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2006 New Orleans Saints Football Picks & Predictions

Written by Jimmy Boyd on August 11, 2006

Reggie Bush is generating a lot of excitement for the 2006 Saints football team and with our NFL predictions we think he will follow through. He is the biggest offseason acquisition that any team made and he basically fell into their laps after Houston passed on him with the no. 1 pick. Of course he is most likely going to have to share duties with Duece McAllister or find different ways to get on the field. Drew Brees is going to come in and replace Aaron Brooks as he had pretty much worn out his welcome with the organization. Brees has question marks of his own due to his shoulder injury that sidelined him to end last season. Michael Bennett was also added to the back field giving the Saints a deep look at running back. Scott Fujita should help with a defense that was 27th against the rush last season. The biggest losses the team faces is Darren Howard at defensive end moving to the Eagles and LeCharles Bentley leaving to the Browns.

The 2006 Saints football offense is going to have to shore up some problems from a year ago. It’s a good thing that new head coach Sean Payton is supposed to be an offensive genius as the team ranked 31st in scoring with only 14.7 points per game and tied for last in turnover differential with a minus 24 mark. The team went out and signed Brees before they knew Bush would be available and even when they knew they could have guys like Vince Young or Matt Leinart. That should speak highly of their confidence in him. New Orleans isn’t going to have much trouble in the backfield with Pro Bowler McAllister lining up with Bush. McAllister is recovering from last year’s knee injury, but there is depth to go around if he doesn’t return to top form. Joe Horn and Donte Stallworth are both capable of becoming Pro Bowlers and Brees can prove his worth quickly by giving the ball to these talented receivers in a better fashion than Brooks did.

The defense is not going to be much better for the 2006 Saints football team than it was last season. The front four have under-achieved and it will be interesting to see if the offensively minded Payton can get more out of them. Payton did bring in Fujita from his former team in the Cowboys, but this might be the worst unit in the National Football League. The same can be said about the secondary, as they probably are the worst in the league despite the Saints ranking 3rd against the pass last season. Mike McKenzie was developing into a star in Green Bay before clashing with management, and has not done much to show he deserved the money he wanted. Defensively this team is going to struggle to stop teams from scoring so they better hope the offense provides a nice buffer.

Of course there is a buzz with the additions of Bush and Brees, but this Saints team isn’t going anywhere this season. You are looking at a team that has maybe the worst defense in the league, a rookie head coach, playing in a city being rebuilt, and playing in one of the toughest divisions in football. The NFL odds on the Under 6.5 wins posted with a +110 money line right now looks to be one of the best bets of the season.

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