49ers Vs. Saints: Roman Harper Sits Out Practice
by David Fucillo on Jan 11, 2012 4:45 PM PST
in 2012 NFL Playoffs
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PrintThe big news out of New Orleans today was that safety Roman Harper did not participate in practice today due to an ankle injury. There are no specifics on the injury, but a Saints beat writer referred to it as significant. The same writer said Harper was optimistic he would play on Saturday, but the writer also stated there is a likelihood of the injury impacting his play.
Roman Harper is a key part to that offense defense both in stopping the run and also leads the team in sacks. There is no word on whether it's a high ankle sprain, or more of a severe regular sprain. Either way, it will be worth tracking on Saturday. Participating in practice is valuable, but even if he sits out the rest of the week, I'd imagine Harper will be at their to start the game.
If he is a bit gimpy, this could bode well for Vernon Davis. The 49ers tight end struggled for large chunks of the season, but closed the season fairly well with two big games in three weeks. The 49ers are getting some of their other weapons back, but Davis remains the most dynamic threat in terms of his combination of size, speed and overall athleticism. He does deal with the drops and his occasionally odd habit of jumping for balls that do not seem to require a leap. Nonetheless, he is an incredibly dangerous threat if the 49ers can find ways to utilize him.
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foooch!!!
correction “Roman Harper is a key part to that offense both in stopping the run and also leads the team in sacks”…..roman harpers on defense lol :p…..
The great trick Fooch ever pulled was convincing people that he actually watches sports
Cover’s blown dude
"I got two hard rules I live by, pop. I don't [site decorum] with the devil, and I never do tag teams with blood relatives" -Kenny Powers
by TryAndCatchVD on Jan 11, 2012 8:29 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
He is a good run stopper, pass defender--not so good when healthy. Won't help if he is banged up. Big advantage for whoever he is covering.
Reporter: What would you say a Greg Studrawa offense is like? Stud:
"Attack and be very physical…fly around…attacking, come after you and come after you and come after you…." Me: I love this answer.
GET TO THE RIM HEAT (and SKY)! ATTACK THE PAINT!
Since when was Roman Harper on offense?
"I got two hard rules I live by, pop. I don't [site decorum] with the devil, and I never do tag teams with blood relatives" -Kenny Powers
Like it matters, since we're only scoring 5 FGs while Alex passes for 79 yards
whats the sarcasm font again?
You do our sarcasm font by putting an @ at the beginning and end of a line – without spaces…
@ like this, without the spaces @
.
creates this
.
Make sure you preview it first b/c long lines do no wrap.
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And… Alex will pass for his highest yardage total of the year. That’s all I’m gonna say.
Sad part is that still could be under 300 yards.
As long as it comes with a W I don’t care if it was 5 FG’s and 79 yards!
I don't care...
if Alex throws for -20 yards and David Akers has to kick 7 FGs…
As long as the final score is Saints 20, Niners 21!!!
I was just thinking...as much as 9ers want to keep Brees on the side line or on his butt
with our offense trying to play keep away, the Saints more than likely want to employ offensive packages that try to keep Aldon Smith on the sideline too.
I really do wonder what the Saints have up there sleve to avoid from Aldon Smith coming into the game as a Pass Rusher, thereby limiting his effect on the game.
If need be wonder if 9ers offense can play that game effectively too?
Me thinks Saints want to dazzle & confuse the 9ers with quick strike ball, get ahead and keep pouring it on until they reach 50+ points.
I disagree
I think that Brees and Payton play conservative and just take what is given, waiting for a blown assignment or missed tackle. Saints fans will get frustrated, but they will not risk giving us the turnover battle. Brees has amazing vision, he will spot the mismatch or hesitation to get yardage. Once they cut us, they will bleed us out quickly.
excellent take on the situation...
my fear is that Brees tries to force a few that your D doesn’t drop… look for potential mistakes early before he calms down and gets in a rhythm.
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I don’t think we’ll go no-huddle… it would be VERY out of character – but not impossible in certain situations
Once they cut us, they will bleed us out quickly???
Wow… So you’re not exactly the glass half full guy, huh? Agree Brees will pick on the weak spots, but I think Niners D as a whole will dish out a LOT of pressure, turnovers, and CRUELTY! Should be a stalemate between their O and our D. Then our O&ST beats their D&ST!
Looking to put San Fran*six-o* here some time soon!
no, just that if they get us, they will not hold back
They will not let up and give us a chance to get back, but will just pile on. We cannot afford to get behind by two scores. I think the 49ers will win. But I am scared of the Saints
Hope the child can't read this , will be thinkin" Big Daddy stud ... Not So Much ...!!
I'm your " Huckelberry "...it's just my game ..( .AleX ) was asked , what do you think about all the game manager talk ... AleX i guess i just managed myself a VIctory ... Extend the Man ...!!
Don't worry
by game time the over-thinking will be gone and it will turn into a “we’ll kick their butts” macho attitude.
it better
Maslow's theory of higher needs does not apply to Patrick Willis. He only has two needs: tackling people and finding people to tackle.
we need you at 100% mcwanger
Maslow's theory of higher needs does not apply to Patrick Willis. He only has two needs: tackling people and finding people to tackle.
mcwagner even
Maslow's theory of higher needs does not apply to Patrick Willis. He only has two needs: tackling people and finding people to tackle.
You are correct
They will not let up and give us a chance to get back
They have publicly stated they aren’t letting up on anyone. Whether or not they will be able to amass the kind of points they have recently is up for debate (repeatedly), but if they can, they are going to.
I like Hamburgers!
Uh oh...better put an Asterisk on it.
I think thatBreesSmith andPaytonHarbaugh play conservative and just take what is given, waiting for a blown assignment or missed tackle.Saints49ers fans will get frustrated, but they will not risk giving us the turnover battle.BreesSmith has amazing vision, he will spot the mismatch or hesitation to get yardage or run it himself. Oncetheywe cutusthem, they will bleedusout quickly.
Fixed.
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Good luck to them...
Because Aldon and Justin are machine-men. They’re like the Terminator. They don’t stop.
Plus the Niners have RJF and Demarcus Dobbs to cycle in and out. Those guys are in the spotlight a whole lot. But I wouldn’t discount their capability to be disruptive.
Also, no-huddle would lead to miscommunication between Brees and a number of his receivers. And the Niners’ secondary isn’t like the Lions’ secondary. They’re not afraid of catching an interception.
Truth be told...
I’d be more concerned about Aaron Rodgers and the Packers going no-huddle.
Brees is great. But he forces the ball at times. That’s where I think no-huddle would bite them.
“I really do wonder what the Saints have up there sleve to avoid from Aldon Smith coming into the game as a Pass Rusher, thereby limiting his effect on the game.”
ME TOO! I hope it’s something better than the **** we did against the Rams’ “wide-9” – i.e. Nothing.
No offense.
But I hope it isn’t better than what the Saints did against the Rams.
Although there’s little doubt that it will be…
There's a great video clip on 49ers main website of both VD & GRo....
Talking about how VD has progressed from 5 week on!! VD talking about he has now being able to dissect defensive coverages while running routes, something he readily admits, he has never had to do before in other offensive schemes ran here. That he was just told “to get open.” So, if Harper is not ready to be a full impact player on Sat. boy I’m going to loooooove to see VD have a monster day down the middle of that Saints D. He didn’t have a monster year this year compared to last, but one thing we all know AleX loves throwing to VD.
Niners,Nets,Reds & USC!!!
The Most Interesting Man In The World---->Mikhail Prokhorov!!!
Davis has turned into way more then just a seam route runner , been good on the Edge and crossing routes too ...!!
I'm your " Huckelberry "...it's just my game ..( .AleX ) was asked , what do you think about all the game manager talk ... AleX i guess i just managed myself a VIctory ... Extend the Man ...!!
agreed
Niners,Nets,Reds & USC!!!
The Most Interesting Man In The World---->Mikhail Prokhorov!!!
by Kidd2Petrovic on Jan 11, 2012 9:03 PM PST up reply actions
prepare for Gore and a bad case of Crabs & VD
I honestly think the aints don’t have an answer for Vernon. All this talk about the aints TE and we aren’t talking about ours. Yea he has pissed us off with those dropped passes and not running people over but let’s leave that in the past (regular season) and move forward (playoffs). I do think that VD’s success will be connected with Gore bringing attention and Crabs annoying the D a lil’ but VD will not b stopped. K & K (Kyle & Kendall) will b flying under the radar and should finish the job off!
by BUDDED420 on Jan 11, 2012 6:09 PM PST via mobile reply actions
Does anyone know if Gore is really healthy?
He clearly has not been the same player since mid-season.
Good question
it seemed like they did the smart thing and gave him a fair amount of rest towards the end of the season. I hope with that and the bye, he will be feeling good, and raring to go.
Yeah...
Gore needs to get back into pre-hip form. If we can get last season’s Gore back (both in terms of running and receiving), I think the Niners’ offense will be pretty potent.
Barring that, Gore is making a great case for winding down his career. At least he can retire as a Niner in a couple of seasons.
How many touchdowns did we have this year that totaled more than 30 yards?
I can’t imagine it was many. We are probably ranked in the bottom of the league with regards to long plays resulting in touchdowns (I could care less for rankings but I’d like to illustrate my point). I think that this is something we need to build on and build on right away, and in my opinion based on what I’ve seen from this year, Vernon Davis and Kyle Williams have th best ability to break the long ones. And Roman Harper banged up/out should help!
Let's giggity giggity Go 49ers!!!
by Kittles on Jan 11, 2012 6:19 PM PST via Android app reply actions
Is the Saints secondary more finesse or more physical?
I worry about if our WR’s can get of the line or get seperation….Crabtree-Ginn-Williams.
Not so much Vernon, he can do both with his speed & power.
Harper is a very physical player, as well as a smart, versatile vet
so if he is limited, it takes away from their overall strength. I like Harper, but hey, it’s part of the game, I hope the nIners take full advantage, if he is limited.
Bama fan all my life
Watched a lot of Harper, he’s big and he’s smart. When he’s right he’ll shut down your tightends, and coming on the Blitz. Greg Williams has him come from every direction imgaginable so if he is slowed up that’s a big plus
by TiderNiner48 on Jan 11, 2012 8:18 PM PST up reply actions
Harper covers the TE usually.
Good luck in covering a TE who can run a 4.38 40-yard-dash on a bum ankle without help.
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you will have seperation all ****ing day… unfortunately for us.
many of us at CSC have been questioning Gregg Williams all year for playing off coverage on most downs.
When we play close, we’ve got the speed to keep up with most (not all) WR’s. But, you will often (TOO OFTEN) see us in off coverage, and the WR is wide ****ing open.
Or, whoever’s man up on #21 (Patrick Robinson)… look for him to be wide open 5+ yards past the CB at least three times. :-(
Teddy Ginn and Kyle Williams are super frikin' fast...
And then there is Vernon Davis who as a TE runs a 4.38… there’s going to be a lot of speed to keep up with. If you want to put it in to perspective, it’s going to be like trying to cover two Titus Young’s in which you had some probs with last week… Williams is sure-handed and Ginn is about 3/4 on catching… so as long as we stay away from Ginn on 3rd down, we should be okay in that dept.
But both of those WR’s can run 40’s quicker than the comic book character Flash
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PS. Harper lead the league in sacks by a CB...
and came up one sack short for the NFL record for same.
I think that depends...
Harper and Jenkins are a really good tandem for the Saints. Harper not being 100% may help the Niners hang on in a shoot-out. But ultimately the Saints have more talent on defense and offense that I don’t think it would be that huge of a deal.
It would be more like earlier in Niners’ 2011 season when Dashon Goldson wasn’t in the lineup and they were starting Madieu Wiliams.
An impact, sure. But Roman Harper at 80% isn’t a game-changer. The Saints win with the best offense in the league. Not with their defense. Their defense just helps the offense jump out to a big lead and then plays to punish the opposing offense who needs to pass a lot to catch up.
In short, the game rests on the Niners setting the terms of the engagement. If the Niners can get that running game going, eat up the clock, score touchdowns AND keep Brees off the field, then the Saints’ defense will look a lot different.
One more thing...why does it seem no one in Saints land are scared of 9er?
That Saints team, their coaches, fans,media give me the strong impression…that the are of the opinion no team can stop the Saints and they expect to be celebrating on their plane ride home.
Is it possible they simply don’t recoginize that Honey Badgers don’t give a Sh _ t !
Saints have been on a tear, ever since losing to St. Louis.
They have eviscerated almost everyone, and they feel pretty confident. They are almost unbeatable on home, but at San Fran, they are vulnerable.
Hey Dave, at some point you should post the Marshawn Lynch run from last year
when the Seahawks knocked the Saints out of the playoffs. That run defense was SHAMEFUL.
Or would that be too mean?
I forgot about that...
Might be a good idea
by David Fucillo on Jan 11, 2012 7:27 PM PST up reply actions
Or you can post the Marshawn Lynch put the team on your back video.
If you guys havent seen that yet, youtube it asap! Its hilarious!!!
EVERYONE WHO IS ATTENDING THE GAME:
Bring Skittles and throw them mercilessly at the Saints D. I want to see PTSD from last years pillaging against the Seachickinz
"I got two hard rules I live by, pop. I don't [site decorum] with the devil, and I never do tag teams with blood relatives" -Kenny Powers
throwing candy, well I guess that is not so bad. I hate to think what they throw at a Raider's game
Reporter: What would you say a Greg Studrawa offense is like? Stud:
"Attack and be very physical…fly around…attacking, come after you and come after you and come after you…." Me: I love this answer.
GET TO THE RIM HEAT (and SKY)! ATTACK THE PAINT!
bacon, that's even better, lol. Yeah one day I would like to visit
Reporter: What would you say a Greg Studrawa offense is like? Stud:
"Attack and be very physical…fly around…attacking, come after you and come after you and come after you…." Me: I love this answer.
GET TO THE RIM HEAT (and SKY)! ATTACK THE PAINT!
Watching the replay of the Saints and Lions...
Wow.. that had to be the worst game that the Lions played defensively all year long.
Wow.. that had to be the worst game that the Lions played defensively all year long.All the way from the defensive line to the secondary… No pressure and I have NEVER seen that many wide receivers THAT open through the course of a game. 70% of the time, Brees had all day in the pocket and played pitch and catch in between cigarette’s. That was the most pathetic display ever put on by a defense in the playoffs… for real.
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“Wow… that had to be the worst game that the Lions played defensively all year long.”
Yep... the Saints offense sucks!
No... it has nothing to do with the Saints offense...
It was just a horrible performance all the way around.
Honestly…
In watching their defense and have watched ours all season long… God, I have no idea how many pretty standard tackles should have been made. Also, they dropped INT’s… there was absolutely no push up front… nothing creative done by the defense… everything was pretty standard, etc… It was just God awful…. secondary was standing still on some throws… especially the safeties… there was no movement. The linebackers got beat on chips and didn’t push through, and all that…
I guess I am just used to watching our defense play fundamental football… I would argue that you all have seen much, much better defense than that all year…
And for the Niners mods who gave me a warning (or whatever earlier) is this guy putting words in my mouth? Are we going to make a 40+ comment thing out of his comment too?
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“is this guy putting words in my mouth?”
No… that grey box is sarcasm.
And… we make a lot of teams defenses look like that. I’m NOT saying we’re going to do it to you… you’re the best defense we’ve faced all year.
I don’t expect the 49ers to drop that many INT’s (which is the #1 thing that concerns me personally).
But our offensive line (when the scheme is on… and it has been since the Rams game) is awesome to watch… at pass blocking, run blocking, and lead blocking on screens.
I know that was the sarcasm font. That last part was not meant for you.
I know your offense does some good things…. but to deny that they played horribly on defense is a bit of denial… or maybe you just really have not seen a good defense yet. That will change on Saturday if that’s the case.
And it wasn’t just dropped INT’s (even though there was 3) …
I was just talking about a lot of fundamental breakdowns that are routine.
And in regards to your Oline… as I was watching, there was plenty of opportunity to penatrate… their defensive line just did not want to do anything creative schematically and they were not using any kind of technique at all… our guys are fundamentally sound and extremely physical… In watching that defensive line, it looked a bit like a cake walk… you can claim that it was ALL your Oline but I saw some things that were clear and obvious breakdowns on all three levels of their defense.
When they go back to watch the film on that, they are gonna be pissed at themselves. They had countless opportunity in that game.
This has nothing to do with what is to come Saturday. I just know what I saw and I saw a very, very poor defensive effort. …..Again, it’s not taking away from your defense. But when you have 4 missed opportunities for turnovers, and you play as fundamentally bad as they did, there’s no way you have a remotely close chance to win; yet, they were STILL in it till the very end.
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- Again, it’s not taking away from your
defenseoffense
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Let me be honest here
Thats what happens to Defenses when they think they can pressure with their front four against our line
The best way to pressure Brees is a delayed blitz right up the middle after our linemen have pushed your Dline to the outside
by mississippisaintsfan on Jan 12, 2012 2:49 AM PST up reply actions
This is 100% right.
The Saints have a strong O-Line. It’s built more for pass blocking than run blocking. Sure, the Saints have come on with a strong running back tandem. But let’s be honest. If it was Chase Daniels at QB, then Ivory, Sproles and Pierre wouldn’t look nearly as good right now.
Brees commands a lot of respect from defense. And deservedly so. Which opens up opportunities elsewhere for other playmakers.
The Saints’ guards are completely underrated. Probably one of the best tandems in the NFL. Their tackles are on par with Davis and Staley. Meaning good, but beatable. I think Brees’ pocket presence makes them look better than they are. The way Brees steps up in the pocket is almost supernatural.
The center (De La Puenta) is the weakest link. And that’s pointing out how strong they are at other positions, not dinging De La Puenta.
The Niners’ best chance is the variety of pressure they can put on Brees. Aldon Smith is fast, can power-rush, can kung-fu his way past guys. Getting him up the middle would be huge. Justin Smith is a beast. One of the best defensive ends in the NFL. Ray McDonald (healthy) is no slouch either. And Issac Sopoaga eats up blockers.
The Lions have a one dimensional pass-rush. It’s all power. They don’t have a speedy Jason Babin guy up front. And they tend not to blitz (like the Saints do) with their safeties as much to make up for that.
The Niners have a really diverse pass rush. The question is whether or not it’s the “cheat code” that gets them past that Saints line. That’s one of the best groups we’ll face on the NFC side of the playoffs.
sarcasm
I happen to know you’re using the sarcasm block, but not everybody knows it. You guys are struggling to get along lately so it’d be best to just back off at this point.
by David Fucillo on Jan 11, 2012 11:08 PM PST up reply actions
Dan Kelly and I have had no issues...
That’s exactly why in the other thread things should have been left alone where they stood.
Everything has been pretty civil until someone made something out of nothing.
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Looks like there's a realchance Delanie might play this week , as they are experimenting with a few new helmet molds ...!!
I'm your " Huckelberry "...it's just my game ..( .AleX ) was asked , what do you think about all the game manager talk ... AleX i guess i just managed myself a VIctory ... Extend the Man ...!!
Come on man ( in Keashon Johnson voice )
Have you heard any Saints fans make excuses for last year’s debacle in Seattle other then to say that was last year and this is this year
Or our lose to the Rams or Tampa
If we lose thats the way it is You wont be reading any post on csc about the refs or cheating or this or that
I hope it works the same way here
by mississippisaintsfan on Jan 12, 2012 6:06 PM PST up reply actions
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