CHRIS SINGLETON
Decisive year for Brooks






With the start of training camp today, no Saints player is burdened with more pressure to perform well this season than quarterback Aaron Brooks.

Entering his fifth year as the full-time starter of the black and gold, 2005 is certain to be a make or break year for Brooks.

Throughout his career, Brooks has faced major pressure from fans and teammates to perform well and to get his team over the hump. He can expect to face more pressure this year alone than in all of his first four years under center.

The Saints have missed the playoffs each of the past four seasons, and a portion of the blame falls on Brooks performance. During that time, Saints fans have not forgotten the costly mistakes made by Brooks that hurt the team. There are the interceptions, fumbles and the infamous backward pass during the San Diego Chargers game last year.

As a matter of fact, it’s the norm to hear a few boo birds in the Superdome whenever Brooks takes the field. Saints fans have grown tired of Brooks’ mistakes and have loudly voiced their opinion.
Last week, I mentioned in my column that the Saints defense must play well if the team hopes to make the playoffs. This week, I will add to that: If the Saints don’t receive consistent play from Brooks, this season will be a disaster from the start.

So what’s the problem with Brooks? Why isn’t he one of the respected quarterbacks in the NFL today? Why does he get most of the blame for the Saints failures? Why does he hear boos in his own stadium when he takes the field?

The answer to all these questions is simple: Brooks has failed to play consistent football and has underachieved when the team needed him. The careless turnovers and lack of leadership has overshadowed Brooks’ impressive statistics.This season must be different for Brooks. He must take control of the offense and lead the team by his play on the field.

Brooks has all the talent in the world to be one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. He has the potential to be a yearly All-Pro quarterback. He has a strong arm that rivals the likes of Brett Favre or Michael Vick and the agility to rival Daunte Culpepper or Donovan McNabb.
He also has the stats to compete with all the top quarterbacks. He passed for 21 touchdowns and 3,810 passing yards in 2005. On the downside, he had 16 interceptions and a 79.5 passer rating.Although Brooks has received his share of blame for the Saints’ offensive woes, it isn’t fair to blame him for everything. There were dropped passes by receivers, missed blocks by the offensive line and bad calls in crucial situations by the coaches.
As we have been hearing from Saints players and coaches this offseason, the 2005 season should be different. Brooks has a new offensive coordinator in Mike Sheppard and much-needed additions to the offensive line with the drafting of Jammal Brown and signing of Jermane Mayberry. Saints players Deuce McAllister, Joe Horn and Daunté Stallworth return to give Brooks explosive targets and much-needed help.

He also gets new offensive targets at wide-reciever and running back with the signings of Az-Zahir Hakim and Antowain Smith. The talent is there for Brooks to have a good season in 2005 and its up to him to make sure he use it for all its worth.

I remember talking to Saints coach Jim Haslett during the Saints Caravan trip to Houma at the Southland Mall in June, and one of the many questions I asked him was focused on Brooks.

Haslett went on to say that Brooks had the best offseason of his career with the Saints. Brooks has reportedly worked out all summer long with team trainers and is in the best shape of his life.

Before last season, Haslett was saying the same thing about Brooks. Maybe this year, Brooks will be a better and changed quarterback.

He is going to need every bit of his offseason preparation in his quest to become a better quarterback for the Saints this season, and maybe even woo some of those boo-birds away.