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Charles Brown isn't necessarily "dominating" the competition for the New Orleans Saints' left tackle job. He's been more solid than spectacular, winning a few one-on-one battles against pass rushers and losing a few of them.

But Brown has clearly been the steadiest contender so far in training camp, taking every snap with the first-string offense and outperforming veteran Jason Smith and rookie Terron Armstead.

And more important, Brown seems to be carrying himself with more confidence than ever before after three hard-luck seasons with the Saints that have been plagued by injuries.

Brown, 26, seems to be embracing the long-awaited opportunity to win a full-time starting job that is finally within his grasp.

"To be honest with you, I think this is as positive an attitude as I've ever seen him with," said Saints right tackle Zach Strief, who said Brown has handled his rocky NFL road "as best as he can" up to this point.

"I mean, it's very easy to say, 'I give up.' You know, 'I'm not made for it.'" Strief said. "But I don't think that's the case, and I think Charles knows that's not the case.

"It's easy to be frustrated. Yet he comes out and he works and he gets better. I think he's got the right mindset. And look, he's super talented, and I think he can be a really good player. At the same time, it's work now."

Coach Sean Payton and offensive line coach Bret Ingalls said similar things about Brown's attitude.

Ingalls said Brown was still "dipping his toe in the water a little bit" earlier this offseason when he was working his way back from last year's knee injury -- and when he suffered a minor back injury in the weight room. But since then Ingalls said, "I see him buying in and doing a lot of good things."

In a sense, Brown was better prepared than most to make the leap to the NFL in 2010, when the Saints drafted him in the second round out of USC.

Brown was a two-year starter for the Trojans -- playing for a program that, as Brown said, was "set up kind of like a pro team" under coach Pete Carroll.

But Brown's college experience was a far cry from his first three years in New Orleans. During that span, Brown has suffered through three significant injuries -- back surgery after the 2010 season, a hip flexor that ended his 2011 season and a torn medial-collateral knee ligament that ended his 2012 season -- plus a few minor ailments.

"For me, as far as being a pro and getting injuries and having to be patient and always work, that's the part I've had to learn," Brown said. "Especially when stuff's going wrong. You have to learn how to be patient and look at the positive. I never really had to go through that at SC."

Read more: Things finally looking up for Charles Brown after three tough years with New Orleans Saints | NOLA.com

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