New Orleans Saints preparing for outdoors elements vs. San Francisco 49ers

SmashMouth · 09-18-2010, 06:05 AM

The quirks of a champions' schedule are all a part of the New Orleans Saints' preparation this week for Monday night's game on the West Coast against San Francisco.

Scott Threlkeld/The Times-Picayune
New Orleans Saints kicker Garrett Hartley misses the second of two field-goal attempts in the season opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 9 at the Superdome.
The team has had a long break since beating Minnesota in its opener on Sept. 9, and it will have a short week coming back before hosting divisional adversary, Atlanta. The Saints are flying out to San Francisco a day early, in part to acclimate themselves with the time difference, Coach Sean Payton said, and in part to give them a shot at practicing in Candlestick Park.

For there, for the first time in a long time, the Saints might have to cope with the elements. The team hasn't played outdoors on grass since Super Bowl XLIV, the temperature is expected to dip below 60 degrees during the game, and the fickle bay winds could be a factor, according to Payton and several Saints players.
That's not all bad, of course. As Saints free safety Malcolm Jenkins noted, if the wind is giving the offense headaches that will help the Saints secondary. And when the Saints do have the ball, Payton expressed confidence his offense and its leader, quarterback Drew Brees, have the experience and aplomb required.
Which isn't to say, Payton cautioned, that wind won't play a role.
"I don't really know of a way to prepare for the wind," he said. "I think we have a quarterback that can handle rain and wind. He has a strong arm, he has big hands. Those are things that help. But certainly you have to pay attention to it in regards to field position, in regards to your timeouts if you're punting and kicking with the wind and try to maximize if the wind is in one direction as opposed to swirling. But we'll have a wind Monday night - the question is which direction and is it a swirling wind or is it an advantage one way or the other. But it's really hard to simulate that, though, and it's the one element that you have to learn to deal with."

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09-18-2010, 06:05 AM	#1
SmashMouth I donated, did you? Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mandeville, LA Posts: 37,205 Blog Entries: 29	New Orleans Saints preparing for outdoors elements vs. San Francisco 49ers The quirks of a champions' schedule are all a part of the New Orleans Saints' preparation this week for Monday night's game on the West Coast against San Francisco. Scott Threlkeld/The Times-Picayune New Orleans Saints kicker Garrett Hartley misses the second of two field-goal attempts in the season opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 9 at the Superdome. The team has had a long break since beating Minnesota in its opener on Sept. 9, and it will have a short week coming back before hosting divisional adversary, Atlanta. The Saints are flying out to San Francisco a day early, in part to acclimate themselves with the time difference, Coach Sean Payton said, and in part to give them a shot at practicing in Candlestick Park. For there, for the first time in a long time, the Saints might have to cope with the elements. The team hasn't played outdoors on grass since Super Bowl XLIV, the temperature is expected to dip below 60 degrees during the game, and the fickle bay winds could be a factor, according to Payton and several Saints players. That's not all bad, of course. As Saints free safety Malcolm Jenkins noted, if the wind is giving the offense headaches that will help the Saints secondary. And when the Saints do have the ball, Payton expressed confidence his offense and its leader, quarterback Drew Brees, have the experience and aplomb required. Which isn't to say, Payton cautioned, that wind won't play a role. "I don't really know of a way to prepare for the wind," he said. "I think we have a quarterback that can handle rain and wind. He has a strong arm, he has big hands. Those are things that help. But certainly you have to pay attention to it in regards to field position, in regards to your timeouts if you're punting and kicking with the wind and try to maximize if the wind is in one direction as opposed to swirling. But we'll have a wind Monday night - the question is which direction and is it a swirling wind or is it an advantage one way or the other. But it's really hard to simulate that, though, and it's the one element that you have to learn to deal with." read more Attached Thumbnails