Saints have Super Bowl aspirations

Reggie Bush is a messianic running back recruited by the New Orleans Saints from USC

ReggieBushOnline.com - our official Reggie Bush site

April News
•Saints Want Bush to Emulate Westbrook

March
•Reggie Bush Vows to Focus on Football

February
•Bush teams with Shaq to host All-Star charity event
•Dog thinks 2 $900 Super Bowl tickets tasty treat
•Boonton man scores big with Super Bowl tickets
•Dog thinks 2 $900 Super Bowl tickets tasty treat

Super Bowl Weekend
•OK!'s Guide to the Super Bowl Parties
•"Hannah" primed to claim Super Bowl weekend
•Paris Hilton, Ludacris party alongside 50 Cent at pre-game Super Bowl concert

January
•Reggie Bush Engaged to Kim Kardashian?

December
•Eagles vs. Saints Preview 12/23/07
•Bush Hoping to Play Against Eagles 12/18/07
•Cardinals 24, Saints 31
•Bush Out For the Year 12/12/07
•Falcons 14, Saints 34 12/10/07
•Falcons vs. Saints Preview 12/10/07
•Buccaneers 27, Saints 23 12/02/07
•Buccaneers vs. Saints Preview 12/02/07

•2007 News
•2006 News
•2005 News

Saints have Super Bowl aspirations.

Is this the season the New Orleans Saints finally reach the Super Bowl?

In years' past, such a prospect would have been unthinkable. For most of their 40-year existence, the Saints set a standard for futility, winning only two division titles - 1991 and 2000 - and one playoff game prior to last season.

But the days of the "Aints" and fans wearing bags over their heads are a thing of the past. While the team's long-suffering supporters might find it difficult to believe, the Saints have the ingredients in place to reach the promised land.

After being displaced in 2005 due to the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, the Saints returned to the Superdome last season and were the NFL's best feel-good story.

Riding the wave of emotion all season, the Saints captured the NFC South with a 10-6 record and reached the NFC championship game for the first time.

"Last season was so special because of the fans," Saints running back Deuce McAllister told Fox Sports. "You don't forget the hardships of Saints fans through the years. And with Hurricane Katrina so fresh in our minds, it was so wonderful and meaningful to see the smiles on the faces of our fans."

With the exception of receiver Joe Horn, the Saints have everyone returning from an offense that ranked first in the NFL.

Sean Payton, one of the rising stars in the coaching ranks, installed a creative offense in his rookie season and brought out the best in quarterback Drew Brees. McAllister and Reggi Bush gave the Saints a potent one-two punch in the backfield, and more of the same is expected this season.

Still, there never are any guarantees in the NFL and the Saints won't sneak up on anyone this season. They also have to deal with soaring expectations.

If New Orleans is going to take the next step, it must prove it has a Super Bowl-caliber defense. The defense faltered in the postseason, allowing 24 and 39 points in the two playoff games.

"You are going to be the hunted team now," McAllister said. "Teams are going to be looking forward to playing the Saints and see how good you are."

If the Saints fall short, the Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys look to be the NFC's top contenders, although the conference is wide open with no clear-cut favorite. The Philadelphia Eagles also expect to return to contender status while the improving San Francisco 49ers are a trendy pick in some circles.

Seattle won its third straight NFC West title last season despite missing running back Shaun Alexander for six games and quarterback Matt Hasselbeck for four. With the division becoming more competitive, the Seahawks need to stay healthy. Hasselbeck underwent offseason surgery to repair a torn labrum and his health could be a major concern after he endured knee, rib and shoulder problems last season.

Chicago still looks like a playoff team but it may be hard-pressed to duplicate last season's 13-3 record in the NFC North. The Bears traded Thomas Jones, the team's leading rusher the last two seasons, and starting nose tackle Tank Johnson was released after serving 60 days in jail for violating his probation following a series of legal problems.

Wade Phillips takes over in Dallas for Bill Parcells, who opted for retirement rather than put up with temperamental receiver Terrell Owens for another season.

The Cowboys upgraded their offense when quarterback Tony Romo replaced the now-retired Drew Bledsoe midway through last season. However, Romo needs to bounce back from his gaffe in the playoffs. Dallas was in position to beat Seattle with a late field goal, but Romo, the holder, fumbled the snap and the Cowboys' season ended in crushing fashion.

"It comes up every once in awhile," Romo said. "But that's in the past. It happened. It was tough. But I'm over it and I think our team is over it. You can't keep dwelling on it. You have to learn from it and move on and I think we've done that."

In Philadelphia, the Eagles hope to have a healthy Donovan McNabb, who has started just 18 of the team's last 32 games. What Philadelphia really needs, however, to battle the Cowboys for the division title is better balance on offense.

When McNabb went down last season, coordinator Marty Mornhinweg took over the play-calling and the Eagles did a better job balancing the run and pass. Running back Brian Westbook became more involved, accounting for nearly 2,000 yards of total offense, and Philadelphia needs similar production from Westbrook this year.

As for the rest of the NFC East, the New York Giants and Washington Redskins could be looking at long seasons. The Giants have a huge void to fill following the retirement of running back Tiki Barber and the honeymoon is over for quarterback Eli Manning. It's time for Peyton's little brother to put up or shut up.

The Redskins expect quarterback Jason Campbell to be improved but he needs help. That means Washington must get major production from its backfield tandem of Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts.

With the continuing maturation of quarterback Alex Smith and the emergence of Frank Gore as one of the league's best running backs, many observers believe the 49ers could be the NFC's sleeper team and a force in the NFC West.

Looking to end a string of four consecutive losing seasons, San Francisco addressed its biggest problem in the offseason by upgrading its defense. The 49ers spent $40 million to sign four new starters, including free agent cornerback Nate Clements.

In St. Louis, quarterback Marc Bulger excelled under first-year coach Scott Linehan. But unlike the 49ers, the Rams did not address their defensive concerns. St. Louis figures to score a lot of points and give up just as many. Consequently, a .500 finish could be in the offing.

Arizona has yet another new coach, its seventh since moving to the desert in 1988, as former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt takes over for Dennis Green, who was doomed after a 1-8 start last season.

The Cardinals have a promising quarterback in Matt Leinart and skilled receivers in Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin . But they have question marks of both sides of the ball and seem destined for another last-place finish.

If anyone is going to challenge the Bears in the NFC Central, it likely will be the Green Bay Packers. Brett Favre returns for his 17th season and while he is not the Favre of old, he is still the best-signal caller in the division. The Vikings' offense has too many questions and the Lions are, well, the Lions.

Favre needs seven touchdown passes to break Dan Marino's NFL mark of 420 and two victories to surpass John Elway as the NFL's all-time winningest quarterback. But the Packers, who were quiet in the free agent market, are pinning their hopes on the maturation of what could be the league's youngest roster.

While the Packers created some offseason momentum by winning their last four games to reach .500, the Vikings collapsed down the stretch, losing eight of their last 10 games to finish 6-10.

With an inexperienced quarterback - Tarvaris Jackson takes over for the departed Brad Johnson - and a weak receiving corps, Minnesota may be hard-pressed to better last season's mark. Rookie running back Adrian Peterson could provide a boost but the the Vikings will have to win games with their defense, which is still solid.

In Detroit, fans continue to wonder how Matt Millen keeps his job, as the Lions are 24-72 since Millen was named team president in 2001. Coach Rod Marinelli is trying to change the losing culture and the Lions do have some young talent to complement quarterback Jon Kitna. Roy Williams and No. 1 draft pick Calvin Johnson give the Lions a solid pair of receivers.

Other than the Saints, the NFC South features two underachieving teams - Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers - and one team - Atlanta Falcons - reeling from the fiasco of their star quarterback.

Pity first-year Falcons coach Bobby Petrino, who left a successful program at Louisville. When he took the Atlanta job, he could not have imagined that his star quarterback - Michael Vick - would be facing jail for dogfighting charges.

With Vick, the Falcons likely would have challenged for a playoff spot. Without him, the outlook is bleak. The Falcons now are forced to go with career journeyman Joey Harrington.

The Panthers took a step back last season after reaching the NFL championship game in 2005. Carolina has a legitimate star on either side of the ball - wide receiver Steve Smith and defensive end Julius Peppers - but the Panthers desperately need someone else to emerge.

Eager to escape the basement, the Buccaneers made numerous moves in the offseason, including signing quarterback Jeff Garcia, who provides insurance if Chris Simms can't come back from a ruptured spleen.

New Orleans Saints News

April News
•Saints Want Bush to Emulate Westbrook

March News
•Reggie Bush Vows to Focus on Football

February News
•Bush teams with Shaq to host All-Star charity event
•Dog thinks 2 $900 Super Bowl tickets tasty treat
•Boonton man scores big with Super Bowl tickets
•Dog thinks 2 $900 Super Bowl tickets tasty treat

Super Bowl Weekend
•OK!'s Guide to the Super Bowl Parties
•"Hannah" primed to claim Super Bowl weekend
•Paris Hilton, Ludacris party alongside 50 Cent at pre-game Super Bowl concert

Syndicated content not available

49ers News
Bengals News:
Chargers News
Cowboys News
Eagles News
Super Bowl News
Pro Bowl News
USC Trojans News
Rose Bowl News

USC Stars:
Marc Tyler
Joe McKnight
Mark Snachez
Chauncey Washington