Whoops! Where does the time go? Sorry that this week's S&S has been late, but hey... It IS carnival time, and screws fall out all the time. The world is an imperfect place. Everyone deserves a break during the most wonderful time of the year, except for this week's Sinners who can eat my shorts after the jump!
Note: The way this works is sort of a "Who's hot, who's not" list as it relates to (primarily) the Saints, (secondly) the League®, and (lastly) the world outside. Participation is ESSENTIAL here, so feel free to add your own Saints and Sinners in the comments section below!
Saints (Offer these guys a scholarship):
Shaun Rogers: Get a load of this guy! No really, he could probably stand to have some of his massive frame run off with and still be as pants-soilingly awe inspiring as he is now. Honestly, what's 20 or 30 pounds at this point? I hereby propose the first nickname for our new DT: The Neighborhood. It's got a nice ring to it, and it references back to his name! I mean think of the possibilities! "Look out! There goes The Neighborhood!" Seriously though, this behemoth took two rocks less than he was offered by other teams all because he wanted to play in the Greatest City in the World. His recent string of self-sacrificing (OK, yes. There IS a lot of him to go around) behavior is more than enough for him to be canonized this week.
Pierre Thomas: Woo! Just woo! My guess is that now that Pierre has signed his brand spanking new four year extension, we'll hear a lot less talk about the Saints drafting a running back with the 24th overall pick. The Saints did the right thing this time around by giving Pierre the contract that his play has warranted and giving fans the chance to look forward to seeing the PT Cruiser for another four years. Congratulations, Pierre.
Sinners (maybe we can tape their... you know what, never mind):
Jeremy Shockey: What the hell happened?! Last week I heap all the praise in the world upon his head and this is how he treats us? By signing with Caro-maligned-a? I have got to stop writing these things, because every time I do, I seem to cause trouble and this time it came in the form of a former Saint signing with a division rival. You have got to be kidding, Jeremy. I mean, it's not exactly like he set the world on fire with his performance last year, but he can still contribute maybe three or four games a year (which considering the tone of the CBA talks, might actually BE the whole season this year).
Heath Evans: One look at Heath's twitstream and you can instantly get a feel for the guy's politics. Now, I'm generally not opposed to NFLers having political opinions, or really anyone for that matter, but Heath is turning into that guy at the party who keeps steering every conversation towards his issue du jour. "What's that? You overcooked the hors d'oeuvres? Well I think it's about time we cooked Planned Parenthood by defunding them." Now granted, I can't help but appreciate the outstanding work his foundation has done for victims of child sexual abuse and that should be applauded by all of us, but it bothers me that my opinion of him will now be colored by what I think of his political statements whether I agree with them or not. I don't like the fact that every time I think of how great a player Drew Brees is, in the back of my mind I'm haunted by his Gitmo comments. It may be too late for Heath to come back from that brink, but just a word of warning to other players: Let me cheer for you without having to check my conscience at the door.
Reggie Bush: Or as I have taken to calling him, the Fernando Torres of the NFL, had a birthday this week, and I wasn't invited. He's 26 now, which is only three years older than me, and I've been hurt a lot less, so why does he get all the attention? I mean sure there's the "runs like a gazelle" thing, and the "Super Bowl champion" thing, and the "dates famous people" thing, but I've got... I'm a... uh... Whatever, it's not important. What IS important is that Reggie better not forget to invite me next year, or he'll be right back here again, and I won't be as nice next time. Happy freakin' birthday.