With a backup LT, Cole could be in for another big day.


Jamaal Brown, the Saints starting left tackle, has been ruled out for the game this Sunday. In his absence, Jermon Bushrod will assume the responsibility of, at least attempting, to block Trent Cole, one of the premier defensive ends in the NFL today.

With the Saints being the passing team that they are, the left tackle position becomes that much more important. Jamaal Brown is a very good left tackle, but Bushrod is a young guy who has been inactive for over half of his NFL career. This becomes an obvious weak spot along the line for New Orleans.

While the Saints will do their best to give Bushrod the help he will surely need against Cole, they will have few men to spare as their wide open passing attack limits the amount of blockers they can keep for any one play. They know that Bushrod is not ready to block someone like Cole one-on-one, so that matchup alone may cause them to get away from their gameplan.

In order for this to work to the Eagles advantage, they will have to get pressure from the other side of the line as well. Victor Abiamiri is questionable this week, and Juqua Parker, while a good defensive end, is not great at getting pressure on the quarterback. Enter Jason Babin and the Eagles just might have something rolling.

The other aspect to all of this working against the Saints is the fact that the Eagles know they are going to try and pass as much as possible. They may or may not have Pierre Thomas, which would be a huge help to their run game, but they know that their best player is the guy slinging the ball around.

This means that Cole and whomever will be starting opposite him at left end will be able to pin their ears back and come after Brees on nearly every play. Even if the Saints do try and run the ball at the ends because they know they're going to be flying around the corner, the Eagles have faith in their outside linebackers and safeties to step up and make a play.

So given the injury to Brown, and the Saints affinity for passing the ball, Cole should be able to have a big day against the Saints. It's certainly not out of the question for him to come up with a couple sacks. Given Brees quick release, it likely won't be anything record-breaking, but it could certainly be enough to ensure an Eagles victory.

Also, if Sean McDermott does his homework, the defense should continue their blitzing ways this week. Brees is good against the blitz, but hurrying him by even a half second could create some opportunites for interceptions for Asante Samuel and Sheldon Brown. The Saints have those good receivers, but Brown and Samuel shouldn't have any trouble with them even one-on-one.

Or honestly, neither should Joselio Hanson and Ellis Hobbs.

So those of you in IDP fantasy leagues, or just an observer looking for a difference-maker in this game, keep your eye on Trent Cole.