blacksaint

New Orleans Saints

Challenge No. 1: Prepare Marques Colston to be the No. 1 receiver.

Colston led the Saints with over 1,000 receiving yards last season. His performance as a rookie was so impressive that the Saints released Joe Horn and made the second-year receiver out of Hofstra the unquestioned top receiver. Not every wideout is able to make the jump from complementary player to star, but Colston appears to be ready for the challenge. The Saints need to help him realize that now that teams know more about him, he'll face the challenge of getting open versus coverages designed to slow him down and will be matched against the opposition's top cover man all over the field.

Challenge No. 2: Make the offense even more explosive.

The Saints finished second in the NFL in total offense last season, but could stand to be even more dangerous this year. Drew Brees leads an attack that features dynamic playmakers in Colston, Reggie Bush, Deuce McAllister and Devery Henderson. Add this season's offseason pickups, Eric Johnson and Robert Meachem, and the Saints are as loaded as any team at the skill positions. Sean Payton needs to use the preseason games to tinker with his play-calling to make sure he has a good feel for each of his playmakers' strengths and to adjust the game plan accordingly.

Challenge No. 3: Use preseason competition to make the defense better.

The Saints aggressively signed several defensive free agents during the offseason, but gave them few assurances of starting roles. Brian Simmons, Kevin Kaesviharn and Dhani Jones will all compete for time despite having successful careers elsewhere. By letting these free agents battle with incumbents for the starting jobs, the Saints have created healthy competition. With so many jobs on the line, expect to see their defense play with more focus and intensity during the preseason.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200...uth/index.html

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