To Be Settled in February?

There's a storm brewing in the Gulf. But aside from Hurricane Isaac, there is plenty to talk about down south. The possibility of an "I-10 Super Bowl" between the New Orleans Saints and Houston Texans is not all that far fetched. If Saturday's preseason matchup, won by New Orleans, 34-27, was any indication, it would be a classic.

 

JUST BECAUSE IT DOESN'T COUNT DOESN'T MEAN IT DOESN'T MATTER

 

Preseason tells you plenty if you account for the circumstances. The Texans are the sexy AFC pick to reach the Super Bowl with good reason. The offense is loaded and managed to win a playoff game last season with a third string rookie quarterback. The defense went from outhouse to penthouse when the Texans had the good fortune of landing former NFL Head Coach and highly successful defensive coordinator Wade Phillips.

 

The Saints are threat in any game at any time with Drew Brees at quarterback. But it would be naive to think that the year long suspension of Head Coach Sean Payton and multiple other coaching and managerial suspensions would not be a huge hurdle for the Saints in 2012. I agreed with many of the the experts that the Saints could expect a 10 win season until Saturday night (which was a dress rehearsal). Now, I am thinking there really could be a repeat (or better) of last year....winning the division with 11 or more wins.

 

WHAT PRESEASON TOLD US

What took place in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Saturday were two offenses demonstrating how quickly they could put up a ton of points and two defenses that can hit and take advantage of mistakes. The result was a close but high scoring game, easily the most entertaining one I have watched during preseason.

 

Both of these teams are serious contenders to meet in Super Bowl XLVII in February in New Orleans. Both teams demonstrated why. In two weeks, the real bullets will fly. The tween these teams might count...for everything.

Saturday may have beena look into the future.

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