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METAIRIE, La. -- New Orleans Saints defensive end Will Smith is standing next to the Lombardi Trophy, all silver and shiny and glistening inside a glass case in the main lobby of the team's facility. Smith said he doesn't get to that area much, but when he does he makes sure to stop to stare at the big prize.


"Oh, yeah," Smith said. "I stop and look and think about what we did to get it. A lot of hard work went into that. So, yeah, I look at it when I come by."

If the Saints are to have any chance to repeat, earning a twin to sit by that trophy's side, it will be up to Smith and his defensive mates to repeat the special season they had in 2009 -- and play even better.

We know the Saints can score on offense. It has been that way since coach Sean Payton and quarterback Drew Brees walked into the building a little over four years ago. It is a high-flying offense that fans love to watch, one that moves the scoreboard as fast as any offense in the NFL.

They score quickly, which can put a ton of pressure on the defense. In 2009, the Saints' defense handled that pressure. It was an opportunistic unit that finished second in the NFL in takeaways with 39, scoring eight defensive touchdowns. They also had eight takeaways in the postseason, including the biggest of them all, Tracy Porter's interception return for a touchdown to ice Super Bowl XLIV over the Colts.

Under first-year defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, they swarmed to the football and caused the ball to come free a bunch.

"If a quarterback or a running back or a receiver is worried about us hitting them, then they won't be worried as much about holding onto the football," Williams said. "That's our philosophy. We want to hit and play aggressive enough to force you to give us the football."

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the-commish

Good article.

But, there's no reason to believe that turnovers will decrease significantly this season. Williams will still play aggressive defense (unlike Gary Gibbs' lay back approach).