New Orleans Saints Review

Center Jonathan Goodwin is now in his 8th season in the NFL and his 4th as a member of the Saints.  He took over as the starter last season after the Saints let Jeff Faine go via free agency.  Jonathan stepped right in and the Saints’ offensive line didn’t skip a beat.

Quarterback Drew Brees is always among the least-sacked qb’s in the game, something Goodwin says the line takes a lot of pride in.  And this year, the Saints’ running attack is among the elite in the league.

Jonathan was gracious enough to take time out of his busy schedule to chat with me about the 2009 season so far:

1. The offensive line has been great with run-blocking so far this year. Did you guys come into the season knowing that you would run the ball more often?
It was a goal of ours to improve the run game. We all knew we were good enough to have a better rushing attack. Coach Payton told us we would be a more balanced team as far as the play calling. I think we as a line felt like it would be a key to the success of the team if we could run the ball better.

2. Drew Brees is always among the least sacked quarterbacks in the game. How much pride does the line take in that stat?
Yes we take a lot of pride in that. We view Drew as the best quarterback in the league. He is the key to our offense. It’s a stat that we take very seriously. I think each guy goes out every week and has the goal of keeping Drew up the entire game.

3. It seems like the most successful offensive lines are a tight-knit group. So how proud are you guys of Jermon Bushrod for stepping up the way he has this season?
We are an extremely close group. We feel like every lineman on the team should be ready to play. So yes we are very proud of how Jermon stepped in and we did not miss a beat.

4. Who’s the toughest defensive tackle you’ve had to face?
Kris Jenkins

5. If the O-line had an arm-wrestling tournament, who would win?
It would be between Carl Nicks and Jon Stinchcomb.

6. Since you’ve been in New Orleans for a few years now, do you have a favorite restaurant or meal in the city?
Nola

Rating:

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 8th, 2009 at 8:21 am and is filed under Interviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.