bignic26

I'm a true die hard Saints fan so that's why I can bash them when they need bashing. I was born and raised in LA and I've lived the through the pain that is being a Saints fan. That brings me to this post and the situation that the FO must address before we are to go to the next level.

We spend alot of time talking about which players we need and what positions we need help at and that's great. It's fun to talk about free agency and the draft, but I've yet to see anybody mention our biggest need. The thing we need more than any big time LB, DT, OT, or CB. The thing every other team in the league has that we don't. Leadership.

Look at every other team in the NFL and you'll see what seperates us from the rest of the league. You'll see why the Saints flounder in mediocrity year in and year out. Some teams are sorry every year because they don't have talent. We aren't one of those teams. We have just about as much raw talent as any team in the league. Why then do other teams do more than the Saints with equal or less talent? Because they have strong leadership. Somehow every year we reach right around .500 on talent alone. We manage to win about half of our games without any leadership. Imagine what we could do if we had some proven, strong leaders in the clubhouse.

In order for a good team to become great, that team must have leadership. Right now we are a good team, well above average in terms of player talent. I think, no I know that the Saints have the pontential to be great. I truly believe that with the right mix of talent, heart and leadership, that 8-8 record could easily turn into 12-4 and a run into the playoffs.

Today's NFL is so twisted and upside down. We comend players for playing through pain and playing with heart. When a guy is getting paid milliions of dollars to play football, it should be expected that he play through pain and play with heart. Unless he's INJURED and can't physically play, his butt should be on the field. If we have a hang-nail do we still have to work? The last thing on alot of players' mind is playing with heart and becoming a leader. The Saints roster just so happens to be full of that type of player. The FO must aquire more heart and more guys who can lead on the field and off.

Leadership comes from two sources, players and the coaching staff. If Haslett's has showed us anything during his tenure it's that he can't control players. Players don't respect or follow him. He doesn't get the most out of a player's talent. Hell, he can't even keep his player's in shape (i.e. the lunch bunch, Sully, Deuce, etc). So we can rule out the possibilty of leadership coming from the current coaching staff. That leaves the responsiblity of leading to the players. There are a few guys on our current roster with the potential to lead. Deuce could, but he's more of a quiet warrior. Will Smith has alot of class and will end up being the leader of the D. Bentley, B.Young, C.Watson, D.Smith all have promise but who else? Brooks or Horn? Who would look at them as leaders? They're more of a comedy act.

Somebody needs to step up and take control of this team or we'll continue to have the joy of watching 8-8 seasons for years to come! :casstet: