from randy mueller
 

Stephen (New Orleans): Hey Randy, we Saints fans still appreciate the savy picks you made for us when you were here. Whom do you think the Saints 1) will pick and 2) should pick? Also, what do you think they will do with Darren Howard?

SportsNation Randy Mueller: (4:14 PM ET ) I've never been a fan of getting rid of good players so I'd have a very hard time with the Darren Howard trade...whats wrong with a little depth?...I think the Saints would like to go defense but I'm not sure I see a player on that side of the ball that will be there when they pick that gets me all fired up...Nothing wrong with taking Jamal Brown , the OT from Oklahoma...he's a starter instantly at right tackle...
Would the Saints trade Howard and a third for the Chargers pick at #28??

SportsNation Randy Mueller: (4:16 PM ET ) They would be idiots too...in my opinon but you never know...a player of Darren Howard's ability will not be there at 28...You can't find people who can rush the passer like he can...

ravis (Canada): Saints off season thus far, has it impressed you or not? Players they have signed all fill back-up roles, except for Mayberry!

SportsNation Randy Mueller: (4:28 PM ET ) In my mind they havn't signed anyone who gets me fired up...safty;s and guards don't make the difference...

from randy mueller
 

From the guy who canned LeRoi Glover and let Joe Johnson escape? LMAO!

from randy mueller
 

joe johnson did what after he left here? i can understand glover. but joe did what? a whole lot of nothing. is he even in the league anymore?

from randy mueller
 

Well he was a great player when Randy let him go.

He suffered a major shoulder injury after that.

Do you think Randy foresaw that? Not hardly.

It\'s ironic that we\'re shopping Howard for basically the same reasons Randy let Glover and Johnson go, and he has the nads to say \"I\'ve never been a fan of getting rid of good players\"

Thats hilarious. No wonder he sits behind a mike instead of a GM desk.

from randy mueller
 

For one bad mistake (losing Glover) he quadruple it with drafting Howard, Bently, Deuce, Grant & signing FA Horn. What have Loomis done beside blame coaching staff & being a groomsman. Have he brought in any FA worthwhile since he been here? MM was not a FA(just a reminder). Have he drafted a player that was a starter for us for one season? Grant & Stallworth was drafted by Randy Muelleur. Matter of Fact his 2nd rd. picks ffrom the past season couldn\'t make active roster. I don\'t have to say anything bout Sorry Sully. We need to face it Loomis is better off being a penny pincher stead of drafting, trading or negotiating with FA. 1 strike, 2 strike, 3 strikes???? I hope he will be out!!!!!

from randy mueller
 

I think Loomis would be nice to keep around as a capologist. I\'m not sold on his personale skills. I suspect he just rubber stamps Haz, and Haz is a below average judge of talent.

We had a real football GM who had built the Steelers. He left when passed over for Loomis. I think he went to the Jags? Don\'t quote me on that, but Turdly raised hell about him being passed over.

After our next apocalypse, we\'ll have a nice core to work with and can keep Loomis. We need a true football GM, along with new FO.

from randy mueller
 

We let La\'Roi Glover go b/c of salary concerns, yes. But then I recall there being a push to go bigger in the middle - which supposedly came from the coaching staff. Haslett has owned up to that. He\'s called the Glover move maybe the thing he most regrets. Additionally, that was in a time when the Saints were in a \"talent acquisition\" or \"building\" mode. Now we are not.


I agree with Randy. Getting rid of Howard would be stupid, IMO - especially if the Saints can sign him to the deal that was rumored that makes his cap hit this year under $2 million.

That\'s depth at DE, and a guy who can move inside in passing situations. I mean, I like Wille Whitehead a lot. Always have. But he\'s no Darren Howard. People suggest that keeping Howard is throwing money away b/c he or Smith will be on the bench. That\'s just not true. Grant, Smith, and Howard were commonly on the field together at the same time last season. Moreover, being able to spell a guy for a series or even a play or two makes a big difference late in games.... Or do people not remember that Haslett blamed all of the late season collapses on fatigue? LOL

from randy mueller
 

:casstet:

from randy mueller
 

I agree that it would be very stupid to trade Howard and a third for #28. I am not of the belief that we should trade him at all costs, but we should be willing to bend a little.

I believe in trading Howard and a third for a first only if the plan is to trade up and get DJ.

from randy mueller
 

Exactly. Loomis is a cap guy. Hell if he can\'t get Howard in here with some cap relief then the current front office is even worse than I imagined.
With Pease\'s rotational philosophy as well as Howard sliding inside I imagine we\'ll have a ferocious D-line for obvious passing situations.
Now if one of our other DT\'s decide to step up and become a run stuffer we\'ll be fine.

I have ZERO problem with keeping Darren Howard if that long-term deal is done.

from randy mueller
 

Thanks Danno - glad we\'re on the same page on this one. Can you pass the Koolaid to Whodi now? :)

from randy mueller
 

:casstet: :casstet: :casstet: :rauch06:

from randy mueller
 

:sulkoff:

from randy mueller
 

I can\'t wait until tomorrow so the deal can get done. Then we can all talk about how uncharacteristically smart the Saints FO was for pulling off such a masterful trade to get DJ.

How\'s that for optimism? ;)

from randy mueller
 

hey, maybe more response to a
WHO HOWARD TRADED TO CONTEST thread.
LOL

i\'m first...

the deal mentioned here!
HOWARD and #82 to Dallas for #20. It\'s fair, logical for both, and the only team I know Howard has negotiated with successfully.

from randy mueller
 

After pick 19, if all their rated DE\'s are gone I believe they\'ll pull the trigger.
I just hate giving a good player to Dallas.

from randy mueller
 

No no no. Don\'t you get it? Don\'t trade him. How can we? He got 11 sacks. And although we all know Grant got 10.5 and Smith 7.5, 11 is WAY more than 10.5. But Charles Grant had 32 more tackles you say? So what? Had Howard not been injured(again) for 3 games he could have averaged 10 tackles for all of those games and been even. But Grant had an INT and 6 pass defelctions? And Smith had 6 fumble forces? So what, Howard coulda done that. Didn\'t you hear me? He was injured(again).

We can just sign him to a long term deal and cut his cap number. What? We can\'t sign him until July 15 unless we wanna lose our franchise tag for 6 years? Well, we\'ll just sign him then. What, we won\'t have money to sign draft picks until after the July 15th? Well no big deal, we\'ll sign them then. What, they will miss training camp and we have to hope a deal is in place already or they will be out until probably the preseason? Well, we could just sign them and go over the cap until the deal is done. What, the NFL wouldn\'t allow it? Well, Howard had 11 sacks so there!! :casstet:

[Edited on 22/4/2005 by saintswhodi]

from randy mueller
 

Randy Meuller was a mixed-bag during his time in the Big Easy.

Randy was very agressive in free-agency when he was here. But, there were a lot of good players shipped out of town under Meuller\'s watch.

I don\'t think Haslett was calling the shots when Meuller was the GM! Do you?

Hell, Meuller was the one who hired Haslett. I\'m sure Haslett had some input but you can bet your sweet ass that Meuller gave his blessing when many of your favorite players were shipped to other teams.

But Meuller is doing a fine GM job in .... ? Oh yeah ... he\'s still unemployed in the NFL. That speaks loudly to me. How \'bout the rest of ya?!

from randy mueller
 

Gumbo come on....u do know that Glover was what they call a \"cap casualty\". What other top players did he ship out during his tenure?? Ricky Williams??? That turned out to be genius. Mueller did far more good than bad. I\'m sure he could have a GM job in the league if he wanted one. I\'m sure he doesn\'t want to be in another GM-Owner situation that he was involved with in New Orleans.

from randy mueller
 

1. no, I don\'t think he have any say w/loomis in trading either.

2.no

from randy mueller
 

We have heard here directly that Mueller has been blackballed. Benson poisoned the other owners off him. They are a little fraternity too. Besides, the espn gig probably pays better. Here is an article that sez \"http://www.onlinesports.com/sportstrust/sports45.html\" from 1998. http://www.onlinesports.com/sportstrust/sports45.html
I\'m not saying he was the messiah but he sure was a vital component in turning things around pronto after Ditka. Stuck on Mediocrity St. since then. He wasn\'t afraid to make an aggressive move fo sho.

from a seahawks site wishing they could get him back...
\"Mueller\'s star seems to have fallen a bit after being named NFL executive of the year in 2000. Mostly, this is thanks to a fairly unremitting bashing he has taken in the football press, especially from ESPN\'s Len Pasquarelli. While I frequently agree with Pasquarelli in editorial terms, this time his reasoning seems off. Pasquarelli keeps implying that Mueller has made a number of bad moves, but is able to cite only one, the signing of WR Albert Connell. Connell was considered by some a character risk, but he was coming off his best season as a pro and was widely regarded as the best WR in last years free agency class... One gets the sense Pasquarelli is being fed a lot of negatives on Mueller from the NFL\'s old boys network of GM\'s and personnel people, many of whom resent Mueller\'s success and his golden boy reputation. This makes some sense, as Mueller is not a typical vagabond personnel guy who has drifted from team to team as a scout, working his way up through the nepotistic network of NFL scouting \"professionals\". Rather, he is a home grown product who has beaten many of them at their own game, and they simply resent him for it.\"

[Edited on 22/4/2005 by LKelley67]

from randy mueller
 

WHODAT IM ALL FOR TRADING HOWARD FOR SOME PICKS IF WE CAN GET THEM. WOULD HAVE TO BE A SECOND IN MY OPINION. BUT IF WHAT YOU SAY IS CORRECT AND WE CAN SIGN HIM TO WHERE HIS CAP HIT IS ONLY 2 MIL THEN YES I WOULD LOVE TO KEEP THE GUY. IF WE CAN MAKE IT AFFORDABLE WHY NOT.