The New Orleans Saints (1-4) are eager to face a divisional opponent after coming off a record-breaking week five 31-24 win against the San Diego Chargers in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Despite the 1-4 start, the Saints are looking for their second straight victory, and their first win against a divisional opponent this season.
For the past three seasons the Saints have defeated their opponents both before and after the bye week. Offensive Line/Running Game Coach Aaron Kromer is looking for history to repeat itself once again on Sunday when the Saints take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Raymond James Stadium this Sunday at noon CT.
"We're getting our mindset back to where we were before we hit that bye week, and we've done a good job over the last three years of playing well after the bye week because we've let the guys rest," said Kromer on Monday. "We treat them as men, and they responded as men by coming out and practicing hard today. You can see the freshness in their legs. We're not trying to tear them down. It was a good day today and we have to carry it over into the game."
Following the win over San Diego, Saints players came in on Monday to condition, lift weights and review the game film before getting the opportunity to enjoy six days without organized team activities.
They returned to action on Monday and fine-tuned with an additional day of practice than they ordinarily would have. Quarterback Drew Brees told the media how beneficial it is for players to get some rest during the bye week.
"It's huge," said Brees. "It's been great for us. We started that philosophy back in 2009 after the first philosophy didn't work. You change it up and our saying was 'if you want to do something you've never done before, you have to do something you've never done before' (and) sure enough we go on to win the Super Bowl that year. I think, specifically, that next week was 'hey, we're well rested, we're coming back and now it is a sense of urgency to get rolling again and get right back on track' and build upon where you left off. I think we all liked that feeling that we had in the locker room after the Charger game and we want to continue to build on that."
