New Orleans Saints Discussion

[diabsoule]

The Saints signed OLB Chris Chamberlain to a 3 year deal. He followed Spags from St. L to NOLA

[NOLAFan]

Originally Posted by CJSchneider

The man stands to lose 6 million ******* dollars. I sure as **** would appeal.

I don't think he will. Goodell is obviously trying to set the tone for this type of thing being brought from behind the current of any organization and if i was Payton i was seriously mull it over and opt not to do it. Goodell being the dick he is would see to it that nothing comes of the appeal. Goodell is gonna make sure the punished stay punished for the duration he set forth. I feel it would be a waste of time for Payton to appeal. He isnt gonna get out of his year long suspension. Someone like Vitt i could see getting his suspension lowered but not Payton.

Does the signing of Chamberlain (sp) take Curtis Lofton out of the equation?

[wicket]

am i the only one wondering how soft this defense wouldve been if not for the bounty program. Saints D had about the least fines, cartoffs, injuries and such forced of the entire league, is our D really that soft by themselves?

[Saints Dome Patrol]

Originally Posted by NOLAFan

Does the signing of Chamberlain (sp) take Curtis Lofton out of the equation?

Thank goodness, but apparently not...

As per ESPN.com:
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/77...ee-5-year-deal

So, even in the dark shadows of the whole bounty situation, (and yes, I know we did also lose three free agents in Meachem, Nicks, and Porter) the Saints were able to sign four players, Ben Grubbs, Chris Chamberlain, Broderick Bunkley and now, according to ESPN, Curtis Lofton.

[diabsoule]

I'm ecstatic about this offseason haul. Lofton, Chamberlain, and Tez Wilson is one of the best linebacking units the Saints have had in some time and Cam Jordan, Bunkley, Ellis, and the Fresh Prince is a pretty damn good starting DL.

[wicket]

yeah, free agency has gone about as good as we couldve asked for

[Auron]

Kind of surprised to see how well Free Agency has gone, even through all the rough stuff we've been through during the off-season it hasn't deterred key Free Agents from signing with the Saints.

There still is the looming issue of the Brees deal not being re-solved, here's to hoping they can work out a contract with him very soon.

Also a shame we have a bare-bones Draft class to work with now, but if we can get Brees a satisfactory deal and he comes into camp happy, I still think the Saints can contend for a playoff spot even without Payton.

[diabsoule]

One thing the signing of Chamberlain and Lofton has done is decrease the need for linebackers.

The FO set themselves up to go bpa in the draft which is always a good thing. I for one would love to see Ladarius Green in a Saints uniform. Him and Graham w/ Colston and Moore would be ridiculous.

[CJSchneider]

Originally Posted by wicket

yeah, free agency has gone about as good as we couldve asked for

I'm just wondering how we plan on affording it.

[CJSchneider]

Originally Posted by NOLAFan

I don't think he will.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_yl...eetings-payton

At least he is considering it at present.

[Bert Macklin]

Originally Posted by wicket

yeah, free agency has gone about as good as we couldve asked for

Loomis absolutely wrecked **** in FA Goodell is probably pissed at how well we did.

[Bert Macklin]

i love this

Q: Do you have a better chance to win a Super Bowl with the Saints?

A: Yes. I look at it like this. When you go to a team, it would be dumb not to think that you don’t have a better chance to win a Super Bowl with that team. I feel like Atlanta and the Saints have been evenly matched. But I really feel like there is more talent with the Saints. They defintiely can score more than two points in a playoff game. I will say that.

[Bert Macklin]

How pissed are the falcons if this is true?

quote:
-New Orleans signs MLB Curtis Lofton to a 5-year, $30 million contract with $9 million guaranteed....

[diabsoule]

Originally Posted by Bert Macklin

How pissed are the falcons if this is true?

Damn, that's a really manageable contract

[Auron]

So does anyone actually buy that Parcells is considering coaching for us this year? It has been said that Payton and him chatted but no official deal was offered yet.

Is this just a smoke screen until Payton can have his appeal heard, so the organization can have more time to pick a replacement from within, and get their Draft strategy set up? Or does anything Parcells' might actually come out of retirement to Coach the Saints for a season?

[CJSchneider]

I honestly think it serves both purposes. Parcells does the job as a favor to Payton and the appeal process gives the FO more time to line things up before the Goddell "BAN HAMMER" falls.

[Saints Dome Patrol]

Originally Posted by Bert Macklin

How pissed are the falcons if this is true?

-New Orleans signs MLB Curtis Lofton to a 5-year, $30 million contract with $9 million guaranteed....

Originally Posted by diabsoule

Damn, that's a really manageable contract

Not only is it manageable, ESPN's NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas says the deal is back-loaded as Lofton's first-year salary cap figure is only $1.7 million because his base salary for the first year is only $700,000. He did get a $5 million dollar signing bonus, however. Now, of course, that's just for the first year, and he would be due a $5 million roster bonus in 2013.

For the whole blog post: http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcsouth

[Saints Dome Patrol]

Hmmm...interesting... *strokes chin*

As per ESPN's Pat Yaskinsas:

The Saints are scheduled to host free-agent cornerback Kelvin Hayden this weekend. He spent last season with the Atlanta Falcons. The Saints lost Tracy Porter in free agency, but aren’t in bad shape with veteran Jabari Greer and young players Patrick Robinson and Johnny Patrick. But it wouldn’t hurt to add a solid and experienced player like Hayden, who isn’t likely to command a high salary.

[Flyboy]

People can say what they like about the whole Bountygate issue and all that, our team has CLEANED up this FA. Grubbs to replace Nicks, re-signed Colston, AND Curtis Lofton from a division rival? Not to mention Chris Chamberlain but I'm lukewarm on that signing..

[diabsoule]

I'm down with Hayden. He should come cheap, he's experienced, and would likely be our dime corner, and a pretty damn good dime corner at that.

Still, I'd like to shore up the DL first before going after Hayden. Someone like Amobi Okoye would be a stellar addition and would give us a rotation of Ellis, Bunkley, and Okoye which would be one of the better DL rotations we've had in quite some time.

If there's a way we could get Okoye and Hayden then we'd be set in the draft to just go BPA.

[Flyboy]

Yeah, our interior DL looks limited. We have, who - Ellis/Bunkley/Tom Johnson? Pretty damn thin... but adding a player there and signing Hayden would be top notch.

[Auron]

Has any team signed Aubrayo Franklin, or Rogers yet? Maybe we can snatch one of 'em back up with another cheap 1 year deal. This has been a very good FA class, the only thing I wish we'd still do is give Brees some long term security with his long term contract.. because I feel uneasy about him playing under the Franchise Tag.

I think we're really going to have hit some home runs this Draft, and find some diamonds in the rough.

[CJSchneider]

As per the nfl.com free agent tracker, neither one has been signed yet.

[diabsoule]

Originally Posted by Auron

Has any team signed Aubrayo Franklin, or Rogers yet? Maybe we can snatch one of 'em back up with another cheap 1 year deal. This has been a very good FA class, the only thing I wish we'd still do is give Brees some long term security with his long term contract.. because I feel uneasy about him playing under the Franchise Tag.

I think we're really going to have hit some home runs this Draft, and find some diamonds in the rough.

This draft is paramount. The scouting dept. will definitely earn their money paycheck this year. I'd like to see the team set up to go BPA and hopefully they can get a few pieces that will help them out. I have a feeling, though, that they'll target a WR, TE, DL, and OL in the draft. Just a gut feeling.

[Auron]

Originally Posted by diabsoule

This draft is paramount. The scouting dept. will definitely earn their money paycheck this year. I'd like to see the team set up to go BPA and hopefully they can get a few pieces that will help them out. I have a feeling, though, that they'll target a WR, TE, DL, and OL in the draft. Just a gut feeling.

Right this one will really test the strength of our scouting department. As they (most likely) won't be able to consult with Payton or Loomis on Draft Day decisions, and we're already working shorthanded without our top picks.

I trust them to get the job done. They've pulled out quality players in late rounds of the Draft before Colston, Bushrod, Nicks, Graham. Hopefully they can work their magic again this year, the Undrafted guys we bring in will be crucial as well.