I might as well start this now, given the competition kicks off soon.

The Saints have moved their opening home game against the Giants to the Meadowlands Stadium because of their stadium being almost the only thing above water in Atlantis II.[/code]

What are the options for New Orleans? It is very likely they may not be able to play a home game at the Superdome all season.

Is there stadiums within a reasonable distance that could be used or will all games be out of state?

The Saints’ first choice is LSU’s Tiger Stadium at Baton Rouge. It’s about 100km north west of New Orleans and holds around 90k.

Their second choice is the Alamodome at San Antonio and their 3rd and least preferred choice is playing all games away.

They’ll be deciding in the coming weeks I think for their first new home game on October 2. Their first home game in Week 2 has already been moved to the Meadowlands to play the NY Giants.

Looking forward to the season, should/hope to see a new champion as the Patriots have been brought back to the field after losing Bruschi, Law etc. Should be between them, Philadelphia and the Colts. Oakland are my darkhorses, am hoping the Dolphins do well but they’re in the middle of rebuilding so I won’t mind if they get the No. 1 pick in the draft and get SCUs QB Matt Leinart, absolute freak.

I set that up, if anyone cares. Good luck figuring out what to do. It was the only decent tipping site i could find for the NFL.

I read a USA Today article a few days ago saying that the damage to the Superdome could be the impetus for a new stadium to be built for the Saints.

here's a tip for you....kansas city chiefs to win the super bowl!!! i've just got 20/1

I only follow the Packers - the only true club in the NFL. Which explains my hitherto silence on this thread.

But ...I've also been following the fortunes of Aussue Ben Graham, on his journey from Geelong to the Jets. And he's done amazingly well! His celebrated predecessor, Darren Bennett, had to play a year in the European League after leaving Melbourne before breaking into the big time the year after - later becoming a two time Pro Bowl rep. Ben managed to get a contract with the Jets after his first tryouts, and got onto the starting roster - impressive in itself. But, from todays HUN -

Former Geelong player Ben Graham is ranked ninth after 5 games, on the list of of the top NFL punters. ... (No1) Chris Kluge's average is 48.8 yards while Graham is averaging 44.5 with the Jets.

When the Jets last game was televised in the U.S., they featured highlights of some of Ben's booming long roosts whilst at Geelong.

I remember Graham kicking a ball after a behind from the goals square to the centre of Skilled Stadium. I'm glad he's doing so well.

What a comeback by the Dallas Cowboys on MNF.

Outplayed for most of the game.
Down 20-7 with less then four minutes to go in the 4th quarter.

Bledsoe passes 20yds for a touchdown 3:04 left.
Williams runs a 46 yd interception with 2:43 left.

Now on top of the NFC East!!!

I only saw the fourth quarter, seems like it was the one to see.


Still pissed about the Giants stuff up. An interception return, a punt return and a kickoff return. The only offensive points for the Vikings was the match winning field goal. Meekly surrendering the NFC East lead....

My interest in this seasons NFL season has plunged along with the Packers. Like the Pies, the only compensation will be the draft picks. But other than that, I have tracked Ben Graham's amazing rookie season with interest. Starting as the Jets third ranked punter in what was supposed to be just a development season for him (it took Bennett a full year to break in), he's now ranked #3 in the NFL! Looks like his and Bennetts previous success is inspiring others to follow - but hopefully not too soon. I have a few Geelong mates who blame Grahams departure for costing them this years premiership. I always agree with them for purely sadistic purposes!

Rocca punting on NFL
By Jon Ralph
December 18, 2005

COLLINGWOOD forward Anthony Rocca has set his sights on joining the Australian invasion in the National Football League in the US, with dreams of a post-AFL career as a punter. Considered the biggest kick in the the AFL, Rocca says he still has much to achieve for Collingwood, but has begun thinking about a move overseas. Rocca, 28, would follow in the footsteps of NFL punters Ben Graham (New York Jets), Darren Bennett (Minnesota) and Matt McBriar (Dallas), and could eventually make up to $1 million a year.

"I have always had a bit of an interest in it," he said yesterday. "I want to try to give that a go and I have spoken to my wife about it. She is pretty keen if it does happen - to go to the States and suss it out."

Like Graham, Rocca is aligned to Ricky Nixon's Flying Start management group, which could help set up trials with NFL clubs. "(Ricky) did most of the stuff with Ben Graham," Rocca said. "I spoke to him when Ben Graham first went over and he said he will see what evolves from it." While Rocca is keen to lay the foundations for a post-AFL future, he said it would not dilute his passion to play out his AFL career with Collingwood.

Nixon said yesterday he had discussed a US trial for Rocca - at the end of the next AFL season - to test the waters before a concerted tilt at the NFL. "I guess the Ben Graham experience has worked out very well, to the point where several NFL clubs are talking to me about who else they can get over there," Nixon said. "Ben effectively had to give away one year of AFL to get there, and Anthony is not quite in that boat. We are looking at how he can practice outside of AFL times and, maybe at the end of next year, when he gets his eight weeks off, go over there and maybe get a bit of a feel for it. I like his chances. You would think that Ben and him would be pretty similar."

Graham, the third-ranked punter in his first year with the Jets, made a controversial departure from Geelong against the wishes of coach Mark Thompson. He will earn about $500,000 this year and is ranked equal third in the league with an excellent 38.9 net yards (the distance of the punt minus the distance the ball is returned).

Rocca whose only rival as the AFL's superboot is his brother, Kangaroos full-forward Saverio, admits the NFL pigskin is a little harder to kick. "It is a different footy," he said. "You have to adjust to the footy and kick the torpedoes every time. Kicking a torp is a pretty hard thing sometimes, so you just have got to get a little bit of practice. "I went to the States a couple of years ago and bought a footy there . . . I have kicked it a few times. The ball is a bit smaller and rounder, so you have to try to get a bit more purchase on it."

Nixon said Rocca had to work on a smooth transition from eventually winding down his career at Collingwood to hitting the ground running in the NFL. "It doesn't affect Collingwood or what he is doing, punting the ball 100 times a day over summer," he said."

An interesting article in todays HUN on now retired Darren Bennett -

Bennett goes out kicking
Craig Hutchison
02jan06


Homeward bound: Former Melbourne and West Coast forward Darren Bennett will soon return to Australia permanently after a succcessful career as a punter in the NFL.

DARREN Bennett's move home to Melbourne is back on schedule after a most unexpected detour last month. The 11-year veteran American football punter and former Melbourne and West Coast footballer was thrust back into the National Football League spotlight. The fact he had retired at 40 with chronic arthritis in his knee proved no deterrent to the red-hot Minnesota Vikings, who reactivated their former punter for the December 12 clash with Pittsburgh.

Only in America. "Where else can you be on the couch on Wednesday and play before millions on Sunday?" Bennett asked. "I hadn't touched the football for months, but it's good to fill in and pick up a couple of cheques."

Bennett thought his NFL career had ended in July when his body failed him at training camp. "Towards the end of camp I knew my knee wasn't going to come up," Bennett said. "It was my plant leg and I knew I was done. "The writing was on the wall at 40 years of age, as it should be. I was cruising off into retirement. "Then Minnesota's young punter got injured and they rang and said 'Can you come and punt for one or two weeks?' "

Bennett was Australia's trailblazer into the NFL after he tried out as a punter during his honeymoon in 1994. His record is phenomenal. He holds every major San Diego Chargers punting record after a nine-year stint that includes two Pro Bowl berths. A member of the NFL's team of the 1990s, Bennett has been a pioneer for Australian kickers such as Geelong star Ben Graham, of the New York Jets, and Melbourne boy Matt McBriar, now at Dallas.

His admiration for Graham is boundless. "It is a bigger transition than people realise -- and to average what he has done in New York, in the open air windy stadium, is tremendous," he said of Graham, who is third overall in punting averages this season. "The pressure doesn't bother him. He's played in front of big crowds at the 'G. It's a credit to him."

... With young punter Chris Kluwe recovering from a knee injury, Bennett is no longer required by Minnesota, which has lost its past two matches on the way to the playoffs. But Bennett would have been struggling to be available anyway. With his knee causing him agony and keen to expand his business interests, he has headed home with his wife Rosemary.

Bennett is looking forward to taking William and his other son, Tom, 7, to AFL matches -- they are huge St Kilda and Nick Riewoldt fans. The cheque -- one 16th of a veteran's base contract -- of about $200,000 -- is the perfect farewell present. "I am going to buy a boat when I get back to Melbourne and enjoy myself," Bennett said. "This has been the time of my life."

A year and a day since the last post here, but with the play-offs now starting with a bit of local flavour, thought its time to revive this thread -

Aussie punters' success to kick-start invasion
03 January 2007 Herald-Sun

STAR punting exports Mat McBriar and Ben Graham will compete in this month's NFL playoffs in the most successful season for Australians in league history. It's the first time two Australians have reached the playoffs, and the national coach said it would trigger a flurry of Aussies trying to break into the NFL.

While McBriar and his Dallas Cowboys secured their playoff berth two weeks ago, former Geelong star Graham's New York Jets sealed their spot yesterday with a convincing 23-3 win against the Oakland Raiders. Both sides face tough assignments in Monday's sudden-death wildcard playoff matches. New York takes on Superbowl contender New England, while Dallas will be the underdog against Seattle.

McBriar leads the NFL in punting this season with an average of 48.2 yards a kick. Last week he became the second Australian after former San Diego punter Darren Bennett to be selected for the end-of-season NFL Pro Bowl game. Former Geelong captain Graham is also enjoying a good season, averaging 44.2 yards a kick and helping the Jets to a surprise playoff berth in what many expected to be a rebuilding season for the team.

And the coach of the Australian national side, Paul Manera, said the best was yet to come. "This is something that is going to grow, and I have no doubt you are going to see a lot more Australian punters in the NFL," said Manera who, like McBriar, played college football at the University of Hawaii. "This is just going to generate a lot more interest in the game. "As Australian coach, I'm getting more and more players from the AFL contacting me seeing if we can get them opportunities overseas. "The NFL is starting to see that Australia has athletes that can play at their level . . . and there is absolutely no reason why the NFL couldn't have all 32 punters from Australia."

Manera said McBriar and Graham were successfully following the path paved by former West Coast Eagle and Melbourne player Bennett, who had a successful 11-year NFL career. "Since Bennett did what he did, more players are following in his footsteps," Manera said. "Having these guys performing is encouraging kids to play and encouraging people to look at the sport." Bennett reached the playoffs twice, with San Diego in 1995 and with Minnesota in 2004. Graham, 33, who joined the Jets in 2005, and McBriar, 27, who joined the Cowboys in 2004, are the fourth and fifth Australians to play in the NFL. - AAP

If Dallas weren't playing Seattle they'd be porked.

If the Jets were in the NFC they wouldn't be porked.

Freaking Gang Green need to get fumble fingers away from holding the ball for Nugent -

FROM the NY TImes:
December 29, 2006 -- Jets' punter Ben Graham received an earful from special teams coach Mike Westhoff early in yesterday's practice.

Graham has mishandled field goal snaps in each of the last two games and was struggling with a snap or two in yesterday's practice. That incited the intense and demanding Westhoff, who screamed for all to hear, "We've got 22 guys out there busting their [butts] and if you [mess] up . . . straighten out."

Before practice began, Eric Mangini addressed Graham's recent problems holding for kicker Mike Nugent.

"We can't have those things," Mangini said