blacksaint

Stinchcomb, Evans working well together

Wednesday, August 15, 2007
By Benjamin Hochman

JACKSON, MISS. -- One training camp ago, Saints center Jeff Faine pulled aside Montrae Holland, the injured incumbent at right guard.

"Man, you need to get back healthy," Faine told him in desperation. "We need you in there. We can't have this rookie starting."

A year later, when talking about "this rookie," Faine just smiled: "He made me end up biting my tongue."

Jahri Evans started for the Saints, just one year removed from Division II college football. And not only did this rookie start, but he played well.

Playing to his right in 2006 was, if you will, another rookie. The 2006 season was actually Jon Stinchcomb's fourth in the league, but injuries and slow development kept Stinchcomb off the field for the most part until last season, when he started every game at right tackle.

At this season's training camp, the two sophomore starters make up the right side of the offensive line. The team has faith in the duo, once mired in skepticism.

"There are certain things from a technique standpoint that they're working on to improve," Saints Coach Sean Payton said. "But that said, both of those guys are young players we have a lot of confidence in."

Evans' ascension a season ago was another tale in the Saints' storybook season. He was drafted in the fourth round out of Bloomsburg, in Pennsylvania.

"To be real honest," Stinchcomb said, "I had never heard of Bloomsburg."

But midway in training camp, Evans slowly began to make people forget about Holland.

"(Evans') technique wasn't always on point, but his raw ability was so very abundantly apparent to anyone who was watching," Stinchcomb said. "You'd have defensive linemen tell you, 'He does some stuff that you don't see out of rookies, period, much less some veterans.' "

The Saints advanced to the NFC championship game, and in the regular season allowed only 23 sacks, though five came in the final game when the starters were rested. Even so, 23 was the fourth-fewest allowed in the league.

Entering this season, coaches are pleased with Evans' patience and confidence. Doug Marrone, the offensive line coach, pointed out Evans' ability to pick up defensive movement faster than he did a year ago. Evans points to Stinchcomb for that.

"Stinch is a smart player," Evans said. "And me coming in as a young player from a small school, a lot of the movements and defensive stunts they were bringing, playing next to Stinch, he was pointing me in the right direction, and so was Faine. Between those two guys, you can't do wrong. The only thing I had to do was come off the ball fast and hard."

"Jahri, he turned into a hell of a player," Faine said.

Evans said he sometimes has to pinch himself. Upon being drafted, he figured by his second season he would, hopefully, be competing for a starting spot. Instead, he's an incumbent.

But Evans is the first to admit he is still learning. He said his technique could use some polishing. Same for his hand speed. He occasionally winds up in a bad position.

"He's still developing," Faine said. "But he's such a good athlete that he makes up for a lot of technical flaws with his athleticism. And his technique is getting better, which is scary because when he puts it all together, he's going to be an extremely special player for years to come."

Stinchcomb is a Georgia product, drafted in the second round by the Saints, after his infamous Bulldogs teammate Johnathan Sullivan. The Saints were high on Stinchcomb entering draft day, but each season sparked a "just wait until next season . . ." In 2003, he played in six games. In 2004, just four. And in 2005, he missed the season with a ruptured patella tendon.

"He's had a tough road to hoe with the injury," Payton said. "He worked real hard at his game. I know compared to this time last year, he's feeling a lot more confident on his knee.

"He can be a real physical player. And he's one of the bright guys in that meeting room, with a pretty good grasp of not only the run game, but with protections and what we're trying to do overall."

After Tuesday's sweltering afternoon practice, Stinchcomb was speaking to a reporter about the offensive line's camaraderie, when Evans giddily sneaked up to his side. Stinchcomb didn't break stride, kept the same tone of voice, but said, "Everybody fits in really well -- except for one guy. Most of us get along, but there's one guy who really doesn't fit in."

Said a laughing Evans, "Wait to you hear what I say about you."

. . . . . . .

saint4life
(504)

saintsrule

That is great to hear, and to think some people dissed both players when they were drafted. I go by what the team does, not what the fans think. I think Robert will be a good WR for the Saints, because the team drafted him, no matter who says anything about him.