Any win is a good win, but over the last 4 weeks, we haven't seen the Saints play like they did in the first 5 weeks.

Some things concern me.  It's obvious now that turnovers are becoming a concern.  The Saints have had 7 interceptions and 7 fumbles in the last 3 ball games.  It's a lot to overcome that, and as the coach said after the game, that's going to cost you sooner or later.

Now, with New Orleans continuing to go undefeated, they really get other teams' "A Game."  I think that's what we'll see in Tampa next week. You're going to have a bull's-eye on your back, and those other teams don't want to be the one with the first pick in the draft next year.  Overall the Saints are looking good in just about every stat, but they've got to watch the turnovers.

The Saints gave up 103 rushing yards in the first half against the Rams.  In the second half, the Rams had just 38 yards on the ground.  We have been concerned about a few recent teams gashing the Saints, but they haven't done it for four quarters.  Of course, at the end of the ball game, the Rams had to throw it a lot.  They weren't in the position to run, but since the Saints effectively stopped the run in the start of the second half.  They forced the Rams to go to the pass.  I think that shows how this staff has done better than any past Saints staffs at making halftime adjustments.

Now, the Saints are still undefeated and dominating the NFC South.  I don't think that any of us thought that this would be the nail-biter that it was, even when the Saints went up by 11.  I thought we'd stop them, then get the running game going and chew up the clock.  Again, you've got to give the Rams credit. They're a better team than what their record shows, and despite a lot of booing from their fans  -who didn't fill the stadium- they're tough.

The Saints showed that you can't continue to play substandard ball with some of the teams remaining down the stretch.

 

WWL.com: Halfway through the Saints season, 8-0 is nothing to complain about.  As you look at their play through the first eight games, what concerns you about certain aspects of the Black and Gold's play?

Hokie: Well they are starting to commit turnovers now at somewhat of an alarming rate.  Their cushion in the giveaway-takeaway ratio is getting chipped away at every week.  The good thing is that the Saints are good enough to overcome that.  So, it's not as glaring as it would be if you would have lost those games.  The only other thing I'd look at is that, with a couple of teams, they would run the ball early in the game against the Saints.  But then after the first quarter, or even at halftime, the Saints made those adjustments and shut the run down pretty good. The turnovers give me more concern than the Saints shutting down the running game.

WWL.com: After going 8-0 in the first half, how many games will the Saints win in the second half of the season?

Hokie: Well, you know they have to play the Falcons one more time.  They have to play New England and Dallas.  It depends on what things look like towards the end of the season.  Are those teams still fighting for their playoff lives?  If Sean Payton gets something clinched, does he sit here and say, "Well, I want to rest my starters and give these guys an opportunity to heal."  After a long, grueling season, will he be playing for home field advantage if Minnesota continues to play the way that they have been playing?  I'm quite certain that Sean Payton would like to have the home field advantage.  So, I guess there's a lot of different things you could look at.  Just looking at the competition across the league and everything else, the Saints will probably lose 2 ball games in the second half of the season.  That's 8 ball games and there's not a thing wrong with going 14-2 or 13-3 for that matter.  I'm certainly not saying that teams have figured the Saints out, but they are starting to play a lot closer ball games now... of course they are playing against better talent than they were earlier in the season, but you've got to figure the Saints are probably going to lose at least 2 games in the final 8 games.

WWL.com: Sunday in St. Louis, the Saints are going up against one of the league's worst teams, the 1-7 Rams.  What kind of game do you expect?  Give me a prediction, give me a score.

Hokie: Well, after the beating I took last week from the fans when I said that I thought Carolina would win, I definitely can't go with that this week with the Saints against the Rams.  But look at what they did to the Saints a couple of years ago when they came into the Dome at 0-8.  They really had nothing to play for.  Marc Bulger came out there and really just lit it up all over the place.  I just don't expect that to happen this go around, but I don't know, the Rams' Steven Jackson is a guy that scares me.  He's got a tremendous amount of talent.  He's about as complete of a running back as there is in the league, with the way that he runs and catches the ball out of the backfield.  He's got speed.  He's got power.  He's got just about everything you're looking for, but he is basically their offense.  So, I'm going to say the Saints ought to win this one pretty handily, 28-14.

WWL.com: What do you think about LSU and Louisiana Tech?

Hokie: LA Tech, to be perfectly honest with you, LSU should be pretty well able to have their way with Tech.  I would say that they are a better opponent possibly than Tulane, but that's about it.

WWL.com: Hokie, does LSU look like a team that could maybe win their last three games?

Hokie: yeah, I don't think there's any doubt about that.  I think that Ole Miss has really fallen to the back of the pack.  At one time during the season, I think they were ranked number 4. They have kind of fallen from grace.  The same thing with Arkansas.

WWL.com:  How do you see the season ending?

Hokie: I still think LSU can finish this whole thing out with three quality wins at the end of the season and get a quality Bowl game.

These guys truly do believe, "no matter what, we're never out of a ball game."  Even when they fall behind, they don't get down, they don't' fight on the sidelines.  They fight on the field as a unit. That's why they are 8 - 0 for the first time in Saints history.  They are a very impressive ball club.

The Saints came up big-time again in the 2nd half.  That seems to be how games have been going lately.  The first few games were built on big leads, but in the last 3 ball games -playing from behind- the Saints looked pretty dang salty.

They're a good ball club.

I expected Carolina to win this ball game today and early going, that's how it looked.  I certainly was hoping I'd be proven wrong. The Saints really stepped up, marched down the field from the two yard line and put points on the board. They are just finding ways -week in and week out- to win ball games.

This team has now been battle-tested over and over. Not taking the lead until near the end of the game, and they have been FINISHING strong.  That's just as important as a strong start.

It became a nail-biter right there at the end.   You look at the way Carolina came out at first, and jumped out front. That did work for Carolina, at least for a while.  They were controlling the tempo, but man, the Saints came up with turnovers.  They forced 5 fumbles, recovering 3.  It was the first time all season long that the Saints have not gotten an interception, but they still found a way to get the turnovers.

They've won games all year in many different fashions, but I'm glad the Saints got that monkey off their back, having never beaten the panthers in the Dome. We have a lot of things to be happy about, and we're only at the halfway point of the season.

This team will definitely keep you on the edge the whole game, but the way things are going, it's just so hard to bet against them. Looking at the rest of the schedule, the remaining teams for the Saints together have a combined winning percentage of just under 37 percent.  So, things are lining up nicely for the Saints. 

By the way, I really like Roman Harper, but that little comment from him in the post-game when he said, "Roll Tide" got me a little bit.   But hey, so long as he keeps winning as a Saint, that's all that matters.

WWL.COM: Hokie, let's talk Alabama vs. LSU in Tuscaloosa.  Is there any hope for the LSU offense to run the ball effectively against Alabama?

HOKIE:  Well I just think that's going to be tough. That Alabama defense is so good, and LSU has struggled against a lot lesser opponents to get the ground game going this year. So, I just can't see that happening. I think that when you flip the coin over and you say, look at what Alabama coach Nick Saban is going to do to LSU QB Jordan Jefferson. He's going to force him into throwing the ball. Jefferson already has had a problem all year long with holding the ball too long and having a tendency to tuck the ball and run when things aren't wide open for him down the field. So, I look at this as a total domination of the Alabama defense against LSU's offense. Nick Saban has had 2 weeks to game plan against LSU. He's going to throw more things at Jordan Jefferson that he hasn't ever seen. I just don't have a good feeling about the LSU offense at all this week.

WWL.COM:  Who has the better defense this year, Florida or Alabama?

HOKIE:  I'm probably going to say Alabama. I think it's close, probably more so because of the schemes that Nick Saban has, and he'll bring blitzes from every direction. It will remind you a lot of Greg Williams with the Saints, the things that Nick Saban will do. So I'm going to give the nod to Alabama.

WWL.COM:  What kind of game do you expect? Give me the score for LSU and Alabama.

HOKIE:  Well I think Alabama will win because they've got a few things going for them. Number 1, they're playing in their home stadium.  Number 2, Nick Saban has had plenty of time to prepare for this LSU offense. Third, the LSU offense is just not that impressive to me. I'm going to look for it to be fairly low scoring just because I do think that LSU's defense is rounding into shape right now. I'm going to say Alabama 27, LSU 17.
 

Maybe it wasn't the best performance I've seen this season, and the Saints did wait until late to put Atlanta away, but what can you say?   This is a complete Saints team, and you can't win without an entire team effort.

When the Saints tied it up at 14, and then went ahead 28-14; I thought, "Everything's going to explode now."  The next thing you know, it's a 7-point ballgame. The Saints pulled it out, though because everybody stuck together. 

Like Saints defensive lineman Tony Hargrove said, "If they put us on a short field, it's our job to go out and stop them."

The Saints have won many ways this season.  They have had big wins and come from behind.  Now they have answered the question can you hold on to a lead against a team fighting to come back?  They've shown that they can do that. They're getting themselves tested in quite a few different contests, and we're not even halfway through the season! They're a good football team, but they've proved that they can win both ugly and pretty.

This big victory gives the Saints a three game cushion, at least for now, in the division.  They only get more difficult, though. Not only can you get to 8-0 Sunday, but you can basically put Carolina out of the mix, not only in this division but in the whole NFC. 

However, what scares me about Carolina is their big numbers on offense week, with 300 yards by halftime last week.  They were turning the ball over early in the season.  One thing that you can't sit there and say though, "Every ballgame Carolina is going to turn over 4 or 5 times." If they hang onto the football, they can be a winning team.

A lot of people talk about trap games. I think that's what Carolina might be for the Saints.

The Saints have not beat Carolina at home since 2000, so it's been a while.  I do know that Carolina has gotten the best of the Saints here in the Superdome. We're looking at a short week, looking to get ready for another division opponent. With Jake Delhomme, if he wants to play a good game this year, you'd think it would be against the Saints, with a lot of his family in the stands.
 

WWL.com: Could this be the toughest opponent yet for the Saints?

Hokie: Well I think every week it gets tougher and tougher because even the teams that are not playing well want to be the team to knock the Saints off their undefeated record, whether it goes to 7-0 or 8-0 or whatever.  If you look at it, all of those guys are pros.  They are all getting paid to play on any given Sunday, and all of that other garbage that you want to use. So, anybody could knock them off.  If you just look at the records going in right now, the Saints only have 3 tough games left.  That's two against Atlanta and one against New England.

WWL.com: Break down what you've seen out of these Falcons.  They are 4-2 through six games.  They had a great year last year, going 11-5.  Second year quarterback Matt Ryan is again playing well and looks like a seasoned veteran.

Hokie: Well the thing about Matt Ryan is that he doesn't make mistakes that a young quarterback typically makes.  I don't think you can approach him like you did with Kevin Kolb in the Philadelphia game or Trent Edwards in Buffalo, Stafford, or Sanchez.  You can't say, "He's a young guy.  We're going to force him into mistakes."  He just doesn't make the mistakes.  I think that that's the thing that separates him from a lot of the young quarterbacks in the league.  He just doesn't take that huge risk.  He knows that he's got to throw some balls sometimes into coverage and let guys try to make a play, but he doesn't do the foolish things like other new QB's do.  So, I think that's what separates Matt Ryan.  Atlanta has still got that really good running game with Turner and Norwood, and of course, that helps him.  Now he's got Tony Gonzales at tight end.  So, do I think the Saints have got a better team?  Yeah, but to answer your first question, I do believe the Falcons are the toughest opponent the Saints have had to go against this year.

WWL.com: Talk about playing on Monday night.  You did it as player.  How special is that for a player to be on that stage?

Hokie: Well you know all the eyes in the country are on you.  It's not a regional thing.  It's not that late kickoff game like Miami.  You know you are the only game in town.  All of your friends all over the country, all the guys you went to high school with, people that you went to college with, all your aunts and uncles will be able to tune in and watch it.  So yeah, it's a big deal.  You know that you're the national game that's going to be broadcast at night, and everyone wants to do well.

WWL.com: What kind of game do you expect on Monday night?

Hokie: I think it's going to be a typical Saints – Falcons game.  Of course, I've said everything up to this point would be a fairly close ball game, so I guess I'm going to stick with that.  I'm looking for the Saints to pull it out 31 - 27.

WWL.com: Tulane and LSU - Can you envision a scenario where Tulane can keep this game close Saturday night?

Hokie: No.  That's pretty well it.  God bless them.  I think Bob Toledo has been a good coach, but you can't overcome things like that. I just don't see where they have got enough talent to compete with LSU.

WWL.com: Now after this game on Saturday night, that's basically going to be it for Tulane - LSU football.  There's another game that's supposed to be played sometime in the future, but it's not clear if or when that will happen. Talk about the end of this rivalry... Will you miss it, as a fan and LSU alum?

Hokie: Not really, because you know they put that thing on the backburner for years.  It was something for us, when I was growing up, and even when I played there that you knew you were going to play Tulane every year.  You knew everybody was going to get hyped up about the game.  It's just not that way anymore.  I certainly see LSU's stance in that whole thing.  Why come down here and play in the Dome when they aren't going to make any money off of it? Tulane will make money off of the game if they go to Baton Rouge.  So, I just think that with all the shenanigans going on with it and everything else... No, I don't think it's a huge loss.

WWL.com: On the week that LSU is celebrating the 50th anniversary of Billy Cannon's punt return to beat Ole Miss, who is the greatest football player in LSU history?

Hokie: If you ask me, I'd say Tommy Casanova because he is the only 3-time All-American at LSU.  He played both ways.  He played on special teams, returned punts, and kickoffs.  He was a guy I idolized growing up.  I guess if sat down and put reasoning into it you may have to put Dalton Hilliard in there.  Let me just put it this way, in my mind Tommy Casanova is the greatest player to ever play at LSU.
 

A big victory for the Saints, no doubt one of the best comebacks in team history.

We've seen just the opposite happen in years past, when the Saints jump out to a big lead and then lose it.  But in this case, it showed a lot of what this team is all about.
 
Look, this was a hostile, loud crowd; and this was a very good Dolphins team. For the Saints to come in here and win in the fashion they did, is just amazing.

Now that the team is 6-0, if the theme was "The Saints have never trailed," or "The Saints have not been tested" coming into the game, that business has been put to rest.

They've now seen all sides of diversity, and we're now seeing signs of a COMPLETE ball club.  There's nothing else this team has to prove, other than to themselves.

With the Dolphins, the Saints had to respond to losing the turnover battle, but Saints players will tell you now that their motivation is "anything can happen."  They are definitely a club to reckon with, no doubt about it.

My goodness, I can only imagine what the atmosphere will be like next Monday night in New Orleans when the Falcons come to the Dome!

WWL.com:  Why are the Miami Dolphins so effective running the wildcat offense?  Why does Miami appear to be the best at it?

HOKIE:  Well they're probably number one because of their running backs. It was something that they devised last year. It's basically like the option offense in college. Nobody runs that anymore. It's just something that the Dolphins put in their package because they do have a Ronnie Brown and a Ricky Williams at the running back position. You also have a creative coach who likes to do stuff like that. I'm going to say the reason that it's effective is just because teams don't see it on a week in and week out basis in the NFL. When the Eagles ran it against the Saints, they had a couple of successful plays early on.  The Saints adjusted to it. But in this case, Miami runs it more than anybody else. I'm not going to say that they've got it perfected, but they do it better than anybody else. So it's going to be a big part of their game plan. That's part of the reason they're leading the NFL in rushing now, because they come out in that option type offense and it catches people off guard.

WWL.com:  What kind of game did you expect on Sunday between the 5-0 Saints and 2-3 Dolphins?

HOKIE:  I'm hoping that the Saints defense is a little more geared up for that wildcat offense. They've had more time to study it now and to break it down. That was one of the things that kept the chains moving on offense for Miami. I'll be perfectly honest with you; I haven't the faintest idea what to expect this week. I would expect for there to be a lot of yards gained in this ball game. I think the Saints can do it with either running or throwing. Miami is going to do it with that wildcat offense and the Dolphins second year quarterback Chad Henne is playing pretty good right now. So, when Miami puts him in the position to throw the ball, I think you can look for him to be pretty efficient. There's going to be a lot of offense, but I'm not sold on the fact that there's going to be  lot of scoring. I think a lot of it will be between the 20's and teams settling for field goals. If you can get a turnover here or there, it will make a big difference. 

WWL.com:  Who wins?

HOKIE:  I'm going to go with the Saints on this one. I still think that the wildcat is still somewhat of a gadget formation in the NFL.  I think there's only a couple of teams that can really do it well and the Dolphins are one of those teams, but I just don't think that you can get by with gimmicks and gadgets in the NFL. Solid, basic fundamental football is still what wins games and that's what the Saints have done so far this year. That's why they rank so high in offense and defense. They're playing good, solid football. So, I'll stick with the Saints.  Saints win 27 to 23.

WWL.com:  There are four undefeated teams in the league: the Colts and Saints are 5 and 0, Denver and the Vikings are 6 and 0, rank those teams 1 to 4 of the four undefeated teams.

HOKIE:  Denver is a little bit of a surprise, so I would put them in the fourth spot right there. I'd have to say just based on history and all that kind of stuff, I'd probably put Indianapolis first. Then I'd go with the Saints at #2. Then I'd go with Minnesota at #3. And I would have the Broncos #4.   So, it's Colts, Saints, Vikings then Denver.

WWL.com:  You've watched LSU for six games, and you saw what happened in Florida. They're 5 and 1, with 6 games to go. Realistically, after what you've seen for half a season, do they have a real shot to make it to Atlanta to be in the SEC championship game?

HOKIE: No, I don't think so. I mean if nothing else they still got Alabama staring them down.  In my personal opinion, that's the team that has shown me over the long haul that they're the most impressive team in college football right now. They've got a good running game going, and you know they're going to have a good defense with Nick Saban. Plus, Bama is getting good play from the QB position.  So, I don't think that LSU's got a chance.

WWL.com: What is the biggest problem for the Tigers?

HOKIE:  Look, their defense rose to the occasion against Florida, but until they can get something going with that offense I don't know if they can beat the elite of college football.  Right now you're half way through the season, and we keep saying it week after week after week that they'll get their offense on track, and you'll get Keiland Williams and Charles Scott going.  I just don't see that happening, not after we're half way through the season. If they haven't done it by now, I don't know that they will do it.

WWL.com:  LSU is back after their by-week, taking on Auburn on Saturday night. Auburn is 5 and 2.  LSU is 5 and 1.  Which tiger team is going to come out on top and why?

HOKIE:  I'll go with the LSU Tigers. Auburn kind of had their flash when they jumped out to a 5 and 0 record, and they finally got inside the top 25. It's like all of a sudden they get into SEC play, and they just fold - losing 2 straight games. Although I do think that Auburn is a pretty good team,  a solid running team and pretty good run defense.. but Auburn's pass defense does not play well.

On the LSU side, I don't know that they can put it on the shoulders of QB Jordan Jefferson to pull it out for the Bayou Bengals.  I'm still not sold on Jefferson just yet. I think that if you listen to Les Miles in the course of a week, he's constantly defending his quarterback, and I ain't so sure that he's not getting hard headed about it. Maybe he should give back-up quarterbacks Jarrett Lee or Russell Shepard a chance to move the team. 

I still think that LSU is still probably the more well rounded ball club, especially if they'll play defense like they did against Florida. That's one side of the ball that I have seen steady improvement with LSU is defense. I think they are getting better. I just don't think that Auburn is up for that match just yet. So, I'm going to go with the LSU tigers on this one.  Like I said, Auburn does give up a lot of yardage in the passing game. I'm going to go LSU 31 and Auburn 21.
 

The Saints dominated a team that many thought were the most complete team in the league, and now there's no doubt everyone is taking the Saints seriously. 

I waffled back and forth all week, and in the end said that I thought the Giants would win it in a close one.  But the Saints came out smoking, and it's amazing that the Saints have not trailed at all this season. When you watch that offensive performance they put on today, I got to tell you, it's pretty impressive.

You've got to look up front, at the lines. The Saints don't dominate if they don't control the line from either side. If you look at this game, about the only sour part was the Saints special teams.  The kickoff coverage let us down a little bit, but  -you know- we're continuing to get the takeaways, to run the football well, Drew threw for a career high today, and I think that just the way they're able to control things up from let them dominate all four quarters.

Given the buildup for this game, and playing their best opponent, New Orleans just wiped the floor with them. I don't know that anyone was expecting such a lopsided win by the Saints. It kind of proves to you what can happen when all the potential comes together.
 
At halftime, the Giants had 141 yards, and the Saints, about 315.  I was thinking that other than a couple of long kickoff returns, the Saints owned it.  I mean, it's a pretty complete team.  I know coaches will always find things to complain about after the game, but you've just got to like the way this team is playing right now.

What can you say, other than 48-27?!?  Everyone said the Saints were stepping up in class against the Giants.

The way the Miami has been playing, it might even be another step up. Like Jim Henderson said, if the Saints were flying under the radar before, it now looks like the Saints are the team that everybody's got the bulls eye on as the most complete team in the NFC.
 

WWL.com: The Saints will have to face up against Terrell Owens and the Bills Sunday. How dangerous is he compared to how he was in his younger years? How do the Saints defend against him Hokie?

Hokie: No doubt about it, he is still a good receiver in this league. I don't think he's the same player that he once was, even though he probably views himself that way.  I think they will approach Owens just like they did with the Lions and wide receiver Calvin Johnson.   They will just bracket cover him, keep Darren Sharper or Roman Harper on the top of him and have a corner underneath because Owens is still a threat.  You just can't lose sight of that guy out there.

WWL.com:   What stands out to you in this game?

Hokie: The Saints will be stepping up in class a little bit there from the standpoint of who the quarterback is going to be.  The first 2 QBs that they faced - neither one of those guys had even made an NFL start until they played against the Saints.  A lot of the guys have said as much... that they have gone against unproven quarterbacks.  I think we all know, and it's been beaten into our brains that you've got to have a quarterback in this league. Trent Edwards is a pretty decent quarterback, somebody that's kind of on the rise. So, that will a little bit of a step up there.

WWL.com: What kind of game do you expect this Sunday in upstate New York as the Saints take on the Bills?

Hokie: Well of course you know last week I said the Eagles would win, because the Saints had to play on the road.  They shoved that down my throat pretty good.  I expect this game to be tougher than the first two just because I think Buffalo is a little bit more of a veteran ball club.  They are not starting a brand new quarterback, and they do have some weapons offensively.  So, I'm going to call it a closer game. Again, I've been so pathetic at picking scores this year, but I'll pick the Saints to win this one. I'll say 28-21.

WWL.com: Hokie, looking at this race in the NFC South - obviously the Saints are 2-0, the Falcons are 2-0, Carolina is 0-2, and Tampa is 0-2. I know we are still really early, but does this look like a two-team race for the division title?

Hokie: That's hard to say. I'm looking for Tampa and Carolina to turn things around.  I think both of those cities are sitting there looking at the Saints going, "Man, 93 points after 2 weeks. Are they really that good?" It's going to end up being a free-for-all right there at the end, but I think that's what makes everything so fun right here in the early part of the season.

I'm definitely sold on Atlanta and that team being a good football club. They have a strong running game. They have a very intelligent and poised quarterback. So I think they are going to be there throughout the whole thing, thick and thin. One thing about the NFC South, in the years that everyone has been together there, it's just boils down to the very end of the season.

WWL.com: Looking at the Saints offense in the first 2 games, averaging 46 and a half points in those games - In your years as a fan, as a player, as a scout, and now in the media... can you compare this Saints offense to any team that you've seen in the past?

Hokie: I would have to say maybe some of the Green Bay Packer teams 12 or 15 years ago when Brett Farve was really just kind of getting into his prime.  Maybe some of the dominating Patriots teams that they had when they continued to go to the Super Bowl.  I'll be honest with you; I think that the Saints offense has really made it look pretty easy the first 2 weeks against Detroit and this past weekend against Philadelphia.  It shouldn't be.  The Eagles are very much a step up in class, and from year to year people always say when it comes to the NFC, Philadelphia will definitely be a contender.  The way the Saints made it look the other day, it seemed pretty easy.  So, I don't know.  Will the Saints stub their toe and fall flat on their face? I don't know, but right now all I know is I like what I'm seeing and don't see that bunch letting up any at all. 

WWL.com: Mike Bell has a sprained MCL, he can't go on Sunday. Can the Saints have an effective running game without Bell?

Hokie: Well, Lynell Hamilton was the guy that all through training camp everybody said maybe should be the starting back... he runs hard, runs north and south.  It's hard to say. Every time that one of those guys goes down and somebody else gets plugged in their position, you think, "Well here it goes... now they are going to expose us, we aren't going to be able to run the ball very well." But then the next guy steps in and you think, "Hell, he's better than the guy we had back here before."  So, without knowing the true extent of the injury to Mike Bell, and not knowing just how far Pierre Thomas is along with his MCL sprain, I'm kind of looking at Lynell Hamilton to get the lion's share of the carries for now.  I guess that's the beauty of the whole thing - when you've got Drew Brees behind center, and you do so much play action and you throw the ball so well, you start backing people off and then boom - here comes somebody right up the middle. So, it'll be interesting to see exactly what they do this weekend. We do know that Hamilton will be healthy enough to play and so will Reggie Bush.

The Saints are one of a handful of 2-0 teams, tied with Atlanta atop the NFC South. As much as I hate to say it, the Saints made it look pretty easy.

I gotta say, you really have to look at numbers.  People may look at Philly's 463 total yards, but they did NOT do what they wanted to do with the running game, with a new QB that had to pass 52 times. So, I think it's obvious that the Saints had the Eagles completely out of sync, letting the Saints pull ahead. 
 

I tell you, at the end of the first half, I was a little bit disappointed with the way the Saints D played, letting the Eagles march down and get the field goal.  It's not so much the field goal itself, but how easily they let the Eagles do it. 

A lot of the Eagles' yards toward the end of the game, were just garbage work out there for Kevin Kolb.  The Eagles offense may look good on the stat sheet, but means absolutely nothing in terms of wins and losses.

Speaking of wins and losses, I don't think I'm in the business of making predictions anymore!  Going into the game, playing on the road, and even without their starting QB, I thought the Philly defensive and running game would be too strong for the saints.  And man, did I have to eat some crow.  In this case, it's a dish I don't mind eating. 
 

The Saints were making it tough on themselves in the first half, and who knows what would have happened if they'd called that pass play to Heath Evans a fumble; it could've been a spark for the Eagles. But, at the end of the day, despite the mistakes, they made it look pretty easy beating the Eagles today.
 

Every year, the Eagles are mentioned as "the class of the NFC," especially with the win last week against Carolina.  I don't see any reason in the world why they shouldn't be. But, the Saints have yet to meet a team with a "sho-'nuff" quarterback yet this season.

WWL.com:  Hokie, the announcement came down for both LSU and Tulane that they're cutting off the football series again. They'll play the game this year, and then after that maybe one game in the future.  That's it.

Hokie:  Well, it's a shame they're doing that. I certainly can see why they're doing it. I heard the argument that Tulane had, 'Why should we have to go up to Baton Rouge to play every time?'  I also heard the argument that Joe Alleva (LSU A.D.) had when he said that, we don't make any money when we go to New Orleans. So, maybe it's a little one sided that they always had to do it in Baton Rouge.  If we keep the rivalry alive, then it will make money for both schools. I happen to be on the side of LSU on this one, why go down there when they can get another non conference opponent to play and make money?  That way everybody will be happy. It's a shame, but that's just the way it is. I think that rivalry is just getting deader and deader every year.

WWL.com:  Hokie, the Tigers are taking on ULL(University of Louisiana at Lafayette) this Saturday night in Tiger Stadium, game 3 of this '09 campaign. Do you expect the Tigers to have much trouble against the Cajuns?

Hokie:  Well that's kind of hard to say. I really haven't seen ULL play in a couple of years. I don't know  what they bring to the table, but they beat Kansas State last week.  Kansas State has had a pretty descent program here for the last few years. Plus, those guys came down here from Manhattan, Kansas.  So, it's a little bit different than ULL having to go up there and beat them on the road.  It sounds to me like they run a spread offense just  like everyone else is running in the country right now.

WWL.com:  Bottom line?

Hokie:  On paper you ought to be able to say that this should be no contest, an easy LSU win.

WWL.com: Hokie, big Saints news - The Saints re-signed kick returner Courtney Roby. Tight end Buck Ortega has been waived. What will having Roby back on the team bring to the Saints on Sunday?

Hokie: Well, I thought Robert Meachem did a pretty decent job (against the Lions) on the two kickoff returns when he took the ball north and south. Sometimes he got a little bit indecisive and tried to run too much from sideline to sideline. I was just thinking about that when I heard Roby was coming back, because I figured it would have been Rod Harper that would have been the guy returning kicks last week. 

So I don't know that that's an automatic given that Courtney Roby will be the guy that is returning kickoffs... but you would have to think that with the performance that he had last year, more than likely he's going to be the guy.  That's the only thing I can figure on right there.

As for cutting Ortega, I think you have to look at it this way now - unless Darnell Dinkins (tight end) is going to play this week, the Saints are little bit short handed at the tight end position after letting Buck Ortega go.   

WWL.com: Going from week one to week two of the season, where do you think the Saints need to improve most going into this Eagles contest?

Hokie: I guess as disgusted as Coach Sean Payton seemed to be after the ball game the other day, I think just the fact that he knows (especially after being with Bill Parcells for all of those years) that if you make those kinds of mistakes that the Saints made on Sunday - with the three turnovers, the penalties, the blocked field goal, and not being able to cover some kicks - those are the kinds of games that good teams will beat you. I think he's also quite pleased with the way his offense and defense played.

He really just has to clean up one area of last week's ball game and that's special teams.  It wasn't the fact that you didn't see people hustling on special teams, what you saw was just some missed tackles and a breakdown on the field goal attempt when nobody really blocked the Detroit defensive line.  So, I would say that would be correctable. If it was one of those things where they just ran over the Saints offensive line and got back there, or the Saints cover unit was just too slow to catch the Detroit return men, that would be something different.  But, I think that's easy to correct.

I don't see how they can improve offensively. I thought their run defense was excellent, and that's not to say they played the prefect ball game. There's room for improvement, mainly you have got to start with special teams.

WWL.com: Hokie, as an ex-football player I want your thoughts on Eagles QB  Donovan McNabb.  He has a cracked rib that he suffered in the Carolina game. What's your best guess, can a guy be ready to play the next Sunday with an injury like that?

Hokie: A few years ago I had a cracked rib.  I was painting my house, and fell off of a ladder and cracked my rib. When I went to the doctor, they x-rayed it and he said, "The thing about your ribs is whether it's a bruised rib, a cracked rib or a broken rib the treatment is the same for all of them." It's not like you can cast the whole thing up.  So I guess really what it boils down to in the situation with Donovan McNabb is how severe is the crack?  If it's too bad, there is a very real possibility that he could get hit again and that rib would break in half and puncture a lung.  You certainly don't want to do that.

Even given a little time to heal, where the calcium would fill in right there on the rib bone itself, it's still going to be quite painful for him. Once it heals and everything else, I would think the likelihood of it cracking worse would be less severe.  Could he play? Yes, they could deaden it and he wouldn't feel a thing. I'm just saying I think it all depends on how bad it is cracked, because that could be an indication of whether this thing could pop all the way...  then something really serious could happen.  But, once they inject you with that thing - whether it's bruised, cracked, or broken - it's going to feel the same.   That means there's no pain if they inject it.  
 

Hokie: Well, I'm gonna say they'll be floating around .500 until they prove me different. I'm actually very optimistic about this team. I like what I saw all throughout training camp and everything else, but I said the same thing after the 2006 season when they went out there and went to the NFC Championship game.  I said, "There's no way. This team is too good not to follow-up with another winning season," ...and they didn't. So, I'm going to give them 9 - 7 right now until they prove me different.

WWL.com:  So, that's a conservative guess?

I do like the changes that I've seen, but like I've heard enough hype about that LSU defense and it hasn't really materialized on the field as of yet, I've kind of heard the same thing about the Saints.  But, we haven't seen it in a real game yet. So, I'm being cautiously optimistic... probably more than anything else... hardheaded. 

WWL.com: Hokie, looking at the Lions game against the Saints on Sunday - the first game of the regular season - Do you expect the defense to continue to look like it looked in the preseason?

Hokie: Well I would think so. I would think right now Greg Williams is probably in a very enviable situation as a defensive coordinator. When you have a rookie quarterback that you know is going to start, and you're a coordinator that's known for aggressive attack style... you're gonna get after people. Those are the kinds of games you look for.  You would hate to open up the season with a new defense going against a Peyton Manning or a Tom Brady, or in some cases... if a new defensive coordinator had to face Drew Brees.  That's not the way you want to come out of the gate because those guys have seen everything.  With Matthew Stafford (Lions rookie QB), you can go out there and put a lot of heat on him, confuse him a lot of different ways and make it look easy. So, I expect to see some of the things we saw, but then again... if you don't tackle well... if you don't blitz the right gap...if you don't cover the right man... even a rookie quarterback can make you look bad. So, really it's just up to the players, will they carry out their responsibilities?

WWL.com:  Hey Hokie what did you think about the Saints roster cuts over the weekend?


Hokie:  I don't think there was any huge surprise in there.  The only person I would say was a surprise would have been Paul Spicer.  I thought he had done well enough to pretty well be a part of that 53 man squad.  Harrington, Arrington, P.J. Hill, Herb Donaldson... I can't say that anything was shocking there.

WWL.com:  What about Skyler Green?

Hokie:  The thing about Skyler Green is we were all pulling for him as an LSU guy, a local guy in New Orleans.  He never did separate himself from, say a Rod Harper who did end up making the roster.  Harper had two returns for a touchdown, Skyler never did that.    Any opportunities he had to get out there and play receiver didn't go so well for him.  He did have the one touchdown against Oakland, but that really wasn't a special play.

The whole point is that he never did separate himself with any of those other receivers and you couple that with the fact that he's 5'9" and a half, he just not a big receivers, he doesn't have blazing speed.  I think we all saw that coming and didn't want to admit it just because he's a local guy.

WWL.com:  So there wasn't much you would have done differently if you had been making the cuts?

The only one was Paul Spicer.  I thought he had showed enough in camp to where he warrants a spot, but I mean look I've been around the NFL since 1981 and it's a business.  Sometimes you sit there and you just go, "Hmmmm, I didn't see that coming."  Sometimes you go, "Poof that's just what I thought they'd do."
 

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, When the Saints wind up preseason play against Miami, where would you like to see the "Black & Gold" improve?

Hokie: Well after the game the other night, I'm not sure that there is that much to improve on. Maybe cut down on a couple of penalties. But the way they played offensively, they just moved up and down the field. Defensively, they did everything they could. The Raiders were one of the top rushing teams in the league last year. Heck man, as a group they were averaging right about 6 yards a carry. The Saints shut that whole thing down.  I don't know, maybe other than a couple of penalties, that's about all I can figure that they need to improve on.

wwl.com: At the kick returning job - is this position Courtney Roby's job to lose, or does he still have to win it?

Hokie:  I think he still has to win it. I think that's really up for debate right now. He hasn't really gotten that many opportunities. They put Robert Meacham back there, they have had Roby back there, Skyler Green has had some chances.  I don't know. If you're talking about kickoff return, it's definitely still up in the air right now. I think what Sean Payton (and the rest of the offensive staff) is going to have to look at is who gives the Saints the best opportunity to return kicks and then be the fifth receiver. So, I think that whole thing is up in the air right now, and I wouldn't even venture to guess who that guy is going to be.

wwl.com: What would you tell Saints fans who are going to the game, listening in the radio or watching it on television? What should they be looking for? What would you tell them to pay attention to Thursday night?

Hokie: Well, number one, you know you're starters are not going to be in there for very long.  So, if there is someone that you are pulling for out there like Lynell Hamilton or maybe PJ Hil, keep a close eye on those guys because they are going to get a lot of opportunities to play.  There are a bunch of people down there on the offensive line and defensive line that are fighting for a spot. If there is someone that you are rooting for, you go there and you look at them in this particular game.  It can't be one of things where you just say, "Alright, I'm going to the game for entertainment."  If you're pulling for a particular player, you better go there and keep your eyes on him because this is the last opportunity you're going to get to see.

wwl.com: Hokie, as far as the coaching staff and the front office, when they look at this fourth preseason game - as you said, the starters will play a minimum amount of time - is this more about figuring out who is going to make this team from the 45th man down and which players are going to be starters?

Hokie: Oh absolutely! They know right now who their starting 22 are and they probably know roughly about the 44th guy.  They have figured out the next 11 on offense and 11 on defense for that second team.  Now they are trying to figure out which guy gives them the best chance to win and whether or not he can make special teams play? Can he do something in the special teams as far as returning or anything like that? So, it's not over by any stretch of the imagination for some of those guys, but I think by Thursday night they are going to get an opportunity to run a lot more plays than they have in the first few preseason games. 

So, hell man, just throw them out there and let them go! To be perfectly honest with you, I would prefer not to see the starters play at all; just put the backups in there from play one, and let them go. Why even go out there? Even if a guy would get a case of turf toe or something like that, don't expose them to that kind of injury. Put those guys out there that are on the bubble and say, "I'm going to see if he can play an entire game and what he can do for me. After that, then we'll make our decision on who to cut or who to keep."     

I think you could see everybody stepping up. I mean that offensive line was doing a great job, and those guys were just having fun running that ball. Over 200 yards rushing, that was really encouraging.

I will say this, I don't think too much of the Raiders defense.  So, you've got to be a little bit cautious in just how happy you are, but that's what you should do when you play a team that's not very good on D, go out there and dominate them. That's just what the Saints did.

The Saints were so far ahead at the half that Coach Payton didn't bring them back out.  He wanted to play the starters in the 3rd quarter, but they were just so efficient with everything they did.  They converted 3rd downs, ran it well, had great protection for Drew and I think Payton was sitting there going, "I don't think I need to see another series in the 2nd half." 

In a situation like that, as good as they looked across the board with typical Drew getting everybody involved in the offense, I think Payton was thinking that there was no benefit to keeping them in, and there's always the risk of get a guy hurt.

You really gotta be impressed with the Saints offense, all units clicking pretty good. Thank goodness nobody got injured, nothing too serious.  Usama Young probably had the most serious injury, in terms of guys who will actually have a chance to start.

Three down, and one to go, and then the games start to really count. It will be a short week for this club, and in a way, that's good. If the starters play at all, it will be only for a handful of snaps Thursday.

After that little duel between Donaldson and Hill in the 2nd half, that was a pretty good battle going on there in the 2nd half, it will be interesting to see who will be played next week.  I don't think they'll make the 53 man roster, but I think they'll be on the practice squad (if no other teams pick them up).

Against Miami, those guys who go in the ball game early will be the guys you'll think, "Those are the guys on the 53 man roster." Then you start looking at the guys plugged in after that.  Then you start thinking, "Does Danny Gorrer come in? Does Jonathan Casillas come in?" Maybe you'll start getting an idea of the plan for those guys.

So now it's get ready for a short week, and then get ready to get down to business.
 

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, the third preseason game is coming up - we expect the starters to play the first half and then into the third quarter. What does the team get out of stretching out the playing time for the starters? How does it help them to prepare for the season?

Hokie: Well, once the regular season starts they are going to do that every week.  You kind of want them to have that feeling of playing throughout the entire first half and coming back to the field within the ten minutes and exerting that same type of energy again. That's really about all they've got – the players walk  from the field to the locker room, do their half-time adjustments, walk out, let the quarterbacks warm-up a bit, and let the guys stretch a little bit. That's all the time you've got.

wwl.com: What would you like to see out of this team on the field with the starters Saturday night in Oakland?

Hokie: I'd just like to see them perform. When the starters have been in there – for the Cincinnati game or the Houston game – they have been able to move the football, especially the way they ran the ball last week. That will just make this team that much more complete, if they can continue with a good running game like they have. Offensively, I'm not looking for them to do anything to fancy. Defensively, I think Greg Williams will just stick with his guns.  He's not going to do all that much in the preseason, he's just going to stick with a few things... bring maybe one guy, maybe throw a little wrinkle here or there. As far as their performance, I'd like to see them play the run the way they did against Houston, and I'd certainly like to see them get some pressure on the quarterback with their four man rush.

wwl.com: The Saints have made a decision at punter – it will be rookie draft pick Thomas Morestead as they waived Glenn Pakulak.

Hokie: I don't think it was a surprise to anybody especially after they drafted Morestead. If you just go out there and watch practice you could see, and even Coach Sean Payton mentioned, "Even if Thomas misses the ball, we still get a 4.0 (second) hang time."  That means that even if it's a bad punt, you're not getting any return out of it because he's really getting the ball up in the air. So, it was a really good move. He said in last week's game, "I want Morestead to do the first half and Pakulak to do the second half." But the Saints never punted in the first half so, they had to share the opportunities in the second half. So I'm not saying this was a long time coming, but it certainly wasn't something that we didn't see.

wwl.com: Saints back outdoors today at the facility – what did you see that you liked?

Hokie: Well, in this morning's practice, I'll tell you what I didn't like – I didn't see the effort out there today, like guys flying to the ball or the things that we have seen in previous practices. There are a lot of different reasons for that, one being that today is the 25th day of training camp. They have been here for almost a month, and their bodies are sore and all that. In one regard, a lot of guys are looking at it saying, "The preseason is only half done." You've only played two games, you have to go out to Oakland this weekend, and then you come back.  So, you're still talking about 17 or 19 days until their opener against the Detroit Lions. There is still a lot of practicing yet to be done.

Today is the first time in this camp that I can remember the team going out there in full gear and just not flying around like that. Every other time that we've seen them out there; we've just been impressed with the way that they run the ball, and I just didn't see that today.  Really I didn't see at any point in time that there was a really big play out there, but I saw some pass drops.  I saw quarterbacks throwing the ball in the dirt.  It was just an uncharacteristic practice for them.

wwl.com: If you look back at your days when you were in the league, by three and a half or four weeks into training camp was it common for players to hit the wall and not play as well as they did it in previous practices?

Hokie: It happened, and I really thought it would've happened before today… especially early in camp when you're just going to have that one really bad practice because that's when all the lactic acid just begins building up in your body. But by far, they have had more good practices than they've had poor practices. I'd have to say, overall, today was probably about as bad as I've seen it.  There was never really anything out there. There were a couple hundred fans out there, but you never heard anyone cheer or anything like that. Now defensively, Jonathan Vilma had two interceptions this morning. He was kind of on top of his game this morning. I thought the defense looked real good when the Saints were trying to run the football. But then again, that's kind of a relative term because I don't think anybody was going full speed, and it just made it look like maybe the defense was playing that much better. So, if I'm going to look for the highlights this morning – it was the two Vilma interceptions and then the way the defense stuck the run. 

wwl.com: How much has Rod Harper raised his stock in the coaches' eyes after Saturday night in Houston with the punt return for six?

Hokie: Well, that was a big help, but you know what? He has had a good camp. Even in the Cincinnati game, I think he had two catches for 48 yards. I've seen him out here at a lot of these practices where he'll lay out for a football and make the tough catches.  When you read his AFL 2 (Arena Football League 2) resume, he's a guy who put up a lot of yardage.  He caught a lot of balls. So, it's not something he's foreign to. With the punt return the other night, I think that's got to help his stock somewhat.  There's still that question that everybody asks, "Who is going to be the number five guy?" You already know that you're going to have Marques Colston, Robert Meacham, Lance Moore, and Devery Henderson.  But who is going to be the number five guy? Skyler Green is in that mix.  Courtney Roby is in that mix.  Adrian Arrington is in that mix.  But, I think Rod Harper right now is having as good of a camp as any of the rest of them are, and I don't really see where Arrington really gives you any special teams value. 

You know, as much as I hate to say it, when you look at Skyler – he really isn't separating himself from the group in the special teams category.  Courtney Roby has not really had what you would call a tremendous camp catching the football, but we know what he can do as a kickoff returner.  So, you've got to say that Rod Harper is in that mix, and it's not just a token thing. He is right in the middle of it.

wwl.com: Is there any question about whether Mike Bell is the third tailback on this team?

Hokie: I'm not so sure he ain't the first one! I like Mike Bell.  I've been watching him. I think he's got the best moves of anybody out there. I've even said this, and I'm sure people think I'm crazy, but he's got more movement than even Reggie Bush. He doesn't have the speed and acceleration of Reggie Bush, but I think he makes multiple cuts better. I think he's got better vision, and I also think he trusts his offensive linemen more than Bush does. He'll get in there and go, "It doesn't look like there's anything there." Then, at that last split second, that's when the hole opens up and Bell attacks it.  So, to me, he's their best running back. 

wwl.com: From your vantage point, what do the saints need to clean up? What do the Saints need to work on?


Hokie: Overall I don't think there is anything that is a glaring problem. I think it all can be corrected, but just a couple little silly mistakes here and there. I think it's all correctable, and easily done so. 
We saw against the Texans that the run defense was not what it was supposed to be.  The pass defense was pretty good except for giving up a couple of deep balls.


Penalties were a little bit of an ugly thing in the second preseason game, especially on special teams. The referees kept calling those penalties for not being up on the line of scrimmage on some of those guys on the offensive line that are basically put in the role of tight end right there. The offensive linemen have got to know that when they walk up there, they have to look to the inside and say, "Alright, I have to make sure that I cover up this guy's number." But that's very correctable, that's not something that's a big problem.

wwl.com: Did you see continued growth in rookie corner back Malcolm Jenkins in the second exhibition game?


Hokie: Yeah, he got burned on the one touchdown play, but that's gonna happen. I don't care how good of a corner you are, or how long you've played in the league, or anything like that. He came up, he made a couple of nice open field tackles where he got people out there in space – here they come up the field with a ball and he would throw his body at them. Sometimes it was a wrap up tackle, and sometimes you just get up there and cut their feet out.  But, yes, I could see improvement from that guy.  
 
 

WWL.com:   Hokie.. What is the team trying to get accomplished by, and in, their 2nd preseason game?

Hokie:  Obviously, they're working on improving all areas.. and we've got a couple of injuries to monitor this weekend.. Especially Jamal Brown, we don't know if he'll be able to play.  And Reggie is a question mark, with a strained calf.. Last week, Lionel Hamilton got the lion's share of the carries.. This week, it'll be Mike Bell.

Hokie: It's still an evaluation process.. so as far as accomplishments, you want to see these guys, some of the draft picks and free agents, getting out and working with the first unit, to see if they're up to the challenge.

WWL.com:  On either side of the ball, what specifically would you like to see improved from the Bengals game.

Hokie: Running, on both sides.  The run defense needs to shore up a little bit, and I'd like to see the running game on offense get better.  You  can't correct everything all at once, or in one practice, but I'd just like to see them run the ball better, and stop the run better.

WWL.com: What do you expect from Malcolm Jenkins in the Texans game?

Hokie:  In a lot of cases against the Texans in practice, he HAS been working with the first nickle unit, the first dime unit.. I think Coach Williams is getting the feeling that "hey, this young man did enough in last week's game.. he's a first-round pick..so let's put him up against those top receivers, and see if he can hang with those guys.

WWL.com: And Hokie, should we expect any "stunting," or more elaborate plays, by the defense this week?

Hokie:  Well, I expect Greg Williams to stick to what he said in preseason.. He's not game planning, he's still in an evaluation process.. He's gotta go out there and look at guys, and see if they fit into what the Saints do defensively.  After watching practice this week, I don't him changing that plan..

wwl.com: Alright Hokie, tell me about it.  The Saints worked out with the Texans today in Houston. What stood out for you?

Hokie: I'm going to tell you what, I think the Saints pretty much dominated the whole practice. They started outside, and then it rained so they moved them inside to the bubble. When they went in there, everything was 2 minute drills. For example, if the Saints had an incomplete pass on third down, then the Texans offense came out there. So, it was a little bit different practice to watch.

Overall, I thought -- just sitting there play after play -- that whether it was the Saints offense or defense, they pretty much dominated that practice. They came up with some really good interceptions by linebacker Scott Fujita and cornerback Malcolm Jenkins. The pass that Jenkins intercepted would've been, no doubt about it, a legitimate touchdown.  I really liked the way Fujita came up with an interception. Safety Darren Sharper has continued to impress after the game the other night.  He made a bunch of plays in that opening pre season game. He was sharp again today. Although he didn't have any interceptions, he was just around, knocking balls down, things like that.

Heck man, without having Drew Brees there, I thought that backup quarterback Mark Brunell looked really sharp. I wasn't really crazy about the way that Joey Harrington ran things, but Brunell looked good. He hit Pierre Thomas on a flat and up route and that was a legitimate play.  It probably would've gone for 20, 25, 30 yards - something like that. It was a good practice. It was just a good sharp practice by the Saints today.

wwl.com: You talked about Malcolm Jenkins. He's into his second week. He got his feet wet in the Dome against Cincinnati. Are you really starting to see the growth? Is he picking up on things at a quicker pace?

Hokie: Yeah and I tell you what, even when they went with some of the first unit nickel and dime packages, he was in there. Where in the past, he's been with the 2's and 3's, they put him in with that starting nickel and dime package. So yeah, he's coming along. We kind of talked about it last week-- why Sean Payton wouldn't throw him out there against the Bengals the other night. What's the problem with that? But now he's starting to get into the rotation of everything.  I tell you what, I didn't really see the guy in college, but you can look at him out there and see the progression he's making.  He's been out there on the practice field for 10 days or something like that. He is catching up to speed quickly.

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, The Saints have said goodbye to cornerback Jason David after two seasons. What are your thoughts?

 
Hokie: Well, I'm not going to say it was long over do, but I think the writing was kind of on the wall. He just can't cover people the way that you need to do it in the NFL. A lot of that is because he's 5'8" and a half  and 180 pounds. You get that mismatch out there with someone who's 6'0" or 6'1" or better, which a lot of the receivers are in the NFL right now. He's at a physical mismatch from the get go. I'm not going to say that it's surprising. The only thing that's surprising about it, is that it came this early in camp. That's probably better for him because that gives him more of an opportunity to catch on with somebody else.

wwl.com: Would you be surprised, and obviously at a reduced salary, if Jason David was on another NFL team to start the season?

Hokie: I think that he will play again in the NFL. I mean, it's always an uphill battle when you're the smallest guy. There's been a lot of small corners that have made it pretty far in this league. We had one last year. A guy by the name of Aaron Glenn that was a Pro Bowler up there with the Jets for many years before he came to New Orleans. Now, he had exceptional talent. Jason David has got good talent. Aaron Glenn had exceptional talent. But, after 13 years in the league Glenn just couldn't hold up anymore. I think that Jason David has enough to offer to somebody's team that he'll probably get picked up, yes.

wwl.com: These work outs coming up in Houston against the Texans, how will this work compare to a preseason game? Is there an argument to be made that this will be the most competitive preseason workouts in training camp?

Hokie: Well, I like the fact that you're going against somebody else.  If you're a starter for either club, you're going to go more during the course of those two days of practice against one another then you will in the game. So, that kind of gives the coaches a better idea, a better understanding of just where certain guys are on the depth chart and everything else.  'Do we have him to high? Do we have him to low?'

You're looking at your starters playing maybe a quarter and a half on Saturday night. That can range anywhere from a dozen, to fifteen or twenty plays. Now, they'll have two days of practice, double days both times. If you're a defensive linemen, you're going to go against the starting offensive linemen maybe 50 snaps, 55 snaps. So, it'll give you a better idea of where our starter is against his starter.
 

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, Garrett Hartley is suspended for the first four games for taking the drug Adderall (a prescriptive amphetamine that he says he took to stay alert during a late-night drive from Dallas to New Orleans in March).  Place Kicker John Carney has resigned with the saints. While Carney was a Pro Bowl selection last season with the Giants, he is 45 and lacks "long distance" leg strength.  Will the Saints have to strongly consider bringing in a kickoff specialist now for the first month of the season?

Hokie: That's a good question. It's one that I can't answer. I don't know if Thomas Morstead (rookie punter) can't do something like that, he possibly can. Maybe he can't. I'm not in favor of having two kickers on your club. You know, one that will be the kick off guy and our long field goal specialist. Then we're going to have someone else come in to kick it from 35 yards on in. I think right now, with the limited number of people that you can keep on your active roster, there's got to be somebody else at defensive end, at tight end, at running back, offensive line - somewhere in there. That, to me, has got to be more important and more valuable than a guy that can get it 3 or 4 yards deeper than somebody else.

wwl.com: What have the Saints been working on to try to improve from that first exhibition contest.

Hokie: Well, Coach Sean Payton said that he didn't like the way his team performed on third downs offensively, and he didn't like the way that they performed defensively on third downs.  So, they did spend a lot of time doing that in practice. That's kind of what that first practice is like after a preseason game. Let's correct the mistakes, let's get all of this done and everything else. This is all and all, what I would consider at this point in training camp, fairly light practice out there even though they were in full gear. Man, to correct mistakes is one of the biggest parts of this game when you're practicing and everything else because you got to get those guys out there and show them that you saw it on tape, you saw what you did wrong. Now we need to put you out there and watch you go through it again, so that the next time it doesn't happen that way.

wwl.com: Last week the Saints worked out veteran linebackers Derek Smith and Derrick Brooks. With veteran linebacker, Mark Simoneau going on the injured reserve with the torn triceps, from your vantage point looking at this roster, do the Saints really need to bring in a 30-something veteran at this point at linebacker, especially since Simoneau wasn't a starter.

Hokie: Well, I really don't think that linebacker is their greatest need to bring somebody in. The Saints linebackers are not the "Dome Patrol" and they're not the "Steel Curtain" or anything like that, but I think they can use people at other positions more than they could there. I really like the way that Jo-Lonn Dunbar has played during the first preseason game and training camp here. Marvin Mitchell is the guy that they drafted a couple years ago. You brought Anthony Waters as a free agent. So, I think right now Derrick Brooks is not going to come in here and have an impact. Although, Brooks could come in here and he'll be a savvy veteran. Can he make your defense a little bit better?  Yeah. Is he going to come in here and make them the number nine defense in the NFL?  No.

Well, it was nice to see the team get some turnovers, it was something they definitely needed to improve on.  And it was good to see Robert Meachem continue to develop, catching the long balls.

But what was a killer, getting down in the red zone and not being able to punch it in, they've just got to work on it.  Even at practice the other day, the running backs couldn't punch it in against their own defense, and the same again tonight.  So, I'm sure there will be a lot of cleanup work to do…and when those guys see the tape, they'll be as critical as we are.

So, let's take it for what it is, a preseason game. Nice to see Malcolm Jenkins get some snaps. The main thing right now, like I said in the pregame broadcast, it's more about performance than it is about points.  And, they came with a win too, so you kind of hang your hat on that a little bit.

Running the football is an ATTITUDE.   In some ways, it's absolutely as much a mental challenge as a physical challenge.  You've got to be able to believe you can do it.  And when you continue to fail at it, then yes, it starts getting into the mind of those guys, that, "man, for whatever reason, we can't get that short yardage when we've gotta have it."  And, a couple of times, Lionel Hamilton put that ball on the ground.  So, anytime things continually and consistently go wrong for you, it DOES get in your mind, and you go, "Holy cow, how are we going to fix this?"

Next week it’ll be a little different.  The Saints are going to practice against Houston before the game in Texas.  I think the practice sessions might be more interesting against the game, with 1's going against 1's.  You probably will have a little bit different "giddyup" after practicing against the Texans all week long...because you know there will be a little bit of jawing going on too.  And it will be different, because we've had 2 weeks of training camp leading into the Bengals game..maybe they’ll be a little less sloppy next week. The practices will be good for both clubs; it allows you to get familiar with your opponent before the big game
 

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, the first pre season game against Cincinnati is upon us.  Generally, what does a team want to accomplish in that first exhibition contest?

Hokie: I think probably more than anything else, to me is to play fundamentally sound on both sides of the ball. You don't want to see guys going out there having a bunch of mental break downs. Whether it's offense or defense, you don't really want to see physical mistakes, as far as missing tackles and guys dropping footballs. You just want to concentrate on what you've been doing well out there every day in practice. Let's face it, you're going to get a chance to see a lot of new faces out there and that's when those guys really have to shine. Because the more that training camp goes along, the less they're going to get to play on the real stage (preseason action) as opposed to just going to practice. Just go out there and have fun, play hard and put forth a lot of effort. The coaches will see that on the tape.  Maybe the most important thing, don't do bone headed things.

wwl.com: After watching this team practice for two weeks, as the saints color analyst, who are you anxious to see put it together in game action.

Hokie: Well, I'm still kind of curious about who is going to be the guy at running back. I'm not necessarily worried about the running back rotation, but I want to see guys like Skyler Green. I mean he's on the bubble to make this team and he might get a great opportunity in the game because Courtney Roby is going to be out. Reggie Bush is going to be, if he even plays in the exhibition Friday night, very limited. You're probably looking at a chance for Skyler to return some punts and kick offs.

Defensively, I just kind of wanted to watch some of those young guys on the defensive line.  How will those guys fall into a rotation?  Because I'm quite sure the veteran players are not going to play very much.

Then there'll always be someone who will pop up and have a big game and somewhat surprise you. It could be a Joey Harrington. It could be a P.J. Hill. You just never know. I just kind of like to go out there, and maybe focus on some guys that I watched in battle at training camp, but then all of sudden someone pops up and you go, 'Ah what a good camp he's had up to this point.'  Especially if he has a good game, then maybe you start concentrating a little more as practice goes along to the remainder of training camp.

wwl.com: I know you're not a coach and not with the Saints organization anymore, but as a guy that's spent his life in football, do you think Malcolm Jenkins should play against the Bengals?  He has had less than a week in training camp.

Hokie: Absolutely. I don't see any reason why he shouldn't go out there. Coach Payton said that Tracy Porter was probably going to be held out, so that means that somebody else has got to jump in his spot. I mean heck, he's your first round pick. He's been in here since early in the week. Throw his butt out there. What's the worst he can do, make a mistake? It doesn't count right now, so, throw him out there and see just how much he has learned in a week.

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, on the second Tuesday of training camp there was only one work out.  Offensively, what did you see that you liked?
 
Hokie: Well, really not a whole lot that I liked offensively. Early in practice they had a goal line session down there, and the defense really held their ground. They ran about 17 plays.  The offense only got it in 3 times, and one of those was debatable. Reggie Bush kind of hit it on the left side, clogged up, and then reversed his field and out ran Scott Fujita to the pylon over on the right hand side of the field. Maybe he would have been stopped at the line of scrimmage for no gain. Then they threw a play action pass to the corner of the end zone.  Then finally on the very last play of that goal line drill, Mike Bell jumped over the top and got in the end zone. Other than that, defense held their own down there. They didn't really give the offense much running room at all. So, that's why I say there really wasn't much to see offensively that I liked.

wwl.com:  What specifically did you like about the defensive performance?

Hokie: The way those guys stuffed the run over on goal line. Darren Sharper was the guy that caught my eye today. He made a couple nice breaks on the ball. I'm going to tell you, that guy doesn't mind throwing his body around after 13, 14 years in the league, whatever it is. When those guys, running backs and receivers alike get the ball, and he's in the area, he's going to give them a pretty good ole little shot. I like the way he's moving around. He's just somebody that caught my eye. Charles Grant had a pretty good practice, and again, I know everybody's still waiting to see what Malcolm Jenkins is doing. But the 2 days that he's been here, he hasn't done any one-on-ones.

wwl.com: Talking about Charles Grant, everyday after practice I see him putting in some extra work. This is a guy that's got his money in the bank. So, why has he taken his work ethic to another level.

Hokie: Well, he knows he's going to spend some time away from the game (for violating the NFL's banned substances policy).  It's going to be the first four games or whether the commissioner decides. So, maybe for the first time in his collegiate and NFL career he's like. 'I'm not going to have football for a few weeks.' He knows that. Last year he got hurt. There's no way of knowing that that's coming but he's in a situation right now where he's preparing himself. He's trying to stay in the best shape the he possibly can because once he gets that suspension he can't have any activity with the club. So yea, I think you're right. He is more dedicated this year.

wwl.com:  Hey Hoke, Saints first round draft pick Malcolm Jenkins is finally in training camp, how much catch up work is he going to have?

Hokie: Oh plenty, he has a lot to cover.  A lot of the play book has been installed. I mean, 10 days of camp is a long time. I know players hold out and things like that, but there's been a lot of installation that has been put in since he left here from that last mini camp practice. So yeah, he's got a lot of catching up to do. You've got to know that as a player. Probably before practice starts each morning, he's doing an individual meeting with Defensive Coordinator Greg Williams. Between practices, when everyone else is taking a nap, he's probably having some meetings with him. When they get done with everything before he goes to bed, he's also going to have a few more meetings.

wwl.com: Should Saints fans lower their expectations for Jenkins this season because of the missed training camp time, or will everything be fine in a couple weeks?

Hokie: I think that with the talent level the Saints have out there at the corner back spot he faces a tough go of it. With the guys that they've brought in and guys that have been here, it was going to be a tough lineup to crack anyway - with Tracy Porter, Randall Gay, Jabari Greer and Jason David.

I don't know if they expected Malcolm Jenkins to come in here and start in year one anyway. It's not like all these guys are over the hill. They're all pretty good players. So, I don't think it was a situation like Sedrick Ellis last year, when they wanted him to get in there 'cause they needed a guy and had to get him in there as soon as possible.  I don't think they looked at Malcolm Jenkins that way. Down the road, yes they will. Is that next year, 2 years from now?  Is there still a possibility of him playing some safety positions?

I'm going to say right now, barring injury, his biggest contribution this season will be on special teams.
 

wwl.com: Alright Hokie, what stood out to you at the Black and Gold scrimmage – on the offensive side of the ball?

Hokie: I tell you what, I thought all of the running backs were vying for a spot out there. I think the only two guys who are set would be Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas.  I saw the way that P.J. Hill ran the ball, and the way that Lynell Hamilton ran it - even Mike Bell-.  His biggest screw-up in this whole thing was the fumble that he had. It was a non-contact fumble when he was reaching for the ball from Mark Brunell. He’s had the tendency to do that throughout camp.

In addition to the fumbles, there are some questions about whether he (Bell) can pick up blitzes and things like that. When he did have a handle on the football, he ran well.  He made multiple cuts, and showed good vision. Herb Donaldson, same thing, he's just running tough with everything that he does.

Drew Brees (QB) wasn’t here today (follow this link for more on Brees... http://www.wwl.com/Brees--mom-dies/4966793), but I thought Mark Brunell (QB) -especially early in scrimmage- looked extremely sharp getting the ball, passing it around and going to multiple receivers.

Joey Harrington (QB) started off a little bit slow, nothing terrible, but he really picked it up right there at the end.

Paris Warren (WR) had a really nice catch right down in the red zone, it was probably the catch of the scrimmage – just looking at the way that he had to adjust the body and extend his hands. It was a ball that was not thrown within the frame work of his body, but he had to reach out and snatch it.

I think the offensive line had their moments when they really looked good with the run blocking. There were times in pass protection that the defense came up with some blitzes, and in that case someone is at fault.  Is it an offensive lineman? Is it a tight end? Is it a running back? I don’t really know, but other than that, pretty solid performance from the offense, but nothing that you would call spectacular.

wwl.com: What stood out on defense today Hokie?

Hokie: Defensively, and really it was right there towards the end, I thought Chris Reis (S) really showed that he likes this defense. He likes coming toward the line of scrimmage. There were two times when he came in that he would have had a sack on the quarterback (if they let him make the tackle). Then there was another time, when he was not blitzing, I think it was against PJ Hill, it was just two of them 1 on 1.  He made a great open-field tackle right there. So, Chris Reis stood out.

Bobby McCray (DE) had a couple of plays today where he was getting pressure on the quarterback. Since you can’t hit those guys, he ran back there and just put his hands up, and tipped the ball at the line of scrimmage.

A couple of times I saw DeMario Pressley (DT) disrupt the back field. The same thing with Anthony Hargrove (DE). You know those guys (defensive linemen) get into the back field and they are hands off – and especially if it’s just the quarterback back there. Do you get pass the line of scrimmage? Do you blow by your blocker? Once you get back there, you basically have to surrender because you can’t hit the quarterback in training camp.

Other than that, I’m quite sure that there were other guys who stood out, but those were the 3 guys that I saw in particular that made some really good plays today.

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, day 8 of training camp, offensively what did you like out there today?

Hokie: Well, I'll tell you what, I'm not going to say that they hit the wall today, but I didn't just see the real crispness that we've seen here over the last couple of days. It's one of those things where fatigue is just going to set it in, but it wasn't like they just fall off the map. You know this morning you saw a few dropped balls.

They did have the officials out there.  They were throwing a lot of flags, and I think a lot of those flags went to just some minor infractions, just so that they can let the guys know things like, "Hey, I know you were blocking the defensive end and you had your hand on the outside of his jersey, so we called it." It didn't really hold up practice, but just seeing the flags, maybe that's kind of the thing that that tipped me off that things were just a little bit more sluggish today.

They ran a couple of interesting plays today.  In one of the team periods they lined up Drew Brees as a wide receiver and made a direct snap to Pierre Thomas.  There was another time when Drew was in the shotgun, and the snap went directly to Pierre Thomas. I don't see where that sort of wildcat offense, however will be a big part of their offense.

Quarterback Joey Harrington worked with the second unit today. He did make a lot of good throws in 7 on 7.  That's a situation where there are no offensive linemen and there's no pass rush coming. It's just you and your guys against the defense and he really did make some really good throws. I think that's a confidence booster for him. I think it's encouraging to see that Joey Harrington went out there, and at least with the second unit, perform the way that he did.

Other than that, you're kind of seeing things getting ready for the Black and Gold scrimmage. They didn't run the two minute offense today (which they did yesterday), but they did work a lot on the red zone offense.

wwl.com: Who made plays on defense today?

Hokie:  I tell you what, Defensive back Jason David  -- really everyday -- he's starting to show up more and more. I think he's getting really comfortable with this defensive system that they are running.  He made a couple of nice breakups on the ball today. Defensive back Tracy Porter had a couple plays today. And again this is not always about getting the interception or something like that, somebody just sticking a hand in there, and knocking the ball way.

Heck, it's just I watch the defense, and every day I am just kind of seeing more and more things.  I'm just saying from day to day, you kind of keep seeing guys make plays over and over again, and I think that all of that is a good sign.

wwl.com: With the Black and Gold scrimmage, are coaches going to put more weight on this than a regular practice?

Hokie: I wouldn't think so, because again, we don't know exactly what this scrimmage part means.  Does that mean that there's going to be a little bit more live contact? I know when they are doing 7 on 7, or things like that, they won't be tackling people. There are probably a couple of drills that they are going to run, and maybe they might work a little bit of goal line in, or short yardage situations where there may be some live tackling. Anyone who has seen the last few Black and Gold scrimmages, knows it's nothing but a glorified practice, with a little more contact.  It's nothing that you would say even approaches what a preseason game would be.

wwl.com: Malcolm Jenkins has missed the first 7 days of camp trying to negotiate a contract with the Saints - when does that become a real problem for him and the Saints defense?


Hokie: Well the Saints are having the Black and Gold scrimmage this weekend, and next Friday they are going to go play their first preseason game.  I think it would behoove him to be in here before that first preseason game. I really wasn't necessarily that worried about it early on -especially when the 13th and the 15th pick got signed, because then he was wedged in the middle, and you would figure you're slotted right there- but talking to Saints General Manger Mickey Loomis for the past couple days- he didn't seem real encouraged that something was going to happen soon. 


Corner back maybe a position that's difficult to play, but it's probably easier to learn than the safety position.  So, I'm kind of getting to the point right now where I think, yeah, its crunch time for him to get in. You know if you're Malcolm Jenkins,   you're basically going on what your agent tells you, but you as a player have the ultimate say so.  I mean he could go to his agent and say, "I'm tired of holding out. I'm ready to sign. Whatever the Saints have on the table, I'll do it." It is getting a little toward crunch time right now, and I would like to see him get in here as soon as he possibly could.

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, we are a full week into training camp, the officials were in today working with the players during the team drills. Talk about the importance of that.


Hokie: Well, every year they are going to have rule changes. To be perfectly honest with you, it's a lot easier for the guys to go out there and see it and physically go through it than it is when they just write it on a piece of paper or when they say "these are going to be the rule changes." It doesn't mean that the players are dumb, I'm not saying that. It's just one of those things that you physically have to go through.


Just like the new rule this year - you can't have a wedge - you can only have two people in front of the return man, and those guys have to be two guys apart.  I think the players have to actually get out there and take a look at it and go, "Okay, I'm roughly 2 yards from you." But they know they can't form that spearhead, if you will, to go up.

By having the officials here, it also gives you an opportunity to go through practice, before you get into the first preseason game, and go through these rule changes. When the officials are out there, they are not necessarily throwing a flag on every play saying, "Okay this was an infraction right here."

Do you remember that year when they started the rule where the offensive tackles couldn't be too far off the line of scrimmage, because they said it was giving them advantage on the outside speed rush? Well, those guys needed the officials there during practice so that when they moved up on the ball or moved back, it would have given them an idea that as an offensive tackle when I look to the inside of me and I see a guard, that my helmet should be right about at the middle of his numbers instead at the back of his numbers.  Or in short yardage and goal line, when everyone is lined up in a very straight line, you should be reading the guys name on the back of his jersey when you look over. When they physically go through it, as opposed to reading it, I think the experience helps them out.

wwl.com: The punting battle between Glenn Pakulak( and Thomas Morestead, we'll have to see it in the preseason games, but in practice there really is no comparison to who has the stronger leg is there?.

Hokie: No, Pakulak (right) is going to be "packing-you-bags" before too very long if he keeps punting the way that he's been doing it. Morestead's leg strength is really very impressive.  You can really hear it, similar to when Morten Andersen would go out there and kick a ball; you could hear the ball come off of his foot. It's like a golfer, when he rares back with a driver and really just stings it and you know that it's solid right between the screws. That's the way that Morestead's been punting.  I don't think it's a battle up
 

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, from your vantage point - who stood out for the Black and Gold on the offense today?

Hokie: Well let's see, this morning Marques Colston (left), Skyler Green, and Courtney Roby really made some acrobatic catches down in the end zone when they were working the red zone stuff.  In this morning's practice, PJ Hill had a couple of really good runs when they ran their team portion of their offense in the red zone. You know every day somebody is stepping up to the plate and making a great play here or there. All of that stuff has just got to continue. Obviously, I think that Drew Brees is looking good. Jeremy Shockey, really here in the last couple of days, has been making some really big-time catches. I tell you the one tight end that keeps showing up every day is Darnell Dinkins. He's not really known as a pass catching tight end, but you go out there and you look at him - and I'm not saying that he's making a spectacular catch all the time, but he's making some tough catches and that's not really his forte. So if his forte is run blocking, then we've got the best yet to come with Darnell Dinkins.

wwl.com: Who earned their fleur de lis on defense today?

Hokie: I thought Will Smith had a really good practice this morning. He and Charles Grant were very disruptive into the back field. Jason David actually had a pretty good morning. Again, they were working down there in the red zone and that's really where you would figure he would be a liability, because he's only about 5'8" and a half. But he showed some ability to jump up and swat the ball away. He didn't get the interceptions, but pass breakups - that's almost as important as the interceptions. So he stood out this morning.

wwl.com: How are the Saints holding up in this camp?

I still have yet to see the players on this team hit the wall. Just speaking from my stand point, I kind of hit the wall the day after 6 days of practice. Boy, I went back to the room after this morning's practice and just melted into that bed and said, "Man… geez… we've still got a ton of time left to go." But, I still haven't seen the players hit the wall.

wwl.com: You have had knee multiple knee surgeries.  Reggie Bush missed the morning work and had his surgically repaired knee iced. He was out there taking part in the afternoon practice.  Is this a situation that's basically going to be standard operating procedure? Are they going to have to handle that knee like a pitcher handles his arm, and just be careful of how much they use it during the week?

Hokie: I think that's just about the best way that you can put it. It's something that is never going to leave Reggie bush, even long after he's done with his playing career. He's going to have some problems with his knees, and that doesn't mean that he's going to have to go to the extent of getting a knee replacement or something like that.

This is not like OTAs or Minicamps. Now when you go out there, you're running full speed, you're cutting full speed, and there are much longer sessions out there on the field. You are planting and cutting harder.  When you come out of those cuts, you want to burst and accelerate so that coaches can see all that kind of stuff.

So, I'm certainly not pushing the panic button on it because I've been through it. You look at all the years that Deuce McAllister came back from knee injuries, same thing. You have to rest those things, and you have to be smart about it. But I will say this, when Reggie Bush is out there, and he's been practicing, he's the most explosive player on the field. So in that regard, it doesn't give me any concern.

Remember a couple of years ago Robert Meacham (right) had a problem with his knee? Anyone can go out there and run routes and say, "There's a problem, don't know what that problem, is but you can tell he's just not right." I don't see that when Reggie is practicing. To me, he looks like he is 100%, and he's going wide open. So, it'll be something that will be monitored all training camp, and all during the regular season. Is it going to have to be drained from time to time? Yes. There will probably be a lot of time where you'll see him work the first half of practice, and then maybe ice it the second half. I want him out there on the field, I think we all do. We know what kind of play making ability he has, but if you get out there and pound him into the ground during training camp, then you're not going to be able to utilize him as well as you would like to in the regular season.  Be smart about it. And to me, as long as he looks 100% when he is practicing, I'm not worried.
 

wwl.com: Hey Hokie who are two young players that have caught your eye that may have a chance to surprise and make it on the 53 man Saints roster.

Hokie: Offensively I really like what I've seen out of wide receiver D'Juan Woods.  He's a big, strong, physical guy. I've seen him make a lot of nice catches out there.  I like the way that he positions his body on people, and even in a running game, he'll get out there and stalk and block some of those guys.  That's something that he'll get better at.

Corner back Danny Gorrer (left) is a guy I like on defense.  We continue to see that guy come up with some interceptions, make plays on the football and bat it down. You look at some of the younger defensive linemen heck, Anthony Hargrove, he's one of them. He's shown a few flashes from time to time.

wwl.com: Can you get a good idea now of who is hot and who is not?

Hokie:  This is only what, the fifth day of practice? There is still a long time to go, and a lot of guys to look at. One of things we have been doing is checking out the defensive schemes because so much has been made about the Greg Williams thing, how they are reshaping and revamping the defense. So it's still early.

wwl.com: It looks like every day, little by little, the offense is catching up with the defense and winning more of the head to head battles.  Is that how you are seeing it?

Hokie: Yeah, but that's probably any training camp across America right now.  Usually the defense is going to be ahead of the offense in the early goings because their mentality is "attack."  You get up field and the guys on offense (right), a lot of the time, have to think too much. But you're right, now it's starting to come around. Those receivers and those running backs now know that when they've got the ball, if they catch it, or if they are running with it, they are going to get pounded on by these guys. They know that they are going to get hit.  Once you start getting that mindset, you know then to lower the pads when you get up to contact, when you catch the ball, tuck it in and protect it.

Plus, the offensive line for example, has started to see more stunts and stuff come their way.  It doesn't take them by surprise nearly as much now. So, all of that is making perfect sense the way that they are doing it. I don't think any of us, at any point in time, was really concerned about the offense. When you finish in the top 5 in the last 3 years in total offense, you know that you've got a good nucleus there, and you know that you've got yourself a good offense. It just takes a little time to catch up to what the defense is doing.

So, certainly nobody was pushing the panic button.  I think if you would've gone out there on day one and the offense would've been just chewing up the defense, then you would've said, "Well, we've got big problems. I don't know if this makeover that we're getting defensively is really going to help us."   But, that's not the case, so they'll be fine
 

wwl.com: Hey Hoke, give us Hokie's Scouting report.  Looking at your notes from today's practice, who stood out to you?

Hokie: On offense, Courtney Roby (WR) had a good morning. Today was Adrian Arrington's (WR) first day to go out there.  He made a couple of really nice catches this morning. I'm sure they are still being a little cautious with him, but this morning he looked very good. I didn't really see any ill effects of that hamstring. Robert Meachem  (WR) looks like he's getting quick coming off the ball and moving around. He continues to impress me with catching a lot of long balls on people.  Skyler Green (WR) continues to have a good camp.  He has been hanging around here the last couple of years trying to solidify a spot on the 53 man roster. He continues to impress me. Marques Colston (left) (WR) continues to bring the "wow" factor to practice every day. When he's healthy, he's as good as there is in the league.  D'Juan Woods (WR), the one-year player out of Oklahoma State, is a big receiver. He is the guy that keeps showing up doing some impressive things. 
Defensively, Danny Gorrer (CB), a rookie out of Texas A & M, came up with a couple of interceptions this morning.    He's not really mentioned a whole lot in the mix when you are talking about the corners with Randall Gay, Jabari Greer and Tracy Porter. Those players are going to make the team. Gorrer is just a guy that continues to show up every day. If he continues to play at the level that he's been playing, he would definitely have to be high on the list of guys that you would want to put on a practice squad.

wwl.com: What's your take on Usama Young's transition from corner to safety?

Hokie: It's not going to be an overnight process, but I will tell you this, when Usama Young(right) is back there on the field, he is a graceful player.  He is not like a cow on ice.  He is making the transition pretty smoothly, and I'm sure that he's got a learning curve.  That's why he has been talking to Darren Sharper every day, just trying to pick his brain. Usama Young is really making a pretty good transition, and the coaching staff always knows that if something doesn't work out at the safety position, they can always move him back to corner. But, I think that this is going to be a good move for Usama Young because he is a physical corner.  Maybe he just lacks that great burst of speed that the top corner backs have. I think so far it has been a smooth transition for him.

wwl.com: What else caught your attention on day 5 of training camp practices?

Hokie: Fatigue hasn't set in with this group. Guys are still running down the field just as spirited as they can be. You see a lot of enthusiasm and effort going after the ball. For me, going back 25 years ago, it always seemed like the third day of practice was almost like rigor mortis set in. I am not seeing that with the players right now. Eventually, they are going to hit the wall, but I don't know when that is going to be. After the tough workout that they had yesterday afternoon, and to follow that with a tough workout this morning, it is good to see that they are still running around with a lot of fire in them.

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WWL.com:  Hey Hokie, going through these practices when you have 80 players to look at, when do the coaches start to make solid opinions on who will likely make the team?

Hokie:  We’re only 3 days into camp right now, it’s way too early.  They are going to start installing different things, and the fatigue factor is going to start setting in the next couple days.  All that kind of stuff plays into a coach’s mind, so they are still very early in the evaluation process.

I would say that after the first pre-season game they are going to start to get more of a handle on guys, especially because they are going to throw them out there underneath the lights, and see what they can do.  Training camp is going to go on, and it becomes a wear on you mentally and physically. 

They are still early in the evaluation process, and you can’t come to any conclusion right now just after a couple of days.  Even if a guy keeps making a mental bust every day, after he goes over it and over it a few more times, all of a sudden he could start getting it.

WWL.com:  What do you see different in this year’s team than last year’s team at this point?

Hokie:  Practice is more fun to watch right now than it was a year ago at this time.  You don’t know what you’re going to get day to day from the defense and offense.

Coach Williams’ defense has a reputation of being an attacking, aggressive defense.  So, that means the offense has to step up their learning curve. 

That’s been the biggest thing, and I would say the team is way ahead of the curve right now compared to this point last year.

WWL.com:  The first 3 days of practices, all 3 afternoon sessions were moved inside due to rain.  Are the Saints getting more or less out of this work not being out there in the heat?

Hokie:    In some regards you get more work done because of the air conditioning, and you’re not sweating as much.  The guys are not dreading it as much.  On the other hand, you’re playing on a limited field.  You can get part of it done, part of it you can’t get done. 

The one thing is they’re able to get in there and get good quality work.  This isn’t like going into a gym where everyone puts tennis shoes on, and it’s a jog through.  They’re at least able to run full speed in there.  So, I’d say that under the circumstances they’re getting the best out of it they possibly can. In that regard I’d say it’s good.

WWL.com:  From your experience in the league, playing and scouting; do you think they are getting the training camp experience they want.
 

Hokie:  Oh I don’t think there’s any doubt about that.  Look, you can go into the indoor facility and you can do things full speed in there.  You don’t have to hold back on anything, but might have to work a little more team where everything is 11 on. 

There is no place in Thibodaux or Jackson that they could get this kind of work where everything is still full speed in the indoor facility.

wwl.com: Hey Hokie, day two of practice is in the books, we saw some tempers flare on the field. What do you make of that.

Hokie:  Until now, the defense has been ahead of the offense(right) - pushing those guys around a little bit, knocking running backs to the ground. We saw some skirmishes break out because the offense is getting tired of being pushed around, and you have got to like that. Everyone has said that you can see the aggression from the defense, the effort, the hustle. Now, the offense is getting angry and they’re not going to take being pushed around anymore. They are starting to push back. So, little skirmishes are going to happen out there. It doesn’t mean the players are going to break out into a full fledged brawl, like they did in Kansas City a few years ago. This morning I saw the offense begin to get a chip on their shoulder, and now they are going to become more aggressive.

wwl.com: Are little training camp skirmishes forgotten a few plays later? Or in your experience, does it ever go into the locker room?

Hokie: No, it’s not brought into the locker room. It’s not even brought up a few plays later. I think when it’s over with; both guys have made their point that they are not going to be shoved around. After that, it’s over and done with. Look, they have to expend enough energy out there on the field.  All of this extracurricular stuff is going to wear them out even more. Beating your hands up, punching someone in the helmet - you get a little of that frustration out and it’s over. 

wwl.com: For the rookies - what do they know about the NFL now that they didn’t know three days ago when Training Camp started?

Hokie: If you didn’t come here in shape, you are in a bad situation.  Plus, the playbook is getting thrown at them. I think they are starting to realize now that these practices are a lot more physical than they were in college.  Whether the practices last longer or not, you can start feeling the wear and tear on your body a lot quicker. A lot of the time in college, the guy you are going against in practice may not be on your skill level. Everyone at practice now is on the same skill level. So, just about every rep that you are taking in practice, you are doing it about 100 percent like you would on game day. The young guys are going to think this is a lot more taxing on the mind and the body. 

WWL.com: Hey Hokie, Brett Favre says that he’s not coming back to the NFL, he’s staying retired. Give me your perspective on his decision not to expand his legacy.

Hokie Gajan: Well he’s one of the greatest players to ever play the position.  I was getting worn out with the year-in, year-out decision of whether or not he was going to retire, or go to the Jets, or to the Vikings, or even go back to the Packers. He will be a first ballot hall-of-famer and that’s all well and good, but maybe he made the right decision for a change. Maybe he finally decided that his body and mind can’t handle the rigors of the season.

Hokie Gajan- Reporting

I thought the team was very active during their first Organized Team Activity, especially on defense.  We have been talking ever since the hiring of Gregg Williams about what he should bring to the forefront.  I saw energy - a lot of guys getting in there swatting down balls and flying around the field.  It was very encouraging. 
 
Players know that there is competition to make this defense, and Gregg Williams will probably be the guy who controls the shots--who stays and who goes.   The defense was hooping it up and talking smack to the offense.  Then the offense retaliated, when they made a big play, but I would definitely say the defense had the upper hand.  It was unusual to see that much in your face competition at this time of year, but a great sign of things to come.
 
On the offensive side of the ball it was good to see Robert Meachem finally looking like he belonged.  He was smooth and didn't have that hitch in his stride.  Meachem made some terrific catches and looks to have gained some confidence.
 
Now, I don't like to put too much stock in watching one practice and getting all giddy over a new defensive coordinator, but the QB was getting a ton of pressure from all sides today and didn't have time to throw the ball.  And, we’re talking about Drew Brees!  As a former player and scout, first impressions matter, and watching progress like that is very encouraging to me. 

So, first impression…I would think the defense should make some strides this year and improve. 

Hokie Gajan – Saints Color Analyst on SAINTSRadio WWL-AM-FM-and worldwide at WWL.com.

I talked about some of the needs for the Saints yesterday and I would like to address  linebacker today.  To me this is the number three positional need on the team behind secondary help and a power running back.

 Getting Johnathan Vilma back in the fold helps, but there's a lot to be said for a linebacker that can go sideline to sideline.  Whether he's playing the weak side or the strong side, those guys can help you in so many ways.  They help you in the run,  in zone coverage, in blitz packages and they help you in man to man coverage on backs coming out of the backfield.   So you can see that there is tons of responsibility on a linebackers shoulders.

 As for a Defensive End, I don't think that it is an important a position to fill.  If Charles Grant and Will Smith do get suspended it's only going to be for four games.  I think that with the promise that Bobby McCray has shown and some of the other pick-ups in the offseason, that you don't need that stud defensive end.  Especially in the new aggressive system that Gregg Williams is going to be brining in here.  The Saints certainly didn't have one in the days of the Dome Patrol and I just wouldn't stick my neck on the line for someone to replace guys we will only be missing for four games.  Now if it was for the entire season that's a whole different story.
 

It’s no surprise to me that the Saints have released Mike McKenzie. You got to kind of figure that’s in the cards when you build up a history of injuries over the years. Look, this doesn’t devastate me from a fan’s standpoint like when they cut Deuce McAllister, but heck that’s just how the business goes.

Now, who has a better chance of catching on with another team? Hoo, that’s a tough one right there, boy. I might need 24 hours to think about it, but right now I would have to go with Deuce. As a running back, Deuce has a straight-at-you running style. Teams really like that. As a corner, there’s more to do with side-to-side movement. That’s harder to come back from with a knee injury.

To me, Mike McKenzie is the best cornerback in Saints history. It’s a pretty short list to draw from, but he has done such a great job in such a short time with the Black and Gold. I thought for a while it might have been Fred Thomas, but McKenzie is a Pro Bowl-caliber player. He had shut-down ability with the Saints.

When I think of Super Bowl, I definitely think of Pittsburgh. Not just because they are in the game this year, but they have been competing since back in the hey-day, in the 1970’s. With the Steelers, other than that game where Jackie Smith dropped that potential game-winning TD catch for the Cowboys, they’ve had mostly dominating performances in the Super Bowl. Of course, there was Super Bowl 30 against Dallas where they lost 27-17, and Cowboys CB Larry Brown was named MVP after his two interceptions. You can also make a good case for the San Francisco 49ers dominating in the 80’s winning three Super Bowls, and then again in Super Bowl 29 in the 1994 season. Head-to-head I would take Pittsburgh over the Niners because the Steelers have always been known for having such a strong defense in the years they went to the big game. Even on offense in the 70’s Pittsburgh had Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann, Franco Harris, and John Stallworth. It wasn’t like that offense was bare.

Now that I really think about it, in my humble opinion, the Arizona Cardinals are the most surprising team to make it to the Super Bowl in NFL history. That bunch just kind of came out of nowhere. Back in the preseason when the Saints played them, there was really nothing eye-popping about that ball club. I mean, we already knew that Larry Fitzgerald is a great receiver. Perhaps the biggest story going around Cardinals training camp was who is going to be our QB? Is it going to be Matt Leinart or Kurt Warner? Everybody thought that Edgerrin James was a little bit washed-up at RB. Lo and behold, they come out and surprise everyone with what they’ve done in the playoffs. Their defense has rised to the occasion. They’ve shut down two of the best running attacks in the NFL in Atlanta and Carolina. And also look, the Eagles’ record wasn’t that sparkling, but the Cardinals beat a good football team. Philly beat the defending Super Bowl Champion Giants twice at the Meadowlands, once in the regular season, and of course in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. They were a team definitely on a roll playing their best football down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs. That Arizona defense has definitely stepped up, and it’s surprising because everyone is wondering where that defense has come from. We knew that their offense had some potential, but gosh their defense has been playing so good. In my book, the Cardinals are the most surprising team in either conference to go to the Super Bowl.