I hope you're true, and I do think that they have some promising young guys and it'll be an interesting fight between them for the roster spots for sure.

Still, a lot is riding on Patrick being able to fill Porter's shoes, but I did like what I saw out of him last season, so hopefully he'll be a happy surprise this coming season - the Saints could sure use one of those.

Interim head coach Joe Vitt, asked in a predraft interview about cornerback potentially being one of the team's biggest needs this year, quickly pointed out that the team is excited about Patrick.

And veteran corner Jabari Greer said he "definitely" believes that Patrick's growth last year helped the Saints' front office and coaching staff feel better about losing Porter and Torrence.

"The coaches are even speaking to him in meetings this year. That's a good sign. That's better than when they're just talking around you," Greer cracked. "He didn't get a lot of opportunities early last season. But at the end of the year he made some big hits and some big plays, and really showed what an asset he can be. He raised a lot of eyebrows and caught a lot of the veterans' attention.

"We're seeing that same growth we saw with Patrick (Robinson) from Year 1 to Year 2."

i still think porter will be missed

I agree Porter was not impressive last year, being reduced to a nickle-back. Spagnoulo likes bigger press corners anyway, so I don't think that losing Porter was a significant loss in the new system...

I forgot about his preference, but Tracy could bring it for a little guy. He was a lot tougher than given credit for.