By Jeff Duncan, The Times-Picayune

Oxnard, Calif. — Does Sean Payton have another ambush up his coaching sleeve? The man who famously unleashed the second-half onside kick in Super Bowl XLIV appears to be planning another surprise attack.

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By Mike Triplett, The Times-Picayune

Oxnard, Calif. — Pierre Thomas’ surgically-repaired ankle has been a non-issue so far during New Orleans Saints training camp.

He hasn’t missed a day of practice, and he’s been running strong – as evidenced by his 13-yard run to open Saturday night’s preseason game at Houston.

Thomas also gained 15 yards on a pass from quarterback Drew Brees against the Texans and finished the game with six carries for 33 yards.

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New Orleans Saints backup quarterback Chase Daniel talks about his 56-yard touchdown pass to speedster Joe Morgan in the 27-14 loss to the Houston Texans Saturday at Reliant Stadium.

By Pat Yasinskas

When the New Orleans Saints move their training camp to Oxnard, Calif., next week it might be a more pleasant experience for the offense than the defense.

It could have been a miserable week for both units, but the first-team offense finally showed signs it’s getting on track in Saturday night’s 27-14 preseason loss to the Houston Texans. It took until the sixth preseason possession, but the first-team offense scored its first touchdown.

Even before that, the Saints looked good on their first two drives. But the first drive ended with Drew Brees getting hit and fumbling in the red zone. Brees completed 7 of 14 passes for 109 yards and the first offense moved the ball well after struggling in last week’s preseason debut.

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By Mike Triplett, The Times-Picayune

HOUSTON — Two games into the preseason, the only thing that can be said for certain about the New Orleans Saints’ defense is that it won’t be as good as it looked in Week 1, and it won’t be as bad as it looked in Week 2.

In a span of eight days, the defense went from a dominant performance to a disastrous one. They gave up 24 points and 323 yards in the first half of Saturday night’s 27-14 loss to the Houston Texans.

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By Mike Triplett, The Times-Picayune

Tuesday’s New Orleans Saints practice was an intense, physical session, highlighted by a live goal-line drill. This time the victory went to the defense – revenge for their last goal-line drill last week, when tailback Mark Ingram scored.

This time, the Saints’ first-string offense nearly scored on a 3-yard pass from Drew Brees to tight end David Thomas, but Thomas bobbled the ball as he stepped out of bounds. Then tailbacks Ingram and Pierre Thomas were stuffed on second and third down. Linebacker Jonathan Vilma got great penetration on the final run. It wasn’t clear who made the official tackle, but outside linebacker Scott Shanle said from his vantage point, the trio of veteran tackles Shaun Rogers, Aubrayo Franklin and Sedrick Ellis were clearly doing their job up front.

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By The Times-Picayune

Right tackle Jon Stinchcomb has been released by the New Orleans Saints.

The New Orleans Saints made the move on Monday, making way for backups Zach Strief and Charles Brown to battle for the starting tight tackle job,

Both Coach Sean Payton and General Manager Mickey Loomis described the move as very difficult for them personally. Stinchcomb, who was drafted in the second round in 2003, was the longest-tenured member of the Saints’ roster and one of the most popular players in the building.

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By Mike Triplett, The Times-Picayune

The New Orleans Saints are considering a change at right tackle, where sixth-year pro Zach Strief was lined up with the starting unit during Sunday’s practice. Longtime starter Jon Stinchcomb worked with the second team.

Coach Sean Payton said the team went into this training camp planning to create competition at the position and that Strief has earned the opportunity throughout his five years in New Orleans.

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By James Varney, The Times-Picayune

The New Orleans Saints were joined at practice Sunday by wide receiver Marques Colston and cornerback Tracy Porter, two key players for the team as they head toward the 2011 season.

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