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Inside Slant
Saints coach Jim Haslett has been an extremely busy man lately.
In addition to spending several days in Mobile, Ala., scouting talent at the Senior Bowl, Haslett filled two openings on his coaching staff and began a search for an offensive coordinator after Mike McCarthy departed after five seasons with the team.

McCarthy, who was hired by Haslett when he became the Saints' coach in 2000, left to join the San Francisco 49ers and first-year coach Mike Nolan on Jan. 27.

The Saints offered the position to former Miami Dolphins quarterbacks coach Marc Trestman, but he accepted a job as the offensive coordinator at North Carolina State just one day after McCarthy's hiring was announced by the 49ers.

Haslett then received permission from the Denver Broncos to speak with running backs coach Bobby Turner about the vacancy. Turner interviewed with the team on Feb. 1.

The 55-year-old Turner is the most tenured coach on Mike Shanahan's staff. He has been with the Broncos for the past 10 seasons and was part of Super Bowl victories in 1997 and '98.

Saints quarterbacks coach Mike Sheppard is also a candidate for the position.

There was considerable speculation about McCarthy's impending departure in the weeks before it became official as media and fans wondered if he had fallen out of favor with Haslett.

But McCarthy, who also interviewed with the Detroit Lions and Jacksonville Jaguars, said it was simply time for a change of scenery.

"It was just my time to go," said McCarthy, who turned down Haslett's offer of a two-year contract extension last winter. "I had my time here — five good years. This decision was based on personal growth, both professionally and financially."

During McCarthy's five-year tenure, the Saints enjoyed the most prolific stretch of offense in club history. They set 10 team records and 25 individual records, and the offense featured a 1,000-yard rusher and at least one Pro Bowl representative each of the five seasons.

NOTES, QUOTES

—The Saints added two NFL coaching veterans to their staff on Jan. 28 with the hiring of Willy Robinson to the newly created position of senior assistant/defense and Johnny Roland as running backs coach.

The hiring of Robinson, who was the defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers last season, raised some eyebrows. But General Manager Mickey Loomis said Rick Venturi, whose defense ranked last in the NFL in yards allowed in 2004, will remain the coordinator of the unit.

Robinson is expected to work with the defensive backs and help compile the weekly game plan. Before coaching in San Francisco, the 48-year-old Robinson coached defensive backs with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"We were looking for a coach who could bring a fresh perspective and a wealth of experience," Haslett said. "Willy gives us another set of eyes, and he has been involved with defensive game-planning in the NFL for almost a decade. His contributions to our staff will be as an adviser for every position group, particularly the secondary, and as a top assistant to Rick."

Roland, who spent last season with the Green Bay Packers, has coached Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith, Jerome Bettis, Wilbert Montgomery and Neal Anderson in 26 seasons as an NFL assistant. Both of his Packers starters last season — running back Ahman Green and fullback William Henderson — were chosen to the Pro Bowl.

—Negotiators for the state and the Saints wrapped up their first round of closed-door talks on Jan. 26 without resolving any of the issues standing in the way of keeping the team in Louisiana through 2025.

Dome spokesman Bill Curl said the two sides met privately for two days for a total of seven hours but no major issues were resolved.

"No firm timetable has been set for the conclusion of negotiations," Curl said. "Both sides have expressed the desire to reach a prompt conclusion. Numerous substantive issues were addressed."

He did not say what those points were and also refused to say when more talks are scheduled. He said Saints owner Tom Benson and Gov. Kathleen Blanco did not attend the first two days of talks.

—Ben Dogra, the agent for two-time Pro Bowl running back Deuce McAllister, said he plans to call Saints GM Mickey Loomis after the Super Bowl to begin preliminary contract extension talks.

McAllister has one year remaining on the contract he signed as a first-round draft pick in 2001, but he has said that he would like to get a new contract done during the off-season.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "We're not adding a defensive coordinator, Rick (Venturi) is our defensive coordinator. This is an opportunity to add a veteran coach who has a lot of experience, a guy that has a lot of knowledge and has been in the league for a good amount of time and had success." — Saints GM Mickey Loomis on the addition of former 49ers defensive coordinator Willy Robinson to the coaching staff.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

After finishing last in the league in total yards allowed and giving up more than 400 points, the Saints will likely make some big changes on defense this offseason.

While the defensive line was considered the strength of the unit, the linebackers and secondary came under much scrutiny this season. But a young group of linebackers — including third-year pro James Allen and rookies Courtney Watson and Colby Bockwoldt — played much better toward the end of the season.

That left the back end of the secondary as a source of concern, considering free safety Tebucky Jones and strong safety Jay Bellamy have not been big playmakers the last two years with only five interceptions between them in 32 games.

Bellamy turns 33 in July and is also an unrestricted free agent, which means the Saints might make a strong effort toward upgrading the safety spots in the coming months.

UNIT-BY-UNIT ANALYSIS

QUARTERBACK: Starter — Aaron Brooks. Backup — Todd Bouman.

RUNNING BACKS: Starters — RB Deuce McAllister, FB Mike Karney. Backups — RB Aaron Stecker, RB Fred McAfee.

TIGHT END: Starter — Ernie Conwell. Backups — Boo Williams, Lamont Hall, Zach Hilton.

WIDE RECEIVERS: Starters — Joe Horn, Donte Stallworth. Backups — Jerome Pathon, Talman Gardner, Michael Lewis, Devery Henderson.

OFFENSIVE LINE: Starters — LT Wayne Gandy, LG Kendyl Jacox, C LeCharles Bentley, RG Montrae Holland, RT Victor Riley. Backups — T/G Spencer Folau, G Jamar Nesbit, T Jon Stinchcomb.

DEFENSIVE LINE: Starters — LE Charles Grant, LT Brian Young, RT Howard Green, RE Darren Howard. Backups — DE Will Smith, DT Willie Whitehead, DE Tony Bryant, DT Johnathan Sullivan, DT Rodney Leisle, DL Kenny Smith (injured reserve).

LINEBACKERS: Starters — SLB James Allen, MLB Courtney Watson, WLB Colby Bockwoldt. Backups — MLB Orlando Ruff, SLB Sedrick Hodge, WLB Derrick Rodgers (injured reserve), MLB Cie Grant (injured reserve), WLB Darrin Smith, MLB Roger Knight, WLB Terrence Melton.

DEFENSIVE BACKS: Starters — LCB Mike McKenzie, RCB Fakhir Brown, SS Jay Bellamy, FS Tebucky Jones. Backups — CB Fred Thomas (nickel), CB Jason Craft (dime), CB Ashley Ambrose (injured reserve), SS Mel Mitchell, FS Steve Gleason, CB Monty Montgomery.

SPECIAL TEAMS: K John Carney, P Mitch Berger, H Todd Bouman, LS Kevin Houser, PR-KR Michael Lewis.