New Orleans Saints Forums - blackandgold.com - Final week of New Orleans Saints' OTAs will be highlighted by Wednesday's ring ceremony

This is the final week of organized team activities for the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints before they break for more than five weeks leading up to training camp in late July. They are scheduled to practice Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by Wednesday night's private ring ceremony and a day of meetings and film study Thursday.

In all, Coach Sean Payton said, the Saints will have had a total of 10 OTA practices, in addition to five minicamp practices. That's well short of the maximum 14 OTA practices which are allowed.

Payton said the team never reaches the maximum, but he said they decided to go especially light this year because it was an abbreviated offseason following the Super Bowl run.

"Right now, more is not necessarily better, and it really hasn't been in the previous offseasons," Payton said. "I think you just have to monitor the drill work you're doing and the time the players are here."
The ring ceremony will take place Wednesday night at the Roosevelt Hotel, but it will be closed to the public and the media, aside from interviews before and after the ceremony.

Guard Carl Nicks said he's looking forward to finally getting that lavish keepsake on his oversized finger.
"Oh man, I've been talking about this ever since we won the Super Bowl: 'When do we get 'em? When do we get 'em?'" Nicks said. "It's a dream come true. I can't wait."

Nicks joked that he'll probably wear his ring for two months straight - "I might wear it to take a bath, I might wear it to the sauna ... But, no, I'm gonna wear it and then put it away."