Saintswrath

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Scott Fujita spent the past four years as one of most popular athletes in the Big Easy.

"I still feel the love when I walk around the streets of New Orleans,'' said the veteran linebacker, who took time to reminisce in his old neighborhood the night before his new team, the Cleveland Browns, took on the Saints in the Louisiana Superdome.

Less than nine months after helping New Orleans win its first Super Bowl, Fujita played a starring role in the Saints' undoing during the Browns' stunning 30-17 thrashing of the defending champs on Sunday.

Fujita's sack of Drew Brees, which helped stall one drive, and his interception of Brees on the Cleveland 3, which thwarted a likely scoring chance, were only the beginning.

All game long, he monitored the Saints' sideline between plays, tracking substitution patterns, then signaling what he saw to Cleveland coaches and helping with pre-snap adjustments.

Afterward, Cleveland coach Eric Mangini gave Fujita a game ball.

"I tried to do my best early this week in practice to prepare our team for what we would face today, as it's no secret that I am familiar with the Saints,'' Fujita said. "It's one thing to plan the X's and O's, but it's another to come out and execute it. The way we did it was pretty impressive. ... I didn't think we'd shut them down like that.''

Former Saint Fujita helps Browns stun his old team - NFL - SI.com