Rating: (0 votes - average)

"It'll be hard not to be," he cracked when asked if his group should be better than the one that finished near the bottom of the league last season.

As the Saints prepare to enter their first off day at camp, Payton said that it's too soon to actually know how good the team is going to be at anything -- it will take several weeks, perhaps even into the season, before there are concrete answers -- but he's happy with where things stand right now.

"They are wanting to please. We are young at some positions," Payton said. "I think we have had some good physical work. That has been encouraging, both in run defense and run offense. Again, it is just handling the transition each day, trying to get incrementally a little bit better than where they were in the morning. The difficult challenge always, until you get to an opponent or play another team, is—even for the coaching staff—knowing how that stacks up or how it will stack up."

At least to the layman, things have looked better this season on the defensive side of the ball. The team is producing turnovers and is getting after the quarterback, which wasn't the case last season. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has also done a good job of reducing the amount of missed assignments and alignment errors.



Sean Payton likes how Saints are 'wanting to please' during first week of training camp | Saints | theadvocate.com

Rugby Saint II

We look like a young team with an enthusiastic approach. That's a recipe for success. I love it.