New Orleans Notebook

[NFL Insider]

I have followed Cappers Mall for about a year and a half and am impressed the way there seems to be less BS than most other sites. I realize it is hard to keep it BS free but for the most part I like what I see.

I don't do much more than the NFL and a little college football. One of the college football threads by muleriders is loaded with information and I have decided to do this with a few NFL teams this year. I hope no one minds.

I can't demand anything since I am new here but would like to keep all negativity out of this thread if possible.

I plan to post as much information on the New Orleans Saints in this thread as possible. I welcome good information.

Thankyou for letting me contribute to this site.

Enough about me, the rest will be Saints football.

[NFL Insider]

1 Sun, Sep 7 Tampa Bay
2 Sun, Sep 14 at Washington
3 Sun, Sep 21 at Denver
4 Sun, Sep 28 San Francisco
5 Mon, Oct 6 Minnesota
6 Sun, Oct 12 Oakland
7 Sun, Oct 19 at Carolina
8 Sun, Oct 26 San Diego
10 Sun, Nov 9 at Atlanta
11 Sun, Nov 16 at Kansas City
12 Mon, Nov 24 Green Bay
13 Sun, Nov 30 at Tampa Bay
14 Sun, Dec 7 Atlanta
15 Thu, Dec 11 at Chicago
16 Sun, Dec 21 at Detroit
17 Sun, Dec 28 Carolina

[NFL Insider]

1 Thu, Sep 6 @ Indianapolis L 10-41
2 Sun, Sep 16 @ Tampa Bay L 14-31
3 Mon, Sep 24 Tennessee L 14-31
4 BYE WEEK
5 Sun, Oct 7 Carolina L 13-16
6 Sun, Oct 14 @ Seattle W 28-17
7 Sun, Oct 21 Atlanta W 22-16
8 Sun, Oct 28 @ San Francisco W 31-10
9 Sun, Nov 4 Jacksonville W 41-24
10 Sun, Nov 11 St. Louis L 29-37
11 Sun, Nov 18 @ Houston L 10-23
12 Sun, Nov 25 @ Carolina W 31-6
13 Sun, Dec 2 Tampa Bay L 23-27
14 Mon, Dec 10 @ Atlanta W 34-14
15 Sun, Dec 16 Arizona W 31-24
16 Sun, Dec 23 Philadelphia L 23-38
17 Sun, Dec 30 @ Chicago L 25-33

will be back with more Saints information soon and throughout the summer

[NFL Insider]

odds are from Olympic

Team to win the 2008 NFC South Division
1375 New Orleans Saints +145
1376 Carolina Panthers +225
1377 Atlanta Falcons +1215
1378 Tampa Bay Buccaneers +205

Team to win the 2009 NFC Conference
1264 New Orleans Saints +915

Odds to win Super Bowl XLIII
1208 New Orleans Saints +1650

[NFL Insider]

1 7 (7) S. Ellis DT USC
2 9 (40) T. Porter DC Indiana
5 9 (144) D. Pressley DT NC State
5 29 (164) C. Nicks OT Nebraska
6 12 (178) T. Mehlhaff PK Wisconsin
7 30 (237) A. Arrington WR Michigan

[NFL Insider]

TEAM W L T PF PA
Tampa Bay 9 7 0 334 270
Carolina 7 9 0 267 347
New Orleans 7 9 0 379 388
Atlanta 4 12 0 259 414

[NFL Insider]

Mark Brunell QB
Randall Gay CB
Aaron Glenn CB
Jonathan Goodwin OL
Martin Gramatica PK
Devery Henderson WR
Eric Johnson TE
Matt Lehr G
Bobby McCray DE
Billy Miller TE
Dan Morgan LB
David Patten WR
Mark Simoneau LB
Aaron Stecker RB
Brian Young DT

[NFL Insider]

One of the most encouraging signs of the Saints' recently-concluded offseason workouts was the play of second-year wide receiver Robert Meachem.

Meachem, healthy now after being inactive for all 16 games of his rookie season because of a knee injury that bothered him throughout training camp, appears ready to make a strong run at becoming the third wide receiver this fall.

After receiving praise from Saints coach Sean Payton, general manager Mickey Loomis and quarterback Drew Brees for his attitude and work ethic in the spring, Meachem will at least go into training camp with much more confidence than last season.

As a result, he will likely battle veterans Devery Henderson and Lance Moore for the third spot behind starters Marques Colston and David Patten. The job is Meachem's for the taking since Henderson and Moore each went through periods of inconsistency a year ago.

[NFL Insider]

First-round draft pick Sedrick Ellis is not expecting to sign a contract as quickly as some of the players picked ahead of him in the draft this spring.

Ellis, a defensive tackle from Southern Cal, was the seventh overall selection in the draft. Three of the six players chosen before him -- tackle Jake Long (first, Miami), quarterback Matt Ryan (third, Atlanta) and running back Darren McFadden (fourth, Oakland) -- are already signed.

"I don't even think there's been any discussions," Ellis said recently.

Ellis said he doubted that negotiations will begin until July, which is when the Saints typically start signing their draft picks, and will wait to see what type of deal defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, the fifth pick, gets from the Kansas City Chiefs.

[NFL Insider]

These Saints could use some saving.

Jonathan Vilma could, too.

In that way, the February trade that sent the former Jets middle linebacker to the Saints for conditional draft picks was the perfect swap.

The thud of New Orleans’ disappointing ’07 campaign still echoes throughout the city. Fresh off an NFC championship game berth following a revitalizing 2006 season, the Saints sputtered to a 0-4 start and finished 7-9 in ’07, missing the playoffs after being billed as a legitimate title contender.

[NFL Insider]

For Coach Ed Orgeron, returning home to coach in Louisiana was always a dream of his. After coaching three losing seasons as head coach at Ole Miss, Orgeron was relieved of his duties in November 2007. That’s when New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis came calling.

“I’m happy to be with the Saints,” said Orgeron. “I’m looking forward to being a defensive line coach in the NFL (for the first time) and coaching with Sean Payton.”

Orgeron had previously served as defensive line coach at schools like USC, Syracuse and Miami, before becoming a first time head coach at Mississippi.

“Defensive line is what I know how to do,” said Orgeron. “There should be very few surprises for me on a daily basis. Being a head coach for the first time, every day was new with new experiences. Coaching the defensive line, I feel comfortable. I know what to get done, and I really think that I can help the Saints defensive line.”

[NFL Insider]

With training camp a month away I will look at each team position by position. Remember, this is just what I see that could happen. This does not mean that any team will do any of this at all.

I will start with my home town team, the New Orleans Saints. This team has had to over come so much in the last three years it's hard to judge them to be fair. This year is a make-or-break year for a lot of players. So let's start by looking at the backfield.

Quarterback: At this time the team only has three quarterbacks on the roster. Drew Brees will be hard pressed to improve over what he has done in the past two years, but get ready. Brees has the talent around him to put the team in the playoffs. I would expect him to have around 31 TD's this season. And if Brees goes down the Saints have a player that can come in and take over

[NFL Insider]

The countdown to the Saints' 2008 season has reached its final month.

Players are scheduled to report to training camp at Millsaps College in Jackson, Miss., on July 23, with the first set of two-a-day practices scheduled for July 24, the team confirmed Monday.

The team will break camp and return to Metairie on Aug. 12, giving the Saints about three weeks to bake in the sweltering Mississippi heat.

As usual, all practices at Millsaps will be open to the public. Most practices begin at 8:50 a.m. and either 3:40 or 4:20 p.m., though the times are subject to change. The Saints have scheduled 29 practices on the Division III campus, including some abbreviated special teams sessions.

[NFL Insider]

6/12 Will Smith DE signed, Six-year contract extension
6/10 Jamaal Branch RB cut
6/10 Carlton Brewster WR cut
6/10 Josh Cooper DE cut
6/3 Marquay Love DT signed/unrestricted free agent
6/3 Jerametrius Butler CB signed/unrestricted free agent
5/19 Dan Morgan LB retired
4/7 Aaron Glenn CB signed/unrestricted free agent
3/15 Mark Brunell QB signed/unrestricted free agent, Two-year contract
3/11 Steve Gleason S retired
3/10 Eric Johnson TE re-signed/unrestricted free agent, One-year contract
3/7 Dan Morgan LB signed
3/3 Bobby McCray DE signed/unrestricted free agent, Five-year contract
3/3 David Patten WR re-signed/unrestricted free agent, Two-year contract
3/2 Randall Gay CB signed/unrestricted free agent, Four-year contract
3/2 Aaron Stecker RB re-signed/unrestricted free agent
3/1 Devery Henderson WR re-signed/unrestricted free agent
3/1 Brian Simmons LB cut
2/29 Steve Gleason S declared free agent
2/29 Jonathan Goodwin C declared free agent
2/29 Eric Johnson TE declared free agent
2/29 Jeff Faine C declared free agent
2/29 Devery Henderson WR declared free agent
2/29 Jay Bellamy S declared free agent
2/27 Olindo Mare K cut
2/27 Jonathan Goodwin C re-signed, One-year contract
2/12 Martin Gramatica K re-signed
12/30 Tyler Palko QB Activated from the Practice Squad
12/26 Aaron Brown WR practice squad addition
12/26 Josh Savage DE practice squad addition
12/26 Josh Savage DE cut
12/26 Chris Barclay RB signed/unrestricted free agent
12/26 Dante Ridgeway WR Placed on IR
12/26 Artose Pinner RB signed/unrestricted free agent
12/24 Mike McKenzie CB Placed on IR, right knee
12/24 Jamaal Branch RB Placed on IR, fractured right leg
12/23 Josh Savage DE Activated from the Practice Squad
12/18 Brian Young DT Placed on IR, illness
12/18 Orien Harris DT signed

[NFL Insider]

will update more later