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Saints work on special teams errors

8/12/2007, 8:30 p.m. CDT By BRETT MARTEL
The Associated Press
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — One of the first complaints Sean Payton had with last Friday night's preseason game against Buffalo was with the play of his special teams.
There was a blocked field goal, penalties on kick coverage and then, perhaps most maddening of all for the discipline-oriented coach, Lance Moore fielding a punt at the Saints 5-yard line and going backward for about three yards before being tripped up around the 2.
When the Saints returned to the practice field at Millsaps College on Sunday afternoon, working in temperatures climbing above 90 degrees, much of practice involved special teams.
The return game is something we're going to try to focus on and the penalties ... are troublesome. That's something we were good at a year ago," Payton said. "I just thought the other night there were a few instances where we put ourselves in backed up situations, whether we catch a punt at the 5-yard line ... or there's penalty that backs us up."

Moore has been with the Saints, bouncing between the practice squad and the 53-man roster, since 2005. Before that, the Columbus native played at Toledo in college and then got signed to the Cleveland Browns 2005 training camp, playing in three preseason games there before being released and later claimed by New Orleans. He also spent the spring of 2006 in NFL Europe.
The 5-foot-9, 177-pound 23-year old has the best chance of his young career to become a fixture on the regular season roster with popular punt and kick returner Michael Lewis having been released before training camp.
Moore was contrite about his mistake in catching a punt inside the 10, when the conventional play is to let it bounce in hopes that it rolls into the end zone for a touchback.
"I got a little excited, saw the ball coming, I hadn't gotten a kick return up until that point and it was just a bad decision," Moore said. "I got ripped a little bit when I got to the sideline. I told them I wouldn't do it again."
Moore said it irked Payton more than special teams coach John Bonamego, who laid into him after the mistake. In some respects, that could be a good sign for Moore, since Payton often gets most irritated at mistakes by players he expects the most from.
Even on Sunday, Payton was generally complimentary of Moore.
"Lance is smarter than that," Payton said. "He's usually a pretty smart player. ... He's done a good job handling both punt returns and kickoffs."
Moore also is trying to work his way into the rotation as a receiver, and may get a chance to catch more balls in Cincinnati on Saturday night.
Payton said Devery Henderson's pulled hamstring will sideline the speedy wideout up to two weeks. Veteran receiver David Patton still has pain from a recent turf toe injury and Payton said he would not rush him back either. Meanwhile, reserve receiver Jamal Jones, who is competing for a spot both as a kick returner and receiver, continues to be sidelined by knee soreness that began in the first week of training camp and may not play, either.
"It kills you in this game if you think negatively," Moore said. "I try to think as positively as possible. I want to be the guy. I don't want to just be a return guy. I want to be that guy on offense. But I realize there's kind of steps that you have to go in and keep working hard and maybe one day I can be that guy."

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