ESPN

If any town deserves for life to cut it some slack and serve up a little NFL postseason football (not to mention a fantasy gem or two), it's New Orleans. In case you haven't switched on the TV or opened a newspaper in the last six months, plenty of folks in the Big Easy are little or no better off than they were in the days immediately following Hurricane Katrina. A diversion, maybe something vaguely resembling hope -- that was all they asked for.

And being a jaded, crusty sportswriter, I could come up with only one thing: the poor souls were getting screwed again. Sure, the Saints signed QB Drew Brees and drafted Reggie Bush -- potential franchise players who, at the very least, would be sturdy building blocks.

But I have eyes. And guess what they saw? Jammal Brown, Jamar Nesbit, Jeff Faine, Jahri Evans and Jon Stinchcomb -- also known as the motley front-five blocking crew in New Orleans' offense. Having blown up their offensive line in the offseason -- even moving Brown, a rookie success at right tackle in 2005, over to the left side -- the Saints seemingly were conceding '06 to start laying the foundation for their future.

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