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Junior Galette isn’t going for the menacing look, though his beard – long and dense enough to earn its own comb, and probably Twitter account – gives him the appearance of a man whose glare would settle most disputes.

Galette is bottled frenzy until game day. He’s relentlessness personified. He’s full-speed, all-out each and every play he’s on the field.

And he’s a major reason that entering Sunday’s game between the New Orleans Saints (4-4) and 49ers (4-4) at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, the defense of the Saints appears to have located its footing after a slippery beginning of the season.

In the first four games, when New Orleans was 1-3, the defense allowed 396 yards per game. In the last four, during which the Saints have gone 3-1, it has allowed 345 per game.

In the first four, the defense forced one turnover and produced five sacks. In the last four, it has eight turnovers and 12 sacks.

Galette, in the first four, totaled 19 tackles and two sacks. In the last four, he has amassed 17 tackles, four sacks, a forced fumble and a pass defensed – including two sacks, a tackle for loss, two quarterback hurries and a forced fumble last Thursday, in the Saints’ 28-10 road victory over Carolina. On Wednesday he was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Week.

“We always believed in ourselves,” he said. “We didn’t listen to the white noise, and just kept working as a unit and didn’t point any fingers. We have the guys that are capable of producing, and that’s what we’ve been doing.”


Read more: John DeShazier: Junior Galette making an impact for Saints with his all-out play