There was a lot of concern about whether or not the Saints were celebrating their Super Bowl victory a little too much leading to a lot of people writing off the Saints this season. There's one thing people are forgetting though, the Saints virtually lost nothing when it came to players and coaches.
We see this a lot of the NFL. When a team wins a Super Bowl, they usually lose a lot of coaches or players. I remember the 94 Niners after they won their Super Bowl. They lost both coordinators (Mike Shanahan and Ray Rhodes) and lost key players like Deion Sanders and Ricky "For Who? For What?" Watters. Loses like that were catastrophic for the Niners. The Saints don't face that problem heading into the 2010 season.
The Saints didn't lose defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. They re-signed defensive leader Darren Sharper. The Saints did trade away left tackle Jamal Brown and didn't re-sign linebacker Scott Fujita and defensive lineman Charles Grant. Other than that though the Saints return a deep offensive team and a solid defense. This leads me to my questions surrounding the Saints heading into the 2010 NFL season.
Can the Defense Stay Consistent?: The Saints defense was good but never great last year. The Saints actually added to their defensive line by cutting Charles Grant and signing former Bear Alex Brown. The Saints who like to get after the opposing quarterback added a defensive end who has averaged six sacks a game. The key to the Saints defense is to get pressure on the quarterback which leads to interceptions and the Saints added to this aspect of their defense with Brown. The Saints should get pressure on the quarterback and they should at least be consistent this season.
Can the Line Continue to Protect Drew Brees?: The Saints can thank their offensive line for their success last season. Drew Brees was one of the least sacked quarterbacks last season because of his line. The Saints only lost left tackle Jammal Brown, but he was injured all of last season and Jermon Bushrod filled in for him. Bushrod is expected to start at left tackle this year. The Saints also added depth to their line through the draft by selecting Charles Brown and Zach Strief. The added depth to an already outstanding offensive line will give Brees plenty of time to throw.
The Saints will be a targeted team this year and maybe they did party a little too hard in the offseason, but don't count out the Saints. Their offense will still be explosive. Their defense will still be consistent and get pressure on the opposing quarterback. Their division is mediocre. The Saints are going to be really good this year.
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