The Saints’ running game and defense might not be up to par in 2009 leaving the bulk of the work towards winning in veteran QB Drew Brees’ hands.  That shouldn’t be a problem for him as he has been outstanding since the day he appeared in Cajun Country.  Brees doesn’t have a great arm but he has enough zip on the ball to make almost any throw he needs.  He often looks like a surgeon when throwing the short stuff as his timing is often impeccable.  The most important thing about Brees is that he is a winner!  Veteran lefty Mark Brunell will be the #2 QB again for the Saints this season.  He doesn’t have a gun for a arm anymore and his mobility is pretty much gone but he’s also a winner like Brees who would help the Saints find ways to win games if he were forced into action.  Joey Harrington will be the #3 QB for the Saints again this season.  He has a ton of experience for a #3 guy but that doesn’t mean he’s good because he’s not.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON:  A

After watching Olindo Mare last season anyone would likely be an improvement for the Saints.  32-year old Martin Gramatica will battle rookie Taylor Mehlhaff for the starting kicker job on the Saints.  Gramatica played in 3 games for the Saints last season and he made all 5 of his field goal attempts and all 8 of his extra points.  It will be interesting to see if Gramatica can hold off the kid or not.  Gramatica has now played in 104 games in his NFL career and he has connected on 149 of 193 field goals (77.2%).  He also has made 212 of 214 extra points (99.1%) in his career to this point.

Rookie 22-year old Taylor Mehlhaff has a big left leg.  He played in 13 games at Wisconsin last season and he connected on 21 of 25 (84%) field goals.  He also made 42 of 43 extra points (98%) last year.  Mehlhaff can hit the long field goal but he has had some issues kicking on the road as fan noise sometimes rattles him.  He finished his career playing in 51 games at Wisconsin in which he was 50 for 65 (76.9%) on field goals.  He also has converted 145 of 148 extra points (98%) in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  C-

The Saints should be even more dangerous in the passing game this season with Jeremy Shockey on board for the 2008 season.  Shockey played in 14 games for the Giants last season and he caught 57 passes for 619 yards (10.9 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Look for those numbers to be much better in 2008 with Drew Brees throwing to Shockey instead of Eli Manning.  Shockey has now played in 83 games in his NFL career and he has caught 371 passes for 4,228 yards (11.4 avg) with 27 TD grabs.

31-year old Billy Miller will be the #2 TE for the Saints and he’s also a decent receiver.  He played in all 16 games for the Saints last season and he caught 27 passes for 328 yards (12.1 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Look for Miller to catch about the same amount of passes this season unless Shockey gets injured.  Miller has now played in 99 games in his NFL career and he has caught 155 passes for 1,669 yards (10.8 avg) with 9 TD grabs.

32-year old Mark Campbell will be the #3 TE for the Saints and he’s a solid blocker in the running game.  He did not play last season due to injury.  Campbell has now played in 102 games in his NFL career and he caught 134 passes for 1,235 yards (9.2 avg) with 10 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B+

The Saints are in really good shape at WR heading into the 2008 season.  They have a lot of depth and Drew Brees loves to move the football around like Tom Brady does in New England.  6′4″, 231 pound Marques Colston is one of the best receivers in the entire NFL.  He has great hands, wins jump balls and has enough speed to get downfield.  Colston played in all 16 games for the Saints last season and he caught 98 passes for 1,202 yards (12.3 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  Look for Colston to get less double coverage this season due to improvement in the WR corps as well as the addition of Jeremy Shockey.  That could mean that Colston could have a career year in 2008 for the Saints.  Colston has now played in 30 games in his NFL career and he has caught 168 passes for 2,240 yards (13.3 avg) with 19 TD grabs.

33-year old veteran David Patten is back for 2008 and he’s a fine secondary WR.  He played in all 16 games for the Saints last season and he caught 54 passes for 792 yards (14.7 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Patten’s numbers could start to downturn a little bit if the Saints’ younger receivers step up but he’s still a good football player.  Patten has now played in 142 games in his NFL career and he has caught 313 passes for 4,553 yards (14.5 avg) with 23 TD grabs.  He has also carried the football 13 times for 106 yards (8.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.

26-year old Devery Henderson is one of the fastest receivers in the NFL but his hands sometimes are faulty especially when venturing over the middle of the football field.  Henderson played in all 16 games for the Saints last season and he caught 20 passes for 409 yards (20.5 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He also carried the football 2 times for 20 yards (10.0 ypc) last season.  Look for the Saints to use Henderson on deep plays but not much else in 2008 so his numbers should stay about the same.  Henderson has now played in 43 games in his NFL career and he has caught 74 passes for 1,497 yards (20.2 avg) with 11 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 5 times for 43 yards (8.6 avg) with a TD run.

6′0″, 215 pound receiver Robert Meachem was a complete bust as a first round pick last season as he didn’t even step on the football field as a rookie.  He looked really good in last night’s exhibition opener for the Saints so they still have hope for him.  Look for Meachem to dig up some pride and show up this season.  He could eventually work his way up to the #3 WR job this season as long as he works hard in practice.  The Saints still like him despite last year.

26-year old Terrance Copper is a solid spare part to have around for the Saints.  Even though he’s buried on the depth chart, he makes plays when given the chance.  Copper played in 15 games for the Saints last season and he caught 15 passes for 126 yards (8.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Look for him to have better numbers than that in 2008.  Copper has now played in 56 games in his NFL career and he has caught 46 passes for 600 yards (13.0 avg) with 6 TD grabs.

5′9″, 190 pound Lance Moore had a decent year in 2007 for the Saints and they are expecting him to be even better in 2008.  Moore played in all 16 games for the Saints last season and he caught 32 passes for 302 yards (9.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 7 yards (3.5 ypc) with a TD run.  Although Moore is the smallest of the Saints’ receivers he has a big heart so he should get his share of playing time in 2007.  Moore has now played in 20 games in his NFL career and he has caught 33 passes for 312 yards (9.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

22-year old Adrian Arrington is a big target at 6′3″, 203 pounds but he’s not the fastest receiver around.  Still, he could be effective in the Saints’ offense if he can just get off the line of scrimmage.  Arrington played in 13 games (all starts) last season at Michigan and he caught 67 passes for 882 yards (13.2 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  Arrington will likely have to play a lot on special teams to make it as a rookie on the Saints.  He finished his career at Michigan having played in 34 games (18 starts) in which he caught 109 passes for 1,438 yards (13.2 avg) with 16 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A-

Mike Karney is a throwback player as he’s a good blocker who is very effective around the goal line with the ball in his hands.  Karney played in 16 games (9 starts) for the Saints last season and he carried the ball 11 times for 17 yards (1.5 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He also caught 13 passes for 78 yards (6.0 avg) last year.  Look for Karney to be effective again in 2008 for the Saints.  Karney has now played in 63 games (38 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 31 times for 69 yards (2.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also has caught 44 passes for 277 yards (6.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs in his NFL career.

6′0″, 238 pound fullback Kevin Dudley is the backup at fullback for the Saints.  He did not play at all last season.  Dudley has now played in 2 games (0 starts) in his NFL career and he has never touched the football in a game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B-