NEW ORLEANS — When Drew Brees needed a 12-yard completion to keep a drive alive against Chicago’s vaunted defense, he stepped up in the pocket and aired it out instead.
The aggressive approach produced a stunning 79-yard scoring pass to Devery Henderson and set an energizing tone that carried the Saints to a lopsided 30-13 triumph Sunday over a Chicago franchise that had dominated the series in recent years.
By Pat Yasinskas
heck here for a complete list of the New Orleans Saints’ roster moves.
Biggest surprises: Although the Saints almost certainly will have the NFC South’s oldest opening-day roster, they did show they’re not stuck on having a bunch of veterans. They released linebacker Clint Ingram and safety Pierson Prioleau.
Both had deep ties to defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, and Prioleau was the special-teams captain last season. But the release of Ingram shows the Saints believe the younger legs of Will Herring, Martez Wilson, Ramon Humber and Jonathan Casillas can cover more ground at outside linebacker. By releasing Prioleau and safety Chris Reis, the Saints are showing a lot of faith in undrafted rookie Isa Abdul-Quddus.
By Pat Yasinskas
With the start of the regular season just days away, the New Orleans Saints suddenly seem to have a major problem.
John Kasay, the veteran kicker the team signed earlier this week, missed a field goal attempt and an extra point attempt in Thursday night’s preseason finale. Kasay was signed after regular kicker Garrett Hartley injured his hip.
By Rick Reilly
Screw the holidays. The most wonderful time of the year is now.
No more pretending you love scrapbooking. Football is here. Pro, college, lingerie. Doesn’t matter. Let the torrid affair between you and your remote begin.
And I’ll bet you a diamond to a doughnut that …
The New Orleans Saints will win it all. You haven’t noticed? They won the offseason. QB Drew Brees‘ practice sessions were more organized than the Raiders’ ever are. Plus, they added Heisman Trophy winner and soon-to-be NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year Mark Ingram. Telling you, this kid is going to go through defenses like they are piles of Gillette Foamy. Plus, they’ve rid themselves of the What Stupid Trick Play Can We Come Up With to Get Reggie Bush Some Yardage? migraine. Hey Drew, get your son’s headphones ready.
By Pat Yasinskas
The New Orleans Saints are already in midseason form. They put up 512 yards of total offense in a 40-20 preseason victory over the Oakland Raiders.
After up-and-down performances in their first two preseason games, the Saints played a complete game against the Raiders.
“I was pleased with the effort and I was pleased with our energy,’’ New Orleans coach Sean Payton said. “That is something that was a goal of ours in this game; just playing hard and spending more time about each play then the final score or the score at any point.’’
Greg Beacham, The Associated Press
OXNARD, Calif. – When the New Orleans Saints’ defence stayed on top of Darren Sproles a bit too long during a practice drill on Thursday, most of the offence jumped in to rescue the new running back, setting off a brief scuffle on an otherwise peaceful California afternoon. Safety Malcolm Jenkins even grabbed hold of tight end Jimmy Graham’s facemask before everybody calmed down.
The Saints have a clear interest in keeping the durable Sproles healthy. They’re counting on the undersized speedster to help carry them past the departure of Reggie Bush and on to bigger achievements – and that’s exactly why Sproles chose the Saints in free agency.
By Pat Yasinskas
Aside from running back Mark Ingram, we haven’t heard a lot about or seen much of New Orleans’ rookie class. That apparently is about to change a bit.
Coach Sean Payton said he’s seen some good things in practice from third-round pick Martez Wilson. With the Saints having some injuries at linebacker, Payton said Wilson likely will get a lot of snaps on the strong side in Sunday’s preseason game with Oakland.
“For him, it’s the every-down discipline with assignment and technique,’’ Payton said.
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.
By Pat Yasinskas
We know the New Orleans Saints can play offense and there’s no doubt that will happen when the regular season comes along. But the Saints didn’t even need their offense in a 24-3 victory against the San Francisco 49ers in their preseason opener at the Superdome.
The defense and special teams gave the Saints a fast start as Drew Brees and most of the first-team offense didn’t even stay in long enough to get a first down.
New Orleans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams looked like he was prepared for a playoff game, not an exhibition. He blitzed like crazy and the first-team defense was all over San Francisco starting quarterback Alex Smith. Safety Roman Harper spent as much time in the backfield as any of San Francisco’s running backs. Heck, Williams was even calling run blitzes.
You saw the promise last year, but Malcolm Jenkins said that’s not all you’re going to get.
I sat down with the free safety for the New Orleans Saints after a recent camp practice in Metairie, La. and discussed where he’s at as he heads for his third NFL season and second as a starting safety. Jenkins, a first-round pick in 2009, spent his rookie season playing cornerback.
Last year, he made the switch to safety.
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