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Eye ON THE SAINTS |
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June 2009
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November 2007 Archives
The Saints have climbed back from the brink of disaster twice this season, but their chances of repeating as NFC South Champions hinge on the outcome of Sunday's game against the Bucs. Read more. ...Courtesy of Sheldon Mickles of the Baton Rouge Advocate: "Going down the stretch, will the Saints be the team that opened the season with a four-game losing streak? Or the team that later won four straight and demolished the Panthers, 31-6, after two disappointing setbacks?" Read more. ...Cardinals signed 13-year veteran and two-time Pro Bowl punter Mitch Berger on Thursday. Read more. ...Believe it or not the Saints are considered one of the better shots to make the playoffs among the NFC's mediocre 5-6 teams. ...The Tampa Tribune's blog updates the status of some key injured Bucs. ...Courtesy of the Associated Press: Saints starting defensive tackle Brian Young, who has missed four games with a knee injury, practiced Wednesday and is set to return for Sunday's crucial NFC South matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Read more. ...Courtesy of the Associated Press: KANSAS CITY, MO -- The Kansas City Chiefs today signed free agent place kicker John Carney to replace the inconsistent Dave Rayner. Carney, over a 20-year NFL career, has played in 269 games with Tampa Bay, the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego, New Orleans and Jacksonville. He appeared in eight games this season with the Jaguars, filling in for an injured Josh Scobee, and was 9 of 1... FOX Sports has the Saints ranked 18th - up one spot from the week before, however they face the 'Most underrated team in the NFL' Sunday in the Bucs. In other Power Rankings' news, the Saints' up and down season continues to be reflected by the ranking systems: ESPN. Jeff Garcia's injured back was still very sore Monday, but he could start against the Saints in a key NFC South contest Sunday. ...A red-hot Marques Colston is helping rejuvenate the Saints offense according to the Baton Rouge Advocate. ...The Charlotte Observer says the loss to the Saints was as 'bad as it gets' for a team in total disarray. ...Yeah, it's a day late, but we've got a "professional team has much be thankful for on Thanksgiving" column. And we owe it all to Sheldon Mickles of the Advocate. Read more. ...Courtesy of The Sports Network: "The New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers were thought to be this year's top contenders in the NFC South, but only one of those teams figures to remain a player in the division race after the two square off in a key matchup this Sunday from Bank of America Stadium." Read more. ...10 games, 21 turnovers. The Saints gave the ball up 23 times in 16 regular season games last year. And 23 TOs seemed excessive then...Read more. ...Without DE Charles Grant and LT Jamaal Brown, the Saints dropped two in a row and ended their four-game winning streak. Read more. ...Both teams at 4-6 and cling to fading playoff hopes. Each team desperately NEEDS a win...or else. Read more. ...Panthers haven't won at home since Nov. 19, 2006, against the Rams. They're eagerly awaiting the Saints' visit. Read more. ...The Charlotte Observer looks at the Saints ahead of Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers. Read more. ...Courtesy of the Associated Press: CHARLOTTE, NC -- Carolina Panthers coach John Fox has changed his strategy on naming a starting quarterback. Fox says today that Vinny Testaverde will start. ...If there's multiple tiers in the league, it would go something like this: Group A: New England. David has been beaten by opposing wide receivers during the season, most recently Andre Johnson, but Coach Payton remains steadfast in his support of the embattled cornerback. Sean Payton stressed urgency during his weekly news conference, according to the Advocate's Les East: “We have six games left and we are two out so I can’t think of being in a more urgent position,” Payton said. “This is it and we are hitting a stretch now where we are going to play three division opponents in a row starting with Carolina and they are going to have that same sense of urgency and they need a win just like us." ... Courtesy of Sheldon Mickles, the Baton Rouge Advocate: "After digging themselves a huge hole to start the season, the New Orleans Saints have the shovels out again. This time, the Saints are slowly but surely playing themselves out of the crowded NFC wild-card playoff picture." Read more. ...In a battle of the number one and two draft picks from last season Mario Williams scored a victory Sunday as did his team. ...Yes, a four-game win streak earlier makes it tough to write off the Saints, even now, especially because the NFC is so weak. However, there are some troubling signs that this team is headed in the wrong direction. Saints play-by-play man Jim Henderson pointed during the Texans' game that only two of the Saints '07 draft picks were even active for Sunday's game and neither really figured in pivotal action. Two of the te... Drew: On the loss: On Bush's fumble on the 1-yard line: Wide receiver Andre Johnson will be back for the Saints game and he's probably licking his chops after looking at game film of the Rams receivers against the Saints defensive backs. ...
Fox Sports has their own preview of Sunday's game. Read more. ...From the Houston Chronicle: "Texans running back Ahman Green will not suit up against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. Coach Gary Kubiak said Ron Dayne will get the start because of continued swelling in Green's knee." Read more. ...One game out of first, one game from being dead last. The NFC South is in such a sorry state that the Saints can still be relevant this late in the season, according to the Monroe News-Star. Read more. ...Sports Illustrated's Jim Trotter said Reggie Bush may not be talking about his first game against the team that passed on him in the 2006 draft, but he's likely to be focused on that come gameday. Read more. ...Brian Young will miss his third consecutive game, according to the Biloxi Sun-Herald. Read more. ...Jammal Brown sat out Wednesday's practice and the Baton Rouge Advocate says Sean Payton sounds more unsure about his availability for Sunday's game. Meanwhile Charles Grant participated fully in practice. ...RealGM.com says they don't know who the real Saints are after nine games they've been both Jekyll and Hyde. ...Courtesy of the Associated Press: The top three offensive players for the Houston Texans should be healthy for Sunday's game against New Orleans. That outlook comes for the first time since the second week of the season. ...A compilation of NFL power rankings from across the internet. The theme? Nobody knows what to make of the Saints after nine games. ESPN.com. Some good news from the Saints game with the Rams is that two of the team's main offensive cogs , offensive tackle Jammal Brown and running back Reggie Bush appear not to have suffered serious injuries. ...Rick Cleveland of the Jackson Clarion-Ledger says he can't figure out this year's Saints team and he's not sure anyone can. ...It’s a disappointing loss. We can’t get this one back. The game wasn’t as close as the score indicated. We struggled, defensively, offensively. They converted the third downs and we didn’t. It was painfully obvious which team played better. You hit a setback like this and it’s disappointing, it’s frustrating but you have to go back to work. We had high expectations. On David: I think there was a lot of poor play today.... Hey folks, hope you're enjoying your Sunday morning. If you've got no TV, and want more than to listen to only Jim Henderson on the radio, join me for a day of stats, information and observations about the Saints' game against the Rams. Check back in periodically for updates. Hope you enjoy. ...Despite winning four straight games, most of them in impressive fashion, the Saints still have room for improvement, according to Sheldon Mickles of the Baton Rouge Advocate. Read more. ...The Sports Network previews the Saints' week 10 match-up against the St. Louis Rams. A good pre-game read. ...During the New Orleans Saints' four-game winning streak, Patten has grabbed 19 passes for 332 yards. The 11-year veteran has revived not only his career but the Saints, who began the season 0-4, according to ESPN.com's William Bendetson. Read more. ...Courtesy of the Associated Press: ST. LOUIS -- Another game, another offensive-line combination for the Saint Louis Rams. The winless Rams play on Sunday at New Orleans, where they use their seventh line combination in nine games. The line has been devastated by injuries starting in the season opener, when tackle Orlando Pace was lost for the season. The Saints have won four straight after an 0-4 start. Courtesy of the Associated Press: Reggie Bush has fired marketing agent Mike Ornstein. The New Orleans running back declined to comment after practice today, but Ornstein, who is based in Los Angeles, said in a phone interview with The Associated Press that he was no longer working for Bush. ...Courtesy of the Associated Press: ST. LOUIS -- It looks like the New Orleans Saints will have Steven Jackson to contend with. The 0-8 Rams play the Saints on Sunday in New Orleans, and Jackson is expected to start. Jackson missed the final three quarters of a loss to Cleveland on October 28 with a back injury later diagnosed as a bulging disc. He has responded well to treatment during the bye week and expects t... Courtesy of the Associated Press: Drew Brees thought fans in the Louisiana Superdome were out of line when they booed kicker Olindo Mare as the Saints set up for a long field goal late in the first half of their victory over Jacksonville on Sunday. ...
Former Saints head coach Jim Haslett and defensive coordinator Rick Venturi are now with the Rams (as a defensive coordinator and linebacker coach, respectively). The Rams play the Saints this weekend in the Superdome. Reunion time! Read more. And for the record...the Rams rank 19th overall in total defense (335.4 YPG), 13th in pass defense (205.5 YPG) and 25th in run defense ... Adam Schein of FOX Sports says the playoffs await the Saints, who've climbed out of the cellar with a staggering pass attack. Read more. ...If the national media piles on any further, the axels on the Saints bandwagon may collapse under the weight. Yeah, they're coming off a four-game winning streak, but does a .500 team belong in the Top 10? ESPN.com. Courtesy of the Associated Press: About 12,000 sports fans in 47 markets nationwide participated in the online survey by New Jersey-based Turnkey Sports & Entertainment. The survey included indexes of team popularity, fan loyalty and assessments of owners. Courtesy of the Associated Press: Charles Grant, who has never missed a game, played fewer snaps than usual against Jacksonville on Sunday because of a sore left ankle. He did not appear to be any worse off afterward. Other players who sat out against Jacksonville were linebacker Scott Shanle (hamstring), defensive tackle Brian Young (knee) and center Jeff Payton did not provide any upda... Courtesy of the Associated Press: Coach Sean Payton said he's seen more evidence lately that Reggie Bush has learned the patience required to be an every-down running back. ...CBS Sportsline's Clark Judge has 10 observations this week and one of them is that the Saints will win the NFC South now that Drew Brees is back in form. ...Don Banks of SI.com says the Saints are back. He says the winning formula is similar to last year's winning formula. ...No one wants to say the Saints are back and possibly jinx their roll, but a big win over a good AFC team, a win at home, and a display of great offense (445 yards passing) and pretty good defense (take away the big touchdown play) are much more important than the four straight wins. Now, the Saints have eight games remaining and only one is against a team that currently sports a winning record. Stay tuned! ...Sean Payton postgame quotes: We have a lot of work ahead of us. We did some good things, but we did some things that will creep up and haunt us. ...Courtesy of The News-Star: "The Jacksonville Jaguars’ offense averages 146.3 rushing yards per game. The New Orleans Saints’ defense hasn’t allowed an opponent to rush for more than 100 yards in six straight games." Read more. ...Les East of the Baton Rouge Advocate writes the Saints have not missed a beat despite the absence of starters Jeff Faine (C), Charles Grant (DT), Scott Shanle (LB) and Jason David (CB). Read more. ...The SportingNetwork has a breakdown of the Saints/Jaguars match-up, including what to expect when both teams are on offense and defense respectively. Read more. ...Saints fans did not abandon their team following a lousy start. Boo, yes; give up, maybe, but they still loved their team. However, I don't sense the fervor there was last year. Perhaps it's because when the team has entertained the fans at home, they've been anything but entertaining. A big fourth quarter loss to Tennessee, followed by an abysmal showing against Carolina and a definite 'ugly win' against Atlanta and the home folks hav... The Boston Herald says the Saints are back, they even pick them to beat the Jaguars, but of course they have to lay in the dig that it's only possible because of the terrible NFC. ...Former Saints defensive lineman Grady Jackson was picked up by the Jaguars this week after an unceremonious release by the Atlanta Falcons. ...Sheldon Mickles of the Baton Rouge Advocate says that after a stumbling start, Drew Brees is back in 2006 form. ...The Sports Network says the Saints are suddenly 'unbeatable'. Obviously that person didn't see the Atlanta game, but there is no question things have gotten much better. ... |
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