Does coaching matter?
It’s one of the age-old questions that has been debated from great minds within the sporting world from Dick Schaap (probably…okay, totally making that up), to that dude that always hangs out at the barbershop, but you never see him in the chair. He’s just always running his yap about sports like he’s the end all-be all and it’s like, “Are you gonna get a shape up or not, yo?” But I digress.
The merits of coaching is debatable across all sports, but it’s pretty safe to say no sport is more directly tied to coaching than American football. And if there was ever a team that was willing to bet that coaching does matter, it would be the 2013 New Orleans Saints.
The Saints were without their fearless leader Sean Payton for the entire 2012 season following the “Bountygate” allegations, and his absence seemed to have a noticeable impact on his team. After following up their Super Bowl victory with 11-5 and 12-4 seasons, the Saints went just 7-9 in 2012 and failed to make the playoffs under interim coaches Aaron Kromer and Joe Vitt— two guys that seemed more like substitute teachers at times. Quarterback Drew Brees was forced to do too much, and as a result threw a league high-tying 19 interceptions and had his lowest completion percentage in nine years.
Sidebar: It wasn’t all bad for Brees. He did lead the NFL in passing yards and touchdown passes. But much of this was out of desperation as the Saints were playing from behind…a lot.
Payton’s impending return has gotten many pundits thinking that the Saints will return to prominence in the NFC South. While the N.O. should once again compete for a playoff spot, assuming that they will automatically be a legit contender is incredibly ambitious. Those pundits also seem to be forgetting the Saints’ historic atrocity of a defense. This is a defense that gave up over 7,000 yards of offense last year, an NFL record. That’s just over four miles of offense!!!
Aside from the fact that Payton has always been an offensive mastermind and never a defensive savant, the Saints are actually returning seven starters from that all-time septic tank of a defense! It would be eight had it not been for Will Smith’s season-ending knee injury a few weeks ago. And three of the four new starters were on the roster last season. None of this sounds like a winning formula, even if Payton helps Brees return to his Super Bowl caliber form.
Also finishing 7-9 in the South last season was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Carolina Panthers. Both teams also feature leaders with something to prove.
Anxious to refine their comically bad secondary (although their run defense was best in the league in 2012), the Bucs brought in All-Pro safely Dashon Goldson via free agency — and more notably — cornerback Darrelle Revis via trade. Revis is a former AFC Defensive Player of the Year (did you know this award was broken down by conference?) and was widely considered the best defender in the game as recently as last summer. He’s out to prove that A) he’s worth his enormous, albeit unusual contract he got from Tampa Bay, and B) that he’s fully recovered from 2012’s ACL tear. If Josh Freeman can iron out his inconsistent quarterback play and second-year running back Doug Martin can duplicate his rookie effort (1,454 rushing yards, 11 TDs), the Bucs will be thinking playoffs come December. Remember, it’s year two of the Schiano era…anything can happen!
Sidebar: That sounded like a wrestling promo. But it’s Greg Schiano, so you never know.
The Panthers are at a bit of a crossroads as an organization. Specifically, coach Ron Rivera was thought to be headed out the door when the general manager that hired him was ousted from Carolina last year. Rivera survived and received one more chance, but if things don’t go well, he could very easily be given his walking papers by mid-season.
And then there’s Cam Newton. When he’s on, he’s as explosive of a talent as there is in the NFL. But when his Panthers came up short, Newton’s sulking turned off just about everybody within the football community. His postgame press conferences looked liked pity parties sponsored by Bank of America and have earned him the not-so-affectionate nickname “Scam Newton”.
Cam has always had the statistics, but what happens if the numbers don’t translate into W’s? If not careful, Super Cam could turn into the NFL’s version of Monta Ellis. Panthers new GM Dave Gettleman said “after a pregnant, seven-second pause” according to The Charlotte Observer, that Cam was the man with the plan, “but now it’s time to win.”
Luckily for Newton and Rivera, the defense appears to be much improved, and linebacker Luke Kuechly appears ready to take his proper place as a top three linebacker in the entire NFL as soon as tomorrow morning. But the GM’s message is clear, and he’s about to lean on Cam a bit to help get that message across.
NFC South Champion: Atlanta Falcons
Ironically, the one team that really doesn’t have players/coaches with “something to prove” to the extent of a Payton, a Revis or a Newton are the Falcons, the one team that HHSR called out last winter. Atlanta rose to the occasion, and though they fell just short of making the Super Bowl, they’re now battle-tested and have proven that they are a legitimate threat to go all the way.
This division will be much harder for the Dirty Birds to win than it was last season, but Atlanta still appears to be up to the task. They somehow convinced Tony Gonzalez to return for “one more season” and they’ve replaced Michael Turner with Steven Jackson, which should be a tremendous upgrade for their rushing attack.
Problems still persist on defense and the offensive line has come into question as well, but ATL has enough firepower and continuity to take the divisional crown once again in 2013. The NFC South is arguably the deepest division in the NFL this year; the team that finishes in second place shouldn’t hang their head, they’ll probably make the playoffs too.