blacksaint

Posted by David Gladow
August 13, 2007

Well, at least one person agrees with me that the Saints' special teams need considerable work after Friday night's performance against Buffalo: Head coach Sean Payton.

In his comments following the game, Payton expressed strong dissatisfaction with nearly all aspects of the special teams. Of particular interest to Payton were the breakdowns in the return game.

"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."

There's plenty to like about the Saints right now, but the special teams need to rebound this week. It sounds like Sean Payton is taking the necessary steps to see that that happens.
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Lost in the shuffle somewhat last week was a nice article by SI.com's Don Banks on the improvement by Reggie Bush as an NFL running back. It's been said before, but it bears repeating. Bush's recognition that not every play needs to go 80 yards - that a 2-yard gain is better than a 3-yard loss, could make all the difference for Bush this season.

"Reggie has definitely elevated his game,'' quarterback Drew Brees told Banks. "He's becoming a better player by the day; by the minute. Obviously he's as athletically talented as any guy you'll ever see, but I think he's truly becoming more of an NFL running back. He's hitting the hole, and he's putting his head down and getting that two yards. And he's understanding that that's good, that's OK. A 2-yard gain sometimes is everything you could have made out of that play.
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Give FOX's Mike Tanier credit for seeing the good going on in the Saints locker room. Tanier ranks the coaching staffs around the NFL and puts Payton and his staff at No. 9 (tied with the Jets).

The big thing that Payton seems to have going in his favor right now is a willingness to think outside the box. While the current generation of head coaches is much more organized and creative than its predecessors, younger coaches like Payton and the Jets' Eric Mangini are taking it to another level ... to much success.

Payton's creative management style, both on and off the field, keeps things fresh for his players and confusing for his opponents. In short, Saints fans should feel lucky to have him.

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