Saints Sideline Blog

PRESEASON PERFECTION??

Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009      Email Print

DATELINE: Metairie, LA/ September 2nd,2009 (Mercury Morris could care less about this one!)
 
Is there anything more overrated than preseason records? Ok maybe Paris Hilton, Billy Ray Cyrus or how about Dancing with the Stars?? Sure, its great to play well but its often not a good barometer of how well a team plays when the real stuff starts. Remember back in 2006 when the Saints looked awful in the preseason with a 1-3 record? Sean Payton's first exhibition season saw the defense being hailed as one of the worst in NFL history,where the offensive line had several questions and many were wondering could Drew Brees stay healthy for an entire season? What happened?? Well the Saints went out and had the best season in franchise history. The lesson learned is that the preseason record can't be judged by your record, but by your progress.
 
The Saints have never had a perfect preseason and even if they beat the Dolphins on Thursday, it still won't be perfect. This team still has to prove it can run the football better, still has to prove it can clean up those costly penalties and the defense still has much to prove despite a preseason where they have showed  that they have acquired a much needed swagger. On the positive side, the offense looks even better than a year ago, the running game has shined despite the absences of Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas and the defense has forced three turnovers in each of its first three games. Still, the Saints realize its good to be optimistic but of the "cautious" variety as when the regular season starts the intensity and quality of play is turned up numerous notches.
 
History backs up this argument. The Detroit Lions were perfect last preseason, we know how that worked out. Drew Brees remembers arriving in San Diego and hearing how Ryan Leaf led a perfect preseason, only to win a single game during the regular season. The Indianapolis Colts for years have had terrible preseason records, do you think that bothers Peyton Manning? I think Saints fullback Heath Evans summed it up best when I asked him about the Saints chances of going 4-0 in the preseason, "It would be great but it would mean nothing."  Exactly!
 
Its ironic the Saints are playing the Miami Dolphins this week. The Dolphins of course own the NFL's only true perfect season, the kind of perfection that matters.I doubt Mercury Morris and Nick Buoniconti will be popping open the champagne after a Fins win in New Orleans. They, like the rest of the players who played this game understand the drill,preseason football is as overrated as Jessica Simpson. By the way, the perfect 72 Dolphins record in the preseason was 3-3.
 
AROUND THE CAMPFIRE
 
REGGIE REACTS: Reggie Bush is saying all the right things. He says he is 100 percent and says there have been no setbacks but Sean Payton still lists him as a game time decision against Miami. The Saints Head Coach says he would like to see Reggie get quality reps on Thursday but is still cautious on forcing his return.
 
PIERRE IS OUT: Payton expects Pierre Thomas should be fine for the season opener but won't be playing against the Dolphins as he is still nursing his sprained knee.
 
BULLISH ON BUSHROD: Its hard to find any Saintwho has improved their stock more this preseason than left tackle Jermon Bushrod (maybe Mike Bell??) At any rate, Payton is happy with his play the last two games and acknowledged he will start in the opener if Jammal Brown can't go which is likely the case.
 
DREW'S CLUES: Drew Brees is only supposed to play about a series on Thursday but admits Payton always underestimates his preseason playing time. He tells us when the competitive juices start flowing, he and his coach want to see him play more. I asked Brees, "Is it hard sitting on the sidelines so long for a game," and he says he approaches it like a backup QB as he plays the game in his head and still stays involved.
 
PAYTON AND PARCELLS: Sean Payton says he learned a lot from current Miami Executive Bill Parcells in their Dallas days,but one of the main lessons he learned from the future Hall of Famer was "getting the right 53." Payton told me Parcells stressed the importance of having a vision for each player and communicating that vision to them.
 
IDENTICAL TWINS: Saints running backs Lynell Hamilton and Herb Donaldson have looked good in camp, but are suffering from an identity crisis. They have the same size, nearly the same number and many teammates say its hard to recognize them without their uniforms on. Brees calls them "identical twins."
 
HARRINGTON AND STAFFORD: I asked Joey Harrington if he feels any common ground with Matthew Stafford who is facing big time expectations in the Motor City. The former Lion first rounder says he thought about calling Stafford, but didn't want to "stick his nose where it doesn't belong." Harrington struggled in Detroit and while taking accountablity for his play added that a young QB can't turn things around by himself. He says the culture and core of a team has to be solid for the turnaround, something which was hardly in place in Detroit.
 
UNTIL NEXT BLOG,
Mike Nabors
CST

By: Mike Nabors

An Emmy award winning sports reporter who covers a wide variety of events for CST. Primarily, Mike serves as the network's reporter for Saints coverage.

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