pakowitz

http://www.houmatoday.com/apps/pbcs..../1033/SPORTS02



Another week goes by, and I still find myself entertaining scores of Saints fans.

Through all of your colorful, and entertaining e-mails, I have heard it all.

Some have said I don’t like the Saints because they moved out of Thibodaux. Others said I’m a 49ers fan.

Come on. Really. A 49ers fan?

If that were the case, then I would go around signing my articles with a sharpie and tossing them to passers-by on the street.

To clear up any rumors you may have read on the Internet, I am not a 49ers fan. And I am not upset that the Saints moved their training camp out of Thibodaux.

Now that that’s clear, let’s get a couple of other things straight.

Just because I give New Orleans props if it has a winning season doesn’t mean I’m jumping on the bandwagon or trying to cover my tail. It just means I am not ashamed to admit that I am wrong.

Hell, it would make me happy just to see all of you guys happy and celebrating -- instead of calling Buddy Diliberto after the games, griping and complaining about what the Saints could have done better.

At the same time, being the aware and courteous person that I naturally am, I will toot my horn a little and say that I told you so if I turn out to be right.

Wouldn’t you if you were me?

In no way, shape or form was I trying to make a name for myself by upsetting Saints fans last week.

I was just saying what was on my mind -- and you know just as well as I do that toward the end of every losing season, all of the "loyal" fans start switching to their alternate teams.

It seems like the marriage between the Saints and their fans has been on the rocks for the past couple of seasons. And while you guys may be ready to lay down and die for New Orleans right now, by Week 12 or 13, you may be ready to shoot the players yourselves.

I got no correspondence at all in when, in a column I wrote last Dec. 16, I picked the Bengals to beat the Saints and keep them out of playoff contention for another week.

When the Bengals won, and I said I was right, no one had anything to say.

That column upset no one. But when I talked about Orlando Ruff being a second-string linebacker last season with San Diego -- which is true -- everyone wanted to make an excuse for him.

I don’t care what anybody says about acquiring Ruff and making him the starting linebacker. Why would you make a player that sat on the bench last year your starting guy?

That just totally blows my mind.

To me, it doesn’t matter if he started the previous season and anchored down a pretty good defense. The bottom line is that Marty Schottenheimer and Dale Lindsey didn’t think he could get the job done.

I just hope, for the sake of Saints fans everywhere, that Johnathan Sullivan will pan out to be the defensive lineman everyone wants him to be -- and that the secondary can lock some people down.

Because if they can’t, it will be another long season.

ssmitty

everybody\'s entitled to their say whether someone likes it or not......and if they got ruff because they like what they see or they\'re covering their ass til they get a better lb, so be it......i personally do think that sullivan will stand out, though he may stumble at times, but so goes the rookie process........by the way, matrix reloaded is awesome......i highly recommend it.........smitty