Cassady37

Last year's team:
We couldn't stop the pass.
Donte had hamstring problems.
We were one of the most penalized teams in the NFL.
We had no leadership.
Haslett was pig-headed in his decision-making.
Secondary was slow.
We were run by a cheap owner.
We were looking for bargain basement deals in free agency.
The team had no discipline.
Venturi sucked as Def-Cood.

This year's team:
We can't stop the pass.
Donte still has hamstring problems.
So far we are still one of the most penalized teams in the NFL.
We still have no leadership.
Haslett still shows his pig-headed decision-making capabilities.
Carter and Ambrose are in their 30's and not what I would call fleet-footed, Bellamy is a tortoise.
We still have a cheap owner.
We still looked for bargain basement deals in free agency.
This team has no discipline.
And yes folks, Venturi still sucks as D-Coordinator.

Hopefully I'll wake up and this has all been a bad dream.

WhoDat

AMEN

JOESAM2002

Isn\'t it good to have Cassady back. LOL

FWtex

I agree with all but the part where we have a cheap owner. Where do you get this idea? All teams have to work with the same salary cap so there is no difference there. Team just built a new indoor practice facility with state of the art accessories to go with it. Saints made an offer to stay in the dome until 2020 and pay for dome improvements out of their own pocket.

Now before you bring up the states contribution to the team remember, Benson could have just pocketed that money but he is investing it back into the team. He is building infrastructure in New Orleans which tells me he has no plans of this team going anywhere.

Look around the league at other owners and you will see Benson is among the best owners in the league. what criteria are you using to judge ownership?

whowatches

Hmmm... cheap owner?

Takeo Spikes x available + Rosevelt Colvin x available - Saints sign Orlando Ruff = Benson is cheap

I don\'t have a math degree, but this seems pretty solid to me.

BillyCarpenter1

Joe Horn - Could have signe Keyshawn Johnson- Was that cheap?

Jerome Paython- was that cheap?

Why is eveyone so convinced that these guys are going to be flops. They might be, but how do you know?

whowatches

My point is that we had an obvious weakness going into the off-season: defense. Two exceptional, young free agents were available in a position where we had maybe one solid starter. We did not make a strong push to sign either one, even though we had the cap room.

Yes, Joe Horn was a steal. We found a player on the cusp of a great career. I\'m sorry, though, I can\'t just keep ignoring bad moves (or lack of moves) in the personnel department because we\'ve made some great moves in the past. Bad moves were also made, right? Don\'t you think the coaching staff would love to have Glover back right about now?

I don\'t think anyone should simply dismiss those of us who are upset with the team (specifically the defense) right now as simple nay sayers. Real problems exist with this team. I for one would rather be honest with myself now about the status of the team and be surprised when/if they do well, than think everything\'s peachy and have my heartbroken again in December.

Cheap? Yes, we were this off-season, and I think it will bite us in the bee-hind.

BillyCarpenter1

I agree that the Saints had obvious weaknesses in the off-season and could have gone after some of the big name players like Spikes. The Washington Redskins have signed a ton of these \"Big Name Players\" in the last few years. How many playoff apperances have the Redskins made?

I\'m not dismissing anyone that is upset with the way the Saints have played in the preseason. I think anyone that doesn\'t have concerns about the defense is crazy. I don\'t blame anyone that thinks we should have signed some of the big name free agents. What I do have a disagreement on is the fans that say that Benson is cheap. That statement is not one that is based on facts. Just because we have a little salary cap space left doesn\'t mean Benson is cheap. Those few million that are left in cap space is chump change compared to what Benson has invested in players and other expenses.

I also disagree with those that say the players that were signed to address some of the weaknesses on defense are going to be flops. While you didn\'t specifically say that, your overall message would suggest that. I feel like 4 preseason games does not justify labeling those players as flops. This may very well be true, but I\'ve never seen preseason make a great player and I\'ve never seen preseason make a bad player.

What I have seen preseason do is give the false impression that a player is going to have a great career. Maybe, I\'m missing something here. Maybe a few preseason games does tell the whole strory about a player.





[Edited on 31/8/2003 by BillyCarpenter1]

whowatches

You make a very good point about Washington; however, a few big differences exist between what that team has done and what I’m advocating.

First, the ‘Skins have not drafted well in the last couple of years. They have depended entirely too much on big name free agency to build that team, and the results have been devastating. They are more than a couple of seasons away from being a playoff team again.

Secondly, Washington is not trying to simply fill holes with free agency. Every year, it seems they’re rebuilding, loosing and adding players at key positions.

The Saints are different on both counts. We have a solid, young core in many positions, especially on the offense because we have drafted well. The offensive line is one example of this.

Our needs in free agency were simple: acquire a couple of impact players on defense in key positions to provide leadership and playmaking ability. Tebucky is a great example of this, but we could have tried to add another, especially when young, impact players were available.

We have a championship-caliber offense. Washington does not. We have a proven quarterback; Washington does not. We have an all-purpose back, a big time receiving tandem and an offensive line with depth. Washington has none of those things. During their first big off-season overall after their last playoff appearance, Washington tried to do too much. That is not what I am advocating. My point is that the Saints are a defense away from the Superbowl – this season, so why not make an acquisition that would put them over the top?

I want to be wrong about the defense… blah, blah, blah, but I’m not going to be happy until I’m proved wrong.

FWtex

Who, I understand what you are saying about not going after the FA this team needed. Here is where the saying, \" you can\'t have your cake and eat it too\" fits. Benson does not pretend to know more than the guys he has hired to run the team. He is not a Jerry Jones, Al Davis, Tiny sneider type owner who has final word on which players are brought in. I don\'t want the saints to have an owner who will tell his coach who his players are going to be. Saying Benson is cheap because he did not go after certain FA is a bit misquided. When the fans were worried about the saints not offering new contracts to horn, brooks, and haslett ... he showed them the money for you. When the complaint was the saints never bring in a big name coach with success ... he shows Ditka the money for you.

Second, Say the saints went out and picked up Spikes and Colvin, how are you going to fit them in under the salary cap? They can\'t just go out there and sign every player they want because this is not like baseball where a team can have a $100 mil. payroll while another team has a $25 mil. payroll. Would you want the saints to have spikes and colvin and only cary 48 or so players on the roster?