Category: 2020 playoffs

Another Bears receiver ejected after punching C.J. Gardner-Johnson

Chicago Bears WR Anthony Miller was ejected after punching New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson during their playoff game.

Here we go again: some after-the-whistle shenanigans between New Orleans Saints safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and an opposing wideout resulted in a thrown punch and an ejection for Anthony Miller. What’s baffling is that this is the second time it’s happened this season, with Miller’s teammate Javon Wims having sucker-punched Gardner-Johnson in a meeting back in Week 8.

The second-year pro has a reputation as one of the NFL’s most tenacious chirpers, and it’s popped up again after he goaded Miller into committing a penalty that got him thrown from the game. But Gardner-Johnson was flagged, too, leading to a chat with his glowering coaches on the sidelines.

It’s just as unclear what Gardner-Johnson is saying to these opponents to get them so heated, but his own teammates aren’t immune to it; Michael Thomas was benched for a game after a scrap in practice with him. But it’s also uncertain what Gardner-Johnson heard from Sean Payton and defensive backs coach Aaron Glenn, who hit him with a withering stare on his way back to the bench.

Hopefully he can reel it in and avoid hurting his team. Gardner-Johnson’s antics have helped the Saints more often than not, but he’s flirting with disaster in playoff situations like this. The Saints have a very thin margin for error and the wrong words said at the wrong time could land them all in very hot water.

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LOOK: SpongeBob superimposed on goalposts for Wil Lutz field goal try

Nickelodeon superimposed SpongeBob SquarePants on the goalposts for a long field goal try for New Orleans Saints kicker Wil Lutz.

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Hey, I’d miss a field goal if a two-story SpongeBob SquarePants were staring at me too. But Wil Lutz doesn’t have that excuse, because the Nickelodeon broadcast only had the cartoon displayed for television with augmented reality technology for viewers at home.

So it’s frustrating to see the New Orleans Saints kicker send a 50-yard try too far to the right of the goalposts, meaning he’s completed just 3 of his last 7 attempts. He hasn’t been right since receiving attention from the Saints medical staff in their Week 8 game with this same Bears team. While New Orleans hasn’t listed him on the daily injury report with any issues, he’s clearly not kicking like we’re used to seeing.

For anyone wondering, the Saints have been bringing former Minnesota Vikings and Seattle Seahawks kicker Blair Walsh in regularly for free agent visits as an emergency option should Lutz be unavailable — possibly due to injury or a positive COVID-19 test. It doesn’t feel likely they’d turn to Walsh if Lutz continues to struggle, but it’s an option.

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WATCH: Michael Thomas scores a TD catch, gets slimed on Nickelodeon broadcast

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas caught a touchdown pass against the Chicago Bears in the playoffs on a Nickelodeon broadcast

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It didn’t take long for Michael Thomas to reintroduce himself. The New Orleans Saints wide receiver caught the first play of the game on his team’s opening drive, then followed up with a red zone touchdown catch on their second possession.

That’s exactly what you want to see from Thomas after his injury-marred season, including three weeks of rest on the injured reserve list going into this playoff game. What you may have not expected to see were the enormous slime cannons that popped up in the end zone on the Nickelodeon broadcast.

While it was only computer-generated slime in this instance, the good is one of the channel’s staples and has been for decades. So it’s cool to see Thomas and his teammates (and, hilariously, the defense they just beat) covered in it, even if it’s digital. Honestly, they may prefer it that way.

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NFL Playoffs: How to watch, wager, and stream Saints vs. Bears

The New Orleans Saints and Chicago Bears are preparing for their playoff game during the Wild-Card Round at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

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It’s another New Orleans Saints game day! The Saints are set to kick off their Wild-Card Round matchup with the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon. Here’s how you can tune in to the game on Sunday:

When:

Sunday, Jan. 10 at 3:40 p.m. CT

Where:

Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, La.

Television:

  • CBS: Jim Nantz, Tony Romo, Jay Feely & Tracy Wolfson
  • Nickelodeon: Noah Eagle, Nate Burleson, Gabrielle Nevaeh Green & Lex Lumpkin
  • Amazon Prime: Hannah Storm, Andrea Kremer

Live stream:

fuboTV (try it free)

Radio:

WWL 870 AM and local affiliate stations

Referee:

Alex Kemp

Odds:

Saints by 11 (BetMGM)

Game Preview:

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Bucs beat WFT, could face Saints again in Divisional Round

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Washington Football Team in the Wild-Card Round, setting them up for a possible New Orleans Saints rematch

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The Washington Football Team put up a valiant effort behind spot-starter quarterback Taylor Heinicke, but they couldn’t seal the deal in a close playoffs loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tom Brady’s squad escaped with a 31-23 win, and now they have to wait and see whether they’ll face the New Orleans Saints for the third time this season.

If the Saints take care of their business on Sunday with the Chicago Bears, they’ll advance to the Divisional Round for a home game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome against the same Buccaneers team they swept in the regular season. The narrative that “it’s tough to beat a team three times” is popular, but it’s just that: a fabricated narrative. As it turns out, it’s easier to beat a team three times than to win against them after losing twice.

There have been 21 meetings between teams that played twice in the regular season and again in the playoffs since the AFL-NFL merger, and the team that won both regular season matchups is 14-7 in the postseason (per an inspired Redittor who dug deep into NFL archives). The Saints themselves beat the Carolina Panthers three times just a few years ago. So don’t sweat it.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The Saints have to defeat the Bears before they can focus on their next possible opponent. They know better than most that you can’t underestimate any matchup in the playoffs.

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If Saints beat Bears, they’ll host winner of Tampa Bay at Washington

If the New Orleans Saints defeat the Chicago Bears, they’ll advance to face either the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Washington Football Team.

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A couple of playoff games have already wrapped up, and pieces are in motion for the rest of the tournament. After the early kickoffs on Saturday, the New Orleans Saints are watching the night game to see who advances: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or the Washington Football Team.

Should the Saints defeat defeat the Chicago Bears, they’ll end up hosting the winner of that matchup at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in the Divisional Round. It’s early, and New Orleans could very well lose Sunday’s tilt with Chicago. But it’s good to know who is on the Saints’ radar.

And the first quarter between Tampa Bay-Washington set the tone as well as could be hoped. The Buccaneers’ opening drive stalled out and settled for a field goal, while Washington quickly punted on their ensuing possession. Tampa Bay held onto their early 3-0 lead despite a punt of their own by intercepting Taylor Heinicke, pushed into a relief start with Alex Smith recovering from injury. Brady quickly struck with a touchdown pass to Antonio Brown, but the following extra-point attempt was blocked, leaving them up 9-0.

So this one is worth watching, even if it would be an upset should Tom Brady and his squad lose. They entered as heavy favorites despite the impressive Washington defense coached by Ron Rivera. Maybe the prospect of getting stomped by the Saints a third time in the next round is enough for Brady to rethink whether he really wants to win this game and risk that rematch.

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Final score prediction for Saints vs. Bears

The New Orleans Saints have a favorable matchup against a familiar opponent in the Wild-Card Round with the Chicago Bears.

Super Bowl LV is only weeks away, but the New Orleans Saints can’t afford to look too far ahead. Instead, they should look back — all the way back to their first playoffs loss with Sean Payton coaching the team. The Chicago Bears eliminated them back in the 2006 postseason, and now the Saints have a golden opportunity to return the favor.

Saints unveil uniform combination for Wild-Card Round matchup with the Bears

The New Orleans Saints announced that they will wear black jerseys and matching black pants in the Wild-Card Round against the Chicago bears

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The New Orleans Saints are playing the hits in their Wild-Card Round game with the Chicago Bears, announcing on Twitter that they’ll be wearing the familiar combo of black home jerseys and matching black pants. The formalwear has served them well in recent years, and it’s been the most-popular look in the Sean Payton era, dating back to his hire in 2006.

Here’s how each combination has fared in wins and losses during that time span, ranked by winning percentage:

  1. White jerseys, white pants: 6-2 (.750)
  2. “Color Rush” alternates: 8-3 (.727)
  3. “Black and Gold” throwbacks: 2-1 (.667)
  4. Black jerseys, gold pants: 23-13 (.639)
  5. White jerseys, black pants: 41-25 (.621)
  6. Black jerseys, black pants: 45-29 (.608)
  7. White jerseys, gold pants: 32-24 (.571)

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NFL experts overwhelmingly pick Saints to knock off Bears

The New Orleans Saints have been the popular choice to win their Wild-Card Round matchup with the Chicago Bears in the NFL playoffs.

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There isn’t much of an argument to be made about who should win Sunday’s Wild-Card Round playoffs game between the New Orleans Saints and the Chicago Bears, per results surveyed from NFL Pickwatch. 96% of those in the know are siding with New Orleans, with a 4% minority picking the Bears to pull off an upset.

Now, that doesn’t guarantee anything. It’s just an informed perspective from experts around the league’s orbit. The same group picked the Saints to beat the Philadelphia Eagles by a similar margin, and, well, we saw how that turned out. So don’t take it as proof of the Saints automatically advancing to the next round.

Anyway: for the curious, experts picks for the other Wild-Card Round matchups have nearly-equal confidence in the Buffalo Bills (96%) over the Indianapolis Colts and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (93%) against the Washington Football Team. The Pittsburgh Steelers (86%) and Seattle Seahawks (85%) are also widely favored in their games with the Cleveland Browns and Los Angeles Rams, respectively, while the experts are a little more optimistic for a competitive game between the Baltimore Ravens (69%) and Tennessee Titans.

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PFF suggests Saints may have the best roster among playoff contenders

The New Orleans Saints were ranked as the most complete team in the NFL playoffs, above the Packers, Chiefs, Seahawks, Bills, and all others

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The New Orleans Saints enter the NFL playoffs with one of the better records among remaining teams at 12-4, but how do they stack up on a position-by-position basis? Pro Football Focus analyst Ian Hartitz surveyed the group of contenders and ended up ranking New Orleans on top, in large part due to their steady play in the trenches on each side of the ball.

But the Saints have also gotten solid production out of a constantly-shifting group of pass catchers, which Hartitz took time to talk up:

“This receiver room has been banged up all season long, but help should hopefully be on the way with Michael Thomas (ankle, IR) tentatively expected to suit up Sunday against the Bears. Still, this team’s tight end room and complementary options are hardly liabilities; this offense was a top-15 unit in PFF receiving grade, yards after the catch per reception, yards per route run and drop rate.”

That certainly suggests it’s been more than a one-man show, despite Alvin Kamara’s excellence. And the Saints will need all hands on deck not just to beat the Chicago Bears this week (who held New Orleans to just 26 points scored, their second-lowest total on the year in games not quarterbacked by Taysom Hill), but to advance into the playoffs.

The field is littered with high-powered passing offenses, which is an area the Saints could be vulnerable. While Hartitz praised the Saints for their stout run defense, their lapses in coverage could be a fatal flaw. He continued:

“The larger issue for this defense is what happens when their front-seven isn’t able to impact the play. Overall, each of Chauncey Gardner-Johnson (No. 22 in yards allowed per coverage snap), Janoris Jenkins (No. 44) and Marshon Lattimore (No. 55) underwhelmed among 78 qualified corners in their ability to consistently hold up downfield.”

So how will this projection work out? Anything can happen in the postseason, which Saints fans are well aware of. But it would be great to see this looking nice in hindsight if New Orleans can go win another Super Bowl.

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