Why skepticism and outside noise are so big!

The Saints aren't expected to be sellers come the NFL's trade deadline next Tuesday, and head coach Dennis Allen has made that clear two weeks in a row. New Orleans assumes that whatever is going on can be resolved internally. This is the same thing that has been said before and the problem is that it is not being solved. Honestly, it feels like it's getting worse, and that's why there are even more skeptics than usual.

New Orleans has lost six games in a row and now enters the month of November once again behind the eight-ball mark. For anyone wondering: The Saints are only 9-15 in September and October under Dennis Allen. Of course, this is also their worst phase, as they were 4-4 at this point last season.

There's a lot of finger pointing outside the building as to who's to blame here, and while there are certain viewpoints that can be taken, the reality is that the Saints have already said they don't care about outside opinions.

Allen said on WWL Radio Monday night: “I don’t think we look at things the same way that maybe people outside of our building do. We don't focus on looking in the rearview mirror at what happened in the past. That’s what we do. “We’re focused on the things we can control, the things we can change, and that starts this week with us going to Carolina and getting a win.”

Here lies the problem. If you say certain things that don't deliver on what you promised, where is the actual responsibility? What else is there if the results aren't there? How can a team that says they know the standard but doesn't meet it feel like they're meeting a certain standard that only they can define?

At the end of last season, both Dennis Allen and Mickey Loomis met with the media for their usual press conferences, and here are a few memories of what was said.

So here we are. The Saints are apparently in turmoil and drawing comparisons to the 2005 squad. Have they been reduced to that?

The Saints did all their normal work in the offseason, defying the salary cap to prove the critics wrong, but the problem is that when you don't perform, the criticism is actually valid. What's the point of proceeding this way if the results aren't achieved? What is the point of players committing to the organization to continue and end their careers in poor condition? They don't deserve that. Cam Jordan doesn't deserve to go out as a loser. Neither Demario Davis nor Tyrann Mathieu. Now you can add Alvin Kamara to that list after his two-year extension.

The goalposts also keep moving. The injuries were obviously numerous, and it feels like it's more of an excuse for why they're not doing well. Isn't that why you should design well, get the right depth and develop? Injuries happen and they are part of the game. You can't just say that the return of one or two specific players will help salvage a season. This is a ridiculous way of thinking. It's like they're acting like they're actually the team that's 2-0, rather than the team that's 2-6 when the results say otherwise.

What happens if this team loses to the Panthers? How can you not make drastic changes? Even if they beat the worst team in the league, you could still get beaten by the NFC South division leaders the following week. There is no moral victory here. You can also bet there won't be as much fan support when they return to the Superdome. Nobody can blame them either, because as I said: you have to win and do well, and that doesn't happen at all.

This was certainly the lowest point for a Saints team in nearly two decades. At least you knew when the team started with Drew Brees and Sean Payton in the seventh through ninth seasons. There isn't much optimism here that anything will actually change, nor is there much evidence to suggest that.