“We ain’t getting there,” says Saints’ Grant

By Darrell Laurant  |   Thursday, September 20, 2007  |  Comments( 0 )

New Orleans Saints
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article!

There is a thin line between success and failure in the NFL. The New Orleans Saints' defensive line is finding that out.

Last year at this time, the Saints already had seven sacks. This year? None.

Consequently, Peyton Manning picked apart the New Orleans secondary like a plate of ribs in Indianapolis' 41-10 opening-night romp, and Tampa Bay QB Jeff Garcia burned the Saints for 243 yards and two touchdowns last week.

This week, New Orleans faces a Tennessee team led by Vince Young, perhaps the most mobile QB in the NFL now that Michael Vick is in "timeout" and Donovan McNabb has slowed down.

So what's the deal?

"We ain't getting there," Saints DE Charles Grant told the Sun News of Gulfport. "It's on us."

In all fairness, though, there are reasons. The interior of the Saints' line isn't what it was last season. Brian Young, who had 2½ sacks against Cleveland in the opener last season, broke his foot working out on his own in July and missed most of training camp. He's had to essentially play himself into shape.

Meanwhile, Hollis Thomas -- last year's run stopper -- was demoted to second string when he ate himself into Sean Payton's doghouse. Kendrick Clancy moved into his spot, but is now limping from turf toe.

What this means is that Grant and Will Smith have to stay home more to help out against the run, rather than being free to chase quarterbacks.

They'll be chasing Young a lot -- he had 53 yards rushing last week and has deceptive speed for a player his size.

The Saints' defensive line had 29 of the team's 38 sacks last season. As it stands now, New Orleans and the Jets are the only NFL teams with none.

Smith had 10 alone in 2006.

"I promise you both ends will finish with double-digit sacks," Grant predicted after the Tampa Bay game.

0-2 is 0-2, but it's a young season. Still, to paraphrase Yogi Berra, it gets late early in the NFL.

What's the rush? In New Orleans, it's "Where's the rush?"
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article! (0)

About Darrell Laurant

...Sorry, Darrell Laurant's bio is currently not available. Please check back soon!
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report