T. O’Sullivan. The Black and Gold are lacking a little on sacks, but they have a total of 16 quarterback knockdowns, which is not far from the league best of 20.
Cornerbacks Tracey Porter and Mike McKenzie will be opposite sides and this tandem looks like it could develop into a pretty good one, but they need some help from the D-Line with pressure.

Big Chief’s Final Analysis
The Saints have to win. I am not saying this is a must win, but if the Black and Gold want to accomplish some of their preseason goals, they need to come up big during this three game home stand.
The big buzz in town has been that of veteran RB Deuce McAllister and his absence. Deuce says he’s ready, so will he play this week against the 49ers? “He’s not on the injury report. He’s healthy. He’s off the injury report. He’s rehabbed. He just hasn’t played in a while,” Payton said.

“The bottom line is he’s recovering from a significant knee injury, he’s working his way back in the lineup,” continued coach Payton. So I guess we’ll find out Sunday. The Saints need this one and they will get it.
This one won’t be as easy as the last two, but the Black and Gold find a way to pull it out.

The Big Chief Says – New Orleans 31 San Francisco 24

Don’t miss WWL X-Treme Saints coverage. At 9am – FIRST TAKE with former Saints offensive lineman Steve Korte and Mark Chifici. At 10am – COUNTDOWN TO KICKOFF with the Cajun Cannon Bobby Hebert & Deke Bellavia. Noon is game time with Jim Henderson, Hokie Gajan & Gus Kattengell. Then, after the game join Bobby for THE POINT AFTER live from Deanie’s Seafood in the French Quarter, baby til 6pm – on WWL-AM-FM and worldwide at WWL.com.

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