Saints 12/17 Press Conference, Roster Moves and Injury Updates

Press Conference:
The Saints head coach Sean Payton held his presser today. As you can imagine, Payton faced a myriad of questions in regards to how he would prepare the team to face the division rival Falcons and if the ship was finally righted. He discussed gameplanning, the play of the secondary, player adjustments, facing adversity and quite a bit more. Drew Brees faced the same type of questions following Payton’s interview. Here are some of the big topics hit on today.

Sean Payton was asked about the Nick Toon fumble against the Chicago Bears on Monday Night. I don’t think Payton went too hard on him. He did say there were things Toon could have done to help prevent the fumble, but there wasn’t a sense of “doom” like last week after mistakes were made. Winning football games will do that. He said Toon “Could have been carrying it better, lowering his pads better”.

Both teams have very good passing games and if you give either too much time it can be difficult. – Sean Payton

As expected, the Falcons were a big topic and both Payton and Brees gave the team respect, especially in the passing game. Payton said stopping the Ryan led passing attack would be key, “Both teams have very good passing games and if you give either too much time it can be difficult. That will be a point of emphasis.” Brees made mention of the excitement that is to be expected in the Dome Sunday, “The fans enjoy this rivalry. It doesn’t get any better than this.”

Surprisingly, Payton didn’t seem to concerned when asked about the picture of his play sheet that appeared on Monday Night Football against the Bears. There was no indication he thought that the Falcons could use this to their advantage. When asked if it could do any harm he responded, “I don’t think so, and yet, it’s interesting that something like that shows up in our bench area. I don’t think there’s much to it. I am kind of surprised it showed up on the T.V. screen.”

What didn’t surprise me was how Brees responded when asked how he felt about the team’s offensive players and firepower. As always, he was all smiles, “I think we feel good about it. It was interesting coming off this last game looking at the stat book. We have a lot of guys we can spread the ball around to.” He didn’t stop his praise at his receivers, either, as he made sure to point out that Bryce Harris has looked good from what he has seen. “I don’t think twice when Bryce is in there. I think the O-Line does such a good job with communication and making adjustments.”

Almost every fan of the Saints is confident that their team, when they are consistent, can score points with any team in the NFL. The problem this year has been a lack of consistency in many areas. There has to be a stronger commitment to intensity. Drew had an answer for that to, “Everyone talks about handling adversity. I think it’s harder to handle success. To keep the pedal to metal and keep that sense of urgency is important.”

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There was no getting around the fact that this team has struggled at home this year and Brees didn’t attempt to deny it. What he did say, however, was that the team had a goal to get back to those winning ways by re-establishing dominance at home against Atlanta. I can’t think of a better team to do it against. Brees also left us with this, and it really stuck with me, “When you control your own destiny you don’t look at scenarios. Right now, we’re not looking at scenarios”. New Orleans has every opportunity to win this division and make a strong push in the playoffs. All they have to do is take that opportunity.

Roster Moves:  
Coach Payton confirmed the roster moves that have taken place on the practice squad the past couple of days. The team released DT Garrison Smith and OT DeMarcus Love. They signed K Dustin Hopkins and OG Andrew Miller.

Payton had some fairly strong praise for the young kicker coming in, and Mike Triplett at ESPN got the feeling that this could be a potential replacement for Graham in terms of the “long-run”. Here is what Payton had to say: “Highly graded young player. Opened some eyes with his kicks.”

Injury Updates:

The Saints did not practice today (held only walkthroughs), but here are the injuries that were reported.

Did Not Practice

DE Akiem Hicks (Ankle)
OT Terron Armstead (Neck)
S Jamarca Sanford (Hamstring)

Atlanta Falcons Injury Report:

Did Not Practice

G Jon Asamoah (Back)
WR Harry Douglas (Foot)
WR Julio Jones (Hip)
S William Moore (Foot)
WR Roddy White (Knee)

Full

DB Josh Wilson (Hand)

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