2012 Saints Must Do it Now

The 2012 New Orleans Saints are beginning to take shape in a much more positive way in the last few weeks. I won’t go into an endless recap because that’s been beaten to death but needless to say it’s been a very interesting offseason with enough drama to derail any NFL team. The challenge here for the New Orleans Saints is to put things behind them, band together, and deliver a Super Bowl under very tough conditions.
But the elements are in place now for a very successful 2012 season for New Orleans. The biggest obstacle, the signing of Drew Brees, happened last week, naturally while I was on vacation and couldn’t add my two cents. But Brees is now locked down for the next five years and we can all assume he’s happy and ready to go. This is where the rest of the NFL better watch out. If Saints fans know anything it’s that Drew Brees is a competitor. He’ll be invloved in every aspect of the Saints offense now, even more so than before. The absence of Sean Payton is a factor but with Brees at quarterback and Pete Carmichael Jr. calling the plays I believe we can look forward to a very productive season offensively. The Saints essential wide receivers are still here, Jimmy Graham has developed into an astoundingly good Tight End, and Darren Sproles will have a full offseason to work with the coaching staff and become an even more effective player. If all elements remain healthy the New Orleans Saints offense will be as potent as ever.
It’s on defense I believe we’ll find the biggest changes. Steve Spagnuolo runs an entirely different defensive scheme. The Saints will be playing more zone and relying of the defensive line to produce a pass rush. While Gregg Williams was constantly rolling the dice, Spagnuolo will probably be more conservative. Odds are we’ll see fewer big plays against secondary positions operating on an island. If I picked one position that I think will be vastly improved it’s the linebackers. The addition of Curtis Lofton makes me believe we’ve seen the end of Jonathan Vilma regardless of the outcome of his appeals to the NFL. Point blank, Vilma hasn’t been nearly as productive as he was in 2009 and may have been on his way out anyway. A whole new set of linebackers was needed and we’ve pretty much gotten that.
The 2012 New Orleans Saints will be a different team, faced with a challenge to do it now. As necessary as signing Drew Brees was, his huge contract is going to make it tough for New Orleans in the future. 2013 and beyond may see the departure of key elements of the New Orleans Saints roster as the franchise will simply not have the money to keep everybody. So the Saints must win it all in 2012 or face even bigger challenges down the line.

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