New Orleans Saints 2012 Season Preview

Despite all his Bountygate efforts, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell won't be able to stop the Saints offensive attack this season. Head coach Sean Payton will surely be missed due to suspension, but the off-season signing of Drew Brees to a long-term contract firmly establishes our Super Bowl pedigree quarterback as the true leader of this team. We fortunately replaced our departed all-pro guard Carl Nicks with another all-pro in Ben Grubbs. And between Pierre Thomas, Darren Sproles, Mark Ingram, and Chris Ivory, we couldn't be any more stacked at the running back position. Not sure yet who's going to fill the shoes of departed wide receiver Robert Meachem, but the remaining core group of Jimmy Graham, Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, and Lance Moore should supply plenty of opportunities for Brees to stretch the field.

Defensively, suspensions and injuries have all but decimated our hope for an improved performance. Hopefully with Jonathan Vilma suspended, newly acquired linebackers Curtis Lofton and David Hawthorne will be able to bounce back quickly from injuries that are threatening to keep both of them off the field for at least the opening game against Washington. Defensive end Will Smith will also miss the first 4 games due to suspension, so it becomes vitally important for Cameron Jordan and Junior Galette to step up their play from the perimeter. Everyone seems excited about how great free safety Malcolm Jenkins can be this year, but if corners Jabiri Greer and Patrick Robinson manage to falter, Jenkins might unfortunately become no more than the best guy in the league making tackles 20 yards down the field.

The Saints are currently holding practices in Cincinnati as Hurricane Isaac reeks its havoc upon New Orleans, adding to the adversity the Saints must manage to overcome this season. Offensive line coach Aaron Kromer will be handling head cocahing duties while linebackers coach Joe Vitt serves his suspension, but it just may be newly acquired defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo who asserts himself as the Saints' most valuable coach roaming the sidelines. If he can somehow teach our defense to tackle properly and keep opposing teams from scoring more than say 3 touchdowns a game, Brees and our potent offensive unit will surely handle the rest.

The past 2 Saints seasons have ended with ugly playoff losses, so there is quite a bit of negativity coming from all angles for this year's Saints to work around. But it could very well happen to a team that turned rebounding from Hurricane Katrina into Super Bowl gold.

So WHODAT! And of course please one and all abide by the following public suggestion...