We've got a lot to get to this morning so let's not waste any time. Below is the first half play by play analysis for your digestion.

Saints Offense First Drive

• After an average return to the 20 yard line by Skyler Green, the Saints take over. First play is from the I formation and its a play action fake. Nobody picks up the rusher from the right side at the line and Karney has too far to go to get to him in time. Drew makes a sweet sidestep to avoid getting rocked by Robert Geathers (yes, that is Jumpy Geathers nephew) then Brett Favre's it to Karney. Eight yards out of what should have been a costly sack.
  
• Brees to Colston's ridiculously long outstretched arms. First down.
• Brees has plenty o' time to hit Billy Miller over the middle. Protection is great.
• Bush tries between the tackles and it looks like he has a tiny hole to squeeze through but he gets tripped up while doing it.
• Another Brees to Colston hookup over the middle for 15 yards. He also had Deuce to check down to.
  
• Drew blows a sure touchdown to Patten when he overthrows him in the endzone. Looks like they were supposed to meet in the corner but Drew makes the bad throw.
  
• Brees and Colston connect yet again on a a quick curl but the defender is all over Marques, gets a hand on it and the ball falls out of his hands. No catch.
• On third and 10 the throw is to Colston...again. Drew threads the needle between two defenders and Colston catches then drops it after taking a shot. I believe this was the play in which Colston is injured.
  
• Saints settle for a Gramatica field goal.

Review: For the most part the offense looks sharp. This could have easily been 7 points instead of 3. Drew will certainly work out those kinks with his receivers by week one. Colston looks very uncharacteristic with two drops that are normally sure catches for him. It's going to be a long season if Colston starts imitating Devery and comes down with his very own case of the drops. Personally, I wish the Saints wouldn't put Colston in dangerous situations, like going over the middle, during meaningless pre-season games.

 

Saints Defense First Drive

• Evidence that this defense plans on turning things around are seen on their first play from scrimmage. Cincinnati starts on their own 31 and kicks things off with an end around to the left side as Tracy Porter breaks free of his blocker and gets a hand on the ball enough to jar it loose. The Bengals recover but its a great sign for the rookie and this unit.
• The Bengals try running up the middle but there's nothing there. Clancy and Grant on the tackle.
• After a false start penalty its third and 16. Palmer has good protection and decides to go deep. McKenzie makes a diving leap and appears to make the amazing interception but couldn't trap it as it winds up hitting the turf. It doesn't matter though because Who Dat Nation now knows that MM is here to stay and everything appears okay.
• Bengals punt away. They have no idea this will be their theme of the night.

Review: Hopefully, in the near future, we will all look back on this one drive and say, "That was the drive that turned it all around." The two positive aspects were the excellent play of rookie Tracy Porter and the healthy return of Mike McKenzie. This unit had not one but two chances to force a turnover. Thank you sir, may I have another.

 

Saints Offense Second Drive

• Saints take over at their 35. Deuce tries the left side but only gains a yard.
• After Meachem is called for a false start, his number is called and Brees hits him deep on a 54 yard pass. Meachem needs to come back to the ball and makes the necessary adjustments.
  
• From the 15 yard line now and Deuce catches a screen pass for 7 yards.
• Only a yard for Deuce on the next play.
  
• On third and 1, two tight end set. They give the ball to Stecker who looks like he is shot out of a cannon, gets tripped up and tries to stumble over the goal line but he's a yard short. He does get the first down.
  
• Next play and there are three TE's out there, Campbell, Miller and Ghent. It's a play fake and a toss to the back of the endzone to an open Ghent.

Review: Saints are just making it look easy. This offense continues to be a well oiled machine. Meachem has the play of the drive with his 54 yard catch. This is a great sign that he is for real and that first pre-season game was not just random luck. Ghent probably won't even make the team so with the eventual addition of Shockey, this team should be even more potent in the red zone.

 

Saints Defense Second Drive

• Bengals begin at their 24 yard line and start with a run to the left side. Kendrick Clancy brings him down from behind.
• Bengals then try the middle and its, guess who, Clancy with the stop.
• Third down now and the Saints are in Nickel. Bengals have four WR's on the line. Shanle has to pick up the fourth receiver , Utecht, in the slot as Palmer makes a nice throw and finds the TE over the middle. Shanle immediately takes him down.
• First down now and its a quick swing pass in the flat. Fujita does a great job containing and the Bengals only get 3 yards.
• Clancy notches another tackle when the Bengals try to run up the middle.
• Third down and Palmer is working out of the shotgun. Saints bring the blitz, Shanle is the extra man and he shoots right through the middle of the line untouched. Carson barely gets a throw off to no one. More punting.

Review: Another pretty solid looking drive for the defense. Kendrick Clancy was all over the field on this one. He's made this team, no doubt, and he is also a huge help in stopping the run game. Some pretty good play from our linebackers as well. Fujita and Shanle both stepped it up. One of the more important things to note is who I am not talking about, and that is our secondary. Nobody getting burned or caught out of position and on the one complete pass this drive, Shanle was the man in coverage. Much of that improvement is due to good pressure by the front seven. It certainly helps the guys behind them.

 

Saints Offense Third Drive

• Reggie Bush returns Cincinnati's punt for 14 yards and appears to hurt himself on the play.
• From their 23 yard line on first down and Patten catches a seven yard pass on a crossing route.
• Reggie heads to the left side, cuts it back up the middle and finds only two yards.
  
• Stecker gets the call for the dirty work on 3rd and 1 and gains five as he shoots up the middle with lightning quick speed again.
• Deuce tries the middle on first down and only gets 2 yards.
• After Brees and Miller can't connect on a ball thrown slightly behind Miller, Brees tries the left side and finds Henderson for 11 yards and the first down. It would be Henderson's only catch. End of the first quarter.
• More of Deuce up the middle for only 2 yards. Stecker follows that with only a yard.
• The play stalls after a short pass to Patten fails to get the first down.

Review: This was where the offense started to look poor. Deuce, Reggie and Stecker both had little to work with as the O-line just can't seem to open up holes for them like other teams do. If this continues, it may not matter who the running back is as victory will have to come through the air. I hope Drew's arm can handle it one more year. Right now, Stecker is the most impressive back on the field and he looks so darn quick.

 

Saints Defense Third Drive

• Bengals start from their own 14 yard line. Palmer throws a quick swing pass to Antonio Chatman on the left side. Shanle isn't quick enough to contain him but Porter makes a nice tackle by releasing from his blocker and wrapping up Chatman's legs. 9 yards.
  
• Pretty much the same play as last only it's to Utecht and to the right side. Pretty much the same result too, as Shanle isn't fast enough to get to him (even farther this time) and McKenzie must leave his man to make the tackle. 11 yards.
  
•  Now it's a blitz from the Saints and Kaesviharn runs into the backfield untouched on the left side. Palmer tried to escape but KK catches him from behind. Sack.
• Palmer dumps it over the middle to Chris Perry for 6 yards.
• 3rd and 10 for the Bengals and the Saints bring more pressure. Vilma, the late man, breaks through the line and is right in Palmer's face as he barely gets the pass off. Perry is the intended receiver but Roman Harper, with great coverage, is all over. Guess who has to punt.

Review: Some good and some bad on this drive. Once again, the dink and dunk short stuff hurt us in the beginning and their fast receivers were able to take advantage of our not so fast linebackers. Those are the plays that are gaining significant yardage and doing the most damage. Hopefully, opposing coaches do not read this blog. I think it is safe to assume they don't. The defense picks it up however with some good pressure and the Bengals are stalled yet again. This defense is looking fairly impressive.

 

Saints Offense Fourth Drive

• Saints take over from their 30. A defensive holding call later and they start from their 36.
• It's a nice 38 yard pass to a wide open, sure handed Devery Henderson but Jammal Brown is called for holding and it's like the catch never happened.
• Saints try and start one more time on 1st and 20. Stecker takes the hand off and tries the right side. Still nothing for him to run through. In fairness, the Bengals linebackers did a great job reading the play and zeroing in. Keith Rivers looked very nice on this play taking down Stecker.
  
• Brees gets the pass off just in time as the pressure was on and he gets taken down. It's a great throw down the right sideline for Lance Moore. Moore is blanketed but still manages to make the grab. Love this guy. Credit is due both to Lance and Drew.
  
• Drew tries the right side again, this time to David Patten. More pressure as Drew has to hurry and Rivers nearly sacks him. Patten is well covered and the pass is not great.
• Only one yard gained by Stecker on a screen pass to the right side.
• Saints can't convert on third down as Brees tries for a well covered Billy Miller. It was Johnson, a linebacker, on Miller so the matchup was in the Saints favor but Miller can't come back to the ball in time. Saints punt.

Review: Another stalled drive for the Saints high powered offense. The Bengals stepped up their defensive play on this series and looked pretty good applying pressure. Saints fans got a good look at Keith Rivers who could have very well been the Saints first round draft pick this year and he looks pretty darn good.

 

Saints Defense Fourth Drive

• Bengals from their 12 yards line. Chris Perry has nowhere to go up the middle as Clancy makes yet another big stop for the run defense.
• Next it's Palmer trying the right sideline Holt but McKenzie is right there in great coverage and times his hit perfectly. Holt can't bring it in.
• Third down now and the line applies some good pressure as Palmer dumps it off over the middle to Perry in wide open space in the flat. Fortunately, Shanle does a great job closing in and the play only goes for 5 yards on what could have been much more. Punt.

Review:  Three and out. Can't beat that. Clancy looked good. McKenzie looked good. Shanle looked good. Period. Still really worried about the short yardage passing over the top and the YAC, but if our linebackers can close in like Shanle did, then we should be okay.

 

 

Saints Offense Fifth Drive

• Saints have it at their 40 and start off with a Brees pass to Lance Moore down the left sideline for 35 yards. Moore has to stretch and reach to make the grab. I honestly think Henderson doesn't make that catch. The announcer again agrees with me by saying, "He just catches everything it seems thrown his way."
  
• Deuce tries the right side but only gains one yard. No holes.
• Brees tries Patten but there is a communication error as Patten turns inside and Brees throws outside. The ball is almost intercepted.
• Third down now and Brees looks for Henderson right on the goal line. You know what happens. Granted the Bengals had some pretty good coverage, but when he has the ball in his arms and against his chest, he should come down with them.
• Payton decides to go for it on fourth down needing nine yards. Much like the very first play of the game from scrimmage, Drew shows some great footwork and eludes a untouched blitzer, making him miss, as he shovels it off to Moore for a yard. While it wasn't the needed nine yards, Brees' athleticism stopped it from becoming -9 yards.

Review: This is the third drive in a row that the Saints offense has not looked up to snuff. The running game is still non-existent, Henderson is doing his usual ball dropping and I don't know what was going on with Brees and Patten but they just couldn't seem to get on the same page. The only consistent person on these last couple of drives has been Lance Moore.

 

Saints Defense Fifth Drive

• Great pressure from the line on the Bengals first play from the 23 yard line as Antwan Lake gets himself a sack for -8 yards.
• More good pressure as Shanle comes in off the left side and almost reaches Palmer in time. Instead he gets the short dump pass off to Utecht as Vilma and Porter, who are right there, look very weak in tackling and can't grab him. The play goes for 10 yards.
• It's 3rd and 8 (it's always 3rd and 8!!!) and Chatman runs an out right on the right sideline. This is the same play we saw the Texans carve Jason David up with last week. This time it's Randall Gay doing a poor job in coverage and the Bengals gain 19 yards for the first down. Ugh! These are the most frustrating.
• Perry tries the middle and is met by a flying Roman Harper in the hole. Nice hit.
  
• Palmer tries deep down the field as Shanle, again, runs into the backfield untouched and almost gets to him. Porter is on the coverage, and unbelievably, draws the offensive pass interference call. Nice coverage.
  
• 2nd and 17 now and Palmer throws it underneath on another dump off to Chris Perry that gains eight yards.
• Palmer throws over the middle for Jerome Simpson but Aaron Glenn is right there for the immediate tackle and only 6 yards. Bengals...punt.

Review: Shanle looks hungry in this game. Twice this drive he was in the backfield quickly, forcing the quick pass and nearly coming away with sacks. Aaron Glenn also looked reliable again. I do hate to see those 3rd and longs get converted, especially when it's our secondary to blame, but they were very few and far between in this half so it's fair to say there is definite improvement. More short underneath passes that turn into significant yardage. Not the best series for the defense but they again manage to force the punt.

 

Saints Offense Sixth Drive

• Saints are deep in their own zone on their eleven yard line. Brees' night is over as Brunell comes in with under two minutes remaining in the half. His first play he takes a sack for -6.
• Stecker runs twice in a row, both for 7 yards. Three and out.

Review: Well this drive wasn't great at all. Stecker, however, looks so darn good. Again, he is so quick and his feet are always churning. It does look like he has some larger holes to run through than Deuce and Reggie before him, but not by much. Stecker's talent and hard running style are probably equally the reason he is breaking off bigger chunks of yardage.

 

Saints Defense Sixth Drive

• Not much time left in the half as the Bengals take over from their 36 yard line. The first play is a short pass underneath to Utecht. Vilma is there but Utecht makes a quick cut inside to get past him. Vilma slaps his hands in frustration.
• After a spike by Palmer to stop the clock, the Saints bring the pressure on 2nd and 10. Kaesviharn, again untouched, shoots into the backfield from the right side. It is McCray coming in later who puts the finishing shot on Palmer. This was the hit that caused the infamous bloody nose.
  
• False start on the Bengals.
• On third down, Perry gets eight yards on the right side. Not enough for the first as the Saints call timeout and the Bengals are forced to punt one final time this half. The crowd boos as the Bengals walk off the field.

Review: If you have a tight end playing against the Saints this season in fantasy football, make sure he starts. Tight ends have looked pretty good against our defense these last two games. On the positive side, I don't know whether the Saints defensive players just played harder or Gibbs decided to get a little more exotic with the blitzing schemes, but the pressure tonight was vastly improved and it was from all angles.

That does it for the first half. All in all, as stated earlier, I think we have to be happy with this performance. There were some bad plays on both sides of the ball, but that is to be expected every single game. The larger picture is what's important and on Saturday night, the larger picture was a much improved defense. There was a little bending but absolutely no breaking.

Let's hear what you guys think!

It's time to get down and dirty and analyze this game a little better. I watched the game on my Tivo and tried to pick up on things I missed while actually at the game. Here is what I saw in the first half.

Saints Offense First Drive

• Pierre Thomas makes a decent kick return for 33 yards to the 33 yard line.
• On the first play from scrimmage, Deuce takes it up the middle for 4 yards. Typical Deuce. That's the last we see of him for a while.
• Reggie gets a pitch to the left side and gains a yard. He might have been able to bounce it a little further outside but gets taken down by Will Demps. Campbell gets beat quickly by Mario Williams on the right side, but it doesn't matter because he's so far away from the play.
• Weatherford punts it away to New Orleans native Jacoby Jones who bobbles the punt. Usama Young is right in front of his face but slips feet first into Jones. The ball pops out of a scrum and Troy Evans comes up with it.
  
• First down now from the 10 yard line. Bush gets a hand off and tries the left side. Mario Williams is already in the backfield after getting past Jammal Brown. Brown seems to go straight for a linebacker and ignores Williams. Reggie tries to cut it back to the inside but by now, Will Demps has arrived to put an end to that idea as Bush falls forward.
• Three receiver's stacked on the left side (Colston, Henderson, Patten). Brees throws a quick out to Colston on the left side. Patten and Devery are the two blockers. Houston reads the play quickly and the secondary immediately comes in to help. Patten and Henderson can't handle it and Colston is stopped after only 2 yards.
• Brees drops back to pass and has plenty of time. It's unfortunate our o-line can't run block as great as it pass blocks. Not sure if it has to be a trade off or not, but its probably best that they are better pass blockers and protect Brees. He hits Mark Campbell right in the numbers but DeMeco Ryans is blanketing Campbell and has one of his hands in Campbells back pocket. Probably pass interference but no call.

Review: Slow start for the offense. It all looked sloppy and the team didn't seem ready to play. This drive was pretty much 2 three and outs. Nice to see special teams recover the fumble. Payton always stresses turnover ratio and it always helps to be on the winning side of that stat.

 

Saints Defense First Drive

• The Texans start on their own 20. Schaub short pass in the soft spot over the middle to Kevin Walter. Shanle takes him down.
  
• Schaub drops back to pass. The line actually gets good pressure and Will Smith is right in Schaub's face. Sedrick Ellis also bursts in late and pressures Schaub. He is forced to throw it away. This is the only significant pressure the first teamers will get all game.
  
•  Chris Taylor gets a pitch to the left side. It takes about four Saints to get him down, including Jason David. Texans pick up the first down.
• On 3rd and eight, Schaub passes to the left side to Andre Davis who runs out of bounds. David was soft on the coverage and got beat to the sideline by Davis. 14 yards. The fans boo. Payton is standing right there on the sidelines in front of the action. Very frustrating play on third down.
  
• Two plays later and its David getting beat...again. This time its Kevin Walter. David, perhaps a little overeager after the earlier play, dives to make a play on the ball, but it fails. Walter turns it around and upfield for 17 yards total. David looks weak on trying to make the tackle from behind. More booing.
  
• Taylor runs up the right side. Sedrick Ellis beats his man and gets good penetration. With one arm free he attempts to grab Taylor but a nice spin move causes Ellis to miss.
• On the very next play, Schaub goes over the middle to Walter on the goal line. Jason David is out of position yet again with too much separation and he can't bring down Walter before the end zone. David is the deepest defender and no safeties are around for help. Even louder booing as this drive is reminiscent of the Colts game last season.

Review: The Texans seemed to deliberately pick on Jason David's side, not forgetting last years mid-season match-up. In fairness, Matt Schaub looked pretty sharp on the drive.

 

Saints Offense Second Drive

• Second play of the drive and Reggie runs it to the outside for 6 yards. He runs out of bounds.
• On the next play Brees hits Patten deep for 39 yards. Brees is so amazing as he gently puts it right over Patten's shoulders and into his waiting arms. The timing between quarterback and receiver, when done properly, can be an amazing and wonderful thing of beauty. Patten makes a great catch and always seems to look so smooth and confident. He has great technique. This game made me realize how good Patten actually is.
• A few plays later and its a quick in to Devery Henderson on the left side. Guess what Devery does with it. Drops it.
• Next play is a short pass to Bush on the right side. Goes right through his hands and bounces off his helmet. Ugh.
  
• Yet another drop on the next play as Campbell gets hit immediately at the goal line. The hit obviously jarred him, but he really should have held onto the ball.

Review: This is why I think this play by play recap is great, because I didn't even notice this at the game. Three straight passes and three straight drops that should have been catches. I don't even know what to say. I just can't believe we are still dealing with the same stupid problems as last year. After this game, I'm not even really sure we have made any improvements at all.

 

Saints Defense Second Drive

• On the first play, Schaub passes over the middle as the ball goes right through a leaping Shanle's hands. Should have come up with the interception.
• On the very next play, 3rd and eight, its Schaub, yet again, to Jason David's side and into the hands of Andre Davis for 12 yards. It was the same exact play called and run as the 3rd and eight play in the Texans first drive. Exact route, exact blown coverage, and exact crappy result. I am Saintsational's silent rage. More booing.
• Next play and its Schaub on a bootleg to the right. He finds TE Owen Daniels over the middle on a crossing route. Again, a dink and dunk in the soft spot behind the linebackers. A nice 16 yards.
• After a penalty, the Saints blitz and Owen Daniels make another catch over the middle. Vilma and Harper are quickly on him.
  
• Next play, the first of the second quarter, its Kevin Walter on a crossing route in the flat. Tracy Porter can only chase him.
  
• Three straight play action, short dink and dunk passes later and the Texans are up by 8. It was just too easy. The good news is that it didn't seem to be the secondary's fault.

Review: Saints were 0/3 on third down while the Texans were 4/4 in the first quarter. Quite a contrast. The inability of the Saints to get off the field on third and longs is crucial. Twice on 3rd and 8 the Texans completed identical out routes against Jason David on the left side, keeping both drives, which inevitably lead to scores, alive. Replace him with a corner with better coverage skills who can make those plays and that is twice the Saints defense gets off the field quickly and keeps the Texans scoreless. Change those two plays and this entire game looks completely different. Schaub pretty much did whatever he wanted. Last week I was worried about the quick, short passes in between coverage and this week was more of the same. Yes, the secondary needs serious help, but I think it is drawing attention away from the dink and dunk stuff that is also killing us.  I didn't realize Tracy Porter saw some time with the first team. He wasn't impressive.

 

Saints Offense Third Drive

After two Reggie runs to the outside for 6 and 7 yards respectively, Brees hits Campbell over the middle and gains some extra yardage after the catch. A little redemption for Campbell after his earlier drop and better still, no back injury.

This drive ends with the Reggie Bush catching a screen pass and using Jacques Reeves has a hurdle. Not only am I on board the Reggie train, but I'm driving the damn thing.

Review: This is exactly how Reggie needs to be used. The play prior to his touchdown was a failed run attempt up the middle for a measly 2 yards. Forget that stuff for Reggie. Reggie can hurdle over guys and land cat like on his feet. Deuce, Pierre and even Stecker cannot. Deuce, Pierre and even Stecker can run it up the gut and carry a couple of people with them, somehow turning what looks like 2 yards into 6. Reggie cannot. Just play to their strengths. That goes for the entire team. Will someone please tell me I'm wrong?

 

 

 

 

Saints Defense Third Drive

• First play of the drive and guess where guess who finds guess who, yet again for 20 yards. Over the middle, Matt Schaub, Kevin Walter. Now here is the crazy part. It's a play action, and Vilma is watching and on his way in. The second he realizes its a pass, he turns right around and starts heading toward the backfield. He got there so quickly, practically outrunning the ball, that he actually makes a play to tip the ball and reaches Kevin Walter at the same time that Porter does! It was Porters man! I swear on my mother (who is probably reading this right now...seriously). If you've got a recording of the game, check it out. The play starts with 9:33 on the clock in the 2nd quarter. I want someone to prove my story.
  
• A little later, Owen Daniels catches a screen pass and takes it for 21 yards. Scott Shanle had a chance to wrap up his feet but whiffed.
• The drive stalls when Jason Craft wraps up his guy after a short catch. Craft is starting to look better and better at this point. Texans settle for a field goal.
  

Review: It's all about that Vilma play. Though the end result sucks, I think that says a lot about his talent. This was his first game back, so maybe after getting the rust off, those plays will have happier endings.

 

Saints Offense Fourth Drive

• Deuce comes back. This drive was very promising with regards to Mr. McAllister. He has runs of 3, 5 and 4 yards along with two receptions of 4 and 6 yards. On the five yard run, Deuce stops and cuts to change direction and looks fine doing it. Choir sings "Hallelujah" Immediately after the run is the two-minute warning. On his walk back to the sideline, he is all smiles as Brees and Karney congratulate him. Remember it, because I think that was the play. He and everyone else knows it. Ladies and gentlemen, we have a running back!
  
• Here is some good news: Devery gets his arms underneath and makes a nice sliding catch on an under thrown ball that almost hits the ground.
  
• Colston uncharacteristically drops a short pass. Then comes the other big play of the night. Brees lofts it up in the end zone and Colston reaches out, pulls it down and tucks it in. His other hand touched the ball for all of about a quarter of a second. Colston's left arm isn't really even necessary, its just a nice luxury. Do you think if Colston lost an arm in some weird accident that he could still play wide receiver? Colston could be the spokesman for Elmer's Glue. Did you guys know that I love Colston?

Review: Good stuff. I liked this drive. Because of the whole Deuce thing, this drive could very well have determined the fate of this teams running game.

I think we all feel the same way about the game, so I won't beat a dead horse (where the hell did that saying come from). We should all be upset with the defense after this showing, but I don't think it necessarily means the season is already in the trash. We should keep in mind that McKenzie still isn't back and that can make a huge difference. Also, both Randall Gay and Usama Young left the game early with injuries.

What do you guys think? What do you gather from all of this knowledge I am dropping on you? What are your feelings about this post?

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The Saints first home game of 2008, albeit a pre-season game, is in the books. In what will become a tradition here on CSC for all Saints home games, I present to you my personal notes from being at the game and observing all that surrounded me. I have chosen not to look at other websites, read any newspapers or watch any TV yet. What follows is my unfiltered, unbiased opinion of the game. I plan on watching the game a couple of times on Tivo and getting more in depth later. Please note, some of these observations may be completely wrong upon further review, so keep that in mind. It is hard to see everything when watching from my seats. Here are all the notes I wrote (read: typed) into my iTouch during the game.

• The boys were wearing the usual home whites with their gold pants. Pretty standard. I am always a fan of something different, like all black, but whatever.
• The Dome seemed pretty crowded, though not completely a sell out. The atmosphere is always more relaxed for these games and nobody seems to take it as serious as the regular season. And they shouldn't
• The first big play of the night came on a Brees pass to Patten. I know some of you think Meachem is deserving of that second spot, but Patten is a pro. The guy played for the Patriots and he's been around the league for years. He knows what he's doing, and I think it shows. I really don't think anyone is knocking him out of that second spot. I really like him. He's kind of like Colston; doesn't have a big mouth and gets it done on the field. Honestly, he may be one of the more overrated players on this team. I know he's not the biggest guy out there, but he's all professional, all the time and he's got some hands.
• One of the other big plays on the day was the Texans fumbled punt return. Usama Young was all over the returner (don't know who it was without looking it up) but I don't think he actually touched anyone. Plays like that will be important during the regular season.
• Dare I talk about Jason David? I guess we have to. Guys, this was really the most disappointing part of the evening. I can't tell you how helpless and frustrated I (and pretty much everyone in the Dome) felt watching the Texans do pretty much exactly what we watched them do last season.  I believe it was the second Texans drive in which they picked on Jason David three times for big plays in one series, the last time being for a touchdown. Really, this was the definition of deja vu. He was getting booed loudly. I honestly don't really agree with booing your own team, but it is almost getting to the point where it is all the fans can do to let Payton and the rest of the staff know that this just isn't working. We need help here and Jason David isn't the answer. He is clearly the weak link, as I explained to Erin (thats my fiance) who was feeling sympathetic for David. The guy who has the tickets next to me was very irate. I plan to check out the Houston's passing stats, because I really don't think they ever went to Randall Gay's side (their right side). I don't think we could even evaluate him because every play was run at Jason David. Seriously.
  
• Deuce is the other big story of the night I suppose. It was weird. He ran the first play from scrimmage, gaining just a few yards, then immediately ran off the field. At first I thought maybe that was going to be it for Deuce. One play then done. Maybe injury? But he wound up coming back in the second quarter. Certainly there was nothing spectacular about his play today, but it must be good that he was out there and it certainly wasn't bad. Just mediocre. In all honesty, I don't think he was getting too much help from the line.
• Mehlhaff's kickoff's looked fine. Actually, he seems to get a lot of height and hang time on his kickoffs.I don't think any went into the end zone but all of them seemed to be within the five yard line. Gramatica nailed his field goals. I really don' feel like we have learned anything from this match up.
• Our starting defensive line, from where I was sitting, didn't seem to be as aggressive as last week. Only one play comes to mind where we actually pressured their quarterback to throw it away.
  
• Mark Campbell had a chance for a touchdown but dropped the ball that was passed his way. Looked like he took an unexpected hard hit and couldn't hold onto the ball. Probably really should have held onto it.
• Our running game looked like crap. Still nothing to write home about there. I still think they need to start Pierre and let him get into a rhythm.
• Jonathan Vilma was out there, but I really can't remember him doing anything out of the ordinary or special.
• Winn Dixie always plays an ad during the game where they sing their theme song I am assuming is titled, "Getting Better All The Time." It, in fact, is NOT getting better all the time.
• One of the positives tonight was Reggie. Did you guys see that touchdown? It was sick! Yet another Reggie Bush highlight. He hurdled right over a diving tackler and actually landed on his feet like a cat.. He could seriously be on the U.S. Track and Field team for hurdles. They replayed it about 5 times after it happened and it was very reminiscent of his USC and 2006 highlights. It's always scary when he makes those plays because one day he is going to blow out a knee. I believe it was Gayle Sayers who told Reggie a similar thing. Reggie definitely looked hungry and improved, but again, he's not a replacement or answer for a back like Deuce. He is a great weapon to have, but he needs to be used in a special way. The Saints are still in need of an up the middle runner.
  
• Colston had a rare drop on a sure catch, but then made an amazing one handed catch in the end zone right in front of me. Marques pretty much snatched it out of the air. I almost had an action shot of him leaping and making the grab, but alas, it eluded me. His catch and Reggie's leap tied for play of the game. We've got some pretty talented guys on this team.
  
• Aaron Glenn has a nice pass breakup and I actually thought he was going to jump the route and make the interception.
• Brunell actually looked good. He looked like he had a bit left in the tank and some of those balls had a good bit of velocity on them. Not sure whether we would still be able to make the playoffs if Brunell had to lead us, but it certainly wouldn't be awful. We would at least have a chance. I really like him.
• We all got the wave going in the third quarter. The upper deck was a little behind the lower level.
• Lance Moore put an end to the wave when he caught that long pass. It was a good throw by Brunell but a better catch by Lance. The defender was all over him and he still came up with it. Lance Moore...catches...everything. I can't stress that enough. He has great hands. I know the knock on him is that he never does anything with the ball after the catch, and that is certainly fair, but at least you know he is going to come up with it. I think he may make this team.
  
• Kevin Dudley finished off that 82 yard drive, pretty nice for the second team.
• Tracy Porter looked like he still needs some work. He was the culprit on a couple of passing plays. After one play it did look like he still had a bit of a limp. I don't think he is 100%

I have to say I walked away from this game pissed off and disappointed. Bittersweet really. The offense looked pretty good but the defense is just garbage. I am seriously afraid that this season will wind up turning out just like last year. I know we have made lots of changes to the defense, but none of it seems to be making a huge difference. I think we all need to realize that there is no such thing as a quick fix in the NFL. I thought maybe I would regret being so pessimistic in my "inspirational" post a couple of days ago, but I have to say, after this game, I may have been more correct that I ever wanted to be. The hope has certainly been taken out of this season for me and at this point, I definitely enter week one with a mindset of mediocrity.

Here are the pictures I took from the game. I hope you enjoy.

 

Check out the tat! You don't need to see the whole thing to know what that bad boy says! However, I think it should be a ? and a ! It's a question yet you yell it at the same time.

 

Walking in the concourse to my seat. This was about 20 seconds before I completely ate it by slipping on some wet tile. This camera barely made it! Believe it or not, I did NOT drink at the game.  Pure carelessness.

 

MY seats. They are all mine, all year!! One thing I never understood is why they allowed Richard Simmons to upholster the Superdome seating. I mean, since they are spending so much money on fixing up the Dome, why not make the seats black and gold. Or even cooler, make it so that the chairs are colored in such a way as to form the fleur de lis logo in the upper deck. Anything is better than the random seat patterns consisting of incredibly curious color choices. No wonder they won't have a Super Bowl here.

 

The view from my seats.

 

More viewage from my seatage.

 

Get some perspective! God I love football!

 

For the guys.

 

More for the guys. Honestly, Erin and I both agreed, the Saintsations seemed a little chunkier this year on the whole. It is NOT because they have decided to place more importance on dancing ability.

 

For the ladies out there, let me say this: For some reason, jewelry and diamonds sparkle much more under the Dome lighting. Seriously. This picture is pretty pointless because you can't see the sparkle, but if you are recently engaged, or trying to impress a girl with jewelry, take her to the Dome. Can't lose. I don't know what hell it is, but something about the lighting in there is perfect for jewelry.

 

 

The defense. Probably about to get toasted.

 

 

Patten. Literally right before he made his big grab.

 

Brees congratulating Patten.

 

  Reggie and Drew sharing a special moment right after Bush's acrobatic TD.

 

A dejected Jason David after getting beat...for the third time...in that series!

 

Colston after his amazing catch. He is so damn awesome! That catch was unbelievable!

 

Mark Campbell after his big catch and run. Look Stujo, he's okay!

 

Here is the roll call from the open game thread. Thanks to everyone who participated. You guys might not understand, but it really is a treat to come home from the game and see you guys have all convened here, at CSC, to come talk about the game. I am so proud.

Name	# of Posts
satchmo26	18
Steve the fan	17
jjwest11	14
Saintsational	1
Hollywoo!	1
Hustl504	1
MDC	1
stujo4	1
TexasOutlaw	1

 

I read over the comments from the open game thread. Thanks to everyone for participating. Next week I will join you all again. To Jjwest11: Great to have you on board and actively participating. I wish you had checked CSC earlier, because the seat went empty. I happened to stumble upon a free ticket late yesterday afternoon and, to my surprise, no friends or family were interested. If you are local, you very much could have been enjoying the game with my fiance and I.

Please leave your own comments/observations/game reviews from yesterday. Since this is my first post-game report from a home game I am definitely interested in hearing your feedback. What do you like? what do you want to see more of? What is your favorite part. Please speak up!

Poll

What do you guys think about my immediate post game review?

• Awesome
• Sucks
• More info.
• More pictures

  42 votes | Results

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

Pos.	Player	Player	Player	Player	Player	Player
QB	Drew Brees	Mark Brunell	Tyler Palko
RB	Deuce McAllister	Reggie Bush	Pierre Thomas	Aaron Stecker
FB	Mike Karney
TE	Jeremy Shockey	Mark Campbell	Billy Miller
WR	Marques Colston	David Patten	Robert Meachem	Adrian Arrington	Lance Moore	Terrance Copper
C	Jonathan Goodwin	Matt Lehr
G	Jahri Evans	Carl Nicks	Jamar Nesbit	Andy Alleman
T	Jammal Brown	Jon Stinhcomb	Jermon Bushrod	Zach Strief

 

Defense

Pos.	Player	Player	Player	Player	Player	Player
DE	Will Smith	Charles Grant	Bobby McCray	Josh Savage
DT	Sedrick Ellis	Hollis Thomas	Brian Young	Kendrick Clancy
LB	Jonathan Vilma	Scott Fujita	Mark Simoneau	Scott Shanle	Jo-Lonn Dunbar	Marvin Mitchell
CB	Mike McKenzie	Randall Gay	Usama Young	Tracy Porter	Jason David
S	Roman Harper	Kevin Keasviharn	Josh Bullocks	Chris Reis

 

Special Teams

Pos.	Player
K	Taylor Mehlhaff
P	Steve Weatherford
LS	Kevin Houser

 

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.

 

Poll

How will you be experiencing the game this Saturday?

• Local TV.
• I will be in attendance.
• Satellite TV.
• CSC open game thread is all I need!
• The internet.
• Have to go to a bar with satellite.
• I'm not.
• I'm not but I can't wait to live vicariously through you're recap.

  65 votes | Results

This will be the only practice of the day since Coach Payton has canceled this afternoon's practice.

Must Reads

Fox 40's offensive notes form the morning practice.

Fox 40's defensive notes from the morning practice.

New Orleans Saints official website report from the morning practice.

Times-Pic's notes from the morning practice.

Larry Holder's notes from his blog.

Here is the transcript of Coach Payton's press conference today, per the New Orleans Saints official website.

Opening Statement: The afternoon practice today is cancelled. We’ll go two tomorrow. We livened it up a little bit this morning and got some full contact work, which was good. Andy Alleman has a hip contusion; he didn’t go and I think he should be ready tomorrow. Adrian Arrington is still working with the turf toe – it’s pretty serious. Bobby McCray should be ready tomorrow – he didn’t practice. Jeremy Shockey – the same way, did not practice. Brian Young – the same. We signed long snapper Ryan Senser who we had at the beginning of camp and James Reed was placed on reserve/injured with the Achilles injury he had yesterday. Our numbers are still at 80.

Q: Is Adrian Arrington still at camp?

A: Yes. He was in the training room because of the nature of his injury. It’s pretty significant; it’s going to be a little bit here for him. It will be at least a week. We’ll see where we’re at then.

Q: What exactly is Arrington’s injury?

A: It’s a grade two turf toe, which is the ligament below the big toe. He hurt in the game the other night and he’ll have to rehab that.

Q: Terrance Copper had his leg wrapped in practice. Is he alright?

A: He’s fine.

Q: Did Reed tear his Achilles?

A: He tore his Achilles yesterday.

Q: There was a lot of emphasis on the run today in practice. Is that more for the defense?

A: It was for the offense as well. We went in with the idea that we’d back off this afternoon and we wanted to have a physical practice in the running game. You get accustomed to this “full-go up” and then when you go live, it changes things. I wanted to see the backs finish and people on the back end with their run fits, and I think we got good work. Guys stayed healthy and played hard on both sides.

Q: How has Jason David looked? Has he improved since last year?

A: He’s doing well. I think so.

Q: Will there be meetings this afternoon or are the players completely off?

A: There will be a normal meeting schedule this afternoon and evening; that’s the same. They’re just going to be off their feet and we’ll have two practices tomorrow.

Q: Do you think you need to be better in short yardage than you were last year?

A: Our short yardage numbers last year were pretty good. There were goal line situations that concerned me a little bit more that come to mind. One was against Philadelphia at the end of the season where we got stopped on three plays, and it’s definitely an emphasis. It’s hard in training camp to get all the work, but the preseason games give you an opportunity to see where you’re at. But both goal line and short yardage need to be areas that we operate efficiently in; especially the goal line. If you look at last year’s numbers, that’s an area that I think we can do better in – our goal line running game.

Q: In short yardage defense, how much of it depends on the defensive tackles getting push at the point of attack?

A: It’s a push both ways. You’re pushing offensively and defensively you’re having to fit your gap and get penetration. Part of it is the scheme you choose to do with your running game, but part of it is that 1-2 and being physical. It was good to get some of that today. Some of it came up in the script where it just happened to be third-and-one as we moved the ball. Again, getting off the field on third-and-one defensively is critical and being able to convert those downs offensively as well. Knowing that there is a good chance that you’re going to run the football and the defenses know that and still being able to get the yard-and-a-half that you need is important.

Q: Did we see Thursday night just how valuable Mark Campbell can be?

A: He’s coming off of a year without playing, so I was encouraged in that first preseason game to see him make some tough catches, take some hits and get up. I thought he did pretty well for the first preseason game. He’s done a good job.

Q: Was that your high school coach out there today?

A: No, he was here this week and left yesterday. Bill Mallory – who used to be the head coach at Indiana University came in yesterday and will be here for a few days. I think that’s who you saw out there today. Bill’s son is with us as the assistant special teams coach, Mike Mallory. He knows a few of the guys on this staff and he’s come to visit with us, which has been good.

Q: Who has been consistently getting good performance reviews in the offensive line/defensive line areas?

A: I thought Jonathan Goodwin had a good game the other night. Jon Stinchcomb has been solid. Those guys up front have been pretty solid. There are some things that we needed to clean up with the second group. Jammal Brown has had a good camp and he’s healthy. This time last year he had that injury and that kind of set him back a few weeks to the start of the season. He’s healthy now and he’s had his best offseason since we’ve been here and I think that’s carried over to how he’s playing. Defensively, we have some guys that are nicked up in Brian Young and Bobby McCray, but both ends – Will Smith and Charles Grant – are healthy. Sedrick Ellis is getting a lot of work and a lot of reps and Kendrick Clancy is doing a good job. He’s in there battling with Hollis Thomas and he’s been consistent. We have a lot of time still and a lot of practices left. We’ll have two tomorrow and then break camp and the focus then goes to Wednesday’s and Thursday’s practices with the Texans as we prepare to play them then on Saturday night.

Q: Do you see Carl Nicks as competing for a starting role?

A: He has a chance to compete. We wanted to get the 1s going and then at some point get Nicks some reps with that group because he also had to go to tackle in the later part of the game. In order to get him some work at guard, we did it a little earlier. He’s big and he’s done some good things. Mentally, there are some things that he has to work on. He had a (mental error) in the game the other night that Reggie Bush turned into a big run. As a rookie, there are some positives but there’s still a lot of work ahead of him to develop. He has size and he’s powerful.

Q: Who do you see as being the key figures in the punt and kick return game at this point?

A: There are three or four guys that we’re going to look at as punt returners: Reggie Bush, Lance Moore, Skyler Green, and then we’re going to look at Tracy Porter and Jason David. In the kick return game, you saw Pierre Thomas the other night with a big play, Aaron Stecker, Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson – all of those guys throughout this preseason are going to be called on to get work.

Q: Do you see Green and Moore competing for one spot?

A: I don’t know if it’s just those two competing for one spot. Certainly Skyler is competing for a roster spot and Lance is competing both at the receiver and the returner spot. There’s a lot of competition there and you have to take into account what these guys can do on special teams when it comes to your final 53.

Q: What would set one of the two kickers apart if they’re playing for one spot?

A: One thing about the kickers is that you can really chart every kick in practice and in scrimmages and then in the games and begin to get percentages to understand a) their accuracy when it comes to field goals and PATs, and then b) their kick hang-time and location when it comes to kickoffs. That’s unlike a lot of other positions, so there is a little bit more exactness to their performance and that’s a good thing. Over a period of time – and what’s important is time – through training camp and preseason week one, two and three, you begin to get an idea of who is batting at a higher percentage and that’s important when it comes to evaluating that position.

Q: So it’s a lot more intricate than just missed and made field goals?

A: It’s a confidence level as to what their efficiency is. When it comes to the preseason games, you don’t have the same percentages. Maybe Mehlhaff just had one kick the other night and that’s it. But every kick they kick out here in practice is charted, so I think they understand that not only is it charted but the snap-hold time is charted and you begin to know fairly soon as to who has been more consistent. That being said, I think both of them are in a strong battle. Both of them are competing and the good news is that they have three-and-a-half more weeks still with more games to play and more practices. It might be a little bit easier to evaluate that position than some others that might be a little bit more nebulous.

Q: How much patience do you have with that? It seems that Gramatica has been more consistent but does Mehlhaff being the rookie with potential carry extra weight in the decision?

A: I think it’s really important for us to play the best player. Martín has been consistent. When we brought him in last year, he came in in a tough situation and did a good job. For Taylor’s case, he has a challenge to beat out a player like that. He has to beat him out. I think both of those guys are doing a good job right now, so we’ll see.

Q: With Arrington’s injury keeping him out for a while, have you had enough of a chance to evaluate him at this point?

A: Even in the minicamps he had done a lot of things that had encouraged us and again early in this camp. He had a slight hamstring which kind of slowed him down some, but I like the prospect. He’s big and he’s smart and he knows what we’re doing. The key is just getting healthy and that’s tough.

Q: Can you discuss the contributions of Scott Fujita since you acquired him?

A: He is somebody both Gary (Gibbs) and I both had with the Cowboys and he was a free agent when we came here and we signed him. He’s played outside linebacker. He’s somebody that has really had to earn a lot. He was a walk on in college and a late draft pick in Kansas City. He’s been a guy that’s worked hard, detailed his assignments and he’s one of the veteran players on this team. Still, there are certain areas and specifics you’re looking for improvement on, but he does provide veteran leadership and is one of our core players.

Q: Can you discuss how he is so consistent?

A: He keeps himself in shape, he works hard in the offseason. He’s a good athlete who’s big and has range. There are things he’ll give you and things he’ll continue to work on and improve. He’s been a good acquisition for us.

Q: You hear a lot about Fujita, Jonathan Vilma and Mark Simoneua, what about Scott Shanle and his play?

A: He had a good game the other night and he’s playing well. He has good foot speed, he runs well, is athletic and gives you good nickel snaps. He’s had a good camp, he’s stayed healthy, so that’s been encouraging.

Q: Is the kicking competition close and would you consider keeping both on the roster?

A: I think you consider that. But until you get to those final cuts until you look at the comparison at that point you are comparing the second kicker to someone else who will get a certain number of snaps. Right now the competition’s close. That’s something that down the road will become one of the tough decisions we will have to make. Right now, it is a competition that is very close that you potentially weigh in. The challenge isn’t keeping two on the 53 (man roster). The challenging is keeping two active when you go from 53 to 46. That’s the trick, because now when you get to that 46, if you’re taking two kickers, which we’ve done before, now you’re taking one less tight end or one less cornerback. That’s the trick.

Q: Is it impossible to now stash guys on injured reserve due to rules changes?

A: You have your practice squad and you have your active roster. Your practice squad doesn’t secure a player. A player on the practice squad can be claimed by any team. The key is the player receiving enough reps and us receiving enough looks to make the proper evaluation. The thing that keeps you up at night right now is knowing you have some decisions to make and wanting to make the right one.

Q: Dallas gave the kicking job to a rookie last year and other teams like New England have done so in the past. As a head coach, knowing that you play only 16 games and the magnitude of each game, are you a little concerned about going with a rookie?

A: I’m not concerned with giving any job to a rookie if we’ve seen enough, like we did with Marques Colston. You can’t completely compare a receiver to a kicker, but we saw enough from Colston to feel like he was playing better than the starter playing ahead of him. It’s the moment of truth where you make the decision and you that what you have gotten is what you will receive during the season. At some point, and I’m not talking about Taylor (Mehlhaff), these kickers started somewhere. Somebody had to say that he’s going to kick for our team whether they were rookies or maybe they didn’t kick their first year. At some point, a coach said that one of these guys was going to be his kicker and then you go from there. We’re going to try to keep the one who’s most consistent and not factor in that one’s been a draft pick and one hasn’t. That’s been our approach. Those two guys both know that. The key for us is to make the right decision based on what we’ve seen.

Q: Don’t you leave yourself open to second guessing if you keep one and make the wrong decision?

A: Not just with kickers. We signed (Olindo) Mare last year and we had success the year before with (John) Carney and it didn’t work out. There’s reason to criticize and ask if we had done it over again would we have done the same thing? Probably not. You try to make the best decision based on your evaluation and what you think will help the team with these cuts coming.

Q: Do you think about that decision a lot?

A: Yes, everyday. I think about these decisions everyday. That decision is one of these decisions. I think about how the running back position will shape up. I think about how the corners will shape up and how it will sort out at tight end. Within each group, you begin to look at how you see this roster taking place without trying to pre-evaluate and really go by what you see. Fortunately we still have a long way to go here in the preseason. Hopefully the decisions will become clearer.

Q: What is the injury that has kept Jeremy Shockey off the field for much of camp?

A: It’s still his lower leg/ankle. It’s the injury he had in New York. He’s battling through it and just getting himself to where he feels 100 percent. Today we had contact, he’s part of the walk throughs. I think we’re getting to where we’ll have him full go. I don’t know that we’ll have him for the Houston game, but I think after that for those last two preseason games you see him with no limit at all. That’s kind of been the goal with him. He’s doing fine. He’s picking things up and he’s going to give us a boost when he gets in there.

Q: How did Usama Young grade out in the last game?

A: Pretty well.

Q: Is he getting a look because he’s an unknown commodity?

A: He played some nickel for us last year, so he’s in the mix there with those guys. He’s big, he’s physical and he’s in his second year now.

Q: Can you discuss the large number of snaps on defense and special teams he received?

A: He received a lot and when you take out (Mike) McKenzie and (Tracy) Porter out and all of a sudden you look at those numbers. (Jason) Craft received a lot of reps. Aaron Glenn received a lot of reps. There are players injured behind them, like at receiver. Terrance Copper was in the 30’s (reps). That’s a lot for a guy like him. With guys that are injured at some of these positions, it just forces you to play some players maybe more than you normally would.

Q: Is Mike McKenzie still progressing along the lines of where you want him to?

A: Yes, he was full go in the drills today. I don’t know if he made any tackles, but he was in the drills. He’s getting there.

Q: Is he fluid and are you satisfied with his progress?

A: Yes, he’s getting there. I don’t know if he’s 100 percent yet, but he’s getting there.

Yesterday we talked about the not so fine points of the Saints first pre-season game against the Arizona Cardinals. Today we discuss the more positive aspects of the game and what went right. Fortunately, I think the positives far outweigh the negatives.

Receivers You knew I would have to start off with this after Meachem and Arrington led the team in receiving. This is getting really good. With the emergence of Meachington, this has turned into quite a deep squad. When this team added Shockey, the hot topic of conversation was how this would free up Colston from defensive double teams and spread out opposing defenses. I can't even imagine the possibilities now that Meachem is in the mix. Pepper in a little Arrington on top of that and you've got a defensive coordinators nightmare. Mark Campbell also looks like he might very well earn that second spot after missing almost all of last season. The coaching staff will certainly have some tough decisions to make when it comes time to decide who to keep and who to jettison. Fortunately, that is a decision most coaches would love to have to make. Who needs a running game when you've got all of this?

 

Reggie Bush Maybe I've been drinking the Kool Aid here, but I really think this is going to be the year. Try some, its delicious! Anyone who doesn't think Reggie has talent is just plain blind. Sure, he's no human highlight reel like he was at USC, but the kid's got moves. As it stands, Reggie carried 7 times for 22 yards. Take away those two stupid penalties and it becomes 9 carries for 52 yards, one of which looked like a botched play that he turned to the outside for a 12 yard gain. Those are pretty respectable numbers for a first pre-season game. Add to that the poor run blocking by our line and I would say Reggie has shown noticeable improvement. He certainly looked more decisive and hungry. Still don't think he will ever be a back in the style of Deuce, but when he has the ball when he's out on the field, he is always a factor and always dangerous.

 

Defensive Line Just as touted, we look much improved. They were a lot quicker and more aggressive. To be honest, I don't remember ever seeing a consistent pass rush like last night in recent Saints history. Sedrick Ellis was a little shaky but certainly should be able to start week one. Orien Harris was a big surprise on the night and co-led the team in tackles on Thursday night. The defensive tackle position is similar to the receiver spot in that there seems to be quite a few players stepping up, adding depth and making the battle very interesting. Again, the coaches may have to make a tough decision when the time comes to cut the roster down to 53. 

 

We Are Holding Back One of the things I think is great about this last game was the fact that we didn't even dress incredibly key players on this team. Colston, Shockey, Deuce, McKenzie and Vilma were all missing. These guys are all arguably the best players on this team at their respective positions. Thursday nights showing was like a "worst case scenario" example of what our team would look like in week 15 after being ravaged an entire season by injury, and it wasn't that bad! We should all be very pleased with the depth on this team and take stock in the fact that, at our healthiest, we will be an even better team.

Here are some initial observations after having watched the game twice (Tivo is a bloggers best friend). All discussion, agreement and disagreement is welcome.

Wide Receiver Battle Heats Up This will no doubt be what everyone is talking about today. David Patten should feel like a proud pop after Meachem's performance last night. We know the veteran receiver has been Meachem's biggest supporter and last night all their workouts together paid off. Meachem was just plain nasty! The first catch, an over the shoulder grab on an overthrown ball showed us just how much talent he has. The touchdown grab in the fourth quarter displayed his YAC ability after a spin move and a stiff arm helped him gain another 54 yards after the catch.

Meachem's performance last night was promising to say the least. It's his second year so that rookie buzz doesn't surround him anymore but it would be fair to view him as just that, a rookie. Saints fans should count their blessings because not very often do we have the pleasure of seeing two first round draft picks make their NFL debuts in one season. We should expect a lot out of this kid. Coming off a season when the Saints had the  number one offense in the league, Payton <em>still</em> used a first round pick on Meachem, so you better damn well believe he had a reason. That being said, we need to remember that this was just one game and pre-season games should never be used as accurate measuring tools. Meachem faced some pretty weak tackling.

Adrian Arrington also stepped it up last night and showed us why we have been talking about him the last two weeks of training camp. One of his two catches was nice as he came back to the ball and got his body in front of the defender.

That being said, the wide receiver battle has gotten more interesting. Meachem and Arrington both having good games means Copper, Moore, Henderson, Green and Blythe are in trouble.

Pass Rush The pass rush looked much improved. We seemed to be a step quicker and got much more pressure and penetration. Nothing amazing from Sedrick Ellis but I think he will be fine. One thing I am worried about, however, with our new pass rush that I noticed last night. Sending everyone over the line is risky. When you get good penetration in the backfield, you really have to get to the quarterback quickly otherwise the space behind those defensive linemen opens up. If a quarterback can get a short pass off quick enough, they can exploit this gap, dink and dunk, and allow the receiver to pick up lots of extra yardage after the catch. This was the case on several big plays early in the game last night.

Other random notes:

• The Saints got off to a great start, their first drive going for 80 yards. 25 of those were on penalties however.
• Brees of course was solid going 6/7 for 40 yards. The throw to Patten was pure beauty. The new goatee, however, is not. My fiance and I disagree on this point, as she liked Drew's younger new look. What does she know, she has poor taste in men!
• I am pleased with Bush's performance. Reggie tried between the tackles quite a few times but not much was to be gained. In fairness, the line was not doing a great job of blocking. Reggie also showed some promise by breaking two decent size runs, but were both called back due to penalty. Nothing last night said this couldn't be his big year.
• Brunell was pretty good also going 10/12. Good news in the horrific event that Brees goes down. Palko is just too shaky and inconsistent
  
• Lance Moore got a shot with the first team and was fairly unimpressive. His stock may have fallen after last night.
• The first team offensive line didn't look so hot. Reggie didn't have much to work with and as usual the Saints had to get it down through the air. This really needs to be cleaned up. Our running backs can only take so much of the blame.
• Mark Campbell is making a case for the second tight end spot. He had 4 catches for 42 yards. I thought for sure we might see some Billy Miller but he was no where to be seen.
• Mark Simoneau, yet again, refuses to go down without a fight when it comes to the starting spot. Simoneau had a nice sack in the first quarter. Hopefully Vilma will get a chance to show us what he's got and make his own argument.
• Stecker looked pretty solid. More reason why I really don't think we need to even be thinking about bringing in a veteran back. I think we're covered, you just have to have faith.
• Randall Gay was doing his best Jason David impression on the defensive first series, getting beat pretty badly on one play. Usama Young had to come in to make the tackle. Please not again this year...please. Jason David was trying not to do his best Jason David impression. Honestly, I don't feel like the cornerback picture has cleared up any after last night. We did not look much improved on that end. Hopefully this gets addressed or tonights performance was an aberration.
  
• Nothing too special in the return game, certainly not on Skyler Green's part anyhow. In fact, Pierre Thomas had the best run back of the game. Nothing else impressive from Pierre unfortunately.
• Mehlhaff made his field goal but skulled a kickoff. That may have been done on purpose however. The ESPN announcers seemed to think it was Gramatica's job to lose.
• Orien Harris looked pretty good tonight as well. He and Usama led the team with five tackles.
• I am glad the two Saints MNF games are home, meaning I will be in attendance and I won't have to listen to the "fingernails scratching on a chalkboard" sound that is Tony Kornheiser's voice. I do like his Ed Hochuli banter though.

The Saints had off yesterday and that gave everyone, myself included, a much needed break. That being said, there isn't too much to report. The action returns full speed tomorrow and, of course, Thursday is the big day; the first preseason game!!! I think our friend cgolden from SB Nation's Cardinals blog, Revenge of the Birds, will stop by and answer some questions about his team and what we can look for while we watch the Cards lose. Badly. And of course we will have our first open thread of the 2008 season and my first with Canal Street Chronicles! We got a good response when I asked who would be taking part in the open thread, so I expect all of you to be there and the turnout to be great! Enough of my excited blabbering and on with some links. I will return later for some training camp updating.

Another Saints Minute video with Mike Nabors from Cox Sports TV. Skyler Green is the subject this time.

Big Chief Deke Bellavia from WWL's Sports Talk gave out grades for the team in his Black and Gold progress report. He gave the Saints an overall grade of B. For detailed analysis and individual position grades check out the whole article.

I guess the Times-Pic must have read Stujo4's Fujita FanPost, because they wrote this article about #55.

"I think I just bring an unchanging work ethic more than anything else," Fujita said, offering a reason. "And I have a good relation´ship with this coaching staff and with (linebacker coach) Joe Vitt, and I'm just always working to get better. I know that at some point my days in this city are going to be numbered.

"And I think it's having kind of a former walk-on mentality. Being a walk-on in college is where I feel like any day could be my last day or any play could be my last play. I just kind of approach everything that way. I'm always trying to get better and I try not to take any´thing for granted."

"There's always kind of a concern with guys like me where they almost put too much pressure on themselves. And I think at times I have been guilty of that and at times I'm probably still guilty of that. But as I've aged and gotten more comfortable with the teams I've been with I think you learn to relax a little bit.

"And that's important and that's a big part of success. But I think being demanding of yourself and coming in, I come in every year trying to be the most conditioned guy on the team, and I think that helps me as well."

"No question about it, we've got better competition right now out there at every position," defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs said. "So that competition is the impetus, I think, that will allow us to be a better football team because every´body knows that no job is secure."

"It's just because I know in this league, especially at the linebacker position, they're always looking for some younger, faster, prettier looking linebacker -- and they're always searching. At any point they can come in and try to replace me. And I know that at some point that's probably going to happen. Until then, I'm just going to come in and keep working away and do my best and try to be the best player I can for this team."

"That, and trying to do something great," he said. "I think it's a combination of all those things. Personally, I'm not big on the whole accolades and all the Pro Bowl stuff and all that.

"But once I get a Super Bowl, by all means I will have accomplished pretty much everything in life. I've got the wife, I've got the kids, I've got the college degree. Once I get that, then I can sail off into the sunset."

The Advocate. Getting to know you article. Mark Campbell.

“I wish I would have hurt my back the first day of training camp, then I wouldn’t have had to go through camp,” Campbell joked after a hot, steamy practice last week. “But truthfully, it was a struggle. It was a mental struggle more than anything else because it wasn’t as bad as a torn ACL.”

“That’s what I consider my strength,” he said. “Absolutely, I know where I make my money and it’s up on the line of scrimmage blocking. That’s not to say I can’t make plays. I’ve made plays throughout my career, but the reason I’ve played 10 years is because I can block.”

“Coming to camp, one of the things I thought about occasionally was there was going to be the test when we put our pads on and continuously hit,” he said. “That would be the test for me to see how I felt. I passed with flying colors, and I don’t even think about it any more.”

On Jeremy Shockey.

“Obviously, when he gets on the field we’re really going to appreciate him,” Campbell said. “He’s one of the best in the game, so we’re excited.

“We would be the ultimate tight end if they could be put our bodies together,” he said with a laugh. “That’s one of the things that will be a strength for us, no question.”

Mike Detillier had his usual Sunday article for Houma Today. This week, Mike fantasizes a little and came up with a list of players he would add to each team to help them get to the Super Bowl. He picks Champ Bailey for the Saints.

10. New Orleans Saints-Champ Bailey-cornerback (Denver Broncos)

Bailey is 30 years old, but he is still the best man-to-man cover cornerback in the league. With an improved pass rush and a healthy Jonathan Vilma in the middle, Bailey would be the final key for the Saints to make it deep into the playoffs.

He also has a list of Saints players to keep your eye on as you watch the game on Thursday.

More predictions and analysis from hardcore gamblers and Vegas handicappers. The news is good. Here is how they sum it up.

NFL Predictions 2008 New Orleans Saints – 1st NFC South

We don't expect the Saints to get off to a 0-4 start again and the result will be a league title. The defense is going to make mistakes, but it will be an improved unit with several key additions. The offense is as explosive as there is in the league.

For those fantasy football lovers, CBS Sports has an analysis of Deuce McAllister and the value you should expect to get from him this season if you decide to pick him up.

Outlook: McAllister will probably start but is a candidate for about 800 yards rushing and five touchdowns, which makes him a No. 3 Fantasy option at best. Draft him as a reserve to fill out your roster and hope he can return to his form of 2006.

The morning practice was canceled and this afternoons practice was scheduled to begin at 4:20pm. A scheduling change moved the time up to 3pm, but the weather caused practice to start a little later. This post will be continuously updated throughout the night with more articles, videos etc. so be sure to keep checking back, even after practice!

As usual, Fox 40 has has their offensive and defensive observations.

Offense

4:10 p.m. Even though it's their only practice of the day, the team is out in just shorts and shoulder pads. Deuce McAllister and Jeremy Shockey are both sitting this pracitce out. That might be a precautionary measure in case the field is still a little wet and slick.

4:41 p.m. Sorry for the delay, I had to move over to the shady side of the stands. We did just get our Marques Colston "wow" moment of the day. Colston snagged the nose of the football with just his right hand to catch a TD from Mark Brunell.

4:47 p.m. Receivers are going one-on-one with the DB's. Colston looks good, Lance Moore is making his catches and Adrian Arrington had a chance to go up and get a pass over Usama Young, but Young made a great play to knock it out at the last minute.

4:52 p.m Sean Payton just made a stop off at the owners tent, which is located right on the sideline. Payton spent a few minutes talking with Mr. Benson while the team is doing punting drills.

5:16 p.m. A lot of eyes today are on first round pick Sedrick Ellis, who is out here for the first time. Stopping Ellis on the pass rush is 2nd team lineman Andy Alleman, who's doing a pretty good job.

5:31 p.m. Going for a catch in the endzone, Adrian Arrington just came up limping, favoring his right leg. Also Robert Meachem just dropped a pass.

5:33 p.m. Arrington walked it off and is back in there.

5:36 p.m. I have to say that the most consistent group on offense this whole week of camp has been the tight ends. We pretty much know that Jeremy Shockey is going to make big plays. However, both Mark Campbell and Billy Miller have made a lot of catches and even Ronnie Ghent has looked solid.

5:39 p.m. We're now in hurry-up offense mode. Brees looks sharp leading his team down the field without a huddle. Bush has caught a couple of screen passes, Miller snagged one over the middle and Moore made a catch near the sideline and got out of bounds. But they couldn't finish the drive with a TD, time ran out.

Defense

4:10 PM Sedrick Ellis is here, finally! The rookie defense tackle is making his traning camp debut this afternoon. He just took the field for the first time during walk-thrus with the third-team defense (which is not a surprise considering he's missed 12 practices during his holdout)

4:48 Some of the players seem a little sluggish this afternoon. CB Usama Young seems to be visibly disappointed after the one-on-ones. He's had a couple of really great sessions where he stood out to the coaching staff as someone to keep an eye on.

Notes on today's practice from the New Orleans Saints official website.

Notes on today's practice from the New Orleans Saints official website.

Also, here is a video of Mike Triplett and John DeShazier  from the Times-Pic discussing the events of Day 6. DeShazier looks pissed or constipated. You be the judge.