New Orleans Saints running back C.J. Spiller has a better chance of making the playoffs than he had with his former team, the Buffalo Bills. But Spiller took it a step further: He believes the Saints are Super Bowl-bound.
While with the Bills—who finished a better-than-average 9-7 in 2014—Spiller had to deal with the AFC East-dominating New England Patriots. After signing with New Orleans, his competition is the floundering NFC South where the Carolina Panthers won the division tiebreaker over the Saints with a mere seven games last year.
Spiller clearly has an advantage playing with quarterback Drew Brees and Co. in New Orleans. Now, per Tim Graham of The Buffalo News, Spiller vowed his heart to Buffalo, but he noted the Saints’ collective mindset:
“The mentality there is Super Bowl. You want to win the division and then the conference. But they want to win Super Bowls, and so do I. At the end of the day, the window is closing in on everybody. I’m just looking forward to being a part of that, a piece of that puzzle.”
Though Spiller has yet to come close to matching his 2012 season totals of 1,700 yards and eight touchdowns, he should remain a viable asset as a change-of-pace and a pass-catching back behind workhorse Mark Ingram.
Spiller also expressed his excitement about being paired up with with a legendary quarterback like Brees.
“I’m excited to get down to New Orleans. Coach Payton knows how to get the ball to the running backs. At the same time, (quarterback) Drew (Brees) isn’t going to force anything downfield, so he loves getting the backs involved in the passing game.”
If Spiller can remain healthy, we should see some of that 2012 explosiveness return, thereby confirming that he was the right addition to the team’s roster.
As for visions of Super Bowl aspirations, though, the Saints will need to kick it up many notches and perform much better as an overall unit than they did in 2014.
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