Ron Borges

The storm-ravaged city of New Orleans faces a massive rebuilding job, and so does its football team after a disasterous 3-13 season in which the Saints lost 11 of their final 12 games. Perhaps that was to be expected with all the adversity caused by Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, but when the Saints come marching in to the refurbished SuperDome on Sept. 25 to face the Falcons in their first home game in over a year, they'll sport an offense with two new stars and likely five rookie starters.

Quarterback Drew Brees steps in after two Pro Bowl seasons in San Diego to take over for departed Aaron Brooks, and Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush brings highlight-reel explosiveness to the offense. The Saints hope to create a one-two running punch with Bush and again healthy former Pro Bowl rusher Deuce McAllister.

Brees is coming off a terrible shoulder injury suffered in the season finale, when he tore his labrum rotator cuff and required major surgery and lengthy rehab. Never the owner of a powerful arm, the concern is he may have lost so much strength and velocity that he can no longer be as successful as he was the past two seasons with the Chargers. The problems and possible setbacks he could face were enough to convince Miami Dolphins coach Nick Saban to stop his pursuit of Brees in free agency and switch to Daunte Culpepper, who was merely rehabbing a destroyed knee.

That didn't scare the Saints, however. New coach Sean Payton believes Brees is perfect for the low-risk offense he wants to run. Payton wants a quarterback who can read defenses quickly and get rid of the ball fast enough to limit his shaky offensive line's exposure to opposing pass rushers, spread the ball around and be accurate on short- to medium-range passes. Brees can do all of those things if his shoulder stays in one piece, as it thus far has appeared to do.

As for the elusive Bush, he will share running back duties with the powerful McAllister if McAllister is fully recovered from a torn ACL that sidelined him for 11 games last season. When he's 100 percent, McAllister is a Pro Bowl quality back with speed to get to the outside as well as the power to run between the tackles. The Saints hope he is able to do both while Bush is used all over the field to create mismatches in the passing game and get to the edge on sweeps and reverses. This could be a powerful combination and added punch for an offense sorely in need of it after trading leading receiver Donte' Stallworth just before the end of the preseason.

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Payton also has a revamped offensive line in front of them, with only one player, right guard Jermane Mayberry, returning to the same position he played a year ago. The biggest switch is the shifting of Jammal Brown from right tackle to left tackle. Brown played well for a rookie last year, but all the changes make this line suspect until they prove their ability to open holes for Bush and McAllister and keep Brees in one piece.

Hot seat
Jammal Brown. It falls to the second-year tackle to protect Brees' backside and considering that the Saints gave Brees a six-year, $60 million contract, that's a big responsibility. Brown is shifting from right tackle to the more important left side so he has to prove he can take the heat at his new position after a successful rookie season at the less demanding right tackle spot.

Overheard
New defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs has never called a play in the NFL, but he knows his defense has to improve against the run.

He'll start two new linebackers from a year ago and that may help. When you're 27th in the league against the run and gave up an average of 134.1 rushing yards a game it doesn't mean much to be No. 3 vs. the pass. All it means, Gibbs knows, is nobody had to pass against them last year.

Outlook
If Brees stays healthy and the reshuffled and rebuilt offensive line meshes, the offense should be much more productive. It couldn't very well be less so after finishing 31st in the league in scoring with only 235 points in 2005. When your defense is 28th in points allowed, giving up 398, the problems clearly are too many to be solved by a coaching change and one offseason. But if Brees can avoid the kind of killer mistakes his predecssor, Brooks, often made, and stay healthy while Bush and McAllister run the ball efficiently and effectively, the Saints will have taken several big steps forward even if they do finish last in the division.

Prediction
Fourth.

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