Ridiculously Early Saints' Studs and Duds of Training Camp

We're not even close to being far enough in to make any judgments on how things are progressing with the 2010 version of the New Orleans Saints. I want to make that clear. Too many times early in camp you see a few flashy plays by a guy like, say Adrian Arrington, and you hear the crazy talk trickling in. "Oh, this guy is really going to contribute this year, might be a year away from a 1,000 yard season". "I bet this guy starts by week 4". Slow down, slow down. I've always been annoyed by that guy, because 99 times out of 100 anyone that looks that far into the future based on a small sample size of information falls completely flat. Sure enough, Adrian Arrington either tweaks a hammy that sidelines him for the eternity of camp, or some no name, like say Rod Harper, completely outperforms him. With that said, it's fun to play with the crystal ball. Taking as a given the incredibly small sample size we have to work with, here's who has looks good so far through three days of camp, and who hasn't.

STUDS:

Drew Brees - Hardly a surprise, but his accuracy and command in the huddle have been as good as ever. I've been worried he might be a little burned out from the incessant offseason parading, but so far he's been as sharp as a tack. We know the guy is a top 3 NFL quarterback, and arguably the best, but it's nice to see him confirming that on a daily basis.

Lance Moore - Arguably the most flashy and steady Saint so far. I guess health goes a long way? He's been making the corners look silly stupid with his precise route running, and he's made the circus catch a daily occurrence.

Rod Harper - Like Moore, he's been making crazy catches. He's a name that just keeps popping up as a playmaker, and he needs it badly because he's no given to make the team. Still, it's nice to see him stepping up because he's got a real opportunity to get some reps with Marques Colston and Robert Meachem both currently out with injuries.

Courtney Roby - I know, I know, you feel like I'm naming all the receivers, but Roby has looked awesome too. He really has. We all know he's a virtual lock to make the team because he's our best gunner and he's a very solid return man.  If he can start contributing on offensive plays as well, that just solidifies his standing on the ball club.

Stanley Arnoux - Admittedly I haven't seen much of him yet and I'll be keeping a very close eye on him, but based on the praise he's been getting from the coaching staff and his teammates, maybe this guy stands a chance to make an impact this season.

Chris Ivory - I've already talked about this guy a bit, but he's been the best undrafted free agent rookie so far. I'm a bit surprised because I looked at his college stats and they were actually pretty miserable. Limited reps and a few injuries. Not a very impressive college career, but he's looking good now. 

Reggie Bush - He's 100%, and he's feeling good. Not only that, but he's handled the whole USC/Heisman thing about as well as you can handle it. The words maturity and Reggie weren't really being associated with each other before this year.

Jason Kyle - Yeah ok the guy is just a long snapper, big deal. But you know what? I'm giving him kudos, because he was so much better than his competition, Clint Gresham, that the Saints decided not to even bother dragging that out in camp. Gresham got picked up a day later by the Seahawks, so it's not like he's garbage. We're lucky to have a snapper that's that money.

DUDS:

Randall Gay - Literally almost every single big play the receivers are making is with Gay covering. It's almost like the QB's are just looking for him anywhere on the field and just lobbing it in his direction knowing the receiver will beat him to the ball. I've always liked the guy, and Mr. Cariello is always trashing him. I'm admittedly not looking too smart right now.

Sean Canfield - We've all heard how weak his arm is by now, but this guy's head is just swimming. Way too many picks in practice. Let's take a moment to realize he is a rookie, and there's still a lot of camp left, but based on what I've seen, heard and read so far, this guy has no chance at making the roster.

Clint Ingram - If you want to start you better get on the practice field, and fast.

Nick Leckey - This guy better have the camp of his life if he wants to hold off rookie Matt Tennant from taking his roster spot.

Malcolm Jenkins - Again, I know it's early, but I would like to see him blow Usama Young out of the water. For the most part Young has been seeing as many if not more reps than Jenkins at starting free safety. We know Young is a great special teamer, but probably not a starting quality free safety over the length of an entire season. Jenkins has looked pretty good at times, and a little shaky at others. I'd like to see him at some point in camp really assert himself as "the man".

Oh, and in case you're interested in the Paul bashing standings thus far, here they are below. Remember the person with the most points get a $20 iTunes gift card. My scoring method is completely subjective, Around the Horn style. And no, the Paul bashing hasn't gotten old for me yet.

SlumD 7, Satchmo 3, Joseph William Stern 3, Jon08ban 1, DrWhoDat 1, Just ‘Nother Day 1, Dan39465 1, Cajun in CA 1, Born in the area code 318 1