It all starts here(The Saints Rebuilding Story)

[Stokes36]

After many mediocre years in a row, with top notch talent at WR, WHO DAT has decided to start anew. Stockpiling draft picks in future years, we've chosen to trade off some good guys to see them hopefully succeed with other teams. We're all in this because we want to win, and I'm no different. I want to win, and am not satisfied with 7-9, 6-10, 8-8 seasons constantly. So, we decide we need to take a couple steps back, so we can take many steps forward. The trading of Sanders and Conway means that Thomas Lewis and Travis McGriff must take the #1 and 2 spots in the passing game, and they have shown they are good players. We will keep a bit of continuity as Jake Plummer will continue to start next year, and Priest Holmes will continue to be the #1 back. We did, however, add Ahman Green who is a favorite of the GM's, who is a big Nebraska fan. Enough talk...on to the beginning of the rebuild. It all starts with the draft.

1.12-DE John Abraham-33/68
Bill Polian says you need a quarterback, and a guy who can stop the other team's quarterback...it doesn't matter what order you get them in. Abraham is a good, balanced DE, who can stop the run and rush the passer. Will start from day one.

2.11-K Neil Rackers-81/81
Spoke to a GM who said he would have taken Rackers at the end of the 1st, so I'm happy to see this guy at 2.11. Another part of a winning formula is having a guy you can count on in the clutch. With Rackers' accuracy bar as high as it is, we should have no trouble converting key FG's.

2.30-DE James Hall-17/33
Expected him to come out a bit better than this, but also felt his combine was better than the bars. We now have our future DE's to rush the passer. Will start by midseason or season 2

3.15-RG Lewis Kelly-21/32
Decent combine...very iffy about the pick, but I did like him. with the trade of Shields, we need another stop gap at guard

3.17-RT Chris McIntosh-23/44
This was a very tackle heavy draft, I felt. There were a lot of tackles, that can come in to this league and start immediately. McIntosh will play RT from day one in New Orleans.

4.13-MLB Kevin Lewis-14/37
Not really sure why he was chosen. No comment

4.14-Robaire Smith-15/26
Was familiar with his name...thought he had some solid combine numbers

5.13-LG Michael Moore-17/27
Down here, we're just seeing if we can strike gold

5.15-FL Avian Black-17/39
I liked the combine, and was very happy to find him here in the 5th round

6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-10/23
Nice 40 yard dash. He's going to be moving to CB.

6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-6/25
Very good 40 time, and he's apart of an experiment for me. I'm gonna move him over to HB, and see how it goes. I'll give him a season to prove his worth, although he will not get many carries at all with Ahman and Priest carrying the load

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All in all, I'm happy with the draft, I'd say.We have a few project picks that might not make the roster, but TC will tell us a lot of what we want to know.

[bighouserulez]

LOVE the Rackers pick and the T will creep for you.

Good work Stokes too bad your whole team is in LA.

[revrew]

Yep, I was hoping for Rackers at 2.17, but no dice. On his way to 90/90 plus.

[Stokes36]

Post-TC Numbers:

1.12-DE John Abraham-33/68====39/67(+6/-1)

2.11-K Neil Rackers-81/81===82/82(+1/+1)

2.30-DE James Hall-17/33====20/35(+3/+2)

3.15-RG Lewis Kelly-21/32====23/30(+2/-2)

3.17-RT Chris McIntosh-23/44===25/41(+2/-3)

4.13-MLB Kevin Lewis-14/37===17/37(+3/0)

4.14-Robaire Smith-15/26===19/29(+4/+3)

5.13-LG Cooper Carlisle ==== 19/38

5.15-FL Avian Black-17/39====20/36(+3/-3)

6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-10/23====13/24(+3/+1)

6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-6/25===*Switch to RB* 8/14(+2/-11)

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At the top, I like what I got, as a building block going forward. First two picks will be game changers from the start, and we have a large amount of picks next year and 2002, so we're in pretty good shape going forward.

[Stokes36]

After Preseason:

1.12.DE John Abraham-39/67===40/67

2.11.K Neil Rackers-82/82===88/88

2.30.DE James Hall-20/35===21/35

3.15.G Lewis Kelly-23/30===24/30

3.17.RT Chris McIntosh-25/41===28/41

4.13.ILB Kevin Lewis-17/37===18/37

4.14.DT Robaire Smith-19/29===19/29

5.12.G Cooper Carlisle-19/38===20/38

5.14.WR Avion Black-20/36===21/36

6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-13/24===13/24

6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-8/14===8/14

Only thing eye popping about this is NEIL RACKERS!

Will Update again after our 4th game, and so on.

[iBomb1st]

looks like Rev was spot on.

[Steel]

Kickers and punters don't count! We established this already! Arghhh!

[Stokes36]

After Week 7:

1.12.DE John Abraham-40/67===43/67

2.11.K Neil Rackers-88/88===93/93

2.30.DE James Hall-21/35===23/35

3.15.G Lewis Kelly-24/30===26/30

3.17.RT Chris McIntosh-28/41===32/41

4.13.ILB Kevin Lewis-18/37===19/37

4.14.DT Robaire Smith-19/29===20/29

5.12.G Cooper Carlisle-20/38===21/38

5.14.WR Avion Black-21/36===22/36

6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-13/24===13/24

6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-8/14===8/14

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Nothing special other than Rackers continuing to beast it up.

[Stokes36]

After Week 8:

1.12.DE John Abraham-43/67====46/67

2.11.K Neil Rackers-93/93======99/99 :jaw::jaw::jaw::jaw::jaw:

2.30.DE James Hall-23/35=======23/35

3.15.G Lewis Kelly-26/30========26/30

3.17.RT Chris McIntosh-32/41=====32/41

4.13.ILB Kevin Lewis-19/37===22/37

4.14.DT Robaire Smith-20/29===20/29

5.12.G Cooper Carlisle-21/38====21/38

5.14.WR Avion Black-22/36====22/36

6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-13/24====13/24

6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-8/14====8/14

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wowzers....not in my wildest did I think Rackers would jump this high...at all. INSANE

[iBomb1st]

That is awesome. On a side note, I hate Rackers so very very much.

[Steel]

99/99!?!? WTF!?!? I really wonder how much he adds to your teams roster rating?

[Stokes36]

After Season 1(With thoughts):

1.12.DE John Abraham-46/67====54/67
31 total tackles, 2 sacks 3.1% PR Pct. Not a good year, but decent progression

2.11.K Neil Rackers-99/99 ====99/99
19/23 on FG's. Hindered by an awful offense. Will be amazing going forward

2.30.DE James Hall-23/35====24/35
17 tackles, 1.5 sacks 6.2 PR pct. Played better than Abraham in much more limited PT. Happy to see him playing pretty sell

3.15.G Lewis Kelly-26/30====26/30
Played sparingly, and didn't progress much at all.

3.17.RT Chris McIntosh-32/41====36/41
Every down starter, 1.2 Sack %. Decent

4.13.ILB Kevin Lewis-22/37====24/37
38 total tackles. 13% tackle pct. Good performance in limited play

4.14.DT Robaire Smith-20/29====21/29
Over 400 plays but didn't budge much. Unimpressive

5.12.G Cooper Carlisle-21/38====24/38
16 starts. 1.4 Sack %. Might be the starting going forward, if he grows to what he's showing

5.14.WR Avion Black-22/36====25/36
Thrust in to the starting position and did not disappoint. 70 catches for 715 yards, 4 TD's and only 5 drops. Great production given his draft slot, but may not start next season

6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-13/24====15/24
Played sparingly. Nothing special

6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-8/14====9/14
Rushed for 344 more yards than I thought he'd get this year(Had 344 yards rushing, 3.95 ypc). Was only on the team to see if a QB could make the transition. Definitely will not be on the team next year

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Pretty decent performances out of the rookies this year. Only 3-4 starters we see out of this class after this season.

With 9 picks in the first two rounds, and 12 in the first 3...A lot of these guys may be pushed off the roster.

Things looking up in the big easy

[Stokes36]

2001 Draft:

1.4: WR Steve Smith-39/61
I felt this was the best WR in the draft, and we would have taken LaDainian Tomlinson here if he fell. Smith was the BPA at a position of need. I LOVE the way this guy plays in real life, and it's an honor to have this guy on my team. He should start form day one, and set a few records before he leaves(If we get a QB here before he retires)

1.16: WR Chris Chambers-36/50
There wasn't a player here I felt fit the need for the draft position here, aside from Chambers and Reggie Wayne. Chambers had better bars than Wayne, so I felt he was the better option. Planning to start him aside Smith for the next 7-10 years

1.25: DE Rodney Bailey-29/68
I'm not sure why this guy kept falling, and falling, and falling in the draft. Although I already have 2 starters at DE in Abraham, and Woodall...I just didn't think I could pass on Bailey. In Hindsight, I prolly shoulda looked at Will Allen a bit more, but I'm fine with Bailey and Abraham as the future at DE.

2.16: DE Richard Seymour-24/45
I liked his combine, and felt that Seymour was a good pick down this late. Seymour will likely be playing DT in our 4-3. I figure if I put enough athletic trench guys down there, we'll eventually start to make some big plays. Depending on how he converts to DT, he should start by season's end

2.24: LT Pork Chop Womack-21/60
We traded away our great left tackle last offseason, and we didn't find a suitiable replacement for him, and I think we have one now. Womack is very much a run blocker, and while he may be a liability pass blocking, we'll run enough to keep him happy.

2.26: G Ben Hamilton-28/37
Games are won and lost in the trenches, and we drafted that way for 6 straight picks. He was the BPA on my list.

2.32: T Jeff Backus-19/48
Another tackle prospect we feel good about. May have a future at RT if Womack performs well.

3.4: DT Marcus Bell-26/43
Trench warfare. We drafted like this last year, and last season's performances made me optimistic about what could be, with this team. Keep drafting talented players, and eventually stuff will come together

3.12: QB Billy Volek-13/39
I saw a high sense rush, and a high read defense bar. Nothing more, nothing less. This may eventually grow to be a wasted pick, as I don't think he's a long term solution at QB

3.14: G Keydrick Vincent-21/48
Didn't think I could pass up this guys bars in the middle of the 3rd. I have a pretty good feeling about this guy.

3.32: WR Fred Coleman-23/53
I liked what I saw of the bars. I didn't scout him, so I pretty much draft players based on their bars towards the later rounds. Has a future as a 3rd-4th WR here in New Orleans

4.4: CB Corey Ivy-25/46
Not exactly the type of CB I generally look for, but with what's on the roster, it's tragic that it took 4 rounds to address this need. Might be the opening day starter in New Orleans sadly

4.16: CB Chidi Iwuna-25/48
This is my type of CB. High man to man, and a pretty good bump and run bar. He's got a better chance of starting than Ivy

5.4: RB James Jackson-24/45
Best Player on our board at the time. Future backup to Priest

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Just looking at last year's class to this year's class.

Last year, I had 3 guys with a potential of 40+ after the draft...this year...12. This draft class as a whole was much better, or maybe I've gotten a bit better drafting. Either way, I'm pleased overall with this class. I can have 5-6 starters out of this class if they hold in TC.

[bighouserulez]

I think the last two drafts you had STokes were awesome.

You had a few (and have a few) guys that were weak picks but your team is solid now for sure.

Now for qb.....

[Stokes36]

2000 Draftee 2nd TC

1.12.DE John Abraham-54/67====64/66
2.11.K Neil Rackers-99/99====98/98
2.30.DE James Hall-24/35===27/35
3.15.G Lewis Kelly-26/30===27/29
3.17.RT Chris McIntosh-36/41===39/40
4.13.ILB Kevin Lewis-24/37===27/37
4.14.DT Robaire Smith-21/29===29/36
5.12.G Cooper Carlisle-24/38===25/38
5.14.WR Avion Black-25/36===26/33
6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-15/24===CUT!!
6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-9/14===10/14
-----------------------------------------
2001 Draftee 1st TC

1.4: WR Steve Smith-39/61===45/64

1.16: WR Chris Chambers-36/50===40/50

1.25: DE Rodney Bailey-29/68===35/65

2.16: DE Richard Seymour-24/45===28/50(Moved to DT)

2.24: LT Pork Chop Womack-21/60===26/53 :(

2.26: G Ben Hamilton-28/37===28/37

2.32: T Jeff Backus-19/48===13/30 :rip::rip:

3.4: DT Marcus Bell-26/43===30/42

3.12: QB Billy Volek-13/39===16/36

3.14: G Keydrick Vincent-21/48===31/64 :popcorn:

3.32: WR Fred Coleman-23/53===24/49

4.4: CB Corey Ivy-25/46===27/40

4.16: CB Chidi Iwuna-25/48===27/45

5.4: RB James Jackson-24/45===26/39

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Just eyeballing the 2001 Draft: I LOVE what has come out after TC. While Pork Chop, and Backus didn't come out of it as well as hoped, Vincent's big jump really helps us. Ivy and Iwuna holding their future a little bit, gives us something at the CB position, and our WR's look great going forward. Steve Smith and Chambers are going to lead us for sure.

Now, if we can just get a QB. Hopefully Stoney Case is the man for the job.

[Stokes36]

After Week 9:

1.4: WR Steve Smith-45/64===47/64

1.16: WR Chris Chambers-40/50===46/50

1.25: DE Rodney Bailey-35/65===44/65

2.16: DE Richard Seymour-28/50(Moved to DT)===37/50

2.24: LT Pork Chop Womack-26/53 ===33/53

2.26: G Ben Hamilton-28/37===28/37

2.32: T Jeff Backus-13/30 ===13/30

3.4: DT Marcus Bell-30/42===33/42

3.12: QB Billy Volek-16/36===16/36

3.14: G Keydrick Vincent-31/64 ===38/64

3.32: WR Fred Coleman-24/49===26/49

4.4: CB Corey Ivy-27/40===32/40

4.16: CB Chidi Iwuna-27/45===30/45

5.4: RB James Jackson-26/39===27/39

[Steel]

Now if you could just start by getting more than 1 win, you'd be in good shape. ;)

[Stokes36]

Now if you could just start by getting more than 1 win, you'd be in good shape. ;)

Ask, and you shall receive ;)

[Stokes36]

After the season ratings:(Year 1 for some, Year 2 for others)

2000 Draftees

1.12.DE John Abraham-71/71
2.11.K Neil Rackers-98/98
2.30.DE James Hall-31/34
3.15.G Lewis Kelly-CUT!!
3.17.RT Chris McIntosh-45/45
4.13.ILB Kevin Lewis-31/31
4.14.DT Robaire Smith-34/34
5.12.G Cooper Carlisle-27/38
5.14.WR Avion Black-27/34
6.11-SS Ronnie Heard-CUT!!
6.19-QB Spergon Wynn-10/14

2001 Draftees:

1.4: WR Steve Smith-47/64====48/64
1.16: WR Chris Chambers-46/50====51/51
1.25: DE Rodney Bailey-44/65====50/65
2.16: DE Richard Seymour-(Moved to DT)37/50====40/50
2.24: LT Pork Chop Womack-33/53====36/53
2.26: G Ben Hamilton-28/37====28/37
2.32: T Jeff Backus-3/30====13/30
3.4: DT Marcus Bell-33/42====37/42
3.12: QB Billy Volek-16/36===16/36
3.14: G Keydrick Vincent-38/64====42/64
3.32: WR Fred Coleman-26/49====26/49
4.4: CB Corey Ivy-2/40====33/40
4.16: CB Chidi Iwuna-30/45====30/45
5.4: RB James Jackson-27/39 ====28/39