NEW ORLEANS – As I made my way from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport to my hotel on Canal Street, winding past the clamor around the Superdome, one thing became increasingly clear, and it was best perfectly by my cabdriver, a man named Lionel Williams* who grew up here. I asked him when he could remember the town being as excited for a football game as it is for Monday’s Saints-Patriots.

“Never,” he said. “The Saints have never been this good! This is one of the biggest games the Saints have ever played. Let’s just say that. There’s a buzz like there hasn’t been before.”

*Lionel is the brother of Gerald Williams. Yes, really, this Gerald Williams – Gerald “Ice” Williams.

It has to be tempting, for Patriots fans, to take games like Monday night’s for granted. The Patriots have played in lots of games with massive stakes – four Super Bowls, four conference championships, countless regular season games trying to keep streaks alive or stay undefeated. Just two weeks ago, they played a game hyped, justly or not, as the Game of the Decade.

These games are close to routine for the Patriots, like the garbage collector coming by Tuesday morning. These games are close to unimaginable for the Saints, like a comet darting across the sky.

The Saints are currently playing their 43d season as an NFL franchise. They are 272-375-5. They have played eight playoff games; they’ve won two. They are one of five teams never to play in a Super Bowl. As much as the game means to a Patriots fan, it means more to Saints fans. That’s not a slight, just a fact of the matter.

The city has responded accordingly. The anticipation for the first Saints game played in the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina, for wrenching and important civic reasons, rivaled the anticipation for this game. But this is obviously different, pure celebration.

When I walked off the plane, the baggage handler asked everyone who walked if they were going to the game. He reminded, with his thick patois, everyone else who was going to the game to wear all black.

One man explained he hoped his friend with season tickets would ask him along, but the price was too steep otherwise – scalpers are asking between $2,000 and $2,500 per ticket for average seats, he said. He got his bag, the handler gave him a fist bump and said, “Who dat?”

By Monday night, the city will be a carnival. Right now, Grambling (alma mater of Gerald Williams!) and Southern are playing the Bayou Classic, and thousands of fans made the yearly pilgrimage for football and the great bands. The party will continue until Monday.

The feeling has transferred to the players. Saints safety Darren Sharper said earlier this week he worried that fans would wear themselves by game time.

Drinking?

“I could say the chance and likelihood of that would have to be … 100 percent,” Sharper said.

The Saints have never 10-0 before, and the people here act like it.

"It's going be loud," said the guy who couldn't afford a scalped ticket. "I don't care if we're losing in the third quarter. Those people aren't going to stop yelling."

FOXBOROUGH -- The Patriots released their practice/injury report for today and listed 17 players as being questionable for Monday night's game in New Orleans, including rookie left tackle Sebastian Vollmer (head).

Vollmer and running back Fred Taylor (ankle) were not spotted during the stretching period of this morning's practice -- the only portion the media were allowed to observe -- at Dana-Farber Field House.

During his press conference today, Patriots coach Bill Belichick declined to confirm whether or not Vollmer had suffered a concussion during last Sunday's 31-14 victory over the Jets. ``Whatever's on the injury report is what we'll list,'' Belichick said. ``That's what it is.''

Then, with a smile, he added, ``Does that help?''

Belichick was encourgaged by the progress of Taylor, saying, ``He's doing better. I mean, he's getting better every week. It's been a few weeks now and he's making progress. He's headed in the right direction.''

Taylor, however, was listed as out for Monday night's game.

The rest of the Patriots and Saints practice/injury report

PATRIOTS

OUT
RB Fred Taylor (ankle)

QUESTIONABLE
WR Sam Aiken (hip)
LB Eric Alexander (groin)
TE Chris Baker (shoulder)
LB Tully Banta-Cain (groin)
NT Ron Brace (ankle)
S Pat Chung (head)
WR Julian Edelman (forearm)
DE Jarvis Green (knee)
T Nick Kaczur (ankle)
C Dan Koppen (knee)
T Matt Light (knee)
RB Sammy Morris (knee)
G Stephen Neal (head)
LB Rob Ninkovich (knee)
T Sebastian Vollmer (head)
DE Ty Warren (ankle)
OLB Pierre Woods (groin)

PROBABLE
QB Tom Brady (right shoulder)
CB Shawn Springs (knee)
TE Benjamin Watson (knee)

SAINTS

DOUBTFUL
WR Lance Moore (ankle)
CB Tracy Porter (knee)

QUESTIONABLE
RB Reggie Bush (knee)
CB Randall Gay (hamstring)
C Jonathan Goodwin (ankle)
CB Jabari Greer (groin)
DE Bobby McCray (knee/back)
LB Jonathan Vilma (knee)

PROBABLE
G Carl Nicks (illness)

FOXBOROUGH -- Wide receiver Julian Edelman (forearm), who did not participate in Friday's practice, was spotted stretching out with the team before today's workout at the Dana-Farber Field House.

The media was granted access to the stretching portion of the practice, at which LT Sebastian Vollmer (head) and RB Fred Taylor (ankle) were not present.

One of the real problems defending the Saints? Look at the huddle above. And count the players who, when it breaks, are liable to line up anywhere in the formation.

You got Reggie Bush. You got Jeremy Shockey. You got the tight-end-sized Marques Colton. You got problems everywhere.

When Bill Belichick talks about how the Saints create matchups, it's the malleable parts that allow New Orleans to find the ones they want.

"Everybody is going to be matched up on everybody, I’m telling you," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said, with emphasis. "Shockey’s at the tight end, he’s flexed out, he’s out there on the outside. Bush is in the backfield and he’s in the slot, he’s outside. [Robert] Meachem, Colston – those guys are inside [and] outside – [Devery] Henderson.

"Everybody’s everywhere, so unless you just play match up and go out and find a guy, but even then they have so many different personnel groups you would have a different matchup because it’s not always the same five skill players on the field. Everybody’s going to be matched up against everybody at some point in this game. I don’t know how it’s going to unfold, but they move them around so much — that’s just what they do."

A couple interesting number you can dig up in this regard.

The Saints offense doesn't get credit for being as versatile as it is, across the board. Would you believe New Orleans is 21st in the league in pass attempts? Or that they've run the ball more times than the Carolina Panthers and Tennessee Titans, and rank fourth in the league in rush attempts?

Here it is ... Nick Kazcur (ankle) is added to the list, while Julian Edelman and Sebastian Vollmer sat out, after "limited participation" in Thursday's "virtual" practice:

PATRIOTS

Did not participate
WR Julian Edelman (forearm)
RB Fred Taylor (ankle)
OT Sebastian Vollmer (head)
Limited participation
LB Eric Alexander (groin)
TE Chris Baker (shoulder)
LB Tully Banta-Cain (groin)
NT Ron Brace (ankle)
S Pat Chung (head)
DE Jarvis Green (knee)
OT Nick Kaczur (ankle)
C Dan Koppen (knee)
OT Matt Light (knee)
RB Sammy Morris (knee)
G Stephen Neal (head)
LB Rob Ninkovich (knee)
DE Ty Warren (ankle)
OLB Pierre Woods (groin)
Full participation
QB Tom Brady (shoulder)
CB Shawn Springs (knee)
TE Benjamin Watson (knee)

SAINTS

Did not participate
WR Lance Moore (ankle)
G Carl Nicks (illness)
CB Tracy Porter (knee)
Limited participation
RB Reggie Bush (knee)
CB Randall Gay (hamstring)
C Jonathan Goodwin (ankle)
CB Jabari Greer (groin)
DE Bobby McCray (knee/back)
LB Jonathan Vilma (knee)

Yup, you got that right. Patriots receiver Isaiah Stanback, speaking in the Patriots locker room today, thanked Terrell Owens for helping in his development in Dallas.

An lesser-known fact: T.O. is normally great with/for young receivers. I saw him take Miles Austin and Sam Hurd under his wing in Dallas, as well as doing it with Stanback. I also know he's been mentoring the talented-but-raw James Hardy, a second-year pro, in Buffalo.

Asked if "The Original 81" was helpful to him, Stanback responded, “Very much so, I love T.O. I know that obviously he gets a bad rap supposedly, but I was around him every day and I know the real T.O. He helped me out a lot, personally.”

That comment was spurred on by a good question asked to Stanback about his situation playing multiple positions -- And how it helps to have Tom Brady as a tutor at one spot and Randy Moss at the other.

“I’ve been pretty privileged in my career to have played with some future Hall-of-Famers," Stanback said. "Obviously, I had Terrell [Owens] down in Dallas and Jason Witten — I talk to him all the time, too. To now, obviously being here around those guys, it’s a great atmosphere. They’ve both been great situations for myself.”

Now, as for T.O. and his quarterbacks ...

So I'd been thinking that this might be the week we get answers on just how the Patriots are going to deal with the Sebastian Vollmer/Matt Light issue at left tackle, with Light on the mend and looking likely to play on Monday.

But now, it looks like that whole thing could be pushed back another week -- The head injury Sebastian Vollmer sustained on Sunday (he left the game in the second quarter, and returned for the second half) has kept him out of practice on two consecutive days. And so, during Friday's practice, Light was at left tackle, bookended by ... Mark LeVoir?!?!

So Nick Kaczur wasn't with the first offense. He also wasn't on the injury report on Wednesday.

What winds up going down up front over the long haul? Tough to say. But bear in mind that coach Bill Belichick's comments about the possibility of Matt Light playing right tackle seem to complicate things some.

The easy answer is to leave Vollmer where he's at, and let Light fight for playing time on the right side. But Belichick won't look at the left-tackle spot in a vacuum. He'll assess how he can get the five best guys together out there, and it could be that Vollmer winds up on the right side, because that combination of he and Light is better than the alternative, with Light at right tackle.

No matter what happens, this will be interesting to keep an eye on.

Jets cornerback Donald Strickland made news this week when he told The Star-Ledger that Patriots tackle Mark LeVoir's violent block on a screen pass Sunday was "a real cheap shot." Today, the NFL officially disagreed with Strickland's assessment of the play.

LeVoir, according to a league source, will not be fined for the play, absolving him of Strickland's charge that his hit was "helmet-to-helmet." Strickland, who vowed in the Star-Ledger story that he would "retaliate" against LeVoir the next time the teams play, was not fined for those comments.

The Patriots are practicing inside the Dana Farber fieldhouse in shorts and shells. Only three players are not present at the portion open to the media: Julian Edelman, Sebastian Vollmer, and Fred Taylor. Ten players were not seen at practice Wednesday, but it seems those players were given the day off more with the holiday/a Monday night game in mind.

In the Patriots locker room today, Tully Banta-Cain held court for several reporters. The most interesting topic he discussed with the group centered on the importance of pressuring Drew Brees on Monday night.

“He’s on fire right now,” Banta-Cain said. “If you don’t have any water to put it out, he’s going to keep burning you up. Sorry for the analogy. But, yeah, any time you have a threat at quarterback like that, the only way to beat him is pressure.”

Along with the tremendous comic value of this quote, it illustrates one of the Patriots’ most difficult defensive strategy decisions for Monday night: How much should they blitz Drew Brees?

As Banta-Cain said, when a quarterback is playing with as much skill and accuracy as Brees, “the key is to try to get him on the ground.” The trick is how they should go about doing that. Brees’s success this season at defeating the blitz puts the Patriots defense in a precarious spot.

Brees is gaining 9.22 yards per attempt against blitzes this year, third in the NFL behind Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning. Against a non-blitzing defense, Brees is gaining 8.39 yards per attempt.

“He makes quick decisions,” said Banta-Cain, who leads the Patriots with five sacks. “He’s got a quick release. It’s very tough, very frustrating for a lot of defenses, because you can get to him and he’s still getting the ball off, and he’s still getting it into tight places. Guys are still making plays. That’s a credit to him and his receivers making plays.”

Despite Brees’s efficiency facing the blitz, sending it provides a better – if not great – chance of sacking him. In 80 dropbacks against the blitz, Brees has been sacked six times. In 249 dropbacks without a blitz, Brees has been sacked only five times. Against Brees, the always-delicate balance of how much to blitz is heightened.

“It’s a hope-for-the-best type thing,” Banta-Cain said. “You don’t want to say we’re not going to blitz him, because now you’re allowing him time to get the ball off. It’s just one of those things where you’ve got to execute at a high level, and hopefully if there’s a mistake somewhere on their front five, we take advantage of it.”

The Louisiana Superdome has proven to be a memorable venue since it first opened its doors in 1975.

It's where the 2001 Patriots proved anything is possible. It's where Michael Jordan, then a University of North Carolina freshman, first proved he was something special. It's where Fab Five forward Chris Webber proved he couldn't remember how many timeouts Michigan had. It's where Sugar Ray Leonard proved he could make Roberto Duran say, "no mas."

The building itself proved its worth during Hurricane Katrina, acting as a super-sized sanctuary and storm shelter.

Once again, this Monday night, the Superdome will serve as a proving ground because both the Patriots and Saints enter the Big Game in the Big Easy with a lot to prove -- to themselves and to the rest of the NFL.

Despite the Saints' 10-0 record and threatening of the Patriots' 2007 perfect regular season and marks for points in a season and touchdowns, it's difficult to discern who needs this game more. Sitting at 7-3, the Patriots have yet to beat an opponent that currently carries a winning record. In part, that is semantics, because next week's opponent, the Miami Dolphins, sit at 5-5 entering this Sunday, when they will play the Buffalo Bills.

Still, the Patriots lack both a season-defining victory or a true road win this season and could get both by beating the Saints. A win over the Saints would substantiate the Patriots' season.

The Saints are also searching for validation.

New Orleans wants to prove its impressive 10-0 start is not a statistical mirage, that its gaudy numbers really do add up to being one of the NFL's best teams. While they've had the most impressive season of any NFL team thus far, leading the league in points per game (36.9), total offense (420.5) and takeaways (29), there is a sense in some circles that while the Saints are a good team, they're not a great one.

Don't tell that to Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

"They’re as good as anybody we’ve faced," Belichick told the New Orleans media. "There are no weaknesses. The players are good. The coaches are good. The schemes are difficult. They’re playing at home. It’s Monday night. There will be a lot of energy in the dome. We know we have our work cut out for us."

When it comes to NFL credibility, New Orleans is nouveau riche and the Patriots are old money. A win over the Patriots would substantiate the Saints' arrival among the NFL elite.

That's what makes Monday night's game so interesting -- both teams have something to prove, but only one of them can walk away saying, "Told you so."

The Patriots' re-tooled defense ranks second in the NFL in points allowed (16.4) and sixth in pass defense, yet there are still doubts after Indianapolis about their ability to shut down a high-powered offense and come up with the big stop when it really counts. Shutting down Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who racks up passing yards like an inebriated college student collects beads at Mardi Gras, would prove their point, emphatically and in front of a national television audience.

"This game everybody is going to be watching us. This is going to be the game to make a stand," said Patriots cornerback Jonathan Wilhite.

On the flip side, Brees, who since 2006 leads the NFL in passing yards (2,161) and completions (1,427) and is tied with Peyton Manning in touchdown passes (110), wants to prove that the Tom Brady-Peyton Manning best NFL quarterback debate has another candidate; that he belongs in the QB discourse. What better way to do that than by lighting up Brady's team like Bourbon Street?

Saints coach Sean Payton has made no secret of the fact that the Patriots are the paragon the Saints have looked to emulate. A win over Belichick and the Patriots proves that Payton and the Saints are no longer striving to emulate the Patriots. They are now peers competing for the same prize.

Conversely, the Patriots want to prove that they can win a real road game and that they can beat a fellow Super Bowl contender. The Patriots will have three more shots at a real road win, even if they leave the Crescent City crestfallen with a loss, like they exited Indianapolis, but this is their last shot at a statement victory because no remaining team on the schedule carries the cachet of the 10-0 Saints.

Plus, a Patriots' loss and a Dolphins win this Sunday would mean next week's trip to South Florida would suddenly be for the AFC East lead.

The Patriots want to prove that the Indianapolis loss and their well-documented inability to execute in the second half, particularly on the road (they were shut out against the Jets and Broncos and only scored 10 points at Indy) are football flukes, just like at the beginning of the season when it took until the sixth game to have a rush of 20 yards or greater and a pass play of 40 yards or greater.

The Saints will be out to prove that it's not a fluke that they have a better finishing kick than Usain Bolt, outscoring their opponents 188-78 in the second half. Only one can prove true.

The New England offense would like to demonstrate it can run the ball consistently to create some balance. The New Orleans defense, which has allowed 100-yard rushers three of the last four weeks, would like to demonstrate it can stop getting run over.

For a few hours on Monday night, Louisiana, and not Missouri, will act as the Show Me state.

There is a lot for both the Patriots and the Saints to prove inside the climate-controlled confines of the Superdome, and the process of watching them try to do it should prove highly entertaining.

OK, no overreacting. Deal?

Fred Taylor walk through the locker room briefly this morning with strength coach Mike Woicik. He had no wrap on his injured right ankle. He had no noticeable limp.

Taylor underwent ankle surgery after injuring it in the Baltimore game. His status for the rest of the year has been defined as iffy, but he did tell Michael C. Wright of the Florida Times-Union in October that he expected to return this year.

What does it all mean? Well, we saw Sammy Morris in the locker room prancing around prior to the Miami game, and we've seen him from time-to-time since then, and three weeks later, he still hasn't returned. But it's hard not to see Taylor's cameo in the locker room (which probably wasn't by accident) as anything but a good thing.

Want a reason to look forward to Thanksgiving football? I can give you one (Bet I just got some of my colleagues to spit up a drumstick) ...

OK, this is more than just a hunch: I'm betting that the Patriots will be the Lions' 2010 guest on Turkey Day. And I've got a few things to back it up.

The Lions and Cowboys alternate each year, so the games can be held on separate networks, between AFC and NFC opponents. This year, the Lions got an NFC opponent and a game on FOX, meaning next year, they'll play an AFC team, because CBS will have that game.

Now, in 2010, the AFC East and NFC North will be matched with one another. The Lions' two home opponents in inter-conference play will be the Patriots and Jets, and both would be attractive to the network.

So is it 50-50? Nope. I don't think so, at least. The Jets traveled to Dallas to play on Thanksgiving 2007, meaning they'd likely be given a reprieve here, leaving the Patriots to go to the Motor City. New England did go in 2000 and '02 (Tom Brady actually got his first NFL action in the 2000 game), but it seems as if the league would rather have the Patriots there again.

And I'm probably the only reporter happy about this. Half my family lives there. So it's not all bad ... Not for me, at least.

(Update -- 12:10 p.m.): I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that this post came after Shalise Manza-Young of the Providence Journal raised the possibility to me. And the more I looked at it, as you can see, the more possibility seemed to become probability.

Consider this your "virtual" injury report (Speaking of virtual things, here's about the strangest thing I've ever seen) ...

OK, since the Patriots were off today, but play Monday, they had to file a "if we were practicing today, then ..." injury report. Weird. Not as weird as Sal9000, but weird.

Here it is:

PATRIOTS

Did not participate
RB Fred Taylor (ankle)
Limited
LB Eric Alexander (groin)
TE Chris Baker (shoulder)
LB Tully Banta-Cain (groin)
NT Ron Brace (ankle)
S Pat Chung (head)
WR Julian Edelman (forearm)
DE Jarvis Green (knee)
C Dan Koppen (knee)
OT Matt Light (knee)
RB Sammy Morris (knee)
G Stephen Neal (head)
LB Rob Ninkovich (knee)
OT Sebastian Vollmer (head)
DE Ty Warren (ankle)
OLB Pierre Woods (groin)
Full participation
QB Tom Brady (shoulder)
CB Shawn Springs (knee)
TE Benjamin Watson (knee)

SAINTS

Limited participation
RB Reggie Bush (knee)
CB Randall Gay (hamstring)
C Jonathan Goodwin (ankle)
CB Jabari Greer (groin)
DE Bobby McCray (knee/back)
WR Lance Moore (ankle)
LB Jonathan Vilma (knee)

The Patriots are off for today, but the team announced what the practice report would have looked like if the Pats practiced today. Straight from the official release:

Taylor, Fred RB Ankle Did Not Participate

Aiken, Sam WR Hip Limited Participation
Alexander, Eric LB Groin Limited Participation
Baker, Chris TE Shoulder Limited Participation
Banta-Cain, Tully LB Groin Limited Participation
Brace, Ron NT Ankle Limited Participation
Chung, Pat S Head Limited Participation
Edelman, Julian WR Forearm Limited Participation
Green, Jarvis DE Knee Limited Participation
Koppen, Dan C Knee Limited Participation
Light, Matt T Knee Limited Participation
Morris, Sammy RB Knee Limited Participation
Neal, Stephen G Head Limited Participation
Ninkovich, Rob LB Knee Limited Participation
Vollmer, Sebastian T Head Limited Participation
Warren, Ty DE Ankle Limited Participation
Woods, Pierre OLB Groin Limited Participation

Brady, Tom QB Right Shoulder Full Participation
Springs, Shawn CB Knee Full Participation
Watson, Benjamin TE Knee Full Participation

First off, I'd like to thank everyone for coming here since I landed at the Globe about a month ago. The audience we have here was a major part of my career decision-making, and I hope that you all I know I appreciate you browsing by.

Adam covered Bill Belichick giving thanks to the Krafts yesterday for the opportunity to run the football side of the Patriots franchise almost a decade ago. I wouldn't think it would be a leap to say Robert and Jonathan and everyone else in that family are thankful to Bill too.

And since this came up, the time seemed right to take one more look at the trade that got Belichick out of Jets green and back up to Foxboro. Here it is ...

Jets receive ...
2000 First-round pick (DL Shaun Ellis)
2001 Fourth-round pick (CB Jamie Richardson)
2001 Seventh-round pick (NT James Reed)

Patriots receive ...
Jets head coach Bill Belichick
2001 Fifth-round pick (TE Arthur Love, K Owen Pochman)*
2002 Seventh-round pick**

* -- pick traded to Detroit for sixth- (Love) and seventh-round (Pochman) picks.
** -- used as part of a package to trade up and draft Daniel Graham in Round 1. Pick used by Washington on DE Greg Scott.

Ellis has been a very good player for the Jets, making a Pro Bowl, starting for a decade and being a steady veteran for the club. Reed bounced around for a while. The other four players mentioned above (Scott, Love, Pochman, Richardson) played in a total of 52 games.

Pretty amazing, then, this wasn't exactly a popular trade when it was made?

Happy Thanksgiving from Extra Points. We're thankful for our readers and their insightful comments, and for having the opportunity to keep everyone informed about something they are so clearly passionate about. We truly appreciate it.

With that in mind, we'll again pass along Bill Belichick's words from yesterday, when he opened his press conference:

"First of all, I want to pass along Thanksgiving wishes to all of you, the fans, the players’ families and everybody that has to put up with us through the year. It’s a great time for all of us to be thankful, especially those of us with the Patriots. We have a great situation here. It’s a great opportunity. I appreciate the Kraft family giving me an opportunity to be the coach here. We certainly have outstanding facilities, and support and everything to work with. Robert [Kraft] talked to the team this morning, I thought he put the day in a good perspective — or tomorrow, as it would be. It’s a good time to reflect and be appreciative and take at least one day out of the year to do that, we probably should take every day."

Enjoy your family, your food, and your football today.

* * *

In wholly unrelated, non-Thanksgiving news, there's this: The Patriots are not obligated to fill the practice squad spot vacated when the Buccaneers signed Terrence Nunn to their 53-man roster, but they worked out five players for the position. This week, according to a league source, they brought in wide receivers Michael Ray Garvin (Florida State), Shaheer McBride (Delaware State), and Logan Payne (Minnesota) and defensive backs Dahna Deleston (Connecticut) and Marcus McCauley (Fresno State).

METAIRIE, La. -- Saints quarterback Drew Brees crossed paths with Wes Welker in 2004. Brees was with the San Diego Chargers and Welker was an undrafted free agent out of Texas Tech.

"Wes was awesome," Brees said. "... He was one of these work-hard guys, thousand miles an hour all the time. I remember throwing a touchdown pass to him in the preseason in 04 and he ended up making our team as our kickoff returner."

A few injuries forced the Chargers to release Welker in order to toy with the roster, but the plan was to bring him back, Brees said.

"The minute we released him he got picked up on waivers by Miami and the rest is history because I think a couple of weeks later he was their best slot wide receiver as well as their kicker got hurt and he was kicking off and kicking field goals for them against the Patriots of all people."

In 2007, the Patriots traded for Welker sending a second-round and seventh round pick in the 2007 draft to the Dolphins. Welker leads the league in receptions with 79 and has 854 yards and four touchdowns.

"I have a lot of respect for him," Brees said. "I think he was always one of those guys, I love the way he worked. I love the way he approached the game. He was competitive. He was tough, and he was one of those guys you looked at and just said, 'if any guy deserves to be successful, it's this guy.'''

METAIRIE, La. -- Former Patriots fullback Heath Evans wishes he was playing Monday night. Evans is in his first season with the Saints, but his year has been cut short due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament he suffered in a 46-34 win against Miami on Oct. 25.

Evans had three touchdowns in six games before his injury, which landed him on injured reserve. Evans played four seasons in New England before signing a two-year contract as a free agent with the Saints this past spring. Despite the move, Evans said he has fond memories of his time in New England.

So is this game any tougher to sit out?

"Yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes, and not for the bitter reasons," Evans said. "I love those coaches. I love Mr. and Mrs. Kraft, I love that organization. Anytime you get to play against your buddies, it's no different than going in the backyard and wanting to play football. You want to beat your buddies, and those guys are all my buddies, so this one will be tough to swallow, but I'll be here so no broken TVs at my house this week, no crutches going through the TV screen or anything like that. This is one I would have loved to have played in. Any competitor would have."

Evans, tight end David Thomas and cornerback Randall Gay are among the former Patriots now playing for the Saints.

When Sean Payton and his staff arrived in New Orleans prior to the 2006 season, he set out to change the franchise in every facet, from the play on the field to the culture in the locker room. He searched for a blueprint, and he found the Patriots. Ever since he became a head coach, he has tried to shape the franchise in the same fashion Bill Belichick used in New England.

“You look to duplicate, or try to duplicate," Payton said. "You spend more time talking about doing all the right things and trying to pay close attention to what New England has done as an organization. Certainly, they have been at the forefront of our league. If you were in business, it would be silly not to pay attention to how they’ve been successful, their formula and their recipe.

"When we came in in ’06, we tried to begin to change a culture. We’ve got all the film at our disposal. We spent a lot of time looking at the top teams, not just offensively, but on defense and the kicking game. They’re an organization that has done a lot of things well over a long time, and we pay close attention to each year.”