Euphoria

GoldenTomb

That isn\'t a very ballsy prediction... duh its obvious Smith won\'t line up but its a possibility if we can not move Howard. Having fresh people and moving people around... keep the O guessing isn\'t a bad thing at all.

GoldenTomb

Yeah it\'s a good idea in theory except for that our coaching staff doesn\'t exactly think outside the box. Maybe it makes sense, but in case you haven\'t noticed, this team doesn\'t always do what makes the most sense.


If all of this trade talk is any indication on the direction the team is headed, I think the Saints are ready to annoint Will Smith as the starter at RE, barring any injury. You can take it to the bank. I don\'t think they have any intention of having Howard on the roster come this pre-season.

[Edited on 15/3/2005 by GoldenTomb]

spkb25

it be nice if we could get a second

WhoDat

Uh... Howard, Grant, and Smith DID shuffle around LAST season.

John Pease coached the Dome Patrol era defensive line, with Wilks, Warren, and Martin - the Saints most dominant d-line ever. He then went to the Jags and coached a pretty darn good d-line there. I\'m gonna go out on a limb and say the guy has some clue what he\'s talking about. He has said publicly that you simply can\'t have enough good pass rushers, and the more d-linemen the better in his system. If he thinks Smith, Grant, and Howard are good things, so do I.

\"Excuses, excuses, excuses. That’s all anyone ever makes for the New Orleans Saints’ organization.\" - Eric Narcisse


\"Being a Saints fan is almost like being addicted to crack,\" he said.[i]\"You know you should stop, but you just can\'t.\"

LKelley67

i didn\'t read too much on t-buck cuz it was of little interest to me. the portobelli article at espn has as much about howard as t-suck...

The Saints\' roster move came as the team continued to discuss trading defensive end Darren Howard. The Dallas Cowboys are believed to be the front-runner for Howard, and team officials and agent Gary Wichard have exchanged contract proposals contingent on a trade being completed.
While there is still much work to be done, the trade of Howard appears inevitable, and there is no lack of interest in the former second-round draft choice.
At least a half-dozen teams, most notably the Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks, have discussed a possible swap to land Howard, a five-year veteran and a proven pass rusher. The Saints, who designated Howard as a \"franchise\" player, have shopped him for a couple of weeks.
It is believed that the Saints are seeking a high-round draft choice and a defensive player in return for Howard. Wichard has proposed to the Cowboys a six-year deal that would be worth about $34 million and include total bonuses of $16 million. That would include a $7 million signing bonus and $9 million second-tier bonus due next spring.
Should the Cowboys acquire Howard, who has 41 career sacks, it might signal that Dallas coach Bill Parcells has decided not to switch to a 3-4 front in 2005.
Howard, 28, has signed the one-year \"franchise\" qualifying offer of $7.8 million, and that is a prohibitive amount for the Saints to carry on their salary cap. New Orleans, which has a pair of first-round defensive ends in Charles Grant and Will Smith, would prefer to rid itself of that cap hit. By dealing Howard, the Saints would recoup the entire $7.8 million and perhaps use the savings to work on long-term extensions for veterans such as tailback Deuce McAllister and center LeCharles Bentley.
While he has been plagued by injuries the past two seasons, Howard remains a top-shelf player at a premium position. As usual, there is a dearth of quality defensive linemen in the unrestricted free agent pool and that has enhanced his value even further. Dallas has plenty of bargaining ammunition, since it owns two first-round choices in the \'05 draft.