Here is your update on the morning's events at Millsaps. Of course we've got the offense and defense notes from Fox 40. Here are the more exciting moments.
Offense
9:22 a.m. Deuce McAllister is working out in full pads this morning, this is the first time all camp that we've seen Deuce go in back to back practices.9:30 a.m. The wideouts are working on getting separattion off the line of scrimmage against the DB's. While Robert Meachem and Adrian Arrington are having a nice camp so far, they are the one's struggling in this drill a little bit. Hard to believe with guys their size.
9:34 a.m. Drew Brees is such a perfectionist. He missed a handoff to McAllister and slammed his hand against the ball, showing the most emotion I've seen from him all camp.
9:49 a.m. While Adrian Arrington may be going through the rookie learning curve with some of the fundamentals, the guy is a playmaker. He just beat Aaron Glenn on a deep ball and laid out to make a spectacular catch.
9:53 a.m. Lance Moore is not going to outrun anybody, and has a tough time creating separation but somehow the guys seems to catch any ball that comes his way.
9:56 a.m. In the receiver drills going on, Jeremy Shockey and Reggie Bush are even lining up on the outside and working on going out in patterns.Bush doen'st look completely comfortable yet, while Shockey is just such a beast and creates space to make the catch almost every time.
10:51 a.m. They just tried a little tight end screen, Brees hit Shockey and then Will Smith hit Shockey. The play didn't work too well.
Defense
9:24 AM The players just through with warm-ups. The usual guys are out (Mike McKenzie and Josh Bullocks.) However, defensive tackle Brian Young is back on the field after sitting out several practices to tend to a lingering knee injury.
9:50 AM Simoneau is back out with the first-team defense again, instead of Jonathan Vilma. Payton's been rotating the two in and out all camp. He says he's trying to create competition. But I don't think there's a doubt in anyone's mind Vilma will be the starter, just needs to learn the system.
9:58 AM Usama Young continues to impress. Young has stopped his receiver back-to-back times during one-on-one drills, first an interception covering Adrian Arrington, then a pass breakup.
10:38 AM Randall Gay is back with the first team, and just picked off Drew Brees.
10:48 AM Back to back interceptions for the third team defense in the endzone.
Larry Holders morning practice notes from his blog.
Notes on the morning practice from NewOrleans.com.
The Times-Pic's notes on the morning session.
A couple of video's for you guys. The first one is Jim Henderson's daily video for WWLTV.com. The second is Fletcher Mackel reporting from Millsaps for WDSU giving us the best and worst from this week. This one gives us a chance to see some of the stuff we have only been reading about thus far.
Here are some pictures via Sports Illustrated.
The New Orleans Saints official website just released a quick story about cornerback Usama Young. Usama was on fire this morning and had a great practice, picking off three passes.
“I don’t know how a golfer feels when he gets into a zone,” Young said, “but I do know that today was a really good day.”
“Last year I entered camp with a quadriceps injury that really nagged me through camp and was in the back of my mind the whole time,” he said. “This year the play calls are second nature and I am not thinking as much and worried about making a mistake because I know all the calls and assignments and can just go out and play.”
“I’m really excited because the competition for playing time is pushing us all,” he said of the cornerback group. “Each day brings something different. One day you could be with the starters, one day you might be the nickelback and one day you might be running with the third team. It’s that competitive and I am enjoying every second of it.”
The Sun Herald has an article on Charles Grant.
"I think he'll handle it just fine... I think he has a great support group and great representation and we'll, as a team, continue to take the steps we have to date of making sure that everything that he does and we go through this process is communicated to everyone here and we'll go from there," Saints coach Sean Payton said. "I do think that he'll be able to separate that distraction and keep it separate from what he has to do professionally as a player."
"I lost 26 pounds," Grant said. "It was real good. I came in weighing 278 pounds. That was real good for me, man. That helped me out and helped out my ankle. It's made me quicker and more explosive. It's a great thing. It was an all-around effort. My friends and my circle worked out with me and kept up with me. We did a lot of great things together."
"I cut that out," Grant said. "I definitely cut out the Sonic. I'm just taking healthy stuff for your body now."
"I don't make no excuses, (expletive)," Grant said. "It's just, 'Hey, I've got to deal with it and that's over with. You can only live for what's happening right now. In the future, it looks bright right now. So I'm going to keep that up and keep my weight where it's at."
"Hey, I say all the time you should (be accountable for the lucrative salaries)," Grant said. "You know when a man is given a lot, a lot is expected out of them. It's no different than that. Will knows that. I know that. Sometimes situations happen but you can't cry about it.
"You just have to keep going and don't mope about the situation. What we can do about last year is make last year forgetful by going out there and winning a championship and to Tampa to the Super Bowl."
This one is from the Boston Globe. I don't know why they are talking about the Saints but the article explains our aggressiveness this offseason and warns everyone to watch out for us this year. David Patten offered a few quotes for the article.
"I start in the locker room, and I really believe it's a mirror image of what we had in New England - a lot of high-character guys who are accountable to one another, would run through a wall for each other, and have a lot of belief in their head coach and coaching staff," Patten said from Millsaps (Miss.) College on the team's second day of training camp.
On Sean Payton.
"If there's one thing about him, he's aggressive," Patten said. "There is not a shy bone in him, not a hesitant bone in him. He's going with attitude, going to attack, no holds barred."
On Shockey.
"I think he brings an added dimension we had been missing," Patten said. "He brings playmaking ability and toughness and tenacity. At the end of the day, football is all about intimidation and trying to dominate opponents, and he's shown he does that."
Here is an article from the Orange Country Register asking whether Bush will finally have a great season this year or if it he will prove to be a bust.
What do Bush and Kardashian have in common? You could use the term “big bust” to describe both.
(Thanks, folks! I'll be here all week!)
The Hattiesburg American has a question also. Will the Saints have a good season? They answer "yes" and explain it in this article.
Sports Illustrated's Peter King has his usual Monday Morning Quarterback piece. He had a good bit about the Saints in this weeks edition. This is always a good read.
5. I think, by the way, Shockey the teacher is a pretty valuable guy. Watching the Saints practice Saturday, I frequently saw Shockey pull a linebacker, DB or tight end aside and give him tips on something. GM Mickey Loomis noticed and said, "Look at Shockey teaching.'' One of his students, on-the-cusp linebacker William Kershaw, got taken aside by Shockey twice, and said after practice: "He's different from his image. All he wants to do is help make me a better player so we can be a better team.'' Shockey will be supremely motivated to have a great and peaceful and quiet season. More about him tomorrow in my Tuesday column.
This one is weird, but interesting.
There is a statue of Gandhi on the campus of Millsaps College in Jackson, Miss., where the Saints train. I don't know why I tell you that, other than a statue of Gandhi in Jackson seems about as in-the-right place as a statue of Ward Cleaver at the Playboy Mansion.
I may update this post when some more things become available.