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.

I believe he dropped this one.(Getty Images)

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.

His big catch.(Al Behrman, AP)

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.

Stecker deserves more touches. (Getty Images)

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!

Punt, Punt, Punt, Punt , Punt, Punt, Punt, Punt, Punt, Punt, Interception.

That's exactly how the Cincinnati Bengals drive chart read last night. Just wanted to lay it out like that because it looks so pretty that way. I don't know what the heck Payton said to these guys this last week or what he did to motivate them, but it worked. With all eyes on them, the Saints defensive showing was a huge improvement over last weeks. The return of McKenzie, better pressure from the line, a more cohesive linebacking corp, and better play from the safeties all contributed to a defense that actually looked like they knew what they were supposed to be doing out there. I understand there are always going to be those people who say that it's just pre-season and that many Bengal's starters were not active, and they are right. But for this teams defense, one that is oft criticized and rife with deficiencies, to hold any team at any time to no points, not even a field goal, is an incredibly noteworthy feat. Yesterday's battle against the Bengals should be considered a very important victory in the long war that is this season.

On a less positive note, the offense didn't look as smooth and efficient as we all know it can be. The Bengals are not a very good team defensively. This Saints team cannot expect its defense to come up big like this every week and 17 points of offense just won't cut it against stronger teams. One thing that will be ever important this season, and something that I feel plagued us last season, will be for both offense and defense to play well together. I already know that in next week's game against the Dolphins, the most important thing that I will be watching for will be consistent play from all and the ability of both offensive and defensive units to get on the same page and turn in equally impressive performances. It's a must. Otherwise, all of  our hope and expectations for this season will flutter up and down in rhythm with this teams inevitable performance as we will all ride along on the roller coaster ride that is a typical New Orleans Saints season.

In the meantime, hope has been restored in Who Dat Nation and all is peaceful. At least for now.

Here are my immediate observations from the game. They may not be completely accurate because they were made on the fly. More in depth analysis will take place this week.

The Secondary

• When it comes to the Saints secondary, there's Mike McKenzie and there's everyone else. Is this guy recovering from a torn ACL? Sure didn't look like it. MM looked solid out there, almost picking off a pass. We can all breathe a sigh of relief now knowing that with MM back, our secondary should never look as awful as it did last week against Houston.
• I don't think Tracy Porter is necessarily ready to start but it is awesome to see some improvement after last week. He made that great play in the first series knocking the ball loose after getting away from his blocker. He also drew an offensive pass interference call by getting great positioning on his wide receiver. However, he failed to do anything in the return game.
  
• Randall Gay looked just okay.  He was caught out of position at least once last night. Sad to say but I don't think he has totally locked up that second starting spot.
  
• Aaron Glenn is starting to look good. Decent anyway. Dare I say that he gives this unit a little depth? Can I use that word when I am talking about the cornerbacks? I think I just did. He seems pretty solid and consistent. A good "break glass in case of emergency" kinda guy.
  
• Great play from our starting safeties last night. Maybe it's because he was playing his old team but KK looked solid with 1.5 sacks. Roman Harper also looked sharp making some nice hits, including that hard one against the run when he flew in to fill the gap. Lance Schulters also got into the mix by nabbing an interception.

The Rest of the Defense

• The line as a whole looked much better than last week. To be fair, I don't think the Bengals offensive line was doing such a great job and didn't seem to pick up a couple of blitzes but definitely a noticeable improvement in the application of pressure. Still nothing from the most expensive bookends I have ever seen but Bobby McCray looked awesome! 93 Octane had 1.5 sacks on the night and decided to leave his mark in this game; all over Carson Palmer's face. For a big guy, he sure is fast. I don't mean to rip off McDonald's but, "I'm lovin' it."
• Good news on the defensive tackle front. Even though Hollis Thomas is out for a good while and Young will probably have an injury plagued year, Kendrick Clancy is really stepping it up, as well as Antwan Lake. Clancy came on strong right out of the box and led the team with 3 tackles and 2 assists. Lake added a sack. While Thomas and Young are out, I think Ellis and Clancy are your starters.
• I was very happy to see the linebacking play looking much better. I think this may actually have been a position group whose performance was underrated last night. Those short dump off passes in the flat by our opponents were killing us in the last two games and I am glad to see that get significantly reduced. These guys were covering a lot of ground, doing a great job of containing and on top of their receivers quickly.
  

The Running Game

• All I asked for was just to see continued improvement out of D Mac and I think it's fair to say we saw that. Of course he's not out there moving piles the way we know he can but give it time. For a second knee injury, he's looking pretty good and he's coming along nicely. Patient with this one you must be.
• Nothing unusual from Pierre Thomas. He only ran five times for 46 yards (by the way, thats a 9.2 average) and caught four passes for 35 more yards. The announcers even complimented him on this blocking. Okay, okay he had a fumble deep in the red zone when he was practically down. It doesn't matter though, don't worry about it. He will stay buried on the depth chart. If I write any more I will get angry and break my keyboard.
• It's unfortunate for Lynell Hamilton that we already have four other pretty talent backs ahead of him because he looked pretty impressive last night. The reality is, at this point, he's probably trying out for another team with these performances in the pre-season for the Saints. Maybe we could package him together with Devery in some sort of trade?
• Reggie was pretty much non-factor last night. Hopefully his injury is not too serious.

Receivers

• Both Lance Moore and Robert Meachem  are starting to prove themselves to be consistent. You can add both of their names to the list of Saints who are playing well but not seeming to get the respect they deserve. Honestly, at this point, they may both be ahead of Devery on the depth chart. 
• Oh, Devery. What to do with you...what to do? Technically on the stat sheet he only caught 50% of his passes tonight, but we will give him credit for the nice catch he had for about 20 yards that was inevitably called back, raising his percentage to a whopping 66%. Either way, he continues to be inconsistent leaving me to wonder why Payton continues to think so highly of him.
  
• Colston looked good in the one series he took part in. He and Drew are on autopilot. We did see a rare drop on the goal line from Colston while taking a tough hit.

Quarterback 

• If I'm being honest here, Drew looked just a little off. Just a tiny bit. He threw one a little behind Billy Miller but he was really off with receiver David Patten, overthrowing him and seeming to mix up routes. Minor, I know, but just thought I would mention it.
  
• Brunell was fine. Ol' reliable he is.
  
• Palko looked much better last night as well. No bobbled snaps. Had a nifty little run. My question is: How long is this Payton project going to continue?

Special Teams

• Mehlhaff finally kicked one in the endzone but then followed it up with a not so great kick. He did nail his 45 yard field goal however.
  
• Gramatica was also reliable as usual hitting his field goal attempt. I really have no idea what is going to happen with this position battle. It might come down to a coin flip.
  
• I think Skyler Green's career with the Saints may be coming to an end very soon. Punt returning is really the only way he is going to make this team and he didn't look impressive at all last night. Unfortunately, he hasn't gotten too many chances and because of that, he is forcing those chances which is only exacerbating the situation.
  

Of course, I will get into more detail about everything in the upcoming days. As always, the floor is open for your thoughts and opinions.

Here is the final roll call for both open threads combined. Props go to Steve the fan who proves he is worthy of the name he has given himself. Again, I am so happy to see such a good turnout for the open threads. I always enjoy them.

It's time for the second half of our breakdown of the breakdown. I am glad you guys enjoyed this post yesterday and I will try to do it every week. That being said, let's put these guys under the microscope.

Saints Defense First Drive

• Texans start at their own 32. First play of the half is a quick pass to the right that Aaron Glenn jumps in front of and bats away. One of the best plays of the night for the secondary. Might have been able to pick it off.
  
• On the second play, Bobby McCray puts a move on his guy and blows past him into the backfield, so quickly that he overshoots the runner and misses the tackle. A little more control and that is probably a tackle for a loss. As it is Marvin Mitchell takes him down for a gain of a couple.
  
• 3rd and 8 after two nice defensive plays. Another decent display of pressure as Josh Savage gets to Rosenfels just a half second too late. The pass is over the middle completed for 13 yards. It's Tracy Porter's man. The drive stays alive as the second half continues in the same manner as the first.
  
• After a Slaton run for 12 yards in which huge holes were created by the Texans offensive line, it's a Rosenfels pass for 20 yards down the left sideline to Jacoby Jones. Tracy Porter is, oh, 5 yards behind him. I am praying hoping assuming that the defensive strategy here for Porter is too keep everything in front of him. More likely, Jones made a nice play by immediately button hooking, leaving Porter still streaking down the sideline.
  
• Chris Reis makes an awesomely hard hit to stop a run.
  
• In the redzone now and the Texans run a couple of times for medium yardage. The defensive line is getting pushed around a bit.
  
• Jo-Lonn Dunbar makes a quick stop for two yards on a shirt pass to the right sideline.
  
• Two more nice runs from Taylor puts the Texans in the lead.

Review: This drive started off promising for the Saints defense then quickly turned sour after giving up yet another 3rd and 8. Knowing Jason David isn't out there anymore and assuming they might meet a little more resistance in the secondary, the Texans decide to keep it on the ground, and instead, make a mockery of the Saints run defense. Taylor had his choice of holes to run through for the last half of the drive. Add that to the poor cornerback play toward the beginning of the drive and you've got the makings of an awful defensive showing.

I'm starting to like this guy. (Getty Images)

Saints Offense First Drive

• Stecker has two decent runs for 5 and 8 yards. He's actually got some decent sized holes to run through as the offensive line gets some good pushes.
  
• Brunell throws to the right side and finds Billy Miller wide open. Miller, sadly, drops a pass that any of us could have caught. I say that with a decent amount of confidence.
  

Review: This drive is only three plays but still revealing. I feel about Stecker the way I feel about Pierre. The guy has done nothing but prove himself worthy yet he stays under utilized. The only other explanation would be that our second team offensive line is more dominant then Houston's second team defensive line which would be pretty good news itself. All of that happiness is quickly lost when Billy Miller blows a sure thing and the thought of the Saints leading the league in dropped passes again causes me to throw up a bit in my mouth. Watching the game the first time, I didn't notice the myriad of dropped passes.

Saints Defense Second Drive

• Texans start on their 39 with a run up the middle but Kendrick Clancy is having none of that. He gets a great jump off the line and manhandles his lineman, getting into the backfield and making the tackle for a loss of 1. Very nice play by Clancy.
  
• Second play and McCray blows by his man on the outside. Dude has got a motor. So fast in fact, he yet again overshoots and tries to catch Rosenfels from behind. Rosenfels does his best Favre impression and overhand shovel  passes it to Slaton for a couple of yards. Jo-Lonn Dunbar is all over it and stop him immediately.
• Rosenfels drops back to pass and its more great pressure from McCray and Josh Savage. Both overshoot (McCray overshoots, Savage might have been blocked away). McCray almost gets his hand on the ball as the pass is released. The pass is into almost triple coverage by the Saints and Craft leaps in front of it as the interception goes off his hands and eludes him. He probably should have actually come up with it. Texans punt.
  

Review: Best defensive series of the night. In fact, this was the first time the Texans punted. McCray and Savage look pretty good. McCray needs to control himself a little more. Hope is out there.

Moore is like a vacuum. (Getty Images)

Saints Offense Second Drive

• Saints start from their 18. The first play is a Brunell pass for 13 yards to Lance Moore. The announcer says the same thing I always do, "...Lance Moore who simply catches everything thrown his way..."
• On the next play, Lance Moore doesn't make the catch. However, its thrown behind him and a defender is all over him and gets a hand on the ball. Brunell mouths, "My bad Lance" and taps himself on the chest.
• Stecker gains 5 yards through some decent holes. This is so backwards. The first team should be opening holes like this.
  
• Andy Alleman: false start.
• Brunell throws a nice pass to the right for Terrance Copper and a gain of 17. I remember this pass during the game. Brunell put some mustard on this one and I remember thinking the old guy still has some left in the tank.
  
• More Stecker. This time 7 yards after cutting back to the right and finding a hole. That is followed by a 2 yard run up the middle.
• Alleman: false start.
• Brunell and Moore connect for 42 yards on what seems to be the same play Brees and Patten connected on earlier. The results are identical. Moore streaks down the left side line, totally beating his man, getting separation and makes an over the shoulder grab that is perfectly placed by Brunell. Is this guy our backup? Saints on the 6.
  
• Two plays later (one a defensive penalty) and Brunell connects on a bootleg left with FB Kevin Dudley.

Review: Lance Moore might make a good replacement for Devery Henderson. Pretty darn good drive for the second team offense. Alleman surely got a mouthful from Payton on the sideline.

Don't know how they got this picture. He didn't have too much to celebrate. (Getty Images)

Saints Defense Third Drive

• Texans immediately get to work carving up our secondary some more as Rosenfels hits David Anderson for 43 yards to the Saints 34 yard line. It was Tracy Porter's man but Porter slips and allows the receiver to get 5 yards of separation. David Roach comes in to help but does an very poor job of tackling and its Porter who has to hustle to catch Anderson and take him down.
• Slaton between the tackles. Orien Harris with the tackle
• Aaron Glenn gets beat when Rosenfels rolls out and completes an out route just before the sideline. This play killed us all night. I hope they work on it this week.
• After a nice run stop, the Saints defensive line gets pushed around and Slaton makes it look easy up the right side through a huge hole. 

Review: Just more crap from the defense. Not much to say about this drive. I think Porter's injury is definitely hampering his play. I am trying to be optimistic here guys! By the way, because of his performance in this game Slaton earned the right to start Houston's next game against the Cowboys.

Saints Offense Third Drive

• Meachem makes his first catch of the night for 11 yards.
• Jermon Bushrod: false start.
• Pierre Thomas gets a nice chunk of 9 yards.
• After a bad, uncatchable throw that was over Robert Meachem's head on the previous play, Brunell gets tripped up and taken down from behind. It was Zach Strief who slips in the backfield and allows his man to get past him and make the sack. Saints must punt and its a nice one from Waylon Prather for 60 yards. It's downed on the 3.
  

Review: Nothing special on this drive, but they've been doing a pretty good job so I'll cut them some slack.

Saints Defense Fourth Drive

• From deep in their own zone the Texans start. Alex Brink comes in to quarterback. Completes a 4 yarder after scrambling. Orien Harris with the tackle.
  
• Brink continues to throw all over us like his two predecessors this evening by completing a 8 yard pass on 3rd and 6 and converting yet another third down. Craft was on the coverage.
  
• Slaton runs up the right side and the Saints look weak in trying to take him down.
  
• Slaton right side for only 1 yard. Orien Harris with the tackle.
• Brink sneaks it for the first. Then, on first down, Slaton left side for 1 yard. Orien Harris with the tackle. You getting the point?
• Brink botches the hand off and the Texans lose 11 yards.
• 3rd and 20 as Slaton gets another 11 yards through a giant hole. Texans must punt.

Review: Orien Harris shows up on the stat sheet with six tackles for the night and the team leader for the second time in a row. Some of those tackles were nothing special and just being at the right place at the right time, though that does take some skill. Not sure what kind of chance this kid has of making the team but he sure does take his shots in the limited amount of time he's gotten in these first two games. The defensive line continues to get pushed around. Please tell me that Houston's O-line is just that good.

Saints Offense Fourth Drive

• Saints start off from their own 16 yard line. Palko now in for the black and gold. He starts of with a pass to Moore for 10 yards.
• Palko does a nice Michael Vick impression and dances along the sideline but a Bushrod holding penalty brings it back.
• Six yards for Pierre Thomas on a catch and run.
• Zach Strief: false start.
• Tyler throws wide out of bounds intended for Copper. After the play he points to his head and mimes to the sideline that he didn't hear the play call. I'll give him that one.
• Meachem is open over the middle and jumps as high as he can. Unfortunately, its not high enough as Palko's throw sails way high.
  
• Saints decide to go for it on fourth down. After the announcers remark how Payton probably wants something positive for Palko to end the game on, he throws a short dump pass off his back foot to a wide open Billy Miller. It hits the ground in front of Millers outstretched hands. Poor throw.
  

Review: Well this wasn't a good drive at all. Penalties killed this drive as they did earlier in the game. Stupid penalties are commonplace during pre-season football but that doesn't make them alright. Strief, Bushrod and Alleman all had two each. That's a quick way to piss off a coach and make him think long and hard about cutting you. Palko looked like crap but I am willing to chalk it up to the fact that he just came off the bench and had no time to get into a rhythm. His mechanics looked bad and to be honest, I'm not really sure where this Payton pet project is going. The scramble and the run down the sideline looks good, though didn't count, and he didn't bobble any snaps, so good news there.

The Texans ran three run plays just to run out the clock so we don't need to discuss that. Of course your thoughts and opinions are welcomed and encouraged.

Those of you who know me (in the internet sense of the word) know that I talk "business" sometimes. I wanted to give you guys all a shout out because participation has definitely been on the rise. Glad to see a lot of lurkers or shy people out there getting involved in the conversation. That's what this thing is all about. For those of you out there who are still "just browsing" you don't have to worry. We won't bite. Hard. (sorry, had to) In all seriousness, if you think you don't know what you're talking about or you're scared someone might make fun of you, you should be. And then you should remember that it's the internet and nobody has any idea who you are. This whole thing is about the sharing of information and the uniting of people with a common interest love obsession. Make your contribution and put your stamp on this website. The more the merrier. As I said earlier, things are coming along great and the community is ever growing, but it can always be better. If you've read CSC/The Chronic for a while, you may get the impression that I am pretty much never satisfied, and you'd be right, so get off your butt and say something. I promise you will be welcomed warmly. The season is almost here and it's going to be a good one with lots to talk about. The only thing missing is you!

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.

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!

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.

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

This was the play of the game. (Associate Press)

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.

Still no Sedrick Ellis sighting. Practice this morning was an abbreviated walk through and pretty darn boring. Perhaps the biggest news of the day was the kicking competition. There was a very large focus on special teams this morning. The guys over at Fox 40 did their usual offense and defense reports, but didn't really have too much to write home about. In fact, most of it was about the presence of OU coach Bob Stoops.

Continue reading this post »

I would like to start off today by talking a little business. This is the part where I get all serious. Sorry for those of you who have been here a while, please be patient. With the Shockey trade and the start of training camp, CSC has seen quite an increase in traffic. In fact, double. Being a fairly new community in comparison to other SB Nation sites, I am making a concerted effort to grow this community and increase participation. That is really what this is all about. Though this is considered a blog, SB Nation has provided us with something that is much more than that. Though I provide you with probably every single tidbit that is ever written about the Saints in any given day, literally, this is not just a place to come to find links. Its also not a place for you to come to just listen what I write. If people came here to read what I wrote...well, they just wouldn't come. CSC is for all of you to come share your feelings, questions, experiences and knowledge about the Saints and get more of that in return. I will be the first to admit I have not been as engaging as I know I can be and I am going to try and make a better effort with that. But this website also gets infinitely better when you guys get involved.

When we first started, I wrote sort of a tour of this site and you can now find that tour here, or on the left sidebar under sections. Though some of the things may have changed around, that will give you a general idea of some of the features here on CSC. The most important thing for you guys to know are the FanPosts and the FanShots. The FanPost section is basically like a message board. Actually, its cooler. You guys can use them to start topics that YOU want to discuss. Want to know whats up with Roman Harper and his neck? Put it up in a FanPost. Incredibly pissed off at at the fact that two players were injured on one play yesterday? FanPost that s***! And the rest of you put in your two cents. If you particularly like a FanPost, Recommend it. When a FanPost gets 4 Recs. it goes toward the top. Thats how this thing works. The best thing about the FanPosts and all comment threads on CSC for that matter...they are auto-refreshing. That means you don't need to hit your refresh button. Comments just magically appear on your screen when someone else makes one. Oh, and by the way, if I like what you write in a FanPost, I can choose to put it right up on the front page in all its glory for everyone to see. The same goes for the FanShot section, only the FanShots are just for quick pictures, videos, audios, links, quotes, whatever! So if you've got some time on your hands, volunteer yourself and put up some of those training camp pictures I keep giving you the link for. We can never have too much Shockey. Finally, the other great thing about CSC are the game day open threads. Anytime the Saints have a game, there will be what is called an "open thread." When the game starts, stop by CSC and chat with other Who Dats about the game. Live! And again, with auto-refreshing comments, it's reads just like a chat room!

Of course this only works if we all stop lurking, do our part and make this fun. There is power in numbers. It's cool that I update this site fairly often and give you guys fresh stuff to read, but its even cooler if there are also new pictures and videos posted and a new topic to discuss in the FanPosts. that some of you guys add. The more the merrier and everyone's opinion is valid...unless you like Aaron Brooks.

I also ask that if you like what you are seeing here, help us grow and spread the word. Tell all your friends and share this site as much as possible.

Also, in case any of you missed this, you can still register to win a spot to play in CSC's Fanhouse fantasy football league against other Saints fans and take a shot at beating me! You won't, but you can at least try. It's free so you have got nothing to lose!  Register here! Winners will be notified by email at the end of the month, so hurry up and register. Check out my original post here. Some of you have gotten personal emails to join the league and not signed up yet. If you think this might be you, check your SB Nation email and make sure to check Spam/Bulk Folder.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.

Continue reading this post »

Fox 40 again with the live reporting on the offense and defense.

Update #1

3:44 p.m. Deuce McAllister is out in full pads, something we haven't seen in a couple of days. This could be an important practice to see how the knee is holding up. Right now he's off to the side being stretched by one of the trainers.

Update #2

4:00 PM All the defensive players are out on the practice field in full pads, except for CB Mike McKenzie and DT Brian Young (both of them are in shorts and no pads)

4;23 p.m. Good looking action from the QB's and receivers going on in passing drills. Drew Brees, as always, is sharp and I think the receivers have caught every ball thrown their way. These type of drills really allow you to see how many weapons the Saints are going to have on offense and the potential is through the roof.

By the way, you may want to check out the Arena Bowl airing right now on ABC. Crazy things are happening and it might be a close one! It is being played here in the New Orleans Arena.

Update #3

4:32 p.m. The team is separated into multiple different drills but off to the side Coach Payton is working one-on-one with Jeremy Shockey. They look to be going over different formations, where Shockey will be lined up and how the route is supposed to look.

4:35 p.m. As good as Adrian Arrington has looked catching passes, with rookie receivers you worry about some of the other small things, like blocking. Arrington is having some trouble getting the blocking fundamentals down in the drills taking place.

4:20 Brian Young is getting his knee iced, while the rest of the D-line runs is going up against the offense.

Update #4

4:44 p.m. In full offense vs. defense, Drew Brees and Adrian Arrington had a miscommunication leading to a interception by Aaron Glenn.

Also, the New Orleans Saints official website reports that DT DeMario Pressley has been placed on injured reserve. The Saints have signed defensive end Marquies Gunn, most recently of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

WWL also has the story with more details.

Defensive tackle DeMario Pressley was placed on injured reserve by the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, forcing the fifth-round draft pick to miss his rookie season.

He fractured his right foot in practice Saturday.

Update #5

4:43  Full offense vs. defense drills now. Mark Brunell just under-threw a pass, that got picked off by Aaron Glenn.

4:52 p.m. In red-zone offense work the offensive line is struggling to keep the d-line from getting to Brees, but he did get a pass off to Reggie Bush who made a nice shoe-string grab. Next Brees hit Colston across the middle for a TD.

4:56 p.m. That guy Arrington just made another nice catch right at the pilon for a touchdown, beating Jason David on the play.

Update #6

4:55 The third-string 'D' has actually looked better than the second team did this afternoon. Tyler Palko has only completed a few passes and was nearly sacked had these been full contact drills.

5:03 Man Down. Drew Brees threw a deep pass that Devery Henderson dropped in the end zone. Rookie CB Tracy Porter was out in coverage on a pass pattern, but when the play was dead Porter was still lying down on the field. The trainers looked at him for a few minutes.Then, Porter got up and walked to the sideline but was promptly taken off the field ina golf cart... I'll know more about this after practice when Coach Payton addresses the media,  but Porter did not appear to be limping.

5:01 p.m. The most exciting play of the day may have been the worst play as well. Drew Brees went play action and had Devery Henderson streaking down the seam. The ball went off the tips of Henderson's hands in the endzone, so not only did he drop the pass but pulled up lame and is now off to the side. On the same play rookie Tracy Porter went down and is now being carted off the field.

5:05 p.m. Devery  Henderson just got in a golf cart and is headed off the field.

Not good. Cross your fingers.

Update #7

5:16 p.m. In the daily afternoon kicking competition both Martin Gramatica and Taylor Mehlhaff both looked good on their four kicks, from my angle it looked like all split the uprights.

5:05 After some special teams, the first-team offensive and defensive units are back on the field.

5:25 p.m. Reggie Bush in the open field can be poetry in motion. He just had one of those punt returns that only Bush can pull off with his athleticism.

5:29 p.m. The timing is still a little off between Brees and Shockey. The QB just threw to his new tight end but Shockey wasn't looking and the ball went off his shoulder pad. On the opposite side of that Brees and Colston are in such unison, Colston just caught a soft, loft pass in the endzone.

Shockey needs to always being expecting the ball with Brees on the other end.

Update #8

5:35 Vilma looks to be running fine after spending most of the morning on the bike and work out indivdually.

5:42 p.m. Looks like practice may be winding down, most of the guys have the pads off as they are running sprints as a team.

Update #9

Larry Holder sums up the afternoons events on his blog.

The Times-Pic had their recap of the afternoons events as well.

That ought to end it for today. More excitement tomorrow.

Welcome to another episode of "As the Knee Turns." In this episode, our main character, Deuce, suffers a minor setback and must miss morning practice to have an MRI taken. As bad luck would have it, at that very moment, the Oakland Raiders were cutting ties with running back Lamont Jordan, leaving everyone, including the Saints front office to wonder if Jordan was really what this team needed and whether Deuce would be forced to make an early exit. Luck was on our hero's side however, as his MRI results were negative and Jordan declined an offer, and he was able to make a triumphant return to the practice fields that very afternoon, never knowing how close he had come to being replaced. Don't miss the next episode of "As the Knee Turns," when cornerback Mike McKenzie's recovery takes longer than expected and Jason David sleeps with his wife.

Continue reading this post »