New Orleans Saints and San Diego Chargers seem ready for season opener
New Orleans and San Diego will meet on Friday at the Louisiana Superdome in their third pre-season outing for each team. The Saints were very impressive last week and they already look ready for the regular season. New Orleans’ last outing resulted in a 38-20 win over the Houston Texans and the Saints will be looking to carry that momentum into Friday’s contest against a team that is regarded as a top Super Bowl contender.
In their last time out the San Diego Chargers fell short to the Dallas Cowboys losing 16-14. Since this is the third pre-season game the starters for both teams should see extensive playing time.
This means that Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers will face his former mentor, Saints quarterback, Drew Brees . Rivers and Brees were teammates with the Chargers in 2004-05 but the Chargers released Brees at the end of the 2005 season and gave the team over to Phillip Rivers. Both players have excelled since and are each regarded as one of the league’s most efficient passers in the NFL. The move turned extremely well for Brees, who won a Super Bowl last season.
It’s no surprise that both players have looked sharp this pre-season at the helm of high-powered offences. Rivers is 15-of-21 passing (71.4 percent) for 187 yards with a touchdown and an interception while Brees has gone 14-of-23 for 91 yards with zero touchdowns and no interceptions.
The New Orleans Saints led by head coach Sean Payton, who is entering his fifth NFL season with the club, views this warm-up as a really a good test for his team because of the calibre of the Chargers.
No question that Payton has confidence in his team, so he wants to measure his squad against a formidable opponent.
Brees will likely play the first half and is expected to give way to backup quarterback Patrick Ramsey. Ramsey will get some extensive playing time on Friday night and that should include time with the first team.
“This week, when Drew (Brees) finishes, we’ll give the majority–if not all–of the reps to Patrick,” Payton said. “I’m just trying to give them[backups] enough series to give them the opportunity to get comfortable with what they’re doing and operations of the game.”
On the injury front, Darren Sharper, who finished tied for first in interceptions last season with nine won’t be in the lineup on Friday with a knee injury. No word yet on his timetable, but Sharper is itching at the opportunity to be back for the season opener as the Saints play Brett Favre and the Vikings.
"I still have about (two) weeks," he said. "So I have my time. My goal is to get back, and now with Brett coming back, it makes it a little more of an incentive to get back."
The Chargers will also be without a star defensive player as linebacker Shawne Merriman (Achilles') will not be in uniform on Friday.
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