Cameron Jordan Meeting Early Expectations

He hasn't gotten a sack yet, but his solid play against the run and ability to grasp the pro game, has earned Saints first round draft pick defensive end Cameron Jordan a starting position in his first four NFL games.  Nice feature from James Varney of The Times-Picayune on Jordan's progress:

New Orleans Saints rookie Cameron Jordan proves to be answer at defensive end

In at least one sense, New Orleans Saints' first-round draft choice Cameron Jordan has fulfilled what the club had hoped for him: he is a starter. In fact, Jordan has started every game at defensive end in his rookie season. Although he has yet to get one of the glamour stats of his position - a sack, a forced fumble or, best of all, a sack that causes a fumble - Jordan has been there against the run. He has been credited with four solo tackles and three assists in three games.
To continue reading:  http://www.nola.com/saints/index.ssf/2011/09/new_orleans_saints_first-round_1.html

LaRon Landry Makes Strong Return In Redskins Loss

Playing for the first time since November 15, 2010, Washington Redskins Strong Safety LaRon Landry made an enormous presence in his team's 18-16 loss to the archrival Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night.  He had been out with injuries to his achilles and then hamstring according to http://www.redskins.com/. 

It was evident that Landry, a former All American at both LSU and Hahnville High School in Boutte, LA, was ready to get back to his hard hitting ways.  He tackled Dallas Cowboys running back Felix Jones on the very first play of the game, tomahawked the ball out of the arms of wide receiver Kevin Ogletree causing a fumble, blew up Cowboys wide receiver Laurent Robinson on a pass forcing an incompletion and pressured Tony Romo to get rid of the ball early on a safety blitz leading to an underthrown pass that was intercepted by Kevin Barnes.

Ogletree's fumble was recovered by cornerback Josh Wilson at the Cowboys ten yard line and led to a Redskins field goal.  However, the offense's inability to get a touchdown was typical of their ineptness, and the reason they were unable to get a victory, despite a strong defensive performance against a Dallas Cowboys offense that was only slightly better.

Landry, who has had some of his best career performances against his nearby hometown New Orleans Saints, is now under the tutelage of former Saints Coach Jim Haslett.  Haslett, as you probably know is now the Redskins defensive coordinator; and just like when he was coaching the Saints, the Redskins are much stronger defensively.  However, this time, Haslett can't be held responsible for the offense's inefficiencies, which the Aaron Brooks' led Saints offense certainly was under his reign.

During the 2009 Saints Super Bowl run, they were barely able to get out of Washington with a victory.  An 18 yard field field goal by Garrett Hartley in overtime clipped the underachieving Redskins 33-30, to extend the Saints winning streak to twelve games.  In that contest, Landry had 12 solo tackles and three pass defenses (stats via Wikipedia). 

The previous year the Saints also visited Washington, but came away unsucccessful.  It was during the second week of the season, and took place on a blistering hot September afternoon with temperatures in the high 90's.  Making the elements even more challenging were the black jerseys the Saints wore, as the Redskins naturally opted for their home team whites.  I was still living in DC and attended the game, along with a good number of other who dat fans. 

Midway through the fourth quarter with the Saints in the lead and facing third and long, Drew Brees threw a pass over the middle to Reggie Bush, who had picked up a few extra yards before Landry solo tackled him in the open field.  Landry's stop prevented  the Saints from picking up the first down giving the momentum back to the Redskins, who made a very rare touchdown winning drive when quarterback Jason Campbell threw a scoring bomb with under a minute left to Santana Moss. 

The last lead of the game for the Saints came on a Bush touchdown punt return early in the fourth quarter.  With only about ten yards of open field remaining between him and the end zone, Bush turned back and waved at the last defender chasing him.  It reminded me very much of the NFC Championship Game against Chicago when he did the same thing on the screen play that he had gotten loose on, and I knew it would come back to bite us.  Just a few minutes later, Bush had once again found the open space he is so dangerous in, but at that moment Southern California born speed could not match the toughness born of the Gulf Coast and the SEC, causing the momentum to shift and the tables to turn

- Win           

Spear In Back Ignites Saints 4th Quarter Comeback

Great article from Jeff Duncan of The Times Picayune on the Saints 4th Quarter comeback victory over the Houston Texans yesterday which was triggered when cornerback Kareem Jackson speared Drew Brees in the back late in the third quarter:

Drew Brees leads epic fourth-quarter comeback for New Orleans Saints

You don't tug on Superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, you don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger and you don't mess around with Drew Brees. Not in his house. Not with his good buddy on the sideline. And not on the five-year anniversary of one of the most important wins in Saints history.

The Texans messed with Brees on Sunday and didn't live to tell about it.
They returned to the Lone Star State beaten and wiser, having learned a valuable gridiron lesson: When you're fortunate enough to have the Saints and Brees down, the last thing you want to do is kick him. Or in Kareem Jackson's case, spear him in the back.
To continue reading:  http://www.nola.com/saints/index.ssf/2011/09/drew_brees_epic_fourth-quarter.html

Fresh Prince Of Sacks Returns To Saints Defensive Line

Defensive End Will Smith returns to the New Orleans this Sunday for their home game against the red hot
2-0 Houston Texans after serving a two game league suspension for use of a banned weight-loss substance.  Arguably, the Saints best pass rusher, Smith's absence was felt in their opening loss to Green Bay, but the defense managed just fine the following week against the Chicago Bears, battering Quarterback Jay Cutler sacking him 8 times while also forcing endless knockdowns.

With their highly balanced offensive attack, the Texans will undoubtedly provide the Saints defense a greater challenge than the Chicago Bears did.  Quarterback Matt Schaub is one of the league's highest rated passers and his primary target, wide receiver Andre Johnson, is regarded by many as the number one deep threat.  Smith's return has come at just the right time.  According to Sean Payton he has had a great camp.  Let's hope the rust has been knocked off.

Here is the first part of Brett Martel's AP story on the return of Smith published in the Biloxi Sun Herald:

A sack leader is back

METAIRIE -- As pleased as Will Smith was to be back at practice on Wednesday, he seemed even happier that he no longer has to worry about the specter of a suspension that has weighed on him for three seasons.
“I’m just glad to put it behind me,” said Smith, who in 2008 tested positive for a diuretic that is banned by the NFL because it can be used to mask steroid use.
“I know the coaches were always concerned about it, the fans, everyone was always concerned about it, and I’m happy that it’s over with now so I don’t have to worry about it and can just focus on football, focus on the Houston Texans and focus on the rest of the year.”
Read more: http://www.sunherald.com/2011/09/21/3449827/a-sack-leader-is-back.html#ixzz1YhpduzYL   

Belhaven Alum Tramaine Brock Is NFL Interception Leader For San Francisco 49ers. Yeah, That's Right.

While researching the statistical leaders on the NFL.com website Monday night in an effort to make better decisions about my fantasy football team "yallaintgotachance" playing in the Ms. Mae's Bastard Sons league, I made a surprising discovery.  At the top of the interceptions leaders list was a name and picture that rang a bell, Tramaine Brock of the San Francisco 49ers.  So, I clicked on his name to access his profile, and right there it stated, college Belhaven and hometown, Gulfport, Mississippi.

 I could not have been more shocked that the little tiny school located just up the street from where I grew up had produced the leader of any NFL category.  Not Miami, USC, Florida, Ohio State, but Belhaven. Soccer teams and Singing Christmas Trees I give Belhaven credit for, but not for producing top notch NFL cornerbacks. If memory serves me correct, the school did not even field a football team untill about 15-20 years ago.  I had read during the preseason that Belhaven had a player in the NFL, but the name had escaped me, and I had wrongly assumed that he would be way down the depth chart and would be lucky to still be on the team when the regular season started.  Shame on me! 

Technically, Brock is not the league's interception leader.  He is tied for two with several other players, having intercepted a pass in each of the 49er's first two games.  For that reason, the leaders are currently listed in alphabetical order and the name "Brock" is the undisputed leader on that end, so what the heck give him the tiebreaker!                 

Now for a little more on Brock:  Even though Gulfport is listed as his hometown, it was nearby Long Beach where we went to high school and played for the Bearcats.  Coming out of high school, he was a two star recruit according to Scout.Com and enrolled at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, helping the Bulldogs win a national championship his sophomore year.  After community college, he spent a year at the University of Minnesota before transferring to Belhaven for his senior season, where he had 6 interceptions for the Blazers.  Now you may think the year he spent playing for Minnesota somehow dilutes this rags to riches story, but he definitely came to the NFL straight from the Blazers and not the Golden Gophers!

This is Brock's second year in the league.  He was an undrafted free agent for the 49ers in 2010 and finished up the season on the practice squad.   With the pass-happy NFC West that the 49ers play in, Brock definitely has the opportunity for quite a few more picks this season.  If he keeps it up, we could have another all pro player coming out of the Gulf Coast, and the first one from Belhaven.

Also listed among the NFL's statistical leaders is running back Fred Jackson of the Buffalo Bills, who leads the league with 229 rushing yards.  His alma mater is Coe College.  Where the Hell is that?

- Win