Drew Brees defeated Josh Freeman and advanced to the 2nd round of voting to be the Madden ‘12 cover athlete. He faces a tough 2nd round matchup against New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez. There’s no comparing these two quarterbacks on the field but Jets fans will no doubt be voting often. Head over to www.espn.com/maddenvote/ to vote for Brees. The other NFC South player to advance was Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan who is matched up against Cleveland Browns running back Peyton Hillis.

Posting a new version of a mock draft that I first posted on another site. I am not speculating on any trades in this mock draft but I will comment that the Saints are always very active on draft day. There is always the possibility they will move up to get a player they like. Trading down could be a possibility also, while it is not typical for the Saints, they may want to add some additional picks with no picks between the third and seventh rounds.

1St Round (24th Overall Pick) – Justin Houston, DE / OLB, Georgia – One area the Saints need to improve on is their pass rush and Houston fits that need perfectly. He played in college both as a 4-3 defensive end and a 3-4 outside linebacker and was good at getting to the quarterback in each role. His versatility also makes him a good fit for Greg Williams’ defense as the coordinator likes to run a lot of different fronts such as 4-3, 3-4 and 3-3-5. Houston’s versatility would allow him to slide around to different positions depending on the package and give the Saints a true pass rushing threat opposite of Will Smith. Picking Houston here also has the advantage of keeping a pass rushing threat away from division rival Atlanta who will almost certainly take Houston if he is still on the board when they pick at 27.

Previous Pick: Akeem Ayers, OLB, UCLA.

Other Possibilities: Akeem Ayers OLB, UCLA, Muhammad Wilkerson DE / DT, Temple.

2nd Round (56th Overall Pick) – Bruce Carter, OLB, North Carolina – There is a chance that Carter could fall to the Saints in the second round and they would be wise to pick him up if he does. Carter could instantly challenge for a starting outside linebacker job on either side of Jonathan Vilma. Outside linebacker was not a position of strength for the Saints last season and they need to get younger and more athletic at the position. Carter would also help to bolster a pass rush. Adding Houston in the first round and Carter in the second would instantly improve a defense that has already played well in the past two years.

Previous Pick: Sam Acho, DE, Texas

3rd Round (72nd Overall Pick) – Ras-I Dowling, CB, Virginia – The Saints have the opportunity to pickup a very good corner at a value in the third round. The Saints already have talented corners but in a division where they have to face Matt Ryan and Josh Freeman twice a season, it’s hard to have too many good defensive backs. Taking a corner here could also make veteran Randall Gay, who has struggled some, expendable. This pick would also give the Saints a lot of depth at a position where injuries have sometimes been a factor.

Previous Pick: Edmund Gates, WR/KR, Abilene Christian

3rd Round (88th Overall Pick) – DeMarco Murray, RB, Oklahoma – Murray is likely to be available here and in my opinion would be a steal for the Saints. He fits the profile of what the Saints need in a running back to compliment Chris Ivory. He is fast, runs well and is also a capable receiver out of the backfield. It never hurts for the Saints to add weapons for Drew Brees and the offense. There are some concerns about his durability but I wouldn’t look for him to become an every down back as the Saints prefer to rotate several different running backs. A rotation of Chris Ivory, DeMarco Murray, Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush would be a frightening combination.

Previous Pick: Same

7th Round (225th Overall Pick) – DeJon Gomes, SS, Nebraska – Could easily fall to the 7th round and I think he may be a bit of a sleeper here. Gomes ran a 4.47 40 at the combine and in finished with 99 tackles, 1 sack, seven pass breakups and three interceptions last season. He could be a solid backup to Roman Harper or possibly challenge for the starting job. He could also make an impact in nickel and dime situations. Like I said before, teams can never have too many good defensive backs.

Previous Pick: Same

7th Round (242nd Overall Pick) – Terrell Zachery, WR, Auburn – Projects to be a late round draft pick or undrafted free agent so this is not much of a reach with a compensatory pick. The Saints are loaded at receive but adding another potential weapon for Drew Brees is never a bad thing. Zachery has decent speed to stretch the field in some situations and the size to possibly get underneath some coverages and be a valuable weapon in the slot. At the very least he could be a good special teams contributor. Not to mention, the Saints sometimes find talent in skill positions in late rounds of the draft. Marques Colston comes to mind, picked fourth from last in the 2006 draft.

Previous Pick: None

So to summarize, the Saints add to impact players at positions of need on the defense and some quality depth in the secondary and at offensive skill positions.

Not too much to report this weekend. On Friday the NFL announced compensatory draft picks awarded to each team. The Saints added one pick in the 7th round (242nd overall pick). The Saints have a private workout scheduled with Virginia Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor on March 28th. Taylor has been projected by some experts as a wide receive in the NFL but has stated that he wants to continue playing quarterback. The Saints also have a workout scheduled with University of Texas cornerback Curtis Brown. The Saints appear to be set at corner but in a division where they have to face Matt Ryan and Josh Freeman twice a year, you can never have too many quality defensive backs.

Early this week, I’ll be posting my mock draft for the New Orleans Saints, stay tuned.

For those who don’t know, the NFL voted to change kickoffs, moving the spot of the kickoff to the 35 yard line. While I’m not a big fan of the rule, kickoff returns can be some of the most exciting plays in the game, I don’t see it has having much impact on the Saints. Punter Thomas Morstead handled most of the kickoff duties last season and both he and Garrett Hartley have strong enough legs to kick the ball into the end zone from the 35 yard line. The Saints actually struggled some in kickoff coverage last season so I don’t see this as a bad change for the Saints. On the opposite end, Courtney Roby was not the most explosive on kick returns last season and the Saints also struggled here due to injuries. Overall, while I am not a fan of the rule change, it shouldn’t impact the Saints too much either way.

The NFL also did not announce compensatory draft picks at the owner’s meeting this year as has usually been done in the past. Compensatory draft picks will be announced at a later date. The Saints will likely add a 7th or 6th round compensatory pick. Also no schedule announcements yet. The Saints could possibly be playing in the opening game of the season at Lambeau Field against the Packers.

For those interested, EA Sports is having a bracket style vote to determine the cover athlete for Madden ‘12, this year’s installment of the video game series. Each round lasts one week and this first week of voting has Drew Brees matched up against Tampa Bay quarterback Josh Freeman. Brees was the cover athlete last year after the results of a fan vote. You can vote at www.espn.com/maddenvote/ The winner will be announced on ESPN’s Sportsnation.

The NFL meeting kicks off tomorrow in New Orleans. Expect a lot of it to focus on the labor situation but there will also be the usual business. Owners will be considering changes to rules including possible changes to instant replay and kickoff rules. Compensatory draft picks will also be handed out. It’s tough to predict compensatory draft picks but I expect that the Saints will see a 7th round pick for losing Scott Fujita in free agency last year.

We might also see a preview of the 2011 schedule. The full schedule probably won’t be announced until sometime in April but there have been times when the league has announced the opening weekend prime time games at the league meeting in March. I think there is a good chance the Saints may be playing the Packers in the opening night Thursday game. A meeting between the last two Super Bowl champions would certainly get the attention the NFL looks for in the opening game.

I’ll cover how any rule changes may affect the Saints and report on any schedule or compensatory draft pick announcements.

I will start out by saying that I believe that there will be some sort of resolution to the NFL labor situation before the start of the season, possibly as soon as the player’s request for an injunction is heard in federal court on April 6th. I expect that the Saints will be very active in free agency whenever it begins. They already made some important moves resigning some of their key players and bringing in defensive tackle Shaun Rogers.

This is a breakdown of the top positional needs the Saints should address this off-season. I posted an earlier version of this on a different site so this is updated after the Rogers signing and the Pierre Thomas resigning.

Outside Linebacker – Scott Shanle was the starter on the right side last year and played well enough. Jonathan Casillas was expected to compete for the starting job on the left side but was lost to an injury before the season began. Even with Casillas returning this year, the Saints need to upgrade at this position. I was disappointed when the Saints didn’t draft a linebacker early last year and it is a position that needs to be addressed this year. The Saints need fast, athletic play makers on either side of Jonathan Vilma. Greg Williams’ defense relies heavily on pressuring the quarterback and forcing turnovers. An outside linebacker who can put pressure on the quarterback and play coverage in the intermediate passing game would fill a key whole in this defense. A high draft pick could step in and easily challenge for the starting job on either side.

Defensive End – Will Smith is a solid starter on the right side of the defensive line and quite possibly the best pass rusher in the NFC South. Alex Brown and Jimmy Wilkerson split time starting at left defensive end this past season and neither produced anything spectacular. Adding another pass rushing threat at defensive end is ideally suited for Greg Williams’ defense. This is another position where the Saints need more speed and athleticism to put pressure on opposing quarterbacks and force turnovers. The Saints also need to be more consistent against the run and upgrades in the front seven of the defense will certainly help in this regard.

Running Back – The Saints resigned Pierre Thomas and Chris Ivory played well last year. Indications are that Reggie Bush will also be back next year but the Saints could add a younger running back into the mix. Injuries hurt the running game badly last year which put more pressure on Drew Brees and the passing game. There seems like there will be some good running backs available at a value (2nd and 3rd round) in this year’s draft and the Saints would be wise to pick one up there.

Strong Safety – Not so much a position of need but the Saints could use an upgrade here if the value is right in free agency or the draft. Roman Harper is a potential free agent and while he has played well in some regards, particularly against the run and when blitzing the quarterback, there are times when he has also been scorched in pass coverage. This was never more evident than in the playoff loss to Seattle where Harper got burned on several big pass plays. Having Malcolm Jenkins healthy will take some pressure off Harper and I still view him as a solid starter but if the value is there, the Saints may look to upgrade especially with pass happy teams such as the Colts, Packers and Texans on the schedule for next year.

Punt / Kick Return - Reggie Bush has the ability to take it to the house on any punt return but his future with the team is uncertain and he sometimes can’t hang on to the ball. Courtney Roby finished the season on injured reserve and at times seemed to struggle last season. If the Saints could find some late round draft value on a solid return man for both punts and kickoffs, it would be worth the investment.

I’ll be posting a mock draft of the Saints picks in the next few days with how I think some of these needs could be addressed.

Hello everyone, I have just started writing for Saints Scoop and wanted to let anyone out there checking out the page know that updates will be a lot more frequent in the future. I am going to post my thoughts on off-season needs for the Saints tonight along with a mock draft of the Saints picks in the next few days and some thoughts on how the lockout could impact the Saints. Stay tuned!