New Orleans Saints Forums - blackandgold.com - NewOrleansSaints.com Sean Payton talks Arizona Cardinals

New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton
Post-Practice Media Availability
Thursday, September 19, 2013

Can you assess the offensive line through the first two games?

“Like everything else there are a ton of things we are working to improve and I think that’s been a strong suit of ours and I see it being the same this upcoming season. There are some situations, and I’ve said this already, the short yardage situation back in week one and the goal line sequence, those are things that I have to be better at, but overall I thought last week they played pretty well. They graded out very well.”

How is Charles Brown doing?

“He’s doing very well. He did very well this past week.”

Can you talk about some of the challenges Patrick Peterson presents?

“He’s explosive so we need to have a game plan in special teams devoted just to punt coverage. Fortunately, Thomas (Morstead) is one of the better punters in this league and he understands distance, hang time, and location are critical. It is always easy to say, hey, let’s kick the ball to the sideline, but having to come off your foot where you want to go with it directionally is a skillset. I think that is something he is very good at and it’s going to be important in this game.”

What have you seen from the Cardinal’s running back Rashard Mendenhall?

“He’s a good back. He was drafted by Pittsburgh and there is a familiarity with Bruce (Arians) and his time there with him. He is physical. He has speed. He is elusive. I think it is an important part of what they want to do. How a team rushes the football, both ourselves and the opponent, a lot of times we think is critical on how the outcome of the game can go. Stopping the run is a definite goal of ours in this game. It would be week to week, but he is explosive.”

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