Reggie Bush Bush has done well against San Francisco in the past. He has looked great so far this season and there is no reason why this won't continue. In fact, its scary to say, but I think we haven't even seen Reggie get hot yet. The Niners will definitely be keying on him so Reggie will definitely need to elevate his game. Patrick Willis makes a lot of tackles so Bush has a tough matchup over the middle on Sunday. 

Lance Moore/Robert Meachem This is a big opportunity for the two young receivers. Matter of fact, this is really a big opportunity for all of the receivers. Lance Moore has continued to show improvement and we know that Drew has a lot of trust in him. Meachem has also continued to turn in respectable games with big catches. We could definitely see a break-out game from either of these, maybe 100 yards and 2 touchdowns. Maybe even both? That would be sweet. 

Carl Nicks  Time to step up. Nicks is a rookie so he's no where near perfect but I hear good things about the rookie. Losing a good player like Jamar Nesbit hurts but his pass blocking was better than his run blocking and run blocking is what we need more of. With Nicks' size, maybe he will be the key to opening up bigger holes for our running backs. 

Sedrick Ellis/Kendrick Clancy  With Frank Gore and DeShaun Foster toting the rock for San Francisco these two are going to have a long day. The Niners run the ball straight up the middle more than any other direction and average 5.6 yards per carry when doing so, 4th highest in the league. Their success in this matchup with be very key in the Saints stopping the run.

Deuce McAllister  All signs point to yes. I doubt we will see him much, certainly not 20 carries but this should be the official beginning of the comeback. If he dresses and doesn't see the field again, heads are gonna roll. 

J.T. O'Sullivan/Jamie Martin  I just thought it was interesting that the Niners have two former Saints quarterbacks.  

I know pre-season games are usually sloppy and sometimes boring, particularly the final one, but man, this was awful. 99 total yards of offense?!?! Obviously this wasn't our real team, but c'mon! That said, the good news is that the defense still seemed to look pretty good and last weeks performance against Cincinnati may not have been a fluke. Heck, even Jason David played well. All of the attention and work the Saints have put into that side of the ball seem to be paying off. If that's the case and this continues, then we should definitely expect big things this season. I am officially excited again!

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The team has off today as they make their way back to Metry. Having gotten a clearer picture of just what this team looks like, I thought what better time to throw out another attempt at predicting just who will make this team of 53 and who wont. This, of course, is meant to spark conversation and your input is welcomed and awaited. Where did I go wrong and where did I go oh...so...right? Let us all know what you think about who makes what will inevitably be the greatest Saints team of all-time.

Offense

Defense

Special Teams

Here is my thinking on some of this:

• Brian Young's health concerns me. If it continues to be spotty, the staff may say to hell with it and go with one of the other talented options in Antwan Lake and Orien Harris.
• I went with Reis over Roach at safety.
• Yeah, I went with six receivers. Copper and Moore both contribute on special teams. Skyler Green was so close I practically flipped a coin for this one.
• I only went with one fullback. We should expect better blocking from our tight ends. Maybe keep another fullback on the practice squad in case Karney is injured.
• Jason David is still around. I just don't think the coaches are going to give up on him. I don't really feel we have seen enough from Tracy Porter, but I gave him a shot anyway.

For a good laugh, compare it to my roster prediction back in May. Also check out  how much nicer looking my tables have become. We've come so far.

The floor is now open. Take it away.

The Saints are practicing as we speak at Jackson Memorial Stadium. I guess since I have nothing else to do, I will update live as news comes out of training camp.

Fox 40 is, of course, doing their live blogging thing on the offense and defense.

Offense

7:34 p.m. Although they were going just half-speed, Marques Colston just made a ridiculous one-handed catch. The guy has bear claws for hands.

7:50 p.m. Lance Moore has had two uncharacteristic drops early in these drills.

8:16 p.m. A stagnant crowd just erupted as Deuce found a hole on the right side and burst free into the open field. Oh yeah, we're in 11-on-11 drills right now.

8:21 p.m. Aside from the little things that Adrian Arrington has to learn, one thing I can say for sure: he has incredible hands. Double-A just made a tough catch on a ball thrown behind him in a crowd of three defenders.

8:31 p.m. Yes, most exciting play on special teams so far in camp. They just executed a fake field goal in which holder Steve Weatherford completed a pass to Jamar Nesbit and he took off in a plod of glory.

8:53 p.m. A new wrinkle to these full offense vs. defense drills, they are adding down and distance to each play. Intensity is pretty high, Lance Moore got blasted by David Roach on an incomplete pass.

9:07 p.m. After throwing an incomplete pass on a rollout to the left, Brees shouted in disgust. You don't normally get that kind of outward emotion from him.

9:13 p.m. Play of the practice. Tyler Palko lofted a 50-yard pass to Skyler Green who made a nice over the shoulder grab. Green has the speed to burn people deep, he just needs to be more consistent holding on to the ball. As soon as I write that Palko drops another bomb to Todd Blythe for a TD, good little run for the third teamers.

Defense

7:59 PM Payton is resting Jonathan Vilma this evening, Vilma is with the linebacker corp walking through some drills

8:21 PM The defense hasn't looked very good in the 11-on-11 drills so far. I can't recall having seen more than one incompletion yet from any of the three QBs.

8:57 PM Marquies Gunn is trying to make his presence felt with the second team 'D'. He used a nice little move to get around his blocker and then forced QB Mark Brunell's to throw the ball away. Pressley just joined the tam a few days ago to replace rookie DE Demario Pressley who just got put on Injured Reserved.

9:06 Usama Young just broke up a Brunell pass. This guy is having a really good couple of days, and the coaches seemed to be impressed. He just needs to keep it up.

The New Orleans Saints official website is also getting in the game and live blogging also. Here are the highlights of some of their observations.

The offense and defense are going to start working against each other in different groups right now. On one end of the field the receivers and defensive backs will get some work against each other, while the running backs and linebackers take on each other, while the one-on-ones between the o-line and d-line work in the corner of the field.  Reggie Bush catches a pass in the flat and turns on up field for a long gain.  Te Billy Miller makes a nifty catch along the far sideline.

Aaron Stecker hauls in a pass in the flat on a dead run and gets to the corner, and then RB Pierre Thomas catches a quick in cut across the middle and shakes free from linebacker Marvin Mitchell.

CB Usama Young meets Pierre Thomas at the line of scrimmage on sweep.

*CB Jason Craft stops Barlclay at the lie of scrimmage on a stretch play.  Barclay flew to the corner, but Craft was flying equally as fast.

*QB Tyler Palko scrambles out of the pocket and hits Lynell Hamilton for a 10-yard gain. 

The special teams dedicated portion of practice is extremely crisp. Three things stand out to me:  K Taylor Mehlhaff hit a 46-yard field goal with what look like a 3/4 punch shot that flew right down the middle of the uprights. Mehlhaff has a short, quick approach to the ball and it jumps off his foot.  Secondly, the Saints return men in the punt game have all field punts very cleanly tonight. Not a bobble in sight.  Thirdly, P Steve Weatherford hit a 55-yard punt that was flew out of bounds at the one-yard line in a perfect coffin corner punt.  Special Teams Coordinator Greg McMahon will be pleased with this practice session, I am guessing.

DE's Charles Grant and Will Smith converge on Brees for what would have been a sack. They both pull up before actually hitting him.

Brees just misses on a long bomb to WR David Patten. Credit Jason David with tight coverage.

RB Chris Barclay attempts to make a tough comeback reception along the sideline, but lands awkwardly as he reaches back for the ball and crumbles. He reaches for his left knee as the trainers race towards him. RB Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister hustle over to him to lend support.  Barclay is helped to the bench where head trainer Scottie Patton tends to him.

Arrington almost makes a diving reception but Reis doesn't allow the pass to be completed. On the next play, Arrington gets loose down the middle in hauls in a 25-yard pass from Brunell.

Out of what looks a like rugby scrum, RB Pierre Thomas emerges for a nice gain. Where have we seen that before?

Brees and Terrance Cooper hook up for a 35-yard gain in two minute drill and on the next play the QB fires a perfect pass into the corner for David Patten, who hauls in the pass against the second string defense.

Here is the Times-Pic's summary of the evening practice.

Here are three recent audio clips from WWL's radio show Saints Talk. For those out-of-towners, this should be a treat. The first is with Mickey Loomis, the second is with Brian Young and the third is with Jamar Nesbit. Enjoy!

 New Orleans Saints - Mickey Loomis

 New Orleans Saints - Brian Young

 New Orleans Saints - Jamar Nesbit

Check out this video of Adam Schein from NFL.com talking about Robert Meachem and Reggie Bush.

The Lafayette Advertiser had an article updating us on Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme. Seems he is ready to go again.

"To be honest, this was a long time coming. About three, four years I've been dealing with issues," Delhomme, 33, said of the elbow. "I was just trying to play dumb, but I knew something was wrong. Very few people knew - just my wife and parents knew I had an issue.

"I don't feel like I did when I was 22, none of us do, but I feel like I did when I was 25, 26, 27 now. This has been a blessing in disguise, because I feel better than I have in a long time. I'm excited to get going, and I don't plan on going anywhere for a long time, either."

Maybe they replaced his real arm with a robotic one? Do you think we will ever see the day where we argue over whether robotic prosthetics on players' bodies will be legal or not? Do I sound like a moron?