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I had the honor to catch up with Saints' Pro Bowl guard Ben Grubbs as he's promoting his softball game on May 15th in Metairie at Zephyr Field. The game is partnering with the Ben Grubbs #66 Foundation which supports children in single parent homes. Below we discussed his career, the Saints' offensive line, the changes to the personnel up front and what the Darren Sproles trade means for the Saints offense. Proceeds from the softball event will benefit the non-profit Ben Grubbs #66 Foundation, which supports local Boys and Girls Clubs. For more information, visit Ben Grubbs #66 Foundation | The Single Parent Home Support System For The Youth.

Click HERE to listen to the audio of the interview in full or you can make the jump and read the transcribed version below. I hope you enjoy, and many thanks to Ben for taking the time. No surprise he was very generous with his time and I can see why he fits perfectly in the high character Saints locker room.

(on what he's up to in the offseason)

Right now I'm in New Orleans. I had surgery about six weeks ago on my left ankle, I had some bone spurs removed. So I've been here doing rehab and plus my family is here, my girls are in school so I think we're saving vacation time until early July.

(on enjoying the NOLA weather vs. Baltimore)

It didn't snow in St. Rose where I'm at. But I think it snowed in Baton Rouge a couple months ago! It's usually hot here. It's been fairly could though, in fact I had to turn the heater on this morning believe it or not!

(on his career playing so many positions before he settled on guard in college)

Well I would say there's a lot of offensive linemen that didn't go the path that I went that ARE athletic. But speaking for myself, it makes me more athletic because I have played other positions. You know I was smaller at one time I weighed 248 pounds in high school. As I continued to get bigger I like to think I still kept some of my quickness and athletic ability. So my mindset and confidence in my quickness/agility wise I feel like I still have it and it definitely benefits me on the football field.

(on the o-line peaking in the playoffs and the continuity into 2014)

When you see a lot of great offensive lines, you usually see the continuity because they have to gel. You have to practice, you have to know one another – the center, guards and tackles all have to be on one accord. Like you said towards the end of the season we kind of got there. We started off slow and we had a change in our starting lineup when Charles Brown was benched and Terron Armstead filled his spot. We were kind of slow that first game when we played the Carolina Panthers. Terron was off track a little bit. But the next game and the rest of the games that season we caught on. I think going into this coming season we can kind of pick up where we left off. It's definitely a good feeling when you can go into the start of the season knowing who you're going to be lining up next to, knowing the way they play, knowing the ins and outs of that person and I think that's going to be the plus with us. Hopefully we can make improvements to become that great offensive line in the NFL.

(on if the loss of Jermon Bushrod or Aaron Kromer was more impactful)

I think they both were a huge blow to the offensive line. Coach Kromer was a terrific coach and Jermon, you know, a Pro Bowl tackle. My first year here [Bushrod] was a huge reason why I knew what I was doing because he was telling me what to do in a lot of situations that I really wasn't familiar with! He knew the offense inside and out and he was a great player to play next to. So just losing him and trying to get used to Charles Brown was a transition. But it's not an unusual transition in the NFL in that every year something is going to change. It's unfortunate but that's the way of the business and that's the way of the game, you just roll with it. I like to think we did a pretty good job. Charles Brown did the best that he could do when he filled in and we won a lot of games with him. Coach Bret Ingalls was a running backs coach years prior so it was a smooth transition when he moved to the offensive line. He knew the blocking schemes, he knew the path of the backs which is really important because when you look at the offensive line you may see some mistakes in the run game/passing game but you have to know the offense to know where the breakdown was. Some people may think it's the offensive line where it may be the back's path, or vice versa. We all have to work on one accord and Bret having had to coach both positions was an advantage and a huge plus for us.

Read more: Saints Nation’s Exclusive Interview with Saints’ Pro Bowl Guard Ben Grubbs | The Saints Nation

hagan714

you usually see the continuity because they have to gel.

Thats the key. with Armstead now starting at LT i can see things going in the right direction with each game Grubbs should feel more and more comfortable with him next store and spend less time worrying about play at LT
biggest concern is at OC as he pointed out. If we have a new OC that will UNGEL that continuity for a while in the middle. so he may need to worry more about his right side than his left side.
Zach coming back is huge it minimizes the damage to that continuity any further.

He cost a lot but he is well worth it. I believe we will see the best year out of him since he arrives in new orleans

"We may have lost the game, but you'll be hurting tomorrow." Doug Atkins