Everything has gone so well for the Saints this season that most of us have completely spaced out on the Smith and Grant suspensions. Those suspensions were never lifted, simply postponed until the NFL wins its case against the Williamses in Minnesota. And in case you think the league might quietly let the case lapse, think again:

Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Joselio Hanson was suspended four games by the NFL on Wednesday for violating the league's drug policy. Hanson's attorney, David Cornwell, said in a statement that Hanson did not use steroids but tested positive for a diuretic after last year's NFC title game against Arizona. [Source: Sports Illustrated]

Note well: Hanson is serving a suspension during the season's stretch run for something he did last year. The NFL isn't inclined to overlook the use of diuretics, and doesn't accept that the passage of time wipes out sin.

There's no way for us to know how soon the Williams case will be decided, or who will come out on top. But there's a good chance it will be decided before the season is over; that the Williamses—and Smith and Grant—will lose; and that the suspensions will be immediately reinstated. During the stretch run.

There may be several silver linings: if we lose Smith, we'll still have Hargrove to take over (McCray has been pretty much AWOL). Sedrick Ellis may be back by then. Gregg Williams can figure out ways to maximize the impact of anyone who substitutes for our lost starters. And if we lose our pass rush, Minnesota—a likely playoff foe—will lose their rushing defense at the same time.

Maybe it won't turn out to be a disaster. But maybe it will. And it's still out there, waiting...

I don't know about you, but I had a hard time enjoying this game. I expected Atlanta to score first; but I also expected New Orleans to come roaring back, grab the game by the throat, and drag it away kicking and screaming. Then Drew fumbled, Atlanta recaptured the lead, and it became obvious the Falcons were determined to do the exact same thing.

When the Saints went up by two scores at halftime, it seemed the universe had worked out its cramp, come to its senses, returned to its sense of duty...call it what you will. The Saints would take the second-half kickoff, ram the ball down the Falcons' throats, go up by three scores, and coast. Uh uh. Didn't happen; and even when they finally put the game away with Pierre Thomas' Reggie impression, Payton, Mike Bell, David Thomas, and the refs tried their damnedest to hand it right back to the Falcons. Our only hope, Obi-wan Sharper, saved us again (well, he had help), but it was waaaaaaaayyyy too close at the end.

Since that game, I haven't been able to really savor 7-0 because of worry. I'm not usually a worrywart when it comes to things like this; but first the Dolphins game, and then the Falcons game, exposed some flaws in Fate's plan to put Drew Brees on the podium in Miami come February.

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What member of the Saints is 5-11 and 237 lbs? And what member of the Saints is 6-0 and 235 lbs?

If you guessed Kyle Eckel as the answer to the first question, you'd be right. And the answer to the second? Lynell Hamilton. Forgotten Mr. Photo Op.

Eckel gives away an inch and fifteen pounds to Heath Evans. That's a significant amount of mass for a lead blocker not to have. He's played more than Hamilton, so Photo Op's stats are kinda questionable in comparison...but here goes anyway. Eckel, 3.0 per carry. Hamilton, 4.8.

The big question would be, can Hamilton play fullback? Could he take the pounding of being a lead blocker, and can he pass protect? Maybe, maybe not...don't know. But it sure would be interesting to have Thomas (or Bell, or Bush) share the backfield with Hamilton in a T-formation, rather than an I. Who do you key on?

Just thinking out loud...

Check out this story in Sporting News. Forget the undefeated season angle...they're trying to make too much of it. Of course the Saints could go undefeated; so could Colts or the Broncos. So could any team that hasn't been defeated yet. Big deal (unless Reggie has just jinxed us).

No, the interesting part is this:

Bush also addressed the criticism he’s received for not living up to expectations as a pro.

"Once I do win an NFL MVP, once we do win a Super Bowl, once I am in the Pro Bowl, it's going to be that much more special because of the criticism that I had to come through. Because of the work I've put into it, it'll mean that much more to me," Bush told Montemayor.

I must admit, I'm floored. Reggie has been regressing all season. The criticism is all valid. He looks less like a potential MVP than he ever has—and apparently, based on his playing time, Sean Payton agrees.

So what is going on in Reggie's head? Is he really delusional? Or is he just putting up a front, saying what needs to be said to keep those marketing contracts coming?

Because I gotta say, Reggie: it looks more and more like your train left the station long ago. Maybe you should stop pacing and call a cab.

It isn't often that I take credit for a Saints win, but I have to humbly claim responsibility here. Well, my wife and I, together, so I suppose it wasn't just me.

After a long weekend of putting in 50 ft of PVC drainpipe, we finished about 3:00 and decided we'd earned a reward. So it's downtown to the Bier Garden to watch the Saints kick ass on the big screen.

Except that it didn't turn out that way. Drew looked sick. The offensive line looked sick, and the defensive line wasn't much better. Ricky Williams was running roughshod over the Saints, and after two quarters and a couple of Hirschbraus (ale and lager, good stuff), we decided that the Saints were losing because we were watching them. It was a big sacrifice to make, but we decided to go home and let the Saints catch up and win an epic victory without our involvement.

Which is just what happened.

So...our voluntary non-involvement in the second half--plus gold pants--proved to be enough to give the Saints the win. I know you all feel you should get together and do something to show your appreciation, but honestly...just being 6-0 is enough for me. Great win, and the knowledge that we had something to do with it will be enough to warm our hearts even when we're 90 and in a nursing home and it hurts to chew banana pudding.

WHO DAT!

I've been reading lately a lot of people dismissing the Saints' run defense on the ground that most teams don't try to run much, since they have to pass to catch up. The latest to say this was Dolphins' OC Dan Henning.

"We're not going to have much running against New Orleans when they're ahead by 20 points in the middle of the second quarter," he said.

That makes sense if you're rating a team by total rushing yards per game, in which category the Saints are 5th. Teams, indeed, simply don't rush against them as much as they might if they were ahead.

But if you rank teams according to per-rush average, the Saints are still a top-10 defense. They're giving up 3.8 yards per rush. And actually, they may be better than that: since teams are forced to pass more, the defense is forced to defend against the pass first and the run second. Yet they're still ranked 10th against the run.

My guess—and it may just be wishful thinking, of course—is that the Saints' run defense will hold up just fine against the Dolphins. We've already played the 3rd (Jets) and 6th Giants) teams ranked in order of rushing average. The Dolphins are 5th. The Wildcat may be a different formation, but the secret to stopping the run is still the same: gap discipline. The Saints' defense has held up so far, and there's no reason to think it will suddenly break in Miami.

Go to the home page of NFL.com, scroll down to the middle of the page, and look to the right. You'll see the Reader's Poll, which this week (is this thing weekly?) concerns itself with running back tandems.

"Which is the best running back duo in the NFL?" is the question, and the first group mentioned is the answer: Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams of Miami. No contest, 58% as of now. What's amazing is who comes next: not Marion Barber and Felix Jones, not Brandon Jacobs and Terry Bradshaw's cousin Ahmad, not LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles. Not even Adrian Peterson and any random guy off the street (which is actually probably the correct answer).

No, the next choice is: Mike Bell and Pierre Thomas.

And at this point, they're tied with the other two pairs (Thomas Jones/Leon Washington and Rashard Mendenhall/Willie Parker) at 14%. The Saints are getting some love for their running game, and nobody is even mentioning the Panthers, the Falcons, the Giants, the Cowboys...

Did I wake up on the planet of Dreams Come True? (Still too cold here for coeds to wander around naked, must still be Earth...)

We were watching the replay of the Saints game on NFL.com tonight, and my wife made an interesting observation.

"It's like watching a game where one of the teams isn't human," she said.

"You mean New York is playing like a bunch of monkeys?"

"No, more like the Saints are superhuman, but they're trying to hold back just enough so that nobody catches on. It's like watching The Incredibles."

She's right. Watching some of the plays being made, you can easily imagine the conversations on the sideline. "Marques, don't go so high, man, someone's going to catch on."

"Well, you threw it there! What am I supposed to do?"

"Just let it go, dude! I'll get it back to you on the next play."

More photos » by Bill Feig - AP

Roman Harper strips Eli Manning of the ball late in the second quarter. The Saints recovered, and Reggie Bush scored a TD just before halftime.

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This morning, I decided To hell with it...I'm going to SEE this game. So I bit the bullet and went to a local sports bar, prepared to sit through three hours of cigarette smoke and obnoxious drunks in order to get my Saints fix. In the end, it was more like spending the afternoon at the Prytania, watching a double bill of The Professional and Clueless.

What can I say? Other than, "Never bet against Drew Brees after two sub-par weeks." If there's a definition of "superhuman" in the dictionary, the first entry would say "See under: Drew Brees." The second would say: "See under: Marques Colston." And the third would say: See under: "oh, f#%$ it, just look up 'New Orleans Saints.'"

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Can Darren Sharper figure out Eli Manning? Can Manning figure out Sharper?

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The opponent the Saints face this weekend may be the most formidable of this season, and the consensus—here and elsewhere—seems to be that this game will answer the question: are the Saints for real? But it will also answer another question, every bit as much up in the air and being studiously ignored by the national media: are the Giants for real?

When you watch the New York Giants play, you come away with the overwhelming conviction that this team is really good: talented, aggressive, disciplined, and supremely confident. They've been to the mountain before, and they see no reason why they shouldn't return. They're the darlings of the media, of course (they're from New York), which makes them the default media favorite to return to the Super Bowl.

When you look closer, though, it seems as though something just doesn't add up. And the more you look, the more questions you come away with. Are the Giants really this good...or have they feasted on a weak schedule?

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