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Giants: Payback from Payton
Friday, December 22, 2006
BY KEVIN MANAHAN
Star-Ledger Staff
NEW ORLEANS -- There were 3 minutes and 19 seconds remaining, and the New Orleans Saints, with an 11-point lead, were methodically whittling time off the clock.
Faced with a third-and-seven at their 45-yard line, everyone knew what was coming: a nice, safe running play. That would be followed by a punt, which would be followed by the Atlanta Falcons' frantic hurry-up offense, with quarterback Michael Vick running loose.
Then the voice came crackling through the quarterback's headset.
"Let's end this thing right now!" Saints coach Sean Payton said. Then, he changed the play: "Double go!" He sent both wide receivers deep for the knockout.
One lineman clenched his hand and did a subtle fist pump. Devery Henderson and Terrance Copper, the receivers, gave each other a did-he-just-call-what-we-think-he-called look, their eyebrows raised. Henderson broke into a grin so broad that quarterback Drew Brees feared it would tip off the Falcons.
"That's not the way most coaches would try to win that game, especially on the road," Henderson said. "He went for the jugular."
Henderson caught the ball for a 46-yard gain. On the next play, Deuce McAllister scored from the 9-yard line. Saints 31, Falcons 13. Game over.
Brees believes that was when most of the Saints discovered who Sean Payton really is.
But if some of the Saints didn't know, Giants fans do: Payton is the former boy-wonder quarterbacks coach who nurtured Kerry Collins, the boy-genius offensive coordinator who took the Giants to the Super Bowl in the 2000 season and helped them to the playoffs in 2002.
East Rutherford is where he built his résumé.
And Sunday, with the Saints' playoff berth clinched, the boy wonder returns. But he is all grown up, with traces of gray hair, an NFC South title in his rookie year as a head coach, the admiration of a storm-torn community and a chance to stick a dagger into the Giants' postseason heart.
A PARCELLS GUY
He insists he comes back to New Jersey with his playbook but no grudges. Payton left after the 2002 season, during which he was stripped of the play-calling duties by coach Jim Fassel. His next job found him.
The phone rang. Bill Parcells was on the other end. They chatted. They spoke twice more on the phone, and Parcells offered Payton the job as Cowboys' offensive coordinator.
"He hired me without even meeting me," Payton said. "He's a Hall of Fame coach. You can't pass up that opportunity. So, I figured I'd go down there and learn from one of the greatest coaches of all time."
Payton has maintained a friendship with Fassel -- and says he felt bad for his former boss when Fassel was fired as offensive coordinator of the Ravens in the middle of this season. Fassel, too, says they're still friends.
"Jim gave me my first chance to be a coordinator, so I owe him and the Giants a big debt," Payton said. "Losing the play-calling was tough because it happened in New York and everything is magnified there. People don't realize I was still drawing up the game plan and running the meetings."
There were other factors in his departure. Payton knew he would be a head coach someday. He already had the Super Bowl appearance. Now he wanted his résumé notarized by Parcells, the godfather of NFL head coaches.
So, for three years, Payton handled the Cowboys' offense, and all the while he watched his boss: how he handled players and a meddlesome owner; how he surrounded himself with coaching talent; how he demanded loyalty and hard work. And, most importantly, how Parcells controlled everything in the organization -- "right down to what was served in the cafeteria," he said.
Payton used that blueprint when he arrived in New Orleans.
"People are quick to label you a Parcells guy when you work for him," said Payton, who turns 43 next Friday. "But that's not a bad thing to be. When you work under Bill, you learn how to win. And you learn all of the things that go into winning."
And just to prove he was paying attention, Payton whipped his mentor, 42-17, in a nationally televised game three weeks ago, rubbing it in with 536 yards of offense and a surprise onside kick.
There were things Payton learned with the Giants that he would just as soon forget -- how to treat assistant coaches likely tops the list -- but he smiles and defers when asked to list them.
"You learn things every place you work," he said. "Some things you keep, some you don't."
SPOKESMAN FOR A CITY
Quarterbacks have always loved Payton, from Kerry Collins to Tony Romo and now Brees, who has become particularly close to his coach. From the day he signed as a free agent, Brees has spent hundreds of hours with Payton, learning the offense and climbing inside Payton's head.
"He gets us as quarterbacks," said Brees, who then pointed two fingers of his right hand toward his eyes. "When I look at him, he's right here. He played the position in college. He was a quarterbacks coach and an offensive coordinator in the NFL. He knows the speed at which things happen in the NFL. Coaches, who weren't quarterbacks, don't have that.
"And Sean has that aggressive mentality. Because he has faith in you, he's willing to take chances. That makes people feel good about themselves."
While compiling a 9-5 record, Payton also has helped devastated New Orleans feel good about itself. But he has experience in that role: Payton was in New Jersey for 9/11 and its aftermath, and the Giants, like all of the local pro sports teams, took an active role in the healing. These days, Payton is a leading spokesman for reassembling New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
"The difference is that 9/11, while a major tragedy, was limited to a few blocks," Payton said. "Once you dealt with the human lives that were lost, the debate was, 'What do we build here?' It is a very defined area.
"Here, the devastation is everywhere. There are areas that have rebuilt quickly, but there are areas where it looks like the storm just came through here two weeks ago. Not a day goes by that someone doesn't come up to me and tell me how much the Saints mean to them. So I tell the players: One of the best things we can do for them is to play well."
Payton admits he has been lucky. First, Parcells and others talked him out of taking the Oakland Raiders job after the 2003 season. Then, when he accepted the Saints' position, weird things started happening: The Miami Dolphins -- also looking for a QB -- were scared off by Brees' shoulder injury and signed Daunte Culpepper instead. Brees is headed to the Pro Bowl.
And when the Houston Texans passed on Reggie Bush with the first pick of the draft, Payton was handed one of the league's most explosive players.
After an embarrassing loss to the Washington Commanders last week, the play-calling head coach will try to jump-start his offense as the Saints prepare for the postseason. If you think he'll get sentimental and go easy on old pals, just ask Parcells.
"It'll be good to see the Mara family and people who were there when I was," Payton said. "It'll be a nice visit, but then it'll be time to go to work."
Note to the Giants defense: Expect the unexpected.
http://www.nj.com/giants/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1166767506256240.xml&coll=1
Friday, December 22, 2006
BY KEVIN MANAHAN
Star-Ledger Staff
NEW ORLEANS -- There were 3 minutes and 19 seconds remaining, and the New Orleans Saints, with an 11-point lead, were methodically whittling time off the clock.
Faced with a third-and-seven at their 45-yard line, everyone knew what was coming: a nice, safe running play. That would be followed by a punt, which would be followed by the Atlanta Falcons' frantic hurry-up offense, with quarterback Michael Vick running loose.
Then the voice came crackling through the quarterback's headset.
"Let's end this thing right now!" Saints coach Sean Payton said. Then, he changed the play: "Double go!" He sent both wide receivers deep for the knockout.
One lineman clenched his hand and did a subtle fist pump. Devery Henderson and Terrance Copper, the receivers, gave each other a did-he-just-call-what-we-think-he-called look, their eyebrows raised. Henderson broke into a grin so broad that quarterback Drew Brees feared it would tip off the Falcons.
"That's not the way most coaches would try to win that game, especially on the road," Henderson said. "He went for the jugular."
Henderson caught the ball for a 46-yard gain. On the next play, Deuce McAllister scored from the 9-yard line. Saints 31, Falcons 13. Game over.
Brees believes that was when most of the Saints discovered who Sean Payton really is.
But if some of the Saints didn't know, Giants fans do: Payton is the former boy-wonder quarterbacks coach who nurtured Kerry Collins, the boy-genius offensive coordinator who took the Giants to the Super Bowl in the 2000 season and helped them to the playoffs in 2002.
East Rutherford is where he built his résumé.
And Sunday, with the Saints' playoff berth clinched, the boy wonder returns. But he is all grown up, with traces of gray hair, an NFC South title in his rookie year as a head coach, the admiration of a storm-torn community and a chance to stick a dagger into the Giants' postseason heart.
A PARCELLS GUY
He insists he comes back to New Jersey with his playbook but no grudges. Payton left after the 2002 season, during which he was stripped of the play-calling duties by coach Jim Fassel. His next job found him.
The phone rang. Bill Parcells was on the other end. They chatted. They spoke twice more on the phone, and Parcells offered Payton the job as Cowboys' offensive coordinator.
"He hired me without even meeting me," Payton said. "He's a Hall of Fame coach. You can't pass up that opportunity. So, I figured I'd go down there and learn from one of the greatest coaches of all time."
Payton has maintained a friendship with Fassel -- and says he felt bad for his former boss when Fassel was fired as offensive coordinator of the Ravens in the middle of this season. Fassel, too, says they're still friends.
"Jim gave me my first chance to be a coordinator, so I owe him and the Giants a big debt," Payton said. "Losing the play-calling was tough because it happened in New York and everything is magnified there. People don't realize I was still drawing up the game plan and running the meetings."
There were other factors in his departure. Payton knew he would be a head coach someday. He already had the Super Bowl appearance. Now he wanted his résumé notarized by Parcells, the godfather of NFL head coaches.
So, for three years, Payton handled the Cowboys' offense, and all the while he watched his boss: how he handled players and a meddlesome owner; how he surrounded himself with coaching talent; how he demanded loyalty and hard work. And, most importantly, how Parcells controlled everything in the organization -- "right down to what was served in the cafeteria," he said.
Payton used that blueprint when he arrived in New Orleans.
"People are quick to label you a Parcells guy when you work for him," said Payton, who turns 43 next Friday. "But that's not a bad thing to be. When you work under Bill, you learn how to win. And you learn all of the things that go into winning."
And just to prove he was paying attention, Payton whipped his mentor, 42-17, in a nationally televised game three weeks ago, rubbing it in with 536 yards of offense and a surprise onside kick.
There were things Payton learned with the Giants that he would just as soon forget -- how to treat assistant coaches likely tops the list -- but he smiles and defers when asked to list them.
"You learn things every place you work," he said. "Some things you keep, some you don't."
SPOKESMAN FOR A CITY
Quarterbacks have always loved Payton, from Kerry Collins to Tony Romo and now Brees, who has become particularly close to his coach. From the day he signed as a free agent, Brees has spent hundreds of hours with Payton, learning the offense and climbing inside Payton's head.
"He gets us as quarterbacks," said Brees, who then pointed two fingers of his right hand toward his eyes. "When I look at him, he's right here. He played the position in college. He was a quarterbacks coach and an offensive coordinator in the NFL. He knows the speed at which things happen in the NFL. Coaches, who weren't quarterbacks, don't have that.
"And Sean has that aggressive mentality. Because he has faith in you, he's willing to take chances. That makes people feel good about themselves."
While compiling a 9-5 record, Payton also has helped devastated New Orleans feel good about itself. But he has experience in that role: Payton was in New Jersey for 9/11 and its aftermath, and the Giants, like all of the local pro sports teams, took an active role in the healing. These days, Payton is a leading spokesman for reassembling New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
"The difference is that 9/11, while a major tragedy, was limited to a few blocks," Payton said. "Once you dealt with the human lives that were lost, the debate was, 'What do we build here?' It is a very defined area.
"Here, the devastation is everywhere. There are areas that have rebuilt quickly, but there are areas where it looks like the storm just came through here two weeks ago. Not a day goes by that someone doesn't come up to me and tell me how much the Saints mean to them. So I tell the players: One of the best things we can do for them is to play well."
Payton admits he has been lucky. First, Parcells and others talked him out of taking the Oakland Raiders job after the 2003 season. Then, when he accepted the Saints' position, weird things started happening: The Miami Dolphins -- also looking for a QB -- were scared off by Brees' shoulder injury and signed Daunte Culpepper instead. Brees is headed to the Pro Bowl.
And when the Houston Texans passed on Reggie Bush with the first pick of the draft, Payton was handed one of the league's most explosive players.
After an embarrassing loss to the Washington Commanders last week, the play-calling head coach will try to jump-start his offense as the Saints prepare for the postseason. If you think he'll get sentimental and go easy on old pals, just ask Parcells.
"It'll be good to see the Mara family and people who were there when I was," Payton said. "It'll be a nice visit, but then it'll be time to go to work."
Note to the Giants defense: Expect the unexpected.
http://www.nj.com/giants/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1166767506256240.xml&coll=1
