Will the Real New Orleans Saints Please Stand Up!

Let's face it, 2007 was a fluke. The Saints were one win away from playing in their first Super Bowl ever in 2006. They were preseason favorites to take it all the way in 2007. Then came the 0-4 start, and losing their prized running back Deuce McAllister did not help either. Then came the four-game winning streak, and everyone thought they were back from the dead. From that point on it was hit and miss. Missing the playoffs, and ending the season 7-9. What happened? First, it was the inconsistent play from Reggie Bush. Bush just could not give the Saints the edge in the running game, and Coach Payton was forced to go to the air. Then you had the Saints defense not even showing up for games. You cannot expect to win football games by giving up (14) 20-plus-yard rushes and (54) 20-plus-yard completions. This was clearly due to a defensive player being out of place, or just having the completely wrong defense called. I myself thought the defensive play calling was extremely bad last ... (link)