Patriots Vs. Saints 8/12/10

While New England and New Orleans meet, who knows how many of the stars we will see.

New Orleans Saints (0-0) at New England Patriots (0-0)

NFL Football Pre-Season: Thursday August 12, 2010 7:30 PM EST

Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA

Get Tickets

The Line: New England Patriots - 1 1/2

The best team of the last decade meets the defending Super Bowl Champions as the pre-season kicks off fir the New England patriots and the New Orleans Saints.

While questions abound in New England following last season's unceremonious pounding a the hands of the Baltimore Ravens in the playoffs, there are a lot of answers as well. Bill Belichick is back at head coach and Tom Brady is back at quarterback and everything after that, well it just seems to be secondary. What we saw last year was an aging team that seemed to have lost their edge and maybe were the beneficiaries of a few questionable calls which made the difference between them participating in the playoffs and watching them from their living rooms. When we saw the last, they looked anything but like a team that deserved to be there. I think New England uses this game and most of the pre-season to establish quality depth. All of the years of success have created an exodus for greener pastures for many of the players who made up those Super Bowl winners leaving vacancies not so much on the front lines, but through to the second wave. At QB, we should see plenty of Brian Hoyer and Zac Robinson. The Pats are high on Hoyer but Robinson has all of the tools and both have a chance to stick. At Running back is this the year Lawrence maroney isn't considered a disappointment? Sammy Morris will be back as will Fred Taylor and Kevin Faulk so it's going to be tough to crack the roster for BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Chris Taylor who should see action in this one. We won't be seeing Wes Elker in this one as he's on the PUP list but there are some interesting stories here with Torry Holt giving it a last go but I'm still not sold on Juliam Edelman being an answer for much. Better stories on the Pats roster at WR are Darnell Jenkins who was a 4.2 40 guy before a knee injury and third round pick Taylor Price. Buddy Farnham from Brown is going to get a look, more than likely on special teams and look for Brandon Tate and Sam Aiken to see significant time as the competition at WR should be heated and open. Tight End will have a new look in New England but who exactly it will be remains a question. Alge Crumpler was brought in to be the big target for Brady but the drafting of Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez could mean a short stay for Crumpler. Last year was the fewest sacks the patriots ever allowed in a season at 18 but Brady still looked to be taking some big hits. New England took two Linemen in the draft in Thomas Welch and Ted Larsen but it's typical in pre-season to see the offenses sputter when the second unit and beyond OL's enter the game.

Vince Wilfork is back to lead the defense and the Defensive Line but I don't expect the front level to lay much in this one as there is some competition to be had, especially at Defensive End. While Ty Warren is a lock, Gerrard Warren, Damione Lewis, and draft pick Brandon Deadrick are just a few who will be competing here. New England went big early in the draft at Linebacker, and area where they are thin and it will be interesting to see how much impact Jermaine Cunningham and Brandon Spikes will have. If Spikes can contribute in the middle, they can move Gary Guyton outside though I think Pierre Woods may be in some trouble as far as a roster spot. Jerrod Mayo and Tully Banta Cain are givens for the roster. The names change so fast at the Cornerback spot for New England it's tough to keep track but the Leigh Bodden and Drius Butler are the starters theough they went CB with their first round pick with Devin McCourty and Kyle Arrington's play in camp has been opening up a lot of eyes. 

The New Orleans Saints didn't lose a lot from the team that won the Super Bowl a year ago and this pre-season should be more about getting more experience for the depth chart. I'm not expecting to see much of Drew Brees in this one as he's the franchise so it will more than likely be Chase Daniel, Patrick Ramsey, and Sean Canfield are going to see the bulk of the action and while Ramsey has the experience, the other two have a lot more upside. At Running Back, Reggie Bush endured a tough off season and Pierre Thomas is a little dinged up but the likely hood of seeing much of either of them is slim. Lynell Hamilton is going to get a long look as will P.J. Hill, the rookie out of Wisconsin will look to grab the vacancy left by Mike Bell. Wide Receiver is still one of the deepest in the NFL but Marques Colston and Robert Meacham are unlikely to play look for Lance Moore to be a guy who gets the long look as he was banged up a lot of last season and Courtney Roby, Larry Beavers, Adrian Arrington and others will look to be players who can sneak onto the roster. At Tight End Jeremy Shockey says he will play but he has been getting dinged up a lot in recent years so it will probably be in a very limited role and David Thomas and draft pick Jimmy Graham will be carrying the load at TE here. The Saints drafted Charles Brown and Matt Tennant to bolster the Offensive Line but my guess is they will be part of the second unit and beyond for the time being so it will be a learning experience.

Charles Grant is the biggest departure form the defense as Alex Brown and Jimmy Wilkerson were brought in to fill the hole and they might even be an upgrade. While we'll see these two, I'm not sure we'll see too much of Will Smith and the rest of the starters. Look for Al Woods, Anthony Hargrove, and Bobby McCray to be among those getting some quality work in this one. Scott Fujita is gone at Linebacker and Scott Shanle is a little dinged up so once again the first unit just won't be around too long in this game. Marvin Mitchell, Anthony Waters, Jonathan Casillas, and Stanley Arnoux should all see significant action. New Orleans went Cornerback with their first round draft choice taking Patrick Robinson a year after taking Malcolm Jenkins as they continue to strengthen the secondary though there could be some fierce competition with Usama Young, Pierson Prioleau, and Leigh Torrence, Reggie Jones, and others all getting playing time in this one.

Once again we just have a tough game to call as pre-season we just never know who is going to play and how long. I think both first team offenses score but after that, I think New England wants to at least get revenge on the Saints for last year's beat down in the Big Easy. While winning a game like this isn't much revenge, I think the Patriots will want to deliver at least that to the home team and with there being more roster competition on New England it gives them the edge. By the way, New England is especially tough at home.

Mitch's Pick: New England Patriots

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