Saints Team Report
 

Saints Team Report

Jeff Duncan

Sporting news

The team is optimistic Mel Mitchell can push Jay Bellamy for the starting strong safety job. Mitchell, who is ahead of schedule in his rehabilitation from a season-ending knee injury, has better size and speed than Bellamy and could team with Tebucky Jones and form the club's most athletic safety combination in years.

The Saints filled one of their last needs by signing free-agent OL Jamar Nesbit, who will bolster the depth inside and give the team

an experienced backup in case starting Gs Montrae Holland or Kendyl Jacox get hurt. Nesbit's addition also frees up OL Spencer Folau to return to his normal position, tackle.

OFFENSIVE ADJUSTMENTS: Look for the Saints to return to the wide-open, big-play attack that lit up the league in the first half of the 2002 season. The limited availability of WR Donte' Stallworth and injuries on defense forced the offense to be more conservative last season. When he's available, Stallworth causes matchup problems for defenses that roll their coverages to WR Joe Horn's side. If Stallworth is healthy, the best personnel group likely will be a three-receiver or two-tight end alignment with RB Deuce McAllister as the only back. Either set would give QB Aaron Brooks five bona fide receiving threats and speed at each skill position. The interior line--new C LeCharles Bentley, Holland and Jacox--should be more powerful at the point of attack, allowing the ground game to use more traps and pulling plays.

Saints Team Report
 

we definitely have one of the most potent offensive attacks in the nfl today. consistency is our problem. too many drops by the wr\'s last year, including the usually dependable hollywood horn. and then there\'s that whole brooks \"holding on to the ball thing\".......

Saints Team Report
 

I still don\'t get why we are moving Bentley to center. A dominate Guard are harder to find than a Center and we could just as easily move Jacox over to center.

Saints Team Report
 

Bently isn\'t a starting guard. He is 3rd string... your theory is correct in my opinion though.

Saints Team Report
 

WTF? Bentley has been a starter from day one.

Saints Team Report
 

lololololololololol

Saints Team Report
 

Add one more lol because the OFFICIAL Saints site lists Bentley as a 3rd stringer:
http://www.neworleanssaints.com/depthchart.cfm
Rrrrrrrrrrrrright ...

Saints Team Report
 

I don\'t care if the OFFICIAL Saints website has him listed on the practice squad, this is common sense. Surely you don\'t believe everything you read....

Saints Team Report
 

Just pointing out where Euphoria might have gotten that crazy idea from. The site could also begin to stop listing players that are no longer with the Saints (like Terrelle Smith), even if it\'s off-season. I\'m fine with Bentley\'s move to center. He, Jacox and Holland should be a force in the middle indeed. And when Stinchcomb is finally healthy they\'ll be unbeatable :)
Although I think installing an explosive kind of offense is the natural way to go with the players on the team I am a little worried about Deuce and possible meetings with mammoth DTs when he is the only back and gets the call. Just saying ...

Saints Team Report
 

LoL. If Bentley is 3rd string then I think we have one of the only NFL players who made the Pro Bowl and didn\'t start. :D

I think what they are thinking in moving Bentley to center is that as good an OL he is that he WILL ask for a demanding contract, and OG\'s are very replaceable (Jacox, Holland, Nesbit). Great Centers usually get paid a TON more b/c teams know how rare an All-Pro Center is. I think it\'d be a good move b/c he IS our best OL, and it would be fitting that he\'s right in the middle of the line and leading it. ;)
No OG is worth Pro Bowl money b/c you can sign a good replacement for just over the vet minimum.

Saints Team Report
 

Most athletic?! Really?!?! Oh goody! PS - this is the most athletic TEAM the Saints have ever had. How has that worked out over the last few seasons? Give me football players, not athletes. I hope these two can be good, hell great, but I\'m tired of hearing about how athletic our players are after subpar seasons.


And the BillyC award goes to... Does this guy even watch football?

Saints Team Report
 

Moving Bentley to center was a plan of the Saints from the start if memory serves me right. I was surprised that it didn\'t happen last season, but after resigning Fontenot (who proved to be the weakest link of the O-Line...goodbye!), he remained a force at right guard. Bentley is a monster and hopefully will be in a Saints uniform for many, many years to come. He was a steal as a 2nd rounder two years ago. I\'m excited about him moving to the position, because a full season of Bentley, Folau, Holland, Jacox, and Gandy, should prove very exciting.

Saints Team Report
 

Bentley is one of those players that fits a mold to a T of a proto type power west coast center .Which is why , I always wonder why did Haslett draft this player ??? The only answer that actually makes any sense is :

Now I can hear the questions echoing in my head already , What does Bentley have to do with the Secondary coach ????

The answer is :

Now somewhere in Hasletts peanautical brain , it would make some great deal of sense for the Saints to hire a coach who has spent the majority of his productive career in dealing with offenses and then make him a defensive secondary coach . Not unlike the simple genius of taking a quarterbacks coach , who has never been anything but and having him run the most complex offense in N.F.L. history .

Riley might have been some influence at the time for the Saints to select the perfect fit , power west coast offense center . Who Haslett promptly made a guard .If you were to build a power west coast offense , here is the type of center you would be looking for :

65 LeCharles Bentley
C
Height: 6-2
Weight: 299