Fincher returns a Saint

When Rick Mueller was thumbing through scouting reports, cuing up videotape, and scrutinizing the best fits for the New Orleans Saints in the 2005 NFL Draft, he kept coming back to Norwood's Alfred Fincher.

It didn't take long for the playmaking, production, and passion to win Mueller over.

''He had physical tools we liked -- you always like guys at linebacker who play hard every snap, that you can tell are leaders on the field and have a passion for the game," said Mueller, the Saints' director of player personnel. ''That was first thing that caught our eye."

The Saints drafted Fincher in the third round (82d overall) and the former University of Connecticut standout quickly realized that meant he'd be returning home twice in 2005. Last night's exhibition game against the Patriots -- four days after his 22d birthday -- marked the first trip. The next comes Nov. 20 in a regular-season meeting at Gillette Stadium.

''Coming back home, there are a lot of emotions," said Fincher.

Naturally, because this is where it started for Fincher, who led Norwood to a Division 2 Super Bowl championship in 2000 but still wasn't a surefire Division 1-A college prospect when he graduated from high school.

He couldn't convince Boston College. He was too light. So he ended up at UConn, where he arrived at 210 pounds and left a chiseled 240 as a first-team all-Big East selection totaling a conference-leading 140 tackles in 2004.

By that point, Fincher was a bona fide pro prospect, and is the highest draft choice in the history of UConn football. After signing a three-year contract in July, he's slated as a backup middle linebacker -- the Saints would like him to play at 245 -- and has been a regular on all key special teams units.

''We saw a guy who was making a lot of plays, who was tough, and there were a lot of good comments from his coaching staff that said this guy is a leader of his team in every way -- on the field, off the field," said Saints general manager Mickey Loomis.

''That's what we're looking for in a linebacker."

Fincher studied the Patriots leading up to last night's game -- for which he expected as many as 100 family members and friends to be in attendance -- and came to the following conclusion: ''Obviously, they're a well-coached team. Their defense might be complicated, but the offense is more simple. They execute what they do real well."

He also noted the difference between the Seahawks, the Saints' opponents last week, and the Patriots.

''Seattle was more of an up-tempo offense, which the Patriots are at times. But more often, [Tom] Brady likes to come out and stare at the defense, so the defense can unfold and he can tell what they're doing. After he reads what they're doing, then he calls the play. They don't give you too much, but it's just enough -- different formations -- and they run their plays straight out and man-to-man beat you."

When the Saints opened training camp in late July, Fincher found he was struggling to beat his man because he was beating himself.

''I was pressing, making some mistakes, dumb mistakes that I normally don't do," he said. ''Camp has been physically easier than what college was, but mentally it's a bit of a grind. Being a high draft pick, they got on me a bit. You have ups and downs and you'll make mistakes but the thing at this level is to make minimum mistakes."

Loomis said Fincher's progress is at a level ''you would expect for a rookie linebacker -- the game is moving really fast for him."

Playing behind second-year pro Courtney Watson, Fincher wasn't expecting to see much action last night with the first-team defense, as starters were projected to play into the third quarter. Still, that could have put him in a position to defend a player who has been especially helpful in making the transition from college to the NFL -- Patriots backup quarterback Doug Flutie.

''I had a chance to talk with Doug about agents and he helped me out a lot," said Fincher, who was 6 when Flutie last suited up for the Patriots. ''I was intimidated at first, but he's a down-to-earth guy."