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No Drew Brees, no problem for the fourth game in a row to improve to 5-1in an ugly defensive battle against the Jags 13-6. Here are my observations:
The Good
-The defense held it down yet again. At halftime, the Jags had only 110 yards of offense and ended the game with 226. This was the third game in a row allowing less than 300 total yards. Defensive stars Cam Jordan (two sacks) and Marshon Lattimore (an interception) led the way.
-Teddy Bridgewater completed 67% of his passes against the Jags. His poise in the pocket allowed him to remain calm and hit open receivers. No wonder teams wanted him to come in to potentially start for them this past offseason. This stretch proves he still has what it takes to be a starter in this league.
-Eight of Bridgewater's completions went to Michael Thomas. He hauled in those passs for a total of 89 yards, but didn't score a touchdown. However, he was open or made a play on the ball every time Bridgewater needed him. How he was so wide open on several instances is beyond me.
The Bad
-Bridgewater was pretty inaccurate today. While he had a decent completion percentage, he sailed quite a few balls. Luckily, they weren't intercepted. These throws are the ones that typically get tipped and/or picked off and can change a game, especially one played this close.
-Alvin Kamara was held in check. He totaled 18 touches for 66 yards and failed to score. Kamara is the X-Factor on offense for the Saints. His struggles coincided with the team's low output. It's a wonder they won despite the Jags doing such a good job holding him down.
-Speaking of low output, the offense averaged a paltry five yards per play. The Jags defense is stout, but it's aso susceptible to being beat. The Saints offense did just enough to win, but these type of performances aren't going to cut it against a team that has a better offense on the days the defense can't bail them out.
The Ugly
-No touchdowns scored in the first three quarters of play. Both defenses came to play. While I happen to like defensive games, it's the offenses that sell tickets and creates interest outside of the football faithful. It took until the 11:49 mark of the 4th quarter before ther Saints scored on a Bridgewater touchdown pass to Jared Cook.
-Going 5/13 on 3rd down conversions is a recipe for disaster. That's 38% for the mathematically challenged. Again, if the defense isn't able to bail the offense out by playing shut down ball, the offense will have to step it up.
-Demario Davis laid out Jags tight end Geoff Swaim in the 4th quarter. He was flagged for unnecessary roughness as the hit was to Swaim's head. Thankfully he was able to walk off the field, but stayed down a little while. Davis immediately took his helmet off and kneeled down as he's known for being a good sport and surely didn't mean to potentially injure Swaim.
The Jags are always a tough opponent, provided they're playing with their heads on their shoulders and not up their asses. Fortunately for the Saints, they played just a bit better than the Jags did, but not by much. I happen to enjoy games like this because I appreciate good defense. Some of you would disagree, and that's OK. Up next are the Bears, in Chicago. I fully expect another defensive struggle. If they can survive next week, the bye week comes and Brees should be back the week after. This may be the best team in the NFL right now all things considered.
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Feb 28, 2025, 3:51 pm
Now that spring training is officially underway, we're able to make some observations about how the Astros 2025 roster is taking shape.
Houston's starting rotation is basically set, but we got to see Hayden Wesneski make his first start in an Astro uniform. Wesneski pitched two innings against the Mets on Tuesday, allowing one run with three strikeouts.
He's working on a curveball that's a new pitch for his repertoire, and he saw some success with it. Hopefully, adding this pitch will help keep batters off balance (especially left-handed hitters) and help elevate his game. Which is nothing new for the Astros, who have a history of helping pitchers get to the next level.
Forrest Whitley also looked good, pitching a clean inning and finishing off his final hitter with a 97 mph fastball. Whitley finally realizing his potential in the big leagues could be a huge deal for the Astros, as they're looking to lighten the workload for Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader this season.
Hader in particular could benefit from this adjustment, as he was much worse when pitching in non-save situations last season. An easy fix with Hader could be trying to limit his workload to mostly save situations. That way, you get the most out of him and achieve the goal of him pitching less innings this year.
The Houston Chronicle's Matt Kawahara wrote about Hader's struggles pitching when games were tied or Houston was trailing.
“Hader converted 34 of 38 save chances but faced more batters in non-save situations (142) than in save situations (136), a sharp pivot from his previous few seasons. Opponents slugged .271 against him in save situations and .411 in non-save situations, while his ERA was more than two runs higher (4.98) in the latter.”
And while it's easy to say “suck it up, you're getting paid a fortune to pitch,” if he's not having success in those situations, and you're looking to back off his workload, this seems like an obvious way to pivot. He's under contract for another four seasons, so the Astros are right to want to be careful with him.
Astros plate discipline
Manager Joe Espada has made it very clear that he would like his offense to see more pitches this season. And we're seeing a stark difference in the approaches from the newly acquired players (Isaac Paredes, Christian Walker) and Houston's returning hitters.
Keep in mind, Paredes was first in pitches per plate appearance last season, and Walker was 10th.
So it shouldn't come as a surprise that Paredes and Walker both worked a full count in their first at-bats on Tuesday, while Mauricio Dubon, Yainer Diaz, and Chas McCormick swung at every pitch in their first at-bats.
Hopefully the new blood in the clubhouse will rub off on the rest of the Astros lineup, which is full of free swingers, especially with Alex Bregman now playing for Boston.
Which is why we're so excited about Cam Smith's early results. While we're super pumped about his two home runs on Tuesday, we're equally impressed that he walked in his first two at-bats this spring. If anyone would naturally be jumping out of their shoes to make a strong first impression, you would think it's the guy that was traded for Kyle Tucker. But Smith was patient, and he was rewarded for it.
What is Dana Brown saying privately?
Just last offseason, Brown was talking about extending Tucker and Bregman while also signing Hader to a shocking 5-year, $95 million deal. Plus, the team signed Jose Altuve to a whopping $150 million extension. Fast-forward one year and Tucker has been traded, Bregman left in free agency, and Ryan Pressly was dealt in a salary dump. Safe to say, his vision for the ball club has changed drastically in one season. Welcome to baseball economics under Jim Crane!
We're just scratching the surface on everything covered in the video above. Be sure to hit play to watch the full conversation!
The countdown to Opening Day is on. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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