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PHOENIX — When Kenny Vaccaro was going through a rough patch earlier this season that led to his role being changed by the Saints, he reached out to Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas for some words of wisdom.

A fellow star from the University of Texas, Thomas has developed a relationship with Vaccaro over the years and felt his experiences could help the Saints safety get his season back on track.

“Kenny he reached out to me when he got benched,” Thomas said. “He was real down on himself and I was telling him the story of when coach (Pete) Carroll almost benched me. We played the Giants my rookie year. We got blown out and I was giving up touchdowns left and right. I was just telling him that story, and he felt better just from me being real with him.”

Thomas eventually recovered from his rough start and has emerged as one of the best safeties in the NFL. He’s made the Pro Bowl in each of the last four seasons and was a first-team All-Pro each of the last three.

Watching from afar, he sees no reason why Vaccaro, who is possesses all the ability, can’t harness his skills and become one of the better safeties in the league with some additional seasoning.

“You see it. You see flashes,” Thomas said. “He just needs to understand the correct tempo. He’s very aggressive just like when I was when I was younger, and they’re going to use that against you.”

Vaccaro’s so-called “benching” consisted of him moving from his spot at strong safety to the slot, where he played as a rookie, for a December game against the Chicago Bears. But it wasn’t long before injuries pushed him back to his role as strong safety, where he would have started in the season finale against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers if he had not injured his quadriceps tendon.

Seahawks safety Earl Thomas says Saints safety, fellow Texas Longhorn Kenny Vaccaro can get back on track | Saints | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, Louisiana

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Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but some abuse the privilege.

All little common sense goes a long way.