Jim Haslett demurs, then declares that, no, defense was not a priority. Haslett succeeded the fired Mike Ditka as Saints coach, and he took over a team that had gone 3-13 and had no high draft choices in its immediate future thanks to Ditka’s highly publicized “marriage” to Ricky Williams.
This meant he inherited a landscape littered with problems and pockmarked with more pot holes than this city’s streets. So Haslett takes pains to reiterate: “We’re just trying to build a ballclub, not necessarily on the defensive side or the offensive side. It’s trying to start from scratch, to be honest with you.”
In July, there were 47 new players on the Saints’ 80-man training camp roster. In October, their defense is ranked No. 1 in the NFL. One season after it accurately reflected the woebegone state of the franchise, the defense is far more impressive than the 1-3 record the Saints lug with them to Soldier Field for their Sunday meeting with the Bears.
Last year the Saints allowed 34 touchdown passes and ranked 20th on defense against the pass. They were only slightly better against the run, giving up 4.1 yards per attempt to rank 20th. This year they’ve surrendered only four touchdown passes and rank No. 1 against the pass, and 3.4 yards per rushing attempt to rank No. 8 against the run.
“Speed-wise, they’re like Tampa,” Bears center Casey Wiegmann said. “That’s what a lot of people are going to these days–speed. You’ve got to adjust to all the slants and games and stuff that people are doing. You’ve got to adjust to their movement.”
“They’re fast, and they’ve got guys who can cover,” wide receiver Marcus Robinson said. “They’re kind of fast on the outside [at linebacker and on the line], and they’ve got guys on the inside who get to the ball well.
“You’ve just got to take what they give you. They’re a team you’ve got to be a little more patient against. You’ve got to be able to run the ball and also get the short stuff and make them slink up a little bit so you can get the deep ball.”
Haslett, a former Buffalo Bills linebacker, has been a defensive coach throughout his career, a defensive coordinator with the Saints in 1996 and with the Pittsburgh Steelers the last three seasons.
“They’re very sound in their scheme and their players are very sound,” Bears receivers coach Mike Borich said. “They don’t take a lot of chances, but when they do, it’s planned out very well. So you have to battle execution with execution.”
The Bears will go into battle without Curtis Enis to block for James Allen, and with an offense that has been given to executing only itself. The Saints’ defense, by contrast, has yet to be victimized by a big play and has been atop the NFL rankings since this season’s second week.
Haslett’s first free-agent signee was 310-pound defensive tackle Norman Hand, a run-stuffer in the middle whom Wiegmann must confront. Flanking him on the ends are former Pro Bowler Joe Johnson, who’s questionable for Sunday’s game with an injured calf, and Darren Howard, a rookie starter. They and defensive tackle La’Roi Glover are the big reasons the Saints already have 14 sacks.
The pass rush has aided a secondary that was so vulnerable last season, and then lost Ashley Ambrose, who led the team in interceptions with six, to free agency. This was expected to be a Saints soft spot again this year, but the secondary has yet to allow a pass completion longer than 30 yards and is giving up a mere 5.82 yard per pass attempt.
“That has to change this week,” Bears wide receiver Eddie Kennison, a former Saint, said this week. “We definitely have the skills and have the plays that put the ball well over that [30 yards]. We have the playmakers here to make that happen, whether it be receivers or running backs. We’re definitely going to try to do that.
“You’re only as good as your last game. We’re definitely going to try and beat them up.”
