New Orleans Saints: 10 Players Who Saw Their Stock Change After Preseason Week 1

It's only preseason Week 1.

And yes, the Saints should be—and were—well ahead of the 49ers because of the continuity in their coaching staff and the overall talent gap that exists between the two franchises.

But what was impressive really wasn't the first-stringers; frankly that crew on the offensive side was more offensive than good. But the first-string defense and many of the second-string players at other positions made a name for themselves Friday night.

In fact, it is early, but I feel I can confidently say the Saints are two-deep at every position. That may seem like an obvious statement until you begin to realize they're two-deep at every spot with guys who can realistically start and at least maintain a decent pace.

I mean, I am a Chase Daniel fan, but until Friday, I never thought he could be an NFL starter. Now I feel that he could at least keep the Saints in the 20 points per game range if Drew Brees were to go down. And the list of course goes on.

Because of injuries—and other players stepping up—it seems that a couple of presumed contributors to this year's team (one of them a well-known starter) could have difficulty maintaining that role if they can't make it back into the lineup quickly.

Stock Up: Joique Bell, RB

No, Bell never did see the end zone on Friday night against San Francisco, but the way he carried the ball aggressively and with desire is a trait any offense desires.

Given the Saints' injury concerns of a season ago, look for Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis to come up with a way—any way—to keep Bell around when they trim the roster to 53, so long as Bell keeps carrying the ball the way he did Friday night.

And if they cannot, Bell would still seem to benefit since many teams will be scourging the Saints' roster after the cuts anyway. Bell could easily win a job with another team if he continues to do what he did Friday night.

Stock Up: Mitch King, DT

Mitch King, to this point in his career, has been a relative unknown, finding his way onto multiple NFL rosters, but not a home in the process.

The 25-year-old out of Iowa looks like he may have just done that—especially if he continues to play the way he did Friday night.

King displayed a motor few defensive tackles ever show, flying downfield to chase the elusive rookie QB Colin Kaepernick on one play. King's penetration skills were on display early and often. Granted, Gregg Williams called a defense that had the entire 49ers' offense trying to catch their collective breaths, but King nonetheless looked the part of a contributor and not just another body.

I remember from grading him when he came out of Iowa that he always plays with this high motor, and is very much the type of player and person Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis are looking for on their football team.

If nothing else, King is going to force them to consider him for a spot on this 53-man roster.

Stock Up: Tom Johnson, DT

Here's how well Tom Johnson is known: The picture to the left is not of him, but some other unknown Saints defensive tackle—from 1998.

It's kind of sad until you realize Johnson is the very kind of player Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis have routinely found, played and had success with in their five-plus years working together.

Johnson, with King alongside him, flashed a motor and sideline-to-sideline pursuit that is rare among defensive tackles. He routinely pushed the pocket against the interior of the 49ers' line, and he was productive at getting the rookie QB to the ground.

Gregg Williams wants more turnovers and more pressure on the QB in 2011—that means he'll take the best guys at doing that. For one night, Thomas looked like he was one of the best guys on this team at doing that.

Stock Up: Courtney Roby, WR

I'll admit, I didn't even know Roby had re-signed with the team prior to Friday night's game. I was assuming he had been picked up by someone else.

But Roby looked like he could easily step into a receiver's role this season, as he was one of Chase Daniel's top receiving options and targets—and he routinely caught the ball!

If the Saints decide to part ways with veteran Devery Henderson (they already have Robert Meachem and might want to save a few dollars), Roby could be valuable in partially helping fill that role.

And we know Roby can be an effective kick returner, though it seems the Saints are searching for other options for that role. Nonetheless, he adds value at that spot.

Stock Up: Joseph Morgan, WR

The young man from Walsh College, Morgan may have been the most exciting player on the fast Superdome turf Friday night.

Morgan not only had the play of Week 1 in returning the punt for the touchdown, but had a few other really nice returns. Additionally, he showed the ability to get open as a receiver and made one really tough catch—though he also dropped one he definitely should have caught.

Morgan is unlikely to get many reps at receiver, but if he continues to shine as a returner, someone will want him—even if that team isn't the Saints.

One would assume that once the regular season commences, Darren Sproles will garner the bulk of the reps at the return spots, but Morgan could snatch that away from him if all the right circumstances took place.

Whatever the case, don't be surprised if Morgan finds his way on someone's roster with an ability to play some special teams and do some nice things in the return game.

Stock Up: Mark Ingram, RB

I admit, I've been as skeptical of the Ingram selection as anyone I know. I simply didn't see the need for the player.

Apparently I was wrong. While Pierre Thomas has been an extremely effective player in black and gold, he clearly doesn't possess the natural abilities of Ingram.

Ingram did on one run what no New Orleans running back has done in quite awhile: he burst through a small hole, got to the second level and then made a man miss.

That is what Reggie Bush was expected to do and what some of the other current running backs have shown—one skill at a time. But none of them have been able to put all of it together on the same run.

Ingram's night wasn't perfect, and I still believe Thomas should be the starter, but perhaps Ingram's workload in 2011 will be much greater than I originally expected.

Stock Up: Terrail Lambert, DB

When I found out the Saints had signed Lambert, I was excited because he went to high school near where I grew up. I remember following and rooting specifically for him at Notre Dame.

Of course now that he's a Saint, I will continue to root for him—even more so now.

While Lambert is way down on the depth chart at corner, that is another position the Saints have had trouble with concerning injuries and depth. Therefore, Lambert (with a nice showing) could at least put himself in position to be one call away from a job with the Saints.

It's also possible if he continues to play effective coverage and create turnovers that he could climb the current depth chart. I'm not saying Lambert is the next star on this team, but it's wholly possible he could make a name for himself in NOLA before it's all said and done.

Stock Up: Chase Daniel, QB

Chase Daniel came out of Missouri a lot like Drew Brees. He was a winner, but too short, didn't have the arm strength and the odds were stacked against him to experience success in the NFL as a player.

But Daniel ended up in really the perfect situation—behind Brees—and has catapulted himself into a discussion of one of the more promising young developmental backup QBs in the league.

What I saw Friday night from Daniel was a lot of what we saw from him when he was leading Missouri to its most successful stretch of football in program history. He was smart with the football, accurate and led his offense well.

But beyond that, Daniel gunned some throws that, in the past, would have been lofted into coverage. He looked like he was in charge of the offense and was playing with confidence.

I'm not saying there's any kind of QB controversy (that would be insane), but I do think Daniel could adequately step in for Brees if he has to.

And I do think a year or two from now, Daniel could be in a similar situation as Kevin Kolb: demanding a trade for a chance to become a starter.

(I'm not saying Daniel would consider himself worthy of starting over Brees, but he could decide he's good enough to be handed the reins elsewhere). 

Stock Down: Adrian Arrington, WR

Heading into this preseason I said it was put-up or shut-up time for Arrington, while predicting he would definitely put-up.

Well, after missing Friday's exhibition opener and seeing that there are other capable receivers looking to take his uncelebrated position, Arrington really is in an eerie position.

I still believe he has the talent and, certainly, Arrington will get another chance in this league if it doesn't work out here in New Orleans, but the clock is running down on him here.

I think everyone wants it work out, but it's not like this is a former first-round pick as Robert Meachem was.

Therefore, there's less reason to maintain that hope. Arrington better get healthy quickly and contribute even quicker (if that's possible), or he may be looking for a new job.

Stock Down: Tracy Porter, CB

When you're the author of the most famous play in your franchise's history—and really two of probably the top five—you're not going to get booted out of town with ease.

And I'm not even saying Porter is going anywhere anytime soon.

What I am saying is that Porter's absence in this camp is cause for alert, especially to Porter's wallet. Tracy is going to need to recover quickly to guarantee he maintains a spot in the starting lineup, which is likely the only way he'll get paid (well) this offseason.

Porter is a good outside corner who also excels playing the nickel spot. That versatility will help him when his contract comes up.

But injury concerns will not. Porter needs to get back healthy and play well this season for the sake of his wallet.

So yes, his stock is down, though it's much more relative than the other nine guys on this list—most of whom are just trying to earn a roster spot on one of the most talented teams in the league.