FanHouse RomanHarper

Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.

Gregg Williams hasn't informed a free agent decision for New Orleans yet, hasn't hand-picked the inevitable defensive playmaker the Saints choose with their 14th-overall selection this year, hasn't installed a single scheme in a minicamp. Yet Williams' reputation has preceded him to the Crescent City, and his hiring as defensive coordinator is already considered one of the most important moves in team history.

After almost two decades of guaranteed defensive putridity, the last three of which have revolved around Gary Gibbs' lack of talent identification and bland scheming, the idea of Williams and his history of intelligent, hard-working, active, complex defenses coming to the Superdome is music to the ears. It also might finally push the Saints over the top.

... and after all of that talk, Jeremy Shockey is still a Giant.

It was the Saints second-round pick, 40th overall, that has been linked to Shockey for, about, forever now. Each second that ticked off the clock reduced the chances of a trade being worked out, and with about 30 seconds left the Saints decided to hand the card in themselves for cornerback Tracy Porter.

The fact that the pick came in so late leads me to believe that the teams were furiously trying to work out a deal until the end. But Saints GM Mickey Loomis is a stickler; he sets a price and is tough to budge from it. I'd have to imagine the sticking point was an '09 pick -- Roman Harper, the original dealbreaker, was no longer necessary once the Giants drafted Kenny Phillips. The Saints have no third- or fourth- round picks this year to offer the team additionally, and I'd find it hard to believe both sides would have let the deal fall through over a fifth-round pick or later.

This doesn't necessarily mean Shockey will remain a Giant this year -- Randy Moss was dealt on Day 2 last year. I'd imagine these talks will continue into the summer for '09 compensation, but the longer the talks go the less leverage the Giants have.

These pesky Jeremy Shockey rumors aren't subsiding, and they won't soon if a New Era Scouting report is true that Shockey is scoping out houses in New Orleans. It's a throwaway line in a larger article, and given my skepticism regarding the credibility of all of these new "inside source" football sites, I'm not sure how accurate it is. But there ya go.

The New York Post has refuted rumors that Shockey will be dealt to the Saints (with the most recent gossip that the Saints turned down demands of a second-round pick and safety Roman Harper). The Post, however, is the only source outright denying the rumors, and I tend to believe where there's smoke there's fire. Plus, it's the Post.

I think dealing for Shockey would be beneficial, but only for the right price. If the Giants must have anything close to what they've asked for, the Saints would be better off exploring other options. Which brings us to Dustin Keller.

The Saints brought arguably the best tight end in the draft for a visit that extended beyond the typical pleasantries of pre-draft stop-and-chats. The team rolled out the red carpet for Keller, and his fellow Purdue alum Drew Brees said he'd "love" to have Keller as his tight end in 2008.

The Saints might very possibly be interested in Keller, who should be around when they pick at #40. Or this could be a smokescreen to force the Giants' hands. Either way, they're improving at tight end. Meanwhile, Jim Ross' credibility hangs in the balance.

After a couple of days about of rumor-mongering regarding a potential trade that would have Jeremy Shockey landing in New Orleans, things are starting to crystallize more and more.

Yesterday we mentioned a report from Giants beat writer Mike Garafolo that the Saints offered their second-round pick (#40) and third-year strong safety Roman Harper for Shockey and that the Giants turned that down. That set off some alarms for me -- I was shocked the Saints would offer that much. Turns out I was right.

In response to our blurb regarding a report in the Newark Star-Ledger that the New Orleans Saints offered a second-round pick and safety Roman Harper for Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey, a source with knowledge of the discussions tells us that the Giants wanted a two and Harper, and that the Saints refused.

This makes much more sense. The Giants should have interest in Harper after losing Gibril Wilson to the Raiders, and if the Saints were to actually agree to that deal I think Czar Goodell would choose to investigate for collusion.

I stand by my earlier belief that closer to the draft the Saints might go as high as that second-rounder alone (which I still think is too much to pay), and that if the Giants don't accept it the Saints will have no problem walking away from the table for good.

Earlier today, MDS brought you word suggesting that the Giants/Saints talks regarding Jeremy Shockey were far from done. So Mike Garafolo of my hometown Newark Star-Ledger decided to do a little investigating.

I did some sniffing around and came up with very little. Not saying nothing's cooking, just that there aren't signs of it. All I know is what I heard recently - that the Saints' original offer was a second-round pick (No. 40 overall, if it was this year's pick they offered) and S Roman Harper, their second round pick in '06. The Giants said, "Nah."

So unless NO is reloading for another run at Shockey, nothing's cooking on that front.

I believe Garafolo when he says that he hasn't turned up much in the way of recent developments. I don't think the teams are negotiating now. But I'm not sure I believe that original offer. That it comes from the Giants is dubious, like they're trying to drive bidding for Shockey.

Harper is a heady young safety who had four sacks and three interceptions last year, his first full season. I don't see the Saints further weakening their worst unit by dealing an emerging player, essentially admitting that the draft pick was wasted so early. Paired with the #40 pick, it seems like way too much to give up.

I expect the two teams will resume talks on the first day of the draft, but I don't expect a transaction to be made at that price. By that time the Giants will have lost some leverage, and I suspect the Saints will offer their second-rounder alone. If the Giants reject that, I think Shockey stays in blue.

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

1. Defensive Tackle/Linebacker/Cornerback. I know this reeks of a cop-out, and I guess you're right. But every time I think that the Saints need one of these positions over the others, I change my mind. On one hand you've got defensive tackle, where Hollis Thomas, the only true nose tackle, is 34 and playing year-to-year. He's consistent against the run and pass, but can't play a full game anymore. The rest of the tackles are just adequate, and starting 3-tech Brian Young's a free agent who probably won't be back. Then there's linebacker, which features just two players, because middle linebacker Mark Simoneau has no impact whatsoever. Scott Shanle ain't no prize, neither. Finally, there's cornerback. The crew, outside of Mike McKenzie, is terrible (admittedly, with faint hints of promise). And McKenzie's torn ACL should keep him out until October at earliest. So you decide which is worse off.

I don't expect the Saints to go after any of the marquee free agents at these positions, but I wouldn't be surprised to see under-the-radar signings like Corey Williams or Drayton Florence. Most of the improvement will come in the draft. I'm all for Sedrick Ellis in the first, even if the Saints have to move up a few spots from 10 to get him. This is a deep draft for linebackers, which is helpful, and good young corners like Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie will be available after the first round.

Yet again, it seemed as if a late fumble could disrupt a Saints win. After blowing a game against the Bucs, this week it was David Patten, catching a pass and racking up the YAC, all the while holding the ball so precariously you'd think he was presenting it on a platter. Of course, it was knocked out in Arizona territory and recovered by the Cardinals, and a chance to take a two-score lead with nine minutes left was squandered.

Luckily, Kurt Warner is no Luke McCown (I know, Kurt -- the truth hurts), and the Cards promptly three-and-outed it for good, punting away the ball and their season. Starting at their own four, the Saints picked up four first downs, enough (thanks to some poor timeout management by Arizona) to run out the clock. That botched final series, a critical one, was just one of a number of instances where the Cardinals could have taken control of the game but failed to.

Not that the Saints didn't earn the win; they played incredibly well and balanced (30 passes, 29 runs) on offense, got pressure on Warner, forced turnovers, and played well in the secondary. But the difference in the final score would have been more than compensated for if the Cardinals didn't take a handful of shots at their own foot.

Five sacks and a number of pressures, including one that forced Matt Hasselbeck into a crucial interception. By watching the Saints last night, you'd have thought that this team had one of the best pairs of ends (Charles Grant and Will Smith) in the league, a stout defensive tackle (Hollis Thomas) capable of getting a push, and a do-it-all safety (Roman Harper) that resembles a poor-man's Polamalu.

Oh, wait. They do. So why did the team only have one sack entering last night's 28-17 win over Seattle?

They've simply refused to blitz. For most of the season, the Saints have run the most vanilla defenses possible. Defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs has been afraid to go all out because it might leave an already suspect secondary exposed. But a miraculous thing happened when Gibbs turned the defense loose -- they produced big plays. And the secondary actually held up. (Until the fourth quarter).

This defense has actually been making strides over the last three games. If they can continue to bring the heat as they did last night, they might make things easier on everybody.

That's the question a lot of pundits are asking today in trying to figure out how the Saints, preseason NFC favorites, are 0-2. But the magic they're referring to is that annoying, mythical "Katrina magic" that people invented last year. That's not what I'm referring to. Last year was based on a lot of really good personnel decisions, good coaching, and inspired play. We know that good coaching and inspired play have so far been nowhere to be found. But what of the personnel decisions?

Last year, the Saints had a magic touch shaping their roster. They got four starters in the draft (Roman Harper, Jahri Evans, Marques Colston, and Reggie Bush), six if you include draft-day trades for Jeff Faine and Hollis Thomas. They also made smart moves in free agency; besides Drew Brees, the team also got outsized contributions from Scott Shanle, Terrance Copper, and Scott Fujita. Almost every move they made turned to gold.

This year? Meh. Only four picks (Usama Young, Jermon Bushrod, Andy Alleman, and Robert Meachem) have made the team, all but Young have been deactivated for both games, and he only plays sparingly. Their dabble in free agency has been worse. Eric Johnson has been average at tight end, but at least he's doing something; it goes downhill from there. Kendrick Clancy won a starting job at defensive tackle but has been blah. Jason David's exploits are well documented. Kevin Kaesviharn has looked lost at nickel safety. And linebacker Brian Simmons can't beat out Mark Simoneau, who couldn't shed a block by Holly Mangold.

There's a lot of problems that need to be fixed with this team, and it's unfair to attack the new guys when so many of the holdovers have been so, so awful. Still, the Saints added a lot of players in the offseason, and counted on those players to improve the team. They haven't.

I decided to go back and watch last night's game again, because I hate myself, and I decided that starting tonight I'm going to go on a bender with lots of booze and perhaps a narcotic or four and hopefully, by the time Monday rolls around, I'll have no memory of the debacle that was Saints v. Colts. (Note: The FanHouse doesn't condone this type of destructive behavior, though it seems like the right thing to do at the moment).

Before I voyage off into an uncertain future, though, I took notes. By notes, I mean I drew lots of frownie faces. Because if you were to take notes of this game from the perspective of a Saints fan, it would be giant effing frownie face.

Anyway, here's what I noticed, without trying to mention Jason David too much because, Christ, that guy must have had a terrible day:

• The Saints stuck with the Colts in the first half, primarily because they used the Colts' very own Cover 2 defense. This gave Joseph Addai plenty of room to run, sure, but it also kept Peyton Manning virtually ineffective (save Marvin Harrison's touchdown catch). In the second half, they switched to their standard man coverage to neutralize Addai, moving Roman Harper into the box, which allowed the Colts receivers to get behind the Saints secondary. Game over. The Colts were going to pick up yards and points no matter what, I just don't know why they chose to put the ball in Manning's hands instead of the more managable Addai's.