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New Orleans Saints' Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Falcons

saints-nation — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 12:00:24 -0000

by Dave Martin - AP

9 days ago: New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma (51) reacts after the Saints stopped the Atlanta Falcons on fourth down near the end of their NFL football game in Atlanta, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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Here's the defensive and special teams grades. They are really, really bad. Keep in mind that while, yes, they held Atlanta to 23 points, they were torched by Chris Redman.

Saints vs Falcons recap

Saints vs Falcons boxscore

Saints vs Falcons coverage

Will Smith: D+ (2.74) Smith was completely neutralized on his pass rushing attempts. I don't know what teams are doing differently, but I sense they're taking advantage of Grant's nonexistent play to load up against Smith. Smith finished with 1 tackle on a nice hustle play downfield inside the Saints' 5 to tackle Tony Gonzalez from behind and save a touchdown. No matter, the Falcons would score on the next play. An extremely quiet day for the normally more active end.

Charles Grant: F (1.97) Congratulations, Charles, you've received my first official F of the season. It's quite an impressive feat, actually, that of all the performances I've graded throughout the season Grant has been the only one bad enough to get this grade. It takes a true commitment to laziness, failure and apathy to pull this one off. To get an F despite playing on a 13-0 team is even more impressive. Wow, Charles, you've outdone yourself. At one point Grant was beaten around the edge and showed decent pursuit, only to make his one and only tackle around the line of scrimmage as the play was held up on the sideline, I was almost disappointed. I thought to myself, "man that was a decent play Charles, are you going to pull off another D-?". But screw it, I'm done with the guy. He deserves an F. He's lining up pitiful performance after another, and on top of that he's rewarding the opposition with personal foul penalties and free first downs into field goal range. It's bad enough that he's being manhandled and completely useless, but he's got to cost us 15 yards too? Saintsational mentioned he's not hungry. I beg to differ, he's obviously very hungry, have you seen his stomach? His GPA is plummeting faster than the stock market was in March. Pass rushing? Forget about it. I'm telling you all right now that the chance of this guy getting another sack this season are zero. Run defense, his supposed strength? Forget about it. He's now too fat, too slow and too effortless to make a play. Am I too hard on the guy? Probably. But enough is enough. He's one of the highest paid players on the team and he has sucked. Am I even allowed to say that? Saintsational might dock my salary.

Bobby McCray: D (1.97) Nice GPA, Bobby. You guys might notice that McCray's GPA is dangerously close to someone else I've been ragging on. So close in fact, could they be the same player? McCray is getting less and less playing time in this defense. I know he's listed on the injury report and limited in practice each week. Is he too hurt to play? He's regressed majorly from a season ago. When he did get in against Atlanta, Redman had all the time in the world. No tackles for McCray.

Anthony Hargrove: C- (2.31) Hargrove had decent push up the middle, and had a nice tackle against the run. That was his only tackle, though, despite extended playing time. Ultimately, the defensive line as a whole got absolutely no pressure on Redman and they were manhandled by the Atlanta pass blocking depsite the fact that they were battling numerous injuries.

Sedrick Ellis: B- (2.70) Ellis wasn't great, but he was much better than his counterparts. He has still seemed rusty to me, and at one point I saw him walk gingerly off the field. I don't think his knee is close to 100%. One thing is undeniable, though, and that's that even when Sedrick Ellis isn't playing lights out, he's not giving up. Same came be said for Smith, and effort goes for a lot. Sometimes good things happen to you and plays find their way to you when you go out there and make some effort. Ellis finished with 3 tackles, and he got a borderline "sack" when he stopped Chris Redman around the line of scrimmage. That play was nice, though, because it forced Atlanta to kick a field goal on a 3rd and 2 play.

Remi Ayodele: B (2.31) Ayodele did an excellent job again clogging up the middle and limiting Atlanta's ability to run the football with a skeleton crew. He just had one tackle, but his impact was evident and useful. He's lined up a couple straight solid performances, so he's starting to grow on me. Atlanta finished with 89 yards rushing, but that didn't stop them from passing almost at will on the Saints.

Scott Shanle: C- (2.59) It's not that he was particularly bad in this game, it's that he wasn't really involved. This was a hard performance to grade because I couldn't really point to any things that Shanle did that disappointed me. You guys all know by now I'm a bigger fan of Shanle's than the average Saints fan. I always have been. Just 2 tackles though, and he was very quiet.

Jonathan Vilma: A- (2.98) I was upset with Vilma for allowing Jason Snelling to slip into the middle of the field for a 38 yard gain on the opening drive. Vilma took a bad angle on the play and showed poor speed catching up. Beyond that mistake, though, Vilma was pretty solid throughout. Then, when the game was on the line, he went from pretty solid to instrumental. First, Vilma intercepted a pass and set up what should have been the game killer. Oh, the offense couldn't put it away? No problem. On the next Falcon drive, Vilma hit Jason Snelling on 4th and 2 on a pass over the middle and blasted him backwards, stopping him short of the first down marker and ending the game. Make no mistake, despite a very poor performance by the offense, special teams and coaching staff down the stretch, Jonathan Vilma won this game for us. with those two plays. He finished with 7 tackles.

Randall Gay: B+ (2.67) Gay was by far the most performant player in the defensive backfield. He finished with 8 tackles. He was solid and physical in coverage, either breaking up passes or making sure tackles when he gave up a play. He also assisted his teammates in tackles, often cleaning up their mistakes. Some of you will remember the woeful performance Gay had against the Rams, but against the Falcons he showed how he can handle himself when he's not lined up against a blazing speed receiver. When used to his strengths, that is: playing in the slot, the box and close to the line of scrimmage covering underneath routes, Gay impresses. He deserves credit as well for blowing up an end around to Eric Weems for a 12 yard loss.

Malcolm Jenkins: C- (2.63) Malcolm made strides after last week, but he's still struggling to come into his own. I wonder if his destiny will be replacing Darren Sharperat free safety like we all speculated about after the draft. He's an aggressive and physical player with good instincts, but I wonder if he has the foot speed to play corner as well asTracy Porter and Jabari Greer. You could tell against Atlanta he was giving more cushion to the receivers, most likely because he's lost a little confidence after getting beat deep. He finished with 4 tackles, but his coverage and tackling wasn't impeccable.

Roman Harper: D (2.87) The recipe for moving the ball by and large the past two weeks has been to find Roman Harper on passing plays. He's been victimized in the passing game and he's really struggled. You can say the absence of Greer and Porter hurt the Saints' ability to play pass defense, but Harper and Sharper's play has been most suspect of late. You can't blame the poor pass defense on the corners this week nearly as much as the safeties. The Saints dialed up the blitz early and often, leaving Harper on an island often, and they paid for it almost every time. He finished with 5 tackles.

Darren Sharper: D- (2.89) Sharper had his worst game of the season, by far. He flirted with an F as well. He bit badly on a double move by Michael Jenkins and was victimized by 50 yard touchdown pass. Jenkins beat Sharper deep to get wide open on another play, but fortunately for Sharper the pass was overthrown because that would have been 14 points on Darren. Sharper looked very slow and vulnerable. This was not the same Darren Sharper that discovered the fountain of youth earlier in the season. He wasn't particularly good coming up and making tackles, either. He finished with 3 tackles. Let's just hope he can rebound from this disastrous performance.

Troy Evans: B (1.92) Evans was the biggest surprise of the day. He was good against the run, and while he wasn't great against the pass he was at least active and around the ball. Evans is never going to blow anyone away with his play, but he played within the defense and tackled well. If he can play like this while Fujita is out, he won't be the defense's problem. He finished with an impressive 5 tackles.

DeMario Pressley: B- (2.75) He finished with 1 tackle, doing a good job on a running play. He had limited action, but once again looked promising when he was in.

Pierson Prioleau: C (2.43) Prioleau never makes major mistakes and you can tell he's a Gregg Williams favorite because he's a high IQ football player. That said, the guy gives too much cushion to his receivers in an effort to limit the damage. He finished with 1 tackle.

Mike McKenzie: C+ (2.22) McKenzie played a decent amount in the second half and he was picked on by Redman with mixed results. At one point Roddy White was wide open and McKenzie was fortunate that Redman's pass lacked accuracy because he was beat. That said, McKenzie showed good spirit and energy out there. He had one tackle, but more importantly he showed he still has that fire in his belly.

Thomas Morstead: A- (3.05) He only got to punt once, and it was fair caught after a pedestrian 35 yard effort. He earned his keep this time with consistent depth on kickoffs. Of the 6 he hit, 4 were kneeled for touchbacks. Good thing, because Eric Weems is a dangerous returner and he was able to take one out for a 37 yard gain. Morstead has been incredibly valuable in setting opponents up with bad field position.

Courtney Roby: C (2.92) A plain performance from Roby who averaged 19.5 yards on his two kick returns.

Garrett Hartley: C+ (3.00) Hartley hit a big field goal from 28 yards out to break a 23-23 tie. That ended up being the difference, so give him credit. That said, are the Saints incapable of finding a guy that doesn't miss extra points? That's now 3 on the season and this is really starting to get ridiculous. What's more, that 23-23 tie I speak of was thanks to the shank. Hartley was also perfect on a 33 yarder earlier in the game, but the missed extra point is flat out inexcusable. While the fake field goal wasn't his fault, I wonder if the call was partially due to the coaching staff's lack of confidence in Hartley? The pathetic crew of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman mentioned that he was "big time struggling" and "couldn't make a kick in warmups". Not sure how accurate that is, considering he was 4-5 last week and his only miss was an unrealistic 58 yarder in bad conditions. Perhaps they were basing their statements on what they saw in the pregame. For what it's worth, I also read a Jeff Duncan tweet that mentioned Hartley nailing a 58 yarder in warmups that would have been good from 60. The bottom line is I am not asking to Hartley to be perfect, but I do expect him to be perfect on PATs.

My Defensive Player of the Game: Jonathan Vilma
My Special Teams Player of the Game: Thomas Morstead

Poll

Who Was Your Defensive Player of the Game?

New Orleans Saints' Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Redskins

saints-nation — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:00:15 -0000

by Gerald Herbert - AP

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Brace yourselves because it isn't pretty. I know I sometimes get criticized for being too harsh in my grading of certain players, and if you're one of the people that generally complains about that you will not be happy with some of these grades. As always I'm interested and looking forward to your feedback. Below are the player grades for defense and special teams at Washington. The letter grade represents the player's performance in the game and the GPA represents the player's cumulative effort on the season.

Saints vs Redskins coverage

Saints vs Redskins recap

Saints vs Redskins boxscore

Will Smith: B- (2.86) Smith fought through constant double teams and struggled to put much pressure on Campbell. He was very helpful against the run and did a good job there, finishing with 4 tackles. He was able to hit Campbell hard twice as the ball was released, but he saved his grade mostly for his performance against the run.

Charles Grant: D (2.14) Charles Grant finished with 2 tackles, both coming late in the contest. Otherwise, he was utterly and completely invisible. On most running plays, he was either blown completely off the ball and out of the play, or he overpursued the edge leaving massive running lanes for the Redskins to take advantage of. He really had a horrible, horrible game and at one point I considered giving him an F. If he hadn't registered a tackle, I would have given it to him. Grant has been undisciplined in his play, lazy, and overall bad as of late. I'd rather Bobby McCray get more snaps at the position at this point.

Bobby McCray: B- (2.06) McCray's lone tackle was on a running play where he blew the Redskins up for a big loss. Once again he surprised me by playing the run better and I think that part of his game has come a long way. His pass rushing skills have suffered a little from that improvement, but I can deal. He did get upfield a couple of times and force a quick release, but the bottom line is Campbell was getting the ball out too fast to wide open targets to get much of a pass rush. McCray doesn't get nearly enough playing time, and based on Grant's recent performances I'd like to see him start at Atlanta. Who knows if that'll happen, but a man can hope.

Anthony Hargrove: C- (2.36) The love affair with Hargrove for most continues despite him struggling to do much of anything in games. I'd say at this point he's played 2-3 good games, but the guy is a defensive end to me. The switch to defensive tackle hasn't worked out that well and he hasn't played the run with any inspiration. He finished with 1 tackle and was seen knocked off the ball repeatedly.

Sedrick Ellis: B- (2.71) Ellis finished with 6 tackles, including 1 for a loss. He's slowly getting back to his pre-injury level of play. He did allow a few players to slip out of his grasp by not wrapping up properly and showing poor tackling technique, but the effort and pursuit was always there. The Redskins only rushed for 88 yards and a 3.5 average per carry, so while it would seem like everything the Redskins did worked, the Saints were actually very good against the run.

Remi Ayodele: B+ (2.24) BY FAR, in my opinion, Ayodele's best game as a Saint. For me this was his coming out party. I've been hard on this guy all season and I've constantly complained about how this guy can be in the mix, but now I understand why. He was pushing the pile constantly, FANTASTIC against the run, and came up big on several third and short plays. The Redskins had no answer for his push up front, and as the game wore on the Redskins essentially gave up on running the ball because it wasn't really working and the pass yardage was coming so easy. He finished with 6 tackles, including one for a loss, and anytime a player was in his grasp he wasn't getting away.

Scott Shanle: B- (2.67) I heard rumblings that some fans were unhappy with Shanle's play, but I actually thought he was ok. On one running play he absorbed a strong block, opened his shoulder and was able to stop a run for no gain dead in it's tracks. Impressive play there, and overall Shanle used the lanes Ayodele and Ellis provided him to be effective stopping the run. He finished with 4 tackles, but he did miss a tackle or two. The major liability, for me, came in his pass coverage. He did a poor job on Fred Davis. Suprising because Shanle usually does a good job covering but he just couldn't run with Davis. Shanle got good pressure on the Vilma interception blitzing, forcing a quick release and bad pass from Campbell.

Jonathan Vilma: B- (2.92) Vilma finished with 5 tackles, but I thought he had a mediocre game overall. He wasn't aggressive and shooting gaps like he normally does. As I screamed at the TV for the defense to make a play, every time I'd notice Vilma pursue a play and get blocked out of contention. He saved his grade with a BIG interception with about 30 seconds left in regulation. That pick stopped a Redskins drive that could have given them a shot at a game winning field goal.

Malcolm Jenkins: D (2.76) The good: he had 9 tackles and was able to knock Campbell down on a blitz from the edge. The bad: those 9 tackles were a product of him getting beat repeatedly, and he dropped the easiest interception he'll ever get which would have killed a Redskins drive late in the red zone. The ugly: he looked like a rookie that was completely lost out there. He took horrendous angles on ball carriers, he bit badly on any fakes and double moves, he was often beat deep, and the "lack of speed" that many pre-draft gurus warned teams about before selecting Jenkins was exposed BIG TIME. He still tackled well, and he's just learning so I don't feel like we should all take the sky is falling approach by any means. Jenkins is still a good young player that will only get better... but this was a really bad showing for him. Hopefully he'll learn from it.

Roman Harper: D (3.03) Harper played his worst game of the season, hands down. We all know he's usually terrific in the box in run support, and we all know he's somewhat of a liability in coverage (especially downfield). Well, in this game he was bad in the box, and he was laughable against the pass. ESPN currently claims he had 4 tackles, whereas NFL.com has him listed as having as 2 tackles. So I don't know which one is accurate. What I did see was that Harper missed a repeated amount of opportunities to tackle someone, and his help over the top on pass plays downfield was late and pathetic. He gets a D instead of a D- for saving a touchdown on a kick return by Devin Thomas.

Darren Sharper: C (3.09) Sharper finished with 5 tackles. His lack of speed was an issue. On Fred Davis' first touchdown he took a bad angle and was beat to the corner. He was late bringing help over the top, like Harper. That said, Sharper was many times the security blanket, and he at least did a good job of limiting the damage. I felt like there were a few plays that were just "bad" instead of "disastrous" because Sharper was there to end them. Give him credit for coming up with a HUGE stop on 3rd and short right before Shaun Suisham's miracle miss.

Troy Evans: D+ (1.55) Evans did finish with 5 tackles, but he was bad in pass coverage and bad in run defense. Twice I caught Sean Payton laying into him on the sidelines for missing assignments. He was third in line to play the position, but had to play with the starting unit once Scott Fujita was made inactive and Jo-Lonn Dunbar got injured early (looked like a hamstring pull). I hear Fujita may be out for a while after he had emergency surgery following a bursa sac rupture in his knee that caused a staph infection. I don't know if that means he's out for the year or what, but we're in MASSIVE trouble if we can't get Fujita back. Too bad, he was playing at a high level. Evans, however, was not. Hopefully Dunbar can get back on the field because he's a much more palatable option.

Pierson Prioleau: C- (2.50) He was ok in coverage, actually, except for one play where he played too far off his receiver and allowed a first down in front of him. He finished with 3 tackles. He'd get a better grade, but he came up with a real boneheaded facemask penalty late that gave the Redskins a chance to win the game.

Usama Young: B- (3.00) He got some reps again at corner in dime packages after McKenzie went out with an injury. His coverage was good and he handled himself fine. He didn't really have anything memorable to write about, but no mistakes either. His biggest play came on special teams when he recovered a fumble right before halftime to give the Saints good field position after they had been stopped down 17-10.

Mike McKenzie: D- (2.17) As good as he was last week, it was back down to earth for Mike McKenzie. McKenzie just couldn't seem to do anything right whatsoever. He was beat deep routinely. He blew just about every open field tackle he had a chance at making. He gave receivers way too much cushion, and yet they would still blow right past him. At one point he took a terrible angle, and Sharper made the tackle behind him and gave him a death stare and screamed letting him not it's not ok to mess up plays like that. At times he seemed disinterested in being out there. At one point he was beat deep, the receiver then fell down, and McKenzie didn't even bother hustling to touch him down. He did finished with 4 tackles, but probably could have had about 10-15 with the number of plays being run right at him. The injury he suffered in the game is unknown, but I was glad it took him out of the game. He flirted with an F for large portions of the game.

Chris McAlister: C+ (2.50) McAlister, like Jenkins and McKenzie, was getting beat routinely and did a poor job of tackling the screen receiver pass the Redskins ran all day. He gave a lot of cushion to his man as well, inciting the Redskins to continuously use that play. He finished with 3 tackles. McAlister, though, came up with arguably the biggest play of the game. He hit Mike Sellers and managed to jar the ball loose in overtime, and had the good sense to recover the fumble as the whistle was being blown and Sellers was called down. The replay showed the head referee that it was indeed a fumble (not sure about that call, but I'll take it), and McAlister single handedly got the Saints the ball in overtime. Ultimately, they would turn that turnover into the game winning 3 points.

Garrett Hartley: A- (3.67) Surprise move to see Sean Payton go with Hartley for this game instead of John Carney. Chris Berman on ESPN said at one point that Carney was hurt, but I think he's misinformed. I think this move was strictly performance based, though I could be wrong. Regardless, Hartley was excellent. All of his kicks were right down the middle. He was 4 for 5 on field goals with a long of 34 yards. His miss was a 58 yarder as time expired, so it's hard to blame him for that miss. Extra points might not be a big deal, either, but Carney has been shaky on that all season long and Hartley did tie the game at 30 with his PAT after Meachem's touchdown. He also hit the game winning 18 yarder, twice, as the first was called back by a Zorn timeout. I don't think there's any way Carney kicks next week and this could mean the end of the veteran's reunion run with the Saints. Hartley was impressive with his accuracy.

Thomas Morstead: C (3.00) Morstead's kickoff depth was much shorter than usual. To be expected given the weather and field temperatue. He did manage to get one about half way into the end zone in overtime, which was an important time to do so. His punts were largely poor, as he averaged 33.3 yards on 3 punts. He did manage to pin one inside the 20, though. One of his punts was so short, it hit an unsuspecting Redskins' blocker in the back, resulting in a turnover for the Saints. The punt was bad, but the end result was magnificent.

Courtney Roby: B+ (3.00) Roby was routinely getting past the 30 on kickoff returns, and almost broke one big on a couple of occassions. Per usual his returns were impressive. He also made a nice tackle on special teams as a gunner.

My Defensive Player of the Game: Remi Ayodele

My Special Teams Player of the Game: Garrett Hartley

Poll

Who Was Your Defensive Player of the Game @ Washington?

Remi Ayodele

17 votes

Sedrick Ellis

21 votes

Darren Sharper

7 votes

Jonathan Vilma

54 votes

Chris McAlister

16 votes

The Defense Was So Collectively Bad, I'd Rather Click Here and Not Pick Anyone

74 votes

No one on defense impressed me, so Garrett Hartley gets the vote

65 votes

* BY REQUEST * Robert Meachem, for his "defensive" touchdown

352 votes

606 votes | Poll has closed

Saints Mid-Season Defensive & Special Teams Player Grades; Jabari Greer and Thomas Morstead awarded MVP

saints-nation — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:00:34 -0000

by Bill Feig - AP

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Below are the Grade Point Averages of each player that's played significant time in the New Orleans Saints' defense and special teams through the first eight games of the 2009 season, ordered from highest GPA to lowest:

DEFENSE:

Jabari Greer 3.46 (8 graded games)

Roman Harper 3.25 (8 graded games)

Tracy Porter 3.25 (8 graded games)

Darren Sharper 3.21 (8 graded games)

Malcolm Jenkins 3.11 (3 graded games)

Randall Gay 3.00 (6 graded games)

Jonathan Vilma 2.96 (8 graded games)

Pierson Prioleau 2.84 (2 graded games)

Will Smith 2.79 (8 graded games)

Scott Shanle 2.79 (8 graded games)

Sedrick Ellis 2.78 (6 graded games)

Jo-Lonn Dunbar 2.78 (3 grades games)

Scott Fujita 2.75 (4 grades games)

DeMario Pressley 2.67 (1 graded game)

Marvin Mitchell 2.34 (2 graded games)

Charles Grant 2.29 (8 graded games)

Kendrick Clancy 2.17 (2 graded games)

Remi Ayodele 2.10 (6 graded games)

Bobby McCray 1.86 (7 graded games)

Troy Evans 1.67 (2 graded games)

SPECIAL TEAMS:

Thomas Morstead 3.08 (8 graded games)

Courtney Roby 2.71 (7 graded games)

John Carney 2.67 (8 graded games)

Below are the number of Defensive and Special Teams Player of the Game awards handed out in my Player Grades posts:

defense:

Darren Sharper 3

Will Smith 1

Roman Harper 1

Tracy Porter 1

Jonathan Vilma 1

Jabari Greer 1

special teams:

Thomas Morstead 2

Courtney Roby 2

Malcolm Jenkins 2

Robert Meachem 1

John Carney 1

Based on the numbers alone, I'm choosing Jabari Greer as the Mid-Season Defensive MVP. If Jahri Evans isn't a popular pick, then picking Greer over Darren Sharper should be even less of one. Keep in mind that while Sharper has had about 4 INCREDIBLE games and others that were pretty good, Greer has been steadily very good every single week. On special teams, I think Morstead getting the MVP is a no brainer. What do you think?

Poll

Who Is Your Mid-Season Defensive MVP?

Jonathan VIlma

30 votes

Will Smith

14 votes

Darren Sharper

321 votes

Jabari Greer

54 votes

Roman Harper

8 votes

427 votes | Poll has closed

Saints Player Grades for Defense and Special Teams vs. Panthers

saints-nation — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:00:22 -0000

by Bill Haber - AP

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Below are the player grades for the defense and special teams vs. the Panthers.

Panthers vs Saints recap

Panthers vs Saints boxscore

Will Smith: B+ (2.79) Will Smith was partly to blame for the big touchdown run DeAngelo Williams had on the second play of the game. He had a clear shot at Williams, but tried to shove him instead of going for his legs/ankles to trip him up. Instead of slowing Williams down, he gave him a little boost to spring free. He made other mistakes against the run and was not at his best as he over pursued the edge allowing gaps. Otherwise, his pass rush was constant and overall fantastic. He finished with 4 tackles, 3 for losses (2 of those sacks) and a forced fumble at the biggest of times. He could have been credited with 3 sacks, but a bobbled snap by Jake Delhomme led to a Smith tackle and was ruled a running play. Smith has played the run better than in this game, but overall he's had a fantastic season. Half way through the year he's at 6.5 sacks, so he's on pace for 13, which would be a career best. He's already more than doubled his sack total from last year.

Charles Grant: B (2.29) Grant held his ground extremely well in this game and was never really pushed around at the point of attack. He was exceptional against the run disrupting the blocking schemes, setting up the linebackers and defensive tackles to make plays. Several of the running plays that went for losses were a result of Grant's leverage with runs coming at him. He finished with 3 tackles. His pass rushing was mediocre, but give him a lot of credit for playing fantastic football against the run.

Remi Ayodele: C+ (2.10) Ayodele was better than the last couple of games, but I still struggle to understand the coaching staff's fascination with him. On both of Williams' touchdown runs, Ayodele was wiped completely out of the play. He finished with just two tackles, but was better at holding his ground as the game progressed. I think he struggles more with double teams when Hargrove is in the game, which allows teams to be more physical because Hargrove isn't a great tackle on running downs. Ayodele seemed to have a lot more success with DeMario Pressley lined up next to him.

DeMario Pressley: B- (2.67) Nice adjustment by the Saints. Hargrove wasn't cutting it on obvious running downs early, so Pressley got a lot of playing time. As the game wore on, Pressley was essentially the "starter" on running downs, and Hargrove came in for him on passing downs. Pressley actually played a pretty good game. Ayodele's performance as mentioned improved almost immediately with him on the field. He held his ground and the Panthers' running game started to suffer with Pressley on the field. He finished with 2 tackles, including one very nice one for a loss.

Anthony Hargrove: B+ (2.48) Hargrove was manhandled early and not looking too good. As the game wore on, though, the Saints put him in positions better suited for his style of play, and he dominated. Hargrove would get an A if he didn't look so shaky against the run early. He finished with 3 tackles and two fumble recoveries, including one for a touchdown. The replay showed he was clearly down at the 1, so Hargrove was lucky the Panthers were out of timeouts and couldn't challenge it. He also did well rushing the passer and forcing early throws.

Bobby McCray: D+ (1.86) The only tackle he made was on a 3rd and short running play. On the play, Jonathan Stewart seemed stacked up short of the 1st down, but McCray pushed him forward to the ground to allow him to get the first down. Low IQ play from McCray, who should have recognized the situation and grabbed Stewart to pull him back rather than allowing him to fall to the ground going forward. McCray just isn't making plays this year, and has performed much worse than he did last year. His GPA as evidence, he has 7 tackles and 1 sack through 8 games. To McCray's credit, he did an ok job rushing the passer late and put one nice hit on Delhomme as he released the ball. Otherwise, another lame performance. I keep thinking sooner or later he's going to make a play for the Saints, but it hasn't happened yet.

Jonathan Vilma: B+ (2.96) Vilma had bad angles on a couple of running plays, including two 3rd and long running plays that allowed the Panthers to secure improbable first downs. Otherwise, he was all over the field as usual and played both fast and physical. 12 tackles, including 2 for a loss. He did miss a couple of coverage assignments on tight ends, most likely because the Saints were so committed to stopping the run.

Jo-Lonn Dunbar: B+ (2.78) Do we even let Fujita start when he's healthy? Seriously, this young linebacker is just getting better and better! Dunbar is terrific against the run, and VERY physical. The only drawback is he's very aggressive so he sometimes contains poorly and lacks discipline. Those are things, by the way, that Fujita excels at. He had 8 tackles and played a very good game. I'm glad the Saints decided Dunbar was a better option than Troy Evans. Physically there is just a huge difference between the two. I think Dunbar could be a viable starter for the Saints in the future.

Scott Shanle: B- (2.79) Nice to see Shanle bounce back from what I considered his worst performance of the season. He finished with 4 tackles. He still got pushed around and cleared out of some running plays where he could have had an opportunity to make a tackle, but he showed off some terrific coverage skills against the Panthers.

Jabari Greer: B (3.46) You'll notice that Greer has the highest GPA among the Saints through 8 games. I know this might not be a popular call (with Brees and Sharper having great seasons), but my vote for team MVP half way through the season is JABARI GREER. He went out with what is apparently a groin injury. He finished the game with just 2 tackles, but consider Steve Smith's stats: 4 catches for 64 yards. Never has Smith been so limited against the Saints. The Saints need this guy, badly, so hopefully he's not too banged up.

Tracy Porter: B+ (3.25) Porter was awesome yet again. He forced a BIG fumble to get the Saints back in the game early. Unfortunately Brees threw an INT in the red zone to negate the big play. He was physical, helpful against the run, and pretty good in pass coverage. He finished with 7 tackles and was all over the field.

Randall Gay: B (3.00) Gay came in for Greer and gave medium passing gain once, but otherwise did a reasonably good job. He came blitzing on one play and was able to deflect a pass Delhomme tried to get to Jarrett. He helped his teammates on gang tackles and finished with 3 total. If Greer has to miss a game, I feel ok about Gay holding down the fort, provided it's temporary.

Malcolm Jenkins: B- (3.11) Jenkins was once again a standout on special teams. Nothing was bigger than the ball he downed at the Carolina 2, which ultimately led to the Hargrove touchdown. Jenkins filled in for Gay in the nickel slot when Greer went down, and was VERY fortunate not to get flagged for pass interference on a big 3rd down play late in the game. He finished with 2 tackles and showed some need for improvement in pass coverage. Clearly, though, he's the Saints' best playmaker on special teams. I really believe he needs to be groomed as the heir to Darren Sharper.

Pierson Prioleau: B- (2.84) Prioleau was good in pass coverage the few times he played. He also did a terrific job of recovering the fumble forced by Tracy Porter earlier in the game. He jumped on top of the pile and somehow wrestled the ball away from Panther linemen. Sidenote, I forgot to grade Prioleau last week, but I retroactively gave him a B because he had 5 tackles and played well.

Roman Harper: A- (3.25) The only thing negative I can say about Harper was the pass interference call that got flagged for where the tight end caught the ball anyway. By now we all know that playing pass defense isn't his forte. He was assigned to play in the box all game and help limit the running game of Carolina. After a bad start, he finished with 12 tackles including 4 for losses. He was fast, active and all over the place. Anytime the Saints made a good play against the run, I saw Harper involved. Consider that the Saints fell down 14-0 with about 7 minutes left in the 1st quarter. Carolina would only score 6 points the rest of the day. Give Harper a lot of credit as he was a big reason the Saints were able to turn this game around.

Darren Sharper: B+ (3.21) Sharper, per usual, was extremely good in pass defense. He also had 9 tackles and had two terrific open field tackles (once on Smith and once on Williams) to stop the Panthers from getting huge gains. Delhomme tried to throw a slant pass to Smith near the end zone which Sharper read perfectly and almost picked off. The only negatives were a stupid personal foul hitting Steve Smith out of bounds to give the Panthers 15 yards, and a HORRIBLE angle on the long touchdown run by DeAngelo Williams. That's twice in two weeks now that he's allowed a breakaway run for a touchdown by taking a bad angle on the runner. He just doesn't have the recovery speed anymore to make up for mistakes like that, so once again while Sharper is terrific the Saints were victimized by his limitations.

John Carney: A- (2.67) Can't say anything bad about Carney. He did his job. He hit a 40 yard field goal right down the middle to give the Saints a 23-20 lead with under 5 minutes to go in the game, which was clutch. He was 3 for 3 on field goals and 3 for 3 on extra points. He doesn't get an A because he made me nervous, twice, by barely making chip shots just inside the right goal post.

Thomas Morstead: B (3.08) Mixed bag for Morstead. His first kickoff of the game barely made it past the 15, and he had a horrendous punt that was not only short but got a tremendous Panthers bounce. That punt ended up being 22 yards. Still, none of his 3 punts were returned and Carolina had no success returning kickoffs. With the game on the line, he got much better. He had two kickoffs deep in the end zone for touchbacks, preventing a Carolina comeback attempt from getting good field position. His biggest play has a very high monster punt that went 48 yards down to the Carolina 2 yard line, where Malcolm Jenkins downed it.

Courtney Roby: B- (2.71) Roby was good on coverage, forcing a fair catch on Morstead's first punt. He was disciplined and downed kickoffs deep in the end zone. He took one out and was able to get past the 20. He averaged 23 yards on 2 returns, so nothing special there but no mistakes either.

Defensive Player of the Game: Roman Harper
Special Teams Player of the Game: John Carney

New Orleans Saints' Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Miami Dolphins

saints-nation — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:00:28 -0000

by J. Pat Carter - AP

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Below are the grades for the Saints' defensive players and special teams @ Miami. The grade represents the player's performance in the game, and the GPA represents the player's cumulative grade for the season.

Saints vs Dolphins recap

Saints vs Dolphins boxscore

Will Smith: C (2.56) Smith disrupted the Dolphins' passing attack on occasion with nice pass rushes, but he was quieter than usual. Facing off with emerging superstar Jake Long was no easy task. He finished with just 1 tackle and a tipped pass, but did knock down Chad Henne a couple times.

Charles Grant: C- (2.33) Grant regressed a little from his stellar form of late. Just 1 tackle in the game and he was mostly neutralized on passing downs. He did a good job of holding his ground on running plays, especially against the wildcat, but I didn't see the hustle from him that had become such a pleasant surprise this season.

Bobby McCray: D (2.07) When he played, he literally did nothing. He hasn't had the kind of pressure on passing downs that I hoped he would have this season. Hopefully he can have a breakout game soon because I know for a fact he is capable of better.

Anthony Hargrove: A- (2.40) Speaking of breakout games, it's sad to say it but the Saints almost benefited from Sedrick Ellis going down to injury. From the second Hargrove stepped into a full time role, he dominated. He registered two sacks, including one where he completely ran over the left guard and pushed his way into Henne. He also dropped Ronnie Brown for a loss on a running play and ended with 4 tackles. With Ellis injured, expect more playing time for Hargrove and hopefully more big plays.

Sedrick Ellis: B- (2.78) Too bad he went down with a sprained knee, he's a big part of what the Saints do defensively. He had 3 tackles and provided good push and pressure up the middle. Hopefully he can come back quickly, his injury does not sound like a season ender but could linger a while.

Remi Ayodele: B- (2.34) Pretty good game from Ayodele. At times he played the wildcat masterfully and at others he was pushed around by the Dolphins' line. He ended with 4 tackles and was present up the middle. The Dolphins did convert twice on 3rd and short, running right at Ayodele with fullback Lousaka Polite.

Scott Shanle: B+ (3.11) Shanle was blown up a couple times by a lead block on running plays and he was manhandled out of position on the 68 yard touchdown run by former Saint Ricky Williams. Other than those plays, he was his usual solid self in run support and pass defense, and tackled as good as always. He finished with 6 tackles, including one in the backfield for a loss. His biggest play was a HUGE fumble recovery before halftime that led to a big touchdown. That fumble recovery was the start of the big momentum shift.

Jonathan Vilma: A (2.95) Vilma was pretty much dominant throughout. He was constantly in the backfield and all over the field making tackles. This was by far Vilma's best game of the season and he ended with 10 tackles (3 for losses). He stopped a run on 3rd and short absorbing a big block and standing his ground before laying a vicious tackle, getting the Saints the ball back when they needed it badly. His tackling ability was stellar all day and he was on point. Great to see him play that way. After that long Ricky Williams touchdown run, you saw very few successful plays by the Dolphins on the ground and that was largely due to Vilma's presence.

Jabari Greer: B+ (3.61) Per usual, he was helpful in run support and very good in pass defense. He jumped a flag route beautifully but let a sure interception go through his hands. 4 tackles and 2 passes defended. Could Greer be inching close to the "lockdown corner" label? Maybe not, but at the least he's VERY good.

Tracy Porter: B+ (3.11) Porter had a couple egregious plays overshadowed by his tremendous plays. He had 9 tackles and was picked on often with mixed results. He defended 3 passes, including a deep ball that was played perfectly and a tipped pass into the hands of Darren Sharper that set up a 42 yard touchdown return. Porter took a horrible angle on Ricky Williams' long touchdown run and he played a slant route poorly that resulted in a 67 yard pass to Brian Hartline. Porter did show impressive aggression on his hits and impressive speed catching up to Hartline at the Saints' 5 yard line. Ultimately his most memorable play was the game sealing 54 yard interception return for a touchdown. The Saints are lucky to have such a good young corner.

Randall Gay: B- (3.09) Randall Gay was victimized on the Dolphins' first third down conversion pass of the game covering Davone Bess. While it was clear on the replay that Bess dropped the pass, the replay booth magically "malfunctioned" during the Saints' challenge. Suspect at best. Gay had 3 tackles. Nothing special, no big mistakes.

Roman Harper: B- (3.17) Harper laid some big hits but over-pursued a lot. He didn't play the wildcat perfectly, but he was active. He finished with 4 tackles, but misplayed two of the short touchdown runs. His grade could have been worse, but he forced the fumble before halftime that Shanle recovered.

Darren Sharper: A- (3.28) Sharper stepped up and made some plays in the running game, and had yet another interception run back for a touchdown. That's 6 interceptions in 6 games, and 3 touchdowns. That guy is incredible, and he's having a Pro Bowl season. He finished with 4 tackles including a terrific open field tackle on Ronnie Brown. The one bad play was a bad angle on the long pass play to Hartline, but overall Sharper was solid.

Troy Evans: C (1.67) Evans filled in for Fujita and was attacked on running plays often. Luckily, Vilma moved well sideline to sideline and helped the Saints defense immensely. Evans finished with 2 tackles and he was quiet. He seemed a little lost at times in the Saints' complex defense, but didn't have any serious errors.

Jo-Lonn Dunbar: C+ (2.33) Dunbar was subbed in often for Evans in the second half and did some nice things, especially in pass coverage. On Ronnie Brown's pass to Fasano he laid a nice hit to make sure the ball fell incomplete once Fasano bobbled it. He had 2 tackles as well, and I'm thinking he might be a better option than Evans if Fujita needs to miss another game. Ultimately Dunbar didn't play enough or do enough to earn a better grade.

John Carney: B- (2.72) I was really impressed by the 46 yarder that Carney hit early on. It was right down the middle and had some distance. I thought to myself, "he's going to get an A today". He missed from 50 later on just a little wide, but had nice distance on the kick - hard to blame him for that one. He missed an extra point but it was largely Mark Brunell's fault for bobbling the snap. Still, 2 missed extra points in 6 games is inexcusable. The Saints need to get that rectified immediately because it left them up 6 points late in the game and potentially exposed to a loss if the Dolphins had gotten into the end zone. He did bounce back to hit a chip shot that extended the lead to 6.

Thomas Morstead: A- (3.22)
Morstead had a bad punt early that went 35 yards and still got a 14 yard return from Davone Bess. Besides that weak effort he was very solid, including a big 53 yarder from the end zone to get his team out of trouble that was aided by a terrific Courtney Roby tackle. He averaged 45.7 yards per punt on 3 punts, and the Saints yielded 8.7 yards per return on 3 returns. Most importantly he gave the Dolphins no chance at a kickoff return late with 3 straight kickoffs for touchbacks. He did have a kickoff out of bounds, but I'll give him a pass on that since the game was out of reach after the Porter touchdown.

Courtney Roby: B+ (2.67) Roby finally broke a kick return free, returning it 87 yards. While that was a big play that got the Saints right back into the game after going down 7-0, he was caught from behind and he spiked the ball resulting in a 5 yard penalty. Overall his returning the rest of the way was perfectible. The punt coverage play mentioned above where he hit Ted Ginn Jr. for a 2 yard loss following a 53 yard punt was one of the better kick coverage plays of the season.

Defensive Player of the Game: Jonathan Vilma
Special Teams Player of the Game: Thomas Morstead

Poll

Who Was Your Defensive Player of the Game?

Jonathan Vilma

303 votes

Tracy Porter

35 votes

Darren Sharper

135 votes

Anthony Hargrove

52 votes

Jabari Greer

18 votes

Scott Shanle

5 votes

548 votes | Poll has closed

New Orleans Saints @ Miami Dolphins: Defending the Wildcat

saints-nation — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 11:00:21 -0000

by Bill Feig - AP

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The Dolphins' use of the wildcat has been well documented. By now we've seen all the stats, we know the dangerous players in the scheme - Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams, and to a lesser extent, Pat White - and we know the Dolphins plan to use it a lot. Coming into this game against the Dolphins in Miami, how the Saints defend the wildcat will determine the outcome.

Saints vs Dolphins coverage

The only real exposure the Saints have had to the wildcat this season was facing the Eagles in week 2. The Eagles employed the wildcat early and often in an effort to provide some relief for backup quarterback and spot starter Kevin Kolb. Unfortunately for the Eagles, the Saints got out to a big lead in the second half, which forced the Eagles to abandon the heavy run and clock draining formation. That said, the Saints did not do a great job of stopping it when it was used. Fast forward to Sunday, the Saints will face off against a team that executes the wildcat better than anyone in the league. As evidenced by their last game (Monday Night week 5 hosting the Jets), the Fins rely on the wildcat heavily and aren't afraid to commit to it almost entirely with the game on the line. Simply put: it's what they do best and of all the teams they've played so far this season, only the Ravens have had any success in stopping it. While the Saints defense is vastly improved, I don't think comparisons to the Ravens have been earned quite yet.

What makes this such an interesting matchup is that the Dolphins' key to winning this game is controlling the clock and pounding the football on the ground. This would, in turn, keep the Saints' potent offense off the field and minimize their chances to score. It turns out the Dolphins are number one in the NFL running the football, but the Saints' run defense isn't shabby either, ranking fifth.

So how do the Saints stop the wildcat? To me, the two key players for the Saints are Roman Harper and Jonathan Vilma. Those two players are the Saints' most athletic playmakers in the box and their tackling ability in this game will prove instrumental. It looks like Scott Fujita will be absent from this one, so you can expect the Dophins to go right at Troy Evans. Harper's ability to play up in the box and make an impact as well as Vilma's lateral movement and sideline to sideline pursuit will be crucial in helping out Evans. While Remi Ayodele has played decent football and has recently been anointed as the starter at defensive tackle alongside Sedrick Ellis, expect the Dolphins to attack him as well. It's clear that Evans and Ayodele are the weaknesses in the Saints' defense, and the positions they play are ideal for the Dolphins' wildcat to attack. That's not to say Sedrick Ellis, Scott Shanle, Charles Grant, Will Smith etc. won't need to play very sound defense, respecting their assignment within the defensive scheme, but to me Harper and Vilma are the two players that have the power to shut down the Dolphins' offense, or allow it to run wild.

How do you guys think Vilma and Harper will perform, respectively?

Your Wednesday Afternoon Saints Twitter Update

Saintsational — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:36:06 -0000

Here's everything from Twitter this afternoon. If the press conference transcripts become available, you know I will post them.

jeffduncantp You can tell this is a big game. Packed house in the media room. Lots of national/NYC reporters already in town

FletcherMackel Saints injury update: CB jenkins, DE mccray, LS kyle, OT bushood, RB bell, DT clancy did not practice at all today

FletcherMackel Sean payton says S chris reis is back up long snapper I'd kyle can't go! Wow.

FletcherMackel Payton: "mark sanchez is a guy who just knows how to win."

jeffduncantp http://znl.me/BTAUY The media horde surrounding Sean Payton today for his post-practice press briefing

FletcherMackel S Chris reis, LB troy evans and QB chase daniel practicing long snapping in case kyle can't go! Yes, chase daniel

FletcherMackel Drew brees wearing pink cleats this week in prax and game to promote breast cancer awareness week. Other players will also wear pink as well

jeffduncantp http://znl.me/OGK6G Drew Brees' footwear for this weekend's game, NFL breast cancer awareness weekend.

wwltvsports M. Bell, D. Dinkins, J. Bushrod, J. Kyle, K. Clancy. B. McCray and M. Jenkins all sit out Wednesday practice.

wwltvsports Bushrod says he'll miss Sunday's game; Zach Strief will get the start at left tackle. Meanwhile, Jammal Brown didn't talk to reporters.

jeffduncantp Jermon Bushrod said he doesn't expect to play Sunday because of ankle, knee injuries. Zach Strief will start at left tackle vs. Jets.

wwltvsports Strief said though the depth chart hasn't been set, he expects Jamar Nesbit to back up at tackle.

jeffduncantp Pierre Thomas said he's still not 100% recovered from weekend illness. Was drinking a shake in the locker room, still not up to whole foods.

wwltvsports Speaking of backing up, Troy Evans and Chris Reis are the backup long snappers if Jason Kyle can't go. Kyle has an injured ankle.

jeffduncantp On the bright side, Thomas said his right knee is close to 100 percent back to normal.

wwltvsports Mike Stanfield with the Saints said to make sure fans know to show up early for Sunday's game as extra security measures will be in place.

wwltvsports Shanle on radar: "I think when you're under the radar a little bit, it sometimes can make your job a little easier."
jeffduncantp Long snapper Jason Kyle said he expects to play. If he goes down, Troy Evans & Chris Reis will get the call to emergency deep snap.

wwltvsports Jabari Greer on the game: "It's going to be a big game, a game where we have to focus. ...

wwltvsports ... be patient in our technique and realize when the opportunity comes, we have to make it.."

wwltvsports Moore on audibles @ line: "A lot of times you can game plan 4 a team w/ certain looks, then they show u a totally diffrnt looks in the game.

wwltvsports Drew Brees will wear pink cleats on Sunday for cancer awareness.

wwltvsports Fujita said he'd wear something if sent 2 him. "It's important 2 me & I'm glad the NFL is tkng time 2 spend time w/ it & raise awareness.

A picture taken by Jeff Duncan

Notes and links for Ohio football; if you love Cincinnati-area football, we might have a job for you

Kirkendall — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 20:28:48 -0000

Even though we're a blog that specifically talks about the Cincinnati Bengals, we try our damnest to talk about other area football teams; especially the Ohio State Buckeyes and the University of Cincinnati Bearcats. The truth of the matter is, when the Bengals were recording their worst season since 2002 (2-14), the University of Cincinnati was in the middle of their first BCS season since, well, the BCS started. It didn't just make the season the Bengals were having passable (if that phrase even exists); it was exciting as hell. As was the run the Buckeyes have, save for that one game during the third week of the season; I can't remember the result, or even who we played; in fact, I have no memory of September 13, 2008. If you're remotely a fan of the UC Bearcats, or have this uncontrollable instinct to simply cheer anything related to your hometown, then how are you not excited about the Bearcats? The Buckeyes. Well, we're extremely nervous. In truth, even with the Bengals and Browns, football in Ohio is the best football product in any state in the union; that includes Florida, Texas and California. I'm biased for Ohio football. I don't care. It's the best. So when we have time, or when we start feeling all Swine-Flu sick talking about the Bengals because their season turns into a wreck, we'll talk Ohio football. Now, I know readers might not care; they just want Bengals news and nothing else. I can respect that. So in our Ohio football that doesn't include the Browns posts, we'll keep it short, and anyone wanting to continue, can click on the jump.

(Note: if you have a love for Ohio football, especially the Bearcats and Cincinnati area football, drop me an email. I might have a job for you).

Now, onto links and notes.

Go Bearcats takes a look at the 12 former Bearcats on NFL rosters. They are Conner Barwin (Texans), John Bowie (Raiders), Brandon Underwood (Packers), Brent Celek (Eagles), Trent Coles (Eagles), Troy Evans (Saints), Andre Frazier (Steelers), Tyjuan Hagler (Colts), Haruki Nakamura (Ravens), Mike Wright (Patriots), Antonio Chatman (Bengals) and Kevin Huber (Bengals).

Seven former Bearcat players were released from NFL rosters this weekend: which includes Mike Mickens (Cowboys), Corey Smith (Chiefs), DeAngelo Smith (Cowboys) Digger Bujnoch (Saints), Adam Hoppel (Browns), Manalac (Bills) and Trevor Canfield (Cardinals)

However, Joe Reedy Tweets that DeAngelo Smith was claimed by the Browns.

The Bearcats season kicks Monday (Labor Day) at Rutgers at 4 PM. It will be broadcast on ESPN. Quarterback questions for Rutgers.

Brian Kelly doesn't like opening the season against a Big East team on the road.

Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard are great offensive players for the Bearcats and likely NFL prospects. However, the Bearcats also have Jeff Linkenbach, a 6'6", 311 pound left tackle.

"He had a great year last year," offensive coordinator Jeff Quinn said of Linkenbach. "Without him as our left tackle, who knows what could have been the outcome of the season?"

The Bearcats' newest defensive coordinator, Bob Diaco, is the complete opposite of Mike Zimmer. Aaron Webster, the team's free safety, says of Diaco. “He’s a real mellow person. You can tell not a lot gets to him. He’s not really flustered when there’s controversy or when adversity hits.”

UC joined IMG College and ISP Stadium Seating to provide Nippert stadium with 10,000 cushioned seats with backs.

"Over the past few seasons more and more fans have come up to us and asked if there was anything we could do about the uncomfortable red seats in Nippert. When we looking into this, the most economical and comfortable alternative was to partner with an outside vendor who could help us solve our fan's comfort issue, and do so at a reasonable price. We tested these types of seats over the last two years and decided to move forward with a mass installation for the 2009 season. ISP Stadium Seating has answered our charge and will serve our fans well this season and for many years to come."

Hopefully 2010 will be a season where seats aren't being used all that much. The seats, "black with a red c-claw on the backs", are being offered as part of a season ticket package for UCATS members.

We Will Always Have Tempe freaked out, as did we all, when the Buckeyes nearly let Navy beat them Saturday. Things don't look good for USC this Saturday.

Defensive back Anderson Russell gave up a long touchdown pass and "frequently misdiagnosed plays". However, Terrell Pryor, who wore eye black with the words "Vick", is a much improved passer over last year.

The Rivalry, Esq calls the Buckeyes performance a disappointing showing, especially when failing to establish the running game.

Navy recorded three 80-yard plus touchdown drives.

Elder, ranked fourth in the nation, beat Colerain, who is ranked 13th in the nation, 20-7. The game was sold out at the Pit, which holds over 10,000 and was broadcast live on ESPN.

The Mason Comets, my old stomping grounds, lost their first game of the season, to Centerville 14-34. That drops the Comets to 1-1. They play their first Greater Miami Conference game in two weeks.

Poll

Would you like a weekly take on all things in Cincinnati (and Ohio) football?

Yes

124 votes

No

108 votes

232 votes | Poll has closed

Saints @ Texans: Training Camp Update - The Ruckus at Reliant

Saintsational — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 15:30:14 -0000

More photos » by Dave Einsel - AP

4 months ago: New Orleans Saints' Marques Colston makes a catch during a joint NFL football training camp with the Houston Texans on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009 in Houston. (AP Photo/Dave Einsel)

Browse more photos »

The title of this post was borrowed from Jeff Duncan's tweet

Twitter

JeremyShockey 1 more practice with texans before game... Drew is back and i see that look in his eye.... look out

bawtp Twitter-dee, twitter-dum ... Saints smell the blood of the houston tex-uns ... That's my prose 4 the day!

jeffduncantp Back at Reliant Park. Sun already on high wattage. Gonna be another sweat-fest. FYI: Drew Brees is reportedly back.

wwltvsports Jammal brown not out yet. Brees on field.

jeffduncantp Houston Cougars and Rice Owls football teams are attending the morning workout as guests of the Texans.

jeffduncantpFirst major skirmmish of the two-day workouts. Troy Evans involved.

bawtp First fight ... 9:04 ... More details later

wwltvsportsFight breaks out in inside run with n.o. On d. 1st of camp with texans

wwltvsports Not sure how fight started or who started it, but it was not small

jeffduncantp Pierson Prioleau (ankle) is new addition to injured list. Jammal Brown also out. Saints are thin at tackle. Bushrod working with 1s at LT

wwltvsports Troy evans starts 2nd fight with houston's 21

jeffduncantp Another huge scrum. Dogpile of Texans and Saints at midfield.

bawtp Second fight. 9:04

jeffduncantp Huge SRO crowd at this workout, ringing field three and four deep. Feels like Fat Tuesday on St. Charles Ave.

jeffduncantp Local boy Jacoby Jones with a nice punt return on a punt by Pakulak.

wwltvsports Shockey starts fight, throws punch. It's an active day at camp

jeffduncantp Two more scrums. Buck Ortega and Jeremy Shockey engaged in separate fracases. Shockey throwing haymakers.

wwltvsports Practice is over. Let's say it got a little physical out here. 3 fights and kots of tackles to the ground by Saints defense.

wwltvsports Jammal Brown in Philly getting checked out for possible sports hernia.

wwltvsports 4 fights, 2 on each field hilighted bt Shockey's brou ha ha and Troy Evans' melee.

jeffduncantp Update: Jammal Brown with potential sports hernia. Flew to Philly for evaluation by specialist Dr. William Myers. Out Sat., indefintely

jeffduncantp Texans players called Saints cheap-shot artists afterward. Some didn't take to defensive players constant ballhawking. Quotes to come.

jeffduncantp Darren Sharper: "I haven't seen this many fights in my whole career. From our team, now against another team."

GregBensel we welcomed drew back to the team; met us in Houston where the practices were intense

jeffduncantp Brees returned to practice & didn't skip a beat. Said it's been an emotional week but was glad to rejoin "my other family."

wwltvsports OK fans, there seems to be a lot of concern over Bush. No one in the media saw anything happen. Ergo, nothing to report at this moment.

MalcolmJenkins it got a lil chippy today in practice... this is gonna be a great game!!

jeffduncantp I've asked Saints officials about Bush. No official word. I didn't see the injury & after his "iced knee" prank I'll withhold speculation

ltorrence24 We play 1 of the last gladiator sports on earth! 1 of the few places U cn smack some1 in the mouth & not worry abt going 2 jail. I luv it!

jeffduncantp More Ruckus at Reliant ... Texans LB DeMeco Ryans: "I told our defensive guys that nobody's going to come in our house and push us around."

jeffduncantp Texans FB Vonta Leach on R. Coleman: "Nothing was being said - it was a cheap shot, our guy came off the blocks, and they started swinging."

wwltvsports Bush sitting on bench while team goes through walk thru practice. Will talk with Payton post practice.

wwltvsports Stay calm Saints nation. Don't jump to conclusions.

jeffduncantp Bush not working at pm prax. Walking gingerly on right leg but nothing wrapped. No official word from Saints til post-practice.

wwltvsportsBush now standing with team. Light practice with no helmets

jeffduncantp My take is the Bush injury -- if indeed there is one -- isn't serious

wwltvsports Bush seems to be spending practice sitting on the sideline, content to watch practice.

wwltvsports Payton on Bush: strained calf,

jeffduncantp Payton: Reggie strained calf. Not serious. Could play if needed

wwltvsports Bush on Bush: said it's just a bad cramp. Payton says it happened during post practice conditioning, nothing to worry about

wwltvsports Bush after practice was limping slightly, but Payton said if it were reg season, Bush would be playing. Just a mild calf sprain.

jeffduncantp Payton: Brees will play first half Saturday and Joey Harrington will finish game with second- and third-teams.

jeffduncantp No word on Jammal Brown's sports hernia. Evaluation to be done later today, Payton said. Specialist is same doc who worked on Will Smith

SupaFreak69 great day so far....headn bak to telly to relax...

Linkage

Photos from the New Orleans Saints Jeremy Shockey and Houston's DeMeco Ryans fight - Times-Pic

New Orleans Saints running back Reggie Bush suffers strained calf - Times-Pic

Video: Shockey at the center of brawl with Texans - WWL

Deke: Saints/Texans Day 2/Practice 1 - WWL

Saints and Texans Squabble - New Orleans Saints official website

Kristian: Shanle quietly leads Saints in tackles - WWL

New Orleans Saints left tackle Jammal Brown sidelined indefinitely with possible sports hernia - Times-Pic

New Orleans Saints, Houston Texans tangle in fight-marred practice Thursday morning - Times-Pic

"Being tough is part of it, I don't think we want to take it to the level of fighting because that's going to hurt our team," Sharper said. "But being tough and challenging and being competitive are all things that (defensive coordinator Gregg Williams) preaches with his defense and being aggressive, also. All those things come along. Something us guys as players take it a little too far and that's when it boils over into ruckuses."

-Darren Sharper

New Orleans Saints defensive end Jeff Charleston working overtime - Times-Pic

"Every day, I've got to get a little extra work," he said. "Me and (fellow defensive end) Charles Grant, we've been working every day. That first week of camp is brutal -- it kills you, it wears you down. We just figured after every practice, we're going to do a little extra, run a little more. It's gotten easier.

"More time means more time for me to work. I get off my feet, I ice. I do the proper methods to recover. But if (Coach Sean Payton) gives us a little extra time to get a little extra work, we're going to get a little extra work."

-Jeff Charleston

"I don't feel right unless I do a little bit more than everyone else," he said. "If I don't do just a little bit more, I feel like I'm on the same level. And I know I've had to work for everything I've gotten. So I'm just trying to get a little bit extra, a little bit more. Then, when I go to sleep at night, I feel a little bit better."

-Jeff Charleston

"There's a young man that loves the game of football," defensive line coach Bill Johnson said. "He's got a great passion for it, he's got a great work ethic, a person that wants to excel. To me, he's headed in the right direction. All he has to do is start getting some playing time. Experience is what he's got to go after, but he plays fast, plays hard and he studies the game. That's what I love about him.

"He's the type guy you look for as a coach. A guy that loves it, a guy that wants to get better, a guy that doesn't just want to come out and practice, but he wants to study tape and learn more about football. He's got a big heart."

-Bill Johnson

"We're going to rotate, and we're going to play him," Johnson said. "Once we get our roster set -- in this league, if you get on the bus, you play.

"You know our situation (with the pending suspensions). It's pretty obvious what's going on. He's going to get that chance. He's doing all the things he needs to do to get that chance."

-Bill Johnson

"I've always felt like I have belonged," Charleston said. "Any team I've been on, I've always felt I had a role. Any place you go, you have a role. If you're on a 53-man roster you have a role -- if it's special teams, if it's backing up someone, if it's coming in on third down. And this is a game with injuries.

"You've got to be ready at any moment. I've got friends and college teammates that were backups and never thought they'd see the field and they become starters, because one guy goes down and they shine in their opportunity."

-Jeff Charleston

Video

Jeff Duncan's New Orleans Saints video log from Houston, Day 22 (Aug. 20, 2009)

Drew Brees Press Conference Transcript

From the New Orleans Saints official website

Q: How was it to get back?

A: It was good. I got back last night, watched the film, it looked like there was some great work yesterday. I think this is important work to get anytime you can go up against another team you're not familiar with since they're not in your division and in fact in a whole other conference. You just get new looks that you haven't seen all training camp, because it's competitive because everybody wants to get out here and play well and you have something to prove.

Q: Has it been therapeutic for you to get back on the field after your mother's passing?

A: It's always nice to get back. Certainly my mind has been on my family and my mother. I have a family back here with our team the Saints, so when I got back it was great to see everybody, great to flip on the film and just start kind of getting back focused on football again.

Q: Can you compartmentalize things relatively easily?

A: I definitely think I can. I think unlike maybe when my mom first passed away, it was such a shock. Now that it's been almost two weeks and the fact that we've already had the memorial services. We've already had a family, friend memorial service on Monday and another yesterday. Now there's some sense of closure. I'm able to compartmentalize that and think about football.

Q: Does it take some time to feel completely comfortable again on the field?

A: Yes. It did. It's only been three days and I practiced Sunday morning and it hasn't been that long, but you feel out here, it does take a few snaps to get back in it. I don't want to say it's working the rust off or some kinks, since it's only three days, but just getting your mind back in it.

Q: Who won the battle between Jeremy Shockey and DeMeco Ryans?

A: I think I'd take Shockey over just about anybody in that deal. Tempers flare because it's competitive. Things are physical and it's football. Obviously we're not trying to get hurt out here. We're trying to help ourselves get better and they're trying to get better as well, but in the end when you have competitive people and you're in a physical sport like this, it's bound to happen. You just don't want anybody to get hurt because of it.

Q: Do the fights serve as a prelude to Saturday?

A: Last year it was the same thing. There's more fights as you go on because in the beginning you're kind of going at it and you kind of understand he's going faster than me, so you pick it up or I'm going a little faster than him. The second day you're more agitated. That's usually the way it happens. The longer you practice, the more you're going to see it happen. You wouldn't see it in the first or second drill. Once the second day rolls around that's what happens. It makes for a competitive game on Saturday.

Q: Are the fights with quarterbacks kind of like with goalies in hockey? Did you look for Matt Schaub when the fights broke out?

A: He was on the other field here. No, I'm just trying to get my guys out of there. You don't want anybody to get hurt.

Q: How do you evaluate the job the offensive line has done in camp?

A: I think they've been doing well. It's a group that's been together for a very long time. You mention the injuries. Obviously Jammal (Brown) and some other nicks and dings, but for the most part, our guys up front have been together a long time. Even the backups have been here for quite a while. (Jermon) Bushrod and (Zach) Strief have been here a few years. When those guys need to step in and get the job done along with (Jamar) Nesbit, those guys get the job done.

Q: How uneasy would you be if Jammal is sidelined?

A: That's tough, because obviously he's the anchor on that left side. I mentioned Strief and Bushrod. I'm very confident in those two guys. I certainly want to have Jammal back as quickly as possible, but that's a part of the game.

Q: Can you talk about the support of your team and teammates when you had to deal with your mom's passing?

A: It was awesome. In fact, Mr. Benson gave his plane to Sean Payton and six or seven guys to come out to the memorial service on Monday. It was awesome. They walked in and it brought a tear to my eyes, because I know how much they mean to me, just the fact that they were there to support me and my family was great.

Q: Can you tell which team members attended the service?

A: It was Sean Payton, Pete Carmichael Jr. our offensive coordinator, who I've been with a long time, Billy Miller, Jon Stinchcomb, Charles Grant, Will Smith, Scott Fujita and Reggie Bush.

Q: Do you think the circumstances will make it difficult to start preparation wise?

A: No, having today, this afternoon and then tomorrow, we'll be fine. I've been playing a long time. I hope it doesn't take more than a few throws to get me back in it.

Sean Payton Press Conference Transcript

From the New Orleans Saints official website

Opening Statement:

"One quick injury update: we're having Jammal Brown looked at. He has some pain in his upper groin area and he's flying to Philadelphia to have Dr. Meyers give him an exam and see if we get to the bottom of it. It's something that has been troubling him a little bit; yesterday it flared up and he wasn't at practice this morning. This afternoon's practice will be indoors and separate and we'll get ready for Saturday's game."

Is Jammal out of Saturday night's game?

"I think he would be right now. As soon as I know more in regards to the feedback we get from Philly, I'll pass it along."

What is your reaction to the fights on the practice field this morning?

"There were a couple on both fields but I don't think it was anything significant."

Is that something you expect when you go up against another team in practice? Is it indicative of the attitude of this defense?

"When you practice against somebody like we have for the second day now and it's hot, tempers get flared up a little bit. It happened twice on both fields and both teams handled it well and got back to playing."

Does it concern you when your starting tight end is involved in the fight?

"No, it's just what I said. Regardless of position, it was just guys getting a little frustrated on both sides of the ball. Nothing serious."

How tight is the competition between Skyler Green and Courtney Roby for the kick returner spot?

"It's not just those two players. Both of those guys are competing for a roster spot and it would have to include being a returner, yet that doesn't mean that one or the other is going to make the team. It's pretty competitive for those players who are having to play defense or offense as well as the kicking game."

What did it mean to have Drew Brees back today?

"It was great to have him back. He means a lot and obviously he's one of the leaders of this team. A lot functions around him offensively so it was significant."

How did the offensive line look in practice?

"I think he did pretty good. We're nicked up a little bit with Zach Strief, Jammal Brown, Tim Duckworth - there were three guys that weren't able to practice so these young guys are getting a lot of reps. Jermon Bushrod got a lot of work today and it was a good experience for him."

Is the concern with Jammal a sports hernia?

"That's what he's being examined for. We'll wait and see and get some feedback. He's having the exam later this afternoon after flying out this morning."

What was your overall take on the three practices with the Texans?

"I thought it was good work. I just talked to Gary (Kubiak) as we were finishing practice. We get so much because you get different looks and it changes the routine. For the players, that's most important because this is the hard part of training camp, the latter part of it. To try to keep the focus and the edge becomes a little easier when you're going against someone else; you can't really let up and try to just glide through practice. You have to get ready and that's what I like about it."

Usama Young was working with the first-team defense today. Is that something he'll be doing more often?

"We're going to continue to work him into that group. He's doing real well and he's pushing. That's a good competition right now."

How is Chris Reis doing?

"He's battling and you're going to see him in and out of the lineup. He's doing well, so we have good competition there. We'll try to get all of those guys work on Saturday."

With Chip Vaughn out, is Reis working at both safety positions?

"He's flexible enough to work both positions, but primarily we have him at strong now."

Counting on Dan Morgan Scares the Crap Out of Me. An Un-Loyal Saints Fan and Proud of it.

Hap Glaudi's Ghost — Tue, 12 May 2009 12:15:08 -0000

Yes, the flaming car crash that a fair amount of you believe this column to be is back. The cat-loving, foul-mouthed rants will continue. If you are looking for stats, game breakdowns, and hardcore Saints articles Dave and the crew cover that ground and why improve on perfection? My column will always be different. I'm here to push, question, possibly annoy. But mostly try to get you to laugh, think and discuss. So far I'm batting a thousand.

Of course, for my last column the discussion was, "How do we get Ghost to contract a serious disease, get hit by a bus, and most importantly, sleep with the fishes." I felt the love and it was appreciated. Anyway, this week I'm more depressed than Kurt Cobain. When I saw the headline Saints Linebacker out for Season with Achilles Injury my initial thought was, "Dan Morgan injured himself again putting on his pants or maybe eating breakfast?" Sure that sucks but it isn't like Morgan has ever actually played a down in a Saints uniform.

Except it wasn't Morgan. It was rookie Stanley Arnoux! $%^& and #$%%! So now the only talent upgrade the Saints can really count on at linebacker is Dan Morgan and some undrafted rookie free agents.This is a huge problem. Sure Jo-Lonn Dunbar has proven a key special teams guy but I doubt he'll be pushing for serious playing time. Quick, tell me a big play a Saints linebacker made last year who wasn't named Jonathan Vilma? [Cue Jeopardy music!] Scott Fujita's interception against the Bucs and the one in Chicago are all I can think of. Not very comforting, is it? Scott Shanle is just a guy. He is just an average starter. If the Saints had a good pass rush or a decent secondary I'd be fine with Shanle. The Saints as of today have neither of those two things.

Yes, it was probably asking a lot of a rookie fourth round pick to be the answer at outside linebacker but at least Arnoux would have been a possibility. It's like dating. Sure I might go on three crappy dates with guys who will never in a million years be my future husband (no one deserves that fate) but three crappy dates is way better than being home on Saturday night. I'll never find my future ex sitting at home eating ice cream and watching ‘Sex in the City'. Same thing applies to the Saints. They are running out of options to get better linebacker play. Options are key here people. Going into every season I try to predict how the Saints will do by how many questions they have. Serious questions. Not, "Who will be the fifth receiver?" questions.

This year my questions are:

Who will be the Saints short yardage/power back and will he be successful?
Can the Saints create a significant pass rush?
Who will play free safety and will they play well?
Will the linebackers not named Jonathan Vilma be any better?

Every one of those questions I can give you a plausible answer except one.

Question #1 answer: The Saints have six possible options for the power back option. Obviously if you read my first column you know I think the Saints should have done more to address this but they at least have a bunch of different guys to try. I actually really like Herb Donaldson but hey if Thomas can't get it done at the start, try them all. Just don't let P.J. Hill out in the Quarter if he becomes a huge success. Hey P.J., we'll start a Hill drunken taxi fund if you can convert 3rd and short and become a goal line touchdown thief.

Question #2 answer: Gregg Williams might be able to light a fire under Charles Grant and Will Smith and his schemes traditionally land QB's on their butt.

Question #3 answer: Darren Sharper's prime may be so far behind him that he can't even remember when it was but if he is a bust the Saints still have Usama Young and Chip Vaughn to try and solve the problem.

Question #4 answer: If the Saints want to upgrade the outside linebacker spots they have Dan Morgan and who? Mark Simoneau is always getting blown up. Marvin Mitchell and Troy Evans have been around long enough to prove they are not a solution. Nevermind injuries which haven't stopped since the first week of the 2008 season. Now the Saints don't have a solution if the linebackers suck or get injured. Bad. Why do the football gods hate us? Dave, is it time to hire a voodoo priest or sacrifice a goat in the Poydras Street endzone to end the injury plague?

If this post seems less angry, obscene, and tamer it's not because Dave told me to change or get lost. No, I'm definitely a bi-polar Saints fan and injuries just make me sad. I thought it sucked when Tom Brady got injured. I mean we wait all year for football and then players start dropping like pounds off Lindsay Lohan. And for no other reason than bad luck our favorite teams are screwed. Plus, the football season is less interesting when stars get injured. If the Saints are going to suck, I don't want the excuse of injuries. Nothing kills my football buzz like injuries...I'm such a freaking girl. This injury crap needs to stop or I might go on some expletive laced journey that makes poor Dave's head explode.

Comment of the week that drove me to drink, go on a shopping spree and go crazy all at once.

An un-loyal Saints fan and proud of it!

While reading each and every one of the loving, supportive comments from my last article, I began thinking about one of the things that I always find interesting, and that is someone questioning someone else's fandom. What makes a true Saints fan?

This comment got me thinking: "If the Saints make you that mad, and sounds like you're a fan when we win but not when we lose, maybe the Saints are not the team for you. You might need to refrain from buying tickets to a game if you can't take it when they lose and when things don't go your way...Keep the Faith!!!"

Let me say right off the bat that this isn't personal. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and thanks to this reader for inspiring this section. See Dave, I wasn't mean at all so don't tase me bro! Here's the thing though: why do certain fans make loyalty the main condition of how good a fan someone is? I can be a Saints fan however I want. I don't have to like everything they do, agree with every move they make and I don't even have to be rational about it. The mere mention of the name Alex Molden causes me to have flashbacks like some Vietnam Vet. If I'm less of a Saints fan because I lost my head when they took Molden over Eddie George and still haven't gotten over it, then so be it (I personally blame Jim Mora Jr. for convincing Daddy Mora to take Molden so I hate freaking Mora Jr. And now that he coaches the Seahawks I have a perfectly good reason to hate Seattle. I love football and its ability to allow me to hate new things every year).

Nothing drives me crazier than someone railing, "You aren't a true hardcore fan. If you don't support the Saints 100% of the time we don't need you." I think being called a ‘loyal fan' is insulting. ‘You might need to refrain from buying tickets to a game if you can't take it when they lose and when things don't go your way.' Oh really? So I guess I should just have sunshine flying out my butt despite the fact the Saints have had a winning record at home in exactly two of the last ten years? I'm not even loyal to my political party or my job much less a football team. I've had season tickets to the Saints for 20 years and I've seriously considered dropping them twice. Does that not make me a ‘real Saints fan?'

If Benson hadn't canned Ditka I would have dropped. If Mora hadn't quit I would have dropped. The Saints don't have my unconditional financial support. Hell I've openly rooted for them to lose. Yep. And if I deem the conditions right I'll do it again. One of my absolute favorite moments as a fan was watching Detroit beat the Saints on Christmas Eve 2005. It was awesome. The Saints needed to lose to have any chance at drafting Reggie Bush. I thought having a chance at Reggie was way better than some meaningless win over the Lions. I can still see Joey Harrington hitting Roy Williams on a fourth down miracle pass. So sweet. Of course I only root against the Saints when they are eliminated from playoff contention and I feel the head coach needs to be unemployed. If the Saints are 6-6 in November this year and you think Sean Payton needs to go coach Tulane, knock yourself out rooting for a train wreck.

I'll be honest, if I grew up in the 1970's I might not be a Saints fan. They were like a rotting fish: bad owner, crappy coaches, and horrible players. They had Archie but that was it. If I was currently a Raider fan I don't know if I could stand it. To know you have no hope until Al Davis dies must suck. Either get a new team or root for the old man to keel over are not appealing choices are they? My gosh, it makes me almost feel sorry for Raider fans. All sports leagues market loyalty as a badge of honor. If you think it is great, fine. Just don't think it makes you any more special than me just because I ripped my Roman Harper jersey in half after the Chicago game and wanted Gary Gibbs' head on a stick. I love the Saints but if loyalty means watching them suck with a smile on my face and never insulting coaches, players and GM's (Bill Kuharich can suck it) then I'm an un-loyal biatch!

This week's Saints video that will keep you buying tickets till 2025

Oh Steve Walsh, you douche and weak armed destroyer of playoff dreams. That the Saints traded a first, second and third round pick for you instead of just signing Bobby Hebert ranks as one of the Saints top five worst moves and that's saying a lot. The Saints, after all, hired a freakin' astronaut as a GM. I'm guessing the Saints could have used those picks to help build an offense to go along with the Dome Patrol. Sometimes I wish I was a man who could just adjust his junk and say "Screw it!" to make me feel better. Saints' screw ups eat at me like a cancer. Anyway, old Steve did lead the Saints to this awesome win over the Goats in 1990 to clinch a playoff spot. Enjoy.

SB Nation - Troy Evans

New Orleans Saints' Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Falcons

Who Was Your Defensive Player of the Game?

New Orleans Saints' Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Redskins

Who Was Your Defensive Player of the Game @ Washington?

Remi Ayodele

Sedrick Ellis

Darren Sharper

Jonathan Vilma

Chris McAlister

The Defense Was So Collectively Bad, I'd Rather Click Here and Not Pick Anyone

No one on defense impressed me, so Garrett Hartley gets the vote

*** BY REQUEST *** Robert Meachem, for his "defensive" touchdown

Saints Mid-Season Defensive & Special Teams Player Grades; Jabari Greer and Thomas Morstead awarded MVP

Who Is Your Mid-Season Defensive MVP?

Jonathan VIlma

Will Smith

Darren Sharper

Jabari Greer

Roman Harper

Saints Player Grades for Defense and Special Teams vs. Panthers

New Orleans Saints' Defensive and Special Teams Player Grades @ Miami Dolphins

Who Was Your Defensive Player of the Game?

Jonathan Vilma

Tracy Porter

Darren Sharper

Anthony Hargrove

Jabari Greer

Scott Shanle

New Orleans Saints @ Miami Dolphins: Defending the Wildcat

Your Wednesday Afternoon Saints Twitter Update

Notes and links for Ohio football; if you love Cincinnati-area football, we might have a job for you

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Saints @ Texans: Training Camp Update - The Ruckus at Reliant

Twitter

Linkage

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Drew Brees Press Conference Transcript

Sean Payton Press Conference Transcript

Counting on Dan Morgan Scares the Crap Out of Me. An Un-Loyal Saints Fan and Proud of it.

Comment of the week that drove me to drink, go on a shopping spree and go crazy all at once.

This week's Saints video that will keep you buying tickets till 2025

* BY REQUEST * Robert Meachem, for his "defensive" touchdown