*** OFFICIAL New Orleans Saints Thread *** (1 Viewer)

Faust said:

Analyzing Saints' crowded WR battle

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While his name wasn’t called on ESPN during the three-day National Football League draft, it didn’t chance Seantavius Jones’ feelings Saturday night.

The former Valdosta State wide receiver signed as an undrafted free agent with the New Orleans Saints shortly after the seven-round draft commenced, and the opportunity to vie for an NFL roster spot was good enough for Jones, one of three Blazers to sign Saturday evening with fellow VSU wide receiver Gerald Ford inking with Cleveland and Lawrence Virgil, a defensive tackle from Brooks County, also signing with the Saints.

“It feels great,” Jones said. “All my dreams have come true.”

One advantage undrafted free agents may have over late-round selections is the ability to choose their destination. Jones, who led VSU with 55 receptions for 777 yards and 13 touchdowns, made use of that before determining New Orleans was the best landing spot. That spot is also enhanced by the man, who may end up throwing passes to the 6-foot-3, 209-pound Jones.

“I saw where guys were going and I did my research and just felt that this was the right spot,” Jones said. “Then, there is the fact Drew Brees is the quarterback.

...

Jones won’t make the trek to New Orleans alone, though. Rather, Virgil and his 6-3, 290-pound frame will be going with him. Virgil, who had 4.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for losses last season, also turned some heads at VSU’s pro day with 39 reps on the bench press and a good 40-yard dash time.

“It’s going to be great going in with him and seeing if we can make the team and do some great things,” Jones added.

...

But the 6-2, 223-pounder definitely made one his junior season when he was named the Gulf South Conference Offensive Player of the Year in helping the Blazers win the national championship. During that campaign, he hauled in 69 passes for 1,026 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Last year, VSU’s Edmund Kugbila was drafted in the fourth round by Carolina before missing his rookie season with a knee injury. Ryan Schraeder signed as an undrafted free agent with Atlanta and played in 13 games, starting four.

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@Rand_Getlin

The NFLPA sent a memo to agents which says the #Saints sponsored legislation to reduce workers' compensation benefits for players.

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@Rand_Getlin

The NFLPA went on to ask that agents "advise...players of the potential consequences of the Saints' efforts" should they sign w/ the team.

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Faust said:

@Rand_Getlin

The NFLPA sent a memo to agents which says the #Saints sponsored legislation to reduce workers' compensation benefits for players.

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@Rand_Getlin

The NFLPA went on to ask that agents "advise...players of the potential consequences of the Saints' efforts" should they sign w/ the team.

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False Start said:

New Orleans Saints release 2014 training camp schedule

http://www.nola.com/...ease_tra_1.html

Why are they reporting to West Virginia?

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[SIZE=12pt]he New Orleans Saints 2014 Training Camp Presented by Verizon will feature a total of 27 practices for fans to watch the team, starting at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W.V. and ending at their Metairie practice facility. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]The Saints will open 2014 Training Camp Presented by Verizon on Thursday, July 24 when players report to The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W.V. for physicals and meetings and hold their strength and conditioning tests. The Saints will begin on-field workouts in a non-padded practice session on Friday, July 25 from 8:50-11:40 a.m. followed by a walk thru from 4:30–5:30 p.m. While at The Greenbrier, the club will hold a total of 20 practices, including a scrimmage on Saturday, August 2. All training camp workouts scheduled both at The Greenbrier and in Louisiana will be open to fans and media.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt] [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]On Thursday, August 14, the Saints will travel to New Orleans[/SIZE][SIZE=12pt]. The Saints host their first preseason game of 2014 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Friday, August 15 against the Tennessee Titans. Kickoff is slated for 7:00 p.m. Following a day off on Saturday, August 16, the Saints will begin the final two weeks of 2014 Training Camp Presented by Verizon with seven practices scheduled to be open to their fans and media covering the team. On Sunday, August 17, the Saints will practice from 4:00-5:50 p.m. at their Metairie practice facility. Six of the final seven workouts will take place at the training facility with an evening practice on Wednesday, August 20, scheduled to be held at Mandeville High School. Following a practice on Tuesday, August 26, 2014 training camp will conclude.[/SIZE]

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Fellow receiver Nick Toon has also continued to impress throughout training camp. The third-year pro sprung free for one deep ball and went up high to pluck another pass out of the air. It was just another typical practice for Toon this summer as he has probably racked up more catches in team drills than any receiver in camp. ... Of course Toon has looked good in training camps past, and his job this year will be to prove that it can translate onto the field. But Brees, for one, sees Toon playing more "natural" with more "confidence."

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Receivers Brandon Coleman and Seantavius Jones have looked good at times. But receivers always seem to shine in training camp, and they’ve got a lot of veterans ahead of them.

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Faust said:

Rob Ryan: 'On me' to fix Saints' defense

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Faust said:

Saints defense slams door shut on Vikings

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valhallan said:

We have now forced just 5 turnovers in our last 15 games. To put that in perspective, the Redskins have forced 22 in that span. The Jaguars have forced 20.

Turnovers are so critical to NFL success. If we continue to be allergic to takeaways and continue to put the ball on the ground ourselves, we aren't turning this thing around.

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SaintsInDome2006 said:

valhallan said:

We have now forced just 5 turnovers in our last 15 games. To put that in perspective, the Redskins have forced 22 in that span. The Jaguars have forced 20.

Turnovers are so critical to NFL success. If we continue to be allergic to takeaways and continue to put the ball on the ground ourselves, we aren't turning this thing around.

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First time I've been worried about this team in years. I think we're staring 7-9 / 8-8 in the face. The one saving grace is the falcs and panthers are just 1 game ahead still.

Messing with the defensive personnel sure seemed like a good idea but now everyone looks as confused and out of place as they were under Spags.

Oh by the way, early Saturday evening (maybe 630'ish) Rob Ryan was still hanging around the beer fest in City Park. It was definitely him, I saw him. I have no idea if that's ok or normal or whatever, but somehow I like to think my team's DC with a bottom tier defense is locked up in a hotel room with game film and fellow coaches right about that time trying like hell to figure out what's wrong.

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Snotbubbles said:

SaintsInDome2006 said:

valhallan said:

We have now forced just 5 turnovers in our last 15 games. To put that in perspective, the Redskins have forced 22 in that span. The Jaguars have forced 20.

Turnovers are so critical to NFL success. If we continue to be allergic to takeaways and continue to put the ball on the ground ourselves, we aren't turning this thing around.

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First time I've been worried about this team in years. I think we're staring 7-9 / 8-8 in the face. The one saving grace is the falcs and panthers are just 1 game ahead still.

Messing with the defensive personnel sure seemed like a good idea but now everyone looks as confused and out of place as they were under Spags.

Oh by the way, early Saturday evening (maybe 630'ish) Rob Ryan was still hanging around the beer fest in City Park. It was definitely him, I saw him. I have no idea if that's ok or normal or whatever, but somehow I like to think my team's DC with a bottom tier defense is locked up in a hotel room with game film and fellow coaches right about that time trying like hell to figure out what's wrong.

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What seems to be the problem in NO?

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B-Deep said:

Snotbubbles said:

SaintsInDome2006 said:

valhallan said:

We have now forced just 5 turnovers in our last 15 games. To put that in perspective, the Redskins have forced 22 in that span. The Jaguars have forced 20.

Turnovers are so critical to NFL success. If we continue to be allergic to takeaways and continue to put the ball on the ground ourselves, we aren't turning this thing around.

Click to expand...

First time I've been worried about this team in years. I think we're staring 7-9 / 8-8 in the face. The one saving grace is the falcs and panthers are just 1 game ahead still.

Messing with the defensive personnel sure seemed like a good idea but now everyone looks as confused and out of place as they were under Spags.

Oh by the way, early Saturday evening (maybe 630'ish) Rob Ryan was still hanging around the beer fest in City Park. It was definitely him, I saw him. I have no idea if that's ok or normal or whatever, but somehow I like to think my team's DC with a bottom tier defense is locked up in a hotel room with game film and fellow coaches right about that time trying like hell to figure out what's wrong.

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What seems to be the problem in NO?

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Rob Ryan has to be part of it.

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Snotbubbles said:

B-Deep said:

Snotbubbles said:

SaintsInDome2006 said:

valhallan said:

We have now forced just 5 turnovers in our last 15 games. To put that in perspective, the Redskins have forced 22 in that span. The Jaguars have forced 20.

Turnovers are so critical to NFL success. If we continue to be allergic to takeaways and continue to put the ball on the ground ourselves, we aren't turning this thing around.

Click to expand...

First time I've been worried about this team in years. I think we're staring 7-9 / 8-8 in the face. The one saving grace is the falcs and panthers are just 1 game ahead still.

Messing with the defensive personnel sure seemed like a good idea but now everyone looks as confused and out of place as they were under Spags.

Oh by the way, early Saturday evening (maybe 630'ish) Rob Ryan was still hanging around the beer fest in City Park. It was definitely him, I saw him. I have no idea if that's ok or normal or whatever, but somehow I like to think my team's DC with a bottom tier defense is locked up in a hotel room with game film and fellow coaches right about that time trying like hell to figure out what's wrong.

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What seems to be the problem in NO?

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Rob Ryan has to be part of it.

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Apart from Byrd replacing Jenkins, isn't it pretty much the same players on D?

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Opening Statement: “Just with regards to today’s schedule, we are going through the tape right now and we met as a staff as we typically would on Mondays. I’d say it’s, obviously, a disappointing day when you come in and you’re reviewing all of the things that took place in the game. We talked about a number of things in the team meeting. I think our players will respond the right way. There are a lot of things that need to be cleaned up and quite honestly we are playing like a 1-3 team right now and that’s what our record is. Throughout the course of the game we didn’t do all of the things necessary to win a football game, that’s obvious, but more importantly we have to pay attention to the things that we are doing to keep us from winning games and there is a laundry list, I could go through it, in all three areas including the fourth area, our preparation and coaching. All of that is going to have to be better for us to play better. That starts this week and we will look to address those things and be more detailed. It was a tough loss, and I said it yesterday, you credit Dallas, they played very well, and at the same time we didn’t do much right.”

You break this season down into quarters, what did you learn from this first quarter?

“Look, it clearly for us is a message that we are going to have to improve in a number of areas for us to accomplish some of the goals that we set out (to accomplish). That was one of the topics this morning just with regards to accountability, ownership, all of us looking at the tape closely and looking at the specifics in regards to assignment technique, and then us as coaches looking at are we asking the players to do things we feel like they can do well?”



What has been the most frustrating thing about this beginning?

“With regards to the start of the season? Look, I think it’s easy, this is a win business and so when you are not having success that challenges everyone. That challenges the players, the coaches, you have to dig down deep, it’s a gut check. And I’m certain we will. As rewarding as winning can be, the opposite takes place when you’re not winning.”



Is it a real bad sign when you get dominated on the line of scrimmage like that?

“It was a case last night where, it wasn’t just the line of scrimmage, obviously we have to improve in that area to win. We’ve got to improve in not only winning the line of scrimmage but winning the battle with regards to pressure on both sides of the ball. We talk about it each week. It’s a part of being successful.”



Can you coach guys to get off blocks better?

“I think you can, it starts with alignment. At times when you are not aligned in the right gap, or you’re not hitting the right gap, or offensively if your sets not where it needs to be, we are talking about the specifics of offensive and defensive line play, but I think in a lot of ways you can coach that and we will. You can certainly improve that and we’re going to have to. That’s just one part of it, that’s not the only. The mood in the locker room right now, and I would say the same for the coaching staff, is that everyone one of us has got a lot that we have to do better.”



Rob Ryan is not getting the same results as last year…

“Yeah, but that’s we, it’s not any one individual. Listen, it’s the Saints defense. Sean Payton is not getting the same results as he did last year, and every player on this team is not getting the same results. But go ahead with your question…”

Have you done anything differently this year defensively?

“We, defensively, have done a few things that are different and then, look, there are some things that we played a year ago, we’re just not playing them as well. I would say that would be for sure.”



Where does the pass rush rank on that?

“That’s part of it. Part of it is in order to oftentimes get your sack production you’re able to have success in the run game and then at some point make the team one dimensional. It’s harder to have that production when you’re able to run the football and have that balance, it becomes more challenging defensively. In turn, it’s the same way offensively. When you get into a game where you’re having to throw the football, it stresses the offensive line and obviously the pass rush becomes more challenging.”



At this point the division race is tight as the two teams ahead of you each have only one more victory than you. Do you stress that to your team at all?

“Well, I would say this, I think the first item we discussed at the team meeting is our season is, I don’t want to use the cliché of a journey, but it is a long season. We are 25% through, we are four games through, and obviously if we continue to play the way we are playing than the results will be back and forth and we will be sitting here with a 7-9 or 8-8 record. That being said, it’s imperative and there has to be a sense of urgency to clean up these mistakes we’re discussing, improve in some of these areas and all of that other stuff will take care of itself. It’s all out there. In other words, if we’re playing like this come Week 12 or Week 14 then look, the things that we discussed or at least hoped to accomplish it’s going to be tough to do if we continue playing like we’re playing. We’re in a fast race to really correct and change and make those changes to allow ourselves an opportunity to win games. The turnover, takeaways/giveaways, is one which seems easy and yet that has to change.”



Curtis Lofton talked about beating the man in front of you. Is it a good thing to play angry, does it help to play angry? A lot of times you play angry and physical. Can playing angry be a good thing? Is anger something you can channel into passion and physicality?

“Each player, here is what is important is that you’re playing with that great effort. Sometimes in our game you want to win those one-on-one battles, sometimes it comes down to an individual battle, and yet that has to be harnessed with the idea that you’re all doing the same thing and you’re all on the same page. How a player gets ready and how he’s wired, that can vary a little bit. But the technique and the assignment, the enthusiasm and the emotion come with success, so that body language, all of those things are important. Playing the right defense exactly the way we’re coaching it, and us looking at are we coaching it the best way, those things need to be cleaned up. Offensively no different than ten guys doing the right thing and then all of a sudden there is a busted route or maybe breakdown in protection or the blocking scheme, the result won’t be what you want.”

Along those same lines, is there ever a need to identify or do you ever try to identify the real big picture things? Listening to the message, a sense of urgency, even some cliché ideas…

“We will look closely when we meet as a staff and I will talk to the veteran players on this team. Here is what we can’t do. We can’t continue with the exact same preparation plan and expect different results. So you’ve got to constantly look at tweaking the approach coming into the next week. That’s something we have to do. Look, we will find out a little bit about this team here. When you start the season 1-3 and you get punched like that, very quickly we will find out what we are made of.”



Where do dropped passes fall?

“Yesterday that was one of the things that we made notice of. I think that hurt us yesterday, stalled some drives, and of course the turnovers did as well.”

What is your plan at left tackle if Terron Armstead isn’t ready to go?

“We’ll see how that unfolds. It would be just what it was last night though. I thought Bryce (Harris) did a pretty nice job stepping in there, looking at the tape. He played pretty well. When we go to a game typically we are carrying a backup tackle, a backup interior lineman and sometimes two. Yesterday we carried two, we had a backup center and a backup guard, so we dressed eight. I think that we will wait and see where Terron is at. There will be a protocol that we will go through that he will follow. It would be Bryce, he’s the player we would play there.”



So you feel pretty good about the overall depth there?
“Yes. Yeah, absolutely, I felt pretty good about how he played.”



Is there a risk of the team not playing with a sense of urgency when you say this is a long season?

“The sense of urgency is not just on Sundays. I think the sense of urgency is Tuesday during the work week, Wednesday during practice on first and second down if a rep is not done right, if there is a mistake made, correcting it. The sense of urgency exists, it’s that heightened awareness that currently we’re not playing as well as we think we can play. My experience is if everyone is on the same page and the reps and the workweek have gone well, it gives you a chance. It doesn’t guarantee that you win a game, but it gives you a chance to play better. I think that’s important.”



Do you think some people are not on the same page right now?

“No, listen, I am talking about a big picture now. I am talking about just playing fast, the technique being better. Clearly we are not playing as well as we’d like.”



On the fake punt, would you have liked to have seen Thomas Morstead…

“Look, that’s on me. That’s on me. That’s not Thomas, that’s not (Travaris) Cadet. It’s a play designed for misdirection, credit Dallas they were in a punt safe. I kind of felt like they would be and really that’s on me for being impatient. I thought we were at a point in the game once we got to two scores if I had to do it over again I would have just punted and tried to come up with another stop and worked to cut into that lead. Thomas did exactly what he was supposed to. They had a guy covering and guy assigned to him so that wasn’t him.”



You mentioned that a lack of deep balls is not for any one specific reason. Is that something that you have highlighted as something you’d like to change?

“No, because we’d like to throw the ball down the field and yet I don’t want to throw it down the field into a deep safety or someone who is playing off. That’s not why we are sitting here at 1-3. I think it’s important though, to your question is, looking closely at what you feel like has kept you from winning and making sure that you’re not correcting or getting away from something that hasn’t been the culprit. In other words, that’s important. Is the change that we discuss in regards to preparation, scheme, what we’re wanting to do, it’s important to look closely how come we are not getting the results we want. Listen, it is important that we understand what is keeping us from winning. Certainly we want to get the ball down the field but I wouldn’t contribute that to it.”



There has been a lot of focus on what went wrong last night. Can you pull out any positives?

“We could pull out individual efforts. I thought Khiry (Robinson) ran hard on some of the carries he had. I thought Bryce (Harris), as talked about, came in and stepped up. Jairus Byrd played probably one of his better games. I thought the kicking game, (Thomas) Morstead was really good. Certainly we felt like that was a good team in the return game. I thought the punt field position he gave us late was big.”



Any big picture stuff?

“There are not a lot of big picture items that you come away from a game like that and say. That’s just how it is. Now if we can look at that and make these corrections and begin to win a game and then go on to win some more games than down the road you could look at it like that maybe. Look, it’s a very telling game. It tells us right where we are at right now. In our league, you guys know this, you get graded every week and so far after four weeks it hasn’t been good.”

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New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton

Post-Practice Media Availability

Friday, October 3, 2014



Opening Statement: “One quick announcement and I am sure at some point it will come out, but yesterday Jairus Byrd tore his lateral meniscus and had a surgery done this morning with Dr. (James) Andrews. It is a bucket handle tear which requires a little bit more rehab. He is going to end up on season ending Injured Reserve. Again, the surgery was done this morning. Obviously he would be out for this game. We really haven’t decided if we will get a 53rd spot. We only would in the event that we would try to get a player up for this game so we might be at 52 with six inactives as opposed to 53 and seven. Today was red zone, goal line, short yardage, any questions?”



Was that something that happened at practice yesterday?



“Yes, it happened yesterday at practice. It wasn’t a contact play he just turned to try and catch the ball down the field and kind of tweaked his knee and then he got up and obviously it was more significant than that. Rafael Bush would be the guy that is going to step into that role as regards to safety.”



It seems like tough luck for the defense, do you have to work on the guys to get them up to speed?



“We’ll get these guys up to speed and be ready to go.”



How much at all does it change what the defense does with Rafael Bush starting?



“I don’t know how much in the base or in the nickel. It potentially could affect though that third dime personnel if you will when you are bringing more DBs on the field but I think from a learning standpoint that is something he has been training at already so it is not like he is changing a position.”



Is it more frustrating when an injury happens in practice than a game?



“Well, yeah, I would say yes and the nature of it probably more than anything just down the field turning as he is making a play on the ball. We’ve seen that happen before and I am sure just knowing the type of injury that it is, the good news is that the repair went well and it is something that with the right rehab and treatment should have no carryover effect, in other words, it is different than a lot of other procedures.”



What kind of mood is Jairus Byrd in?



“I spoke to him for a while yesterday. One of the things I mentioned to him was (that) I think the type of injury (he suffered) he is fully aware of and he understands the repair and basically it allows him to come back 100 percent. The other thing was just the fact that his dad is on the other team’s coaching staff and I said to him that I thought it was important that he let his dad know and that was more important obviously than the opponent not knowing. I think as a father I would want to know.”



Is there anything coming up with the game coming up Sunday that you can plan ahead knowing that Rafael Bush is starting?



“It’s Bush coming up. If it happened in a game it would happen. It happened in practice so that will happen. He is receiving the reps and will start at free safety.”



Do you still have a relationship with Darren Sproles?



“I read that and it is kind of old news because I think it has been written before. Number one, I’d list him, easily, on my top five players to coach. One of the challenges in this social media world is the information that goes out especially when it’s springtime and oftentimes the player’s not in the facility. But I think that in fairness to the report, I talked to his agent. Mickey (Loomis) and I spent a long time on the options there. I know I had the chance to speak to Darren and it’s always difficult when you are making a decision like that. I think it’s more of a story when you’re looking at a team that is 3-1 and a team that is 1-3 also. But that being said I saw him later in the spring in Las Vegas. He’s always going to be one of those guys when you look back at the season he had in 2011. It was spectacular. I don’t really put much thought into it.”



Was that something where you did speak face-to-face and things just changed?



“No, I am not aware of who or how it was tweeted but it wasn’t face-to-face because he was not in town. It was he and I talking on the phone. Again, I think that it’s something that is already written and discussed. Now it is being brought up again.”



How much do you keep up with guys that played on the last two or three years?



“A lot. Probably one of the things that we spend a lot of time on is, and I would say Mickey (Loomis) and I, is dealing with the players and trying to be upfront and honest and open (with them). That is important to us. It is important to us when they leave that they still feel welcomed to come back (to be a part of the team). Scott Shanle was in the locker room at our game last week (and) on the sidelines, Scott Fujita, Will Smith, those guys, Deuce (McAllister), any one of those guys that have been involved in our program are important to us because they have been the building blocks to who we are now”



Do you look back and say man, we shouldn’t have let him go?



“I think that we can’t, in our business be hypothetical. I am happy to see Malcolm (Jenkins) have success and he was a first round draft pick of ours. To see him having success and his team doing well as long as it is not against us, the same way with Roman Harper, the same way with any of those guys that have played here. Those guys are important parts of who we are. I think they feel that way.”



Why didn’t John Jenkins make the trip?



“That is just our deal.”



What can you say to the fans to recognize what a blow it is losing Jairus Byrd but at the same time you have to move forward?



“The thing that we can say isn’t right here. The thing we can say is Sunday at 12 noon. All the other stuff is for stories and articles. What’s important is we play Sunday. I think that’ll be what’s most important.”

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Faust said:

Saints run worst fake punt ever in 38-17 loss to Cowboys

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/24729760/saints-run-worst-fake-punt-ever-in-38-17-loss-to-cowboys

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Faust said:

After Further Review: Examining why the Saints defense stinks

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SaintsInDome2006 said:

What a disaster Byrd has been, huh?

The Saints have made so much success and been so proud of their determination and ability to find talent everywhere, anywhere and on the cheap, dedication to in-house player development.... and then they finally go make a big FA splash and cut ties with an integral team component and leader and this happens.

This whole thing smacks of old time Saints, a bad football decision through and through. I was really, really positive (I always am with the Saints, it's a fault, I know) about the Byrd signing and the changes on the defense but it is what it is - a massive waste of resources, messed with the team mojo, and the result is a struggling offense and a bottom-5 defense.

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need2know said:

You guys have been awful this year. Must win this weekend I would guess

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saintfool said:

SaintsInDome2006 said:

What a disaster Byrd has been, huh?

The Saints have made so much success and been so proud of their determination and ability to find talent everywhere, anywhere and on the cheap, dedication to in-house player development.... and then they finally go make a big FA splash and cut ties with an integral team component and leader and this happens.

This whole thing smacks of old time Saints, a bad football decision through and through. I was really, really positive (I always am with the Saints, it's a fault, I know) about the Byrd signing and the changes on the defense but it is what it is - a massive waste of resources, messed with the team mojo, and the result is a struggling offense and a bottom-5 defense.

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I don't have a problem with the Byrd signing. It sucks that he got hurt but injuries are part of the game. Would you rather keep Harper? Yeah, I thought not.

He's a massive upgrade even if it is at a premium.

The problems with the defense are not with Byrd's ability or his signing. He started to come around as he became accustomed to the coaches, the players and the playcalling. It's an adjustment that would be needed for any player coming to the team.

The problems for this year's team are mostly found on defense. We're not getting any pressure on the QB which means no turnovers, no big plays, and QBs having the time to make throws in man coverage. If we can't stop a team then it's putting all the pressure on the offense to win the game which is a tall order for any team. It means we have to play ahead. It changes the playcalling. It makes Brees feel like he has to win the game rather than the team dictating play.

I don't have a problem with Ryan necessarily. Coaches coach, players play. I have a real problem with Payton though. This year, especially, he's shown himself to be a doofus. His inability to adapt his playcalling to his current personnel - despite statements made in the offseason - is distressing.

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SaintsInDome2006 said:

need2know said:

You guys have been awful this year. Must win this weekend I would guess

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Definite must-win today.

The league schedule makers really threw a challenge at the Saints by giving them 3 of their first 4 games on the road. But it is a challenge they have failed.

3 point loss in ATL, 3 point loss in CLE, were winning both games in the last minute.

MIN was a pretty tepid win.

Obviously this TB game today is a must win and it's the kind of game at home they have won in the past really handily.

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Faust said:

Saints Under Siege

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