New Orleans Saints Stadium: Superdome Schedule Strength: 2nd Postseason Weather issues: Week 14 at New York Giants Offensive Line Ranking: 12 Head Coach -- Sean Payton One-year suspension Interim Head Coach -- Joe Vitt Without a doubt the craziest coaching scenario in all of football. In the wake of Payton's year-long suspension, Vitt, the former defensive coordinator, becomes the interim head coach through the preseason. Vitt will be suspended the opening four games of the regular season, returning Week 5 to resume the role of head coach through the remainder of the season. If we examine Vitt's history, we find he is a lifelong defensive coach, having little to do with the offensive system, forcing us to bypass over to the offensive coordinator. Offensive Coordinator -- Pete Carmichael, Jr. Quarterbacks coach since 2006, Carmichael was promoted to the position of offensive coordinator following the 2009 season. In a normal season, Carmichael would have very little to do with the offensive system, but the 2012 Saints are far from normal. In the aftermath of the Saints' bounty scandal, and the one-year suspension of Payton, Carmichael has been propelled into the role of "game planner" and "playcaller." Despite the coaching turmoil, the Saints' offensive system will remain relatively untouched: throw, throw and throw some more. QB -- Drew Brees; If you're reading this you must be new to fantasy football so I'll indulge. Drew Brees is what I like to classify as a beast. Playing in a strict passing offensive system, Brees is one of the few quarterbacks in the league being provided unlimited freedom to throw any pass on the field, regardless of down, distance, time remaining or score. Already a player/coach, Brees' control of the Saints offense will expand with Payton now suspended. Also, the Saints bounty scandal could create an "us against the world mentality" with Brees leading the charge. As we dig deeper, we will expose four "question marks" not normally circling Brees that could raise concerns entering 2012. They are: the loss of playcaller/mentor Sean Payton interfering with the continuity of the offense; the ongoing contract negotiation (which should get settled before preseason); the loss of All-Pro left guard Carl Nicks to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; and the departure of Robert Meachem. Despite these concerns, should Brees sign a new contract before the preseason, he will remain amongst the Top 5 quarterbacks with a Player Rating of...

New Orleans Saints running back Pierre Thomas left Saturday's playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers in the first quarter with an apparent head injury.

New Orleans Saints running back Pierre Thomas is still happy he delivered a special Christmas gift to a fan - even if it cost him $7,500.

THE STORY: With a chance for a first-round playoff bye technically still on the table, the New Orleans Saints plan to play their starters when they host the Carolina Panthers in the regular-season finale Sunday. Saints coach Sean Payton said Wednesday that the Saints are &quotplaying; it full speed ahead," presumably meaning QB Drew Brees and the rest of the Saints' stars will start. The Saints can still earn the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye, but they need some help from San Francisco. New Orleans will clinch the No. 2 seed with a win and a 49ers loss or tie, or a tie and a 49ers loss. The Saints have won the past three meetings, but two of them have gone down to the wire, including a 30-27 road win Oct. 9 in which Brees threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Pierre Thomas with 50 seconds left.

Running Wild Fantasy owners who didn't drop Felix Jones received a huge fantasy boost last week with the ankle injury suffered by rookie phenom DeMarco Murray. Murray broke his ankle early in the first half against the New York Giants, and in came Jones to the rescue. The Dallas Cowboys ended up losing the game, but Jones proved that he certainly can still be a dominant starting running back. He ran for just over 100 yards on 16 carries and also caught a handful of passes out of the backfield. He is a must start the rest of the season for owners chasing that championship, and he should be considered no worse than an RB2 for the simple reason that Dallas has no one else at the running back position. Jones has always been a solid player; his health has consistently been the only thing that keeps him from being a fantasy stud. Look for him to have a nice end to the season with matchups against Tampa Bay, Philadelphia and the New York Giants. Though it doesn't seem like it, Maurice Jones-Drew is having a monster season. With more than 1,300 rushing yards and 10 total touchdowns, fantasy owners have to be extremely happy, especially since he's on a terrible team with no offensive line. Jones-Drew had by far the best game of his career last week, rushing for 85 yards and two scores while also catching six balls for another 52 yards and two more trips to pay dirt. The Jaguars got blown out Thursday night against the Atlanta Falcons, but Jones-Drew was still able to run for 112 yards, and although he didn't find the end zone it was still a very serviceable night for his owners. He finishes the season against Tennessee and Indianapolis, so start him the rest of the season as the No. 1 running back that he's been all year as he will surely help you win that fantasy championship. I don't suggest starting any running back not named Darren Sproles from the New Orleans Saints this weekend. All season it has been a crap shoot with the New Orleans' backfield, and this week is no different. Sproles is going to get his reps and a decent amount of targets and should continue to be started. Even though Mark Ingram is battling turf toe and is doubtful to play Sunday, Pierre Thomas and Chris Ivory should be benched. There are too many weapons on New Orleans, and Drew Brees are going to be throwing a ton as he chases Dan Marino's passing record. Minnesota is very weak against the pass, so unless Thomas or Ivory can break off a long screen pass I would keep both of them ...

A trio of players top this week's list of players to target on the waiver wire. All are players that can contribute as fantasy starters right away. Well, let's clarify and mention that one of them is a running back for Washington, so that carries some automatic question marks about the long-term value. This week's list was put together while wondering why the NFL can't simply have the teams that are on a bye week play each other the following week. Doing so would eliminate any advantage one team might have, and while we're at it, why don't we have it be division games so the rivalry can have a couple of weeks to build up the hype?! And what about having the teams that are playing Thursday be on the bye the week prior? I know, makes too much sense. A single list again this week, though we'd like to point out that the Top 3 on this list are head and shoulders above the others that are in this week's story. On to this week's waiver wire wonders ... WR Laurent Robinson, Dallas We talked about Robinson in this space last week, and since he's still only owned in 35 percent of online leagues, he makes a repeat appearance. Reports out of Dallas are that Miles Austin will be out for 2-4 weeks, and that opens up a spot in the starting lineup for Robinson. Tony Romo has already shown a likeness for him, as Robinson has caught five passes and a touchdown in each of the last two games. He's worth owning in all leagues and worth considering in your starting lineup as a WR2/WR3. RB Roy Helu, Washington Here we go again with the Redskins, coach Mike Shanahan, and a running back. Last week's running back-du-jour in Washington was Helu, and he didn't disappoint, going for nearly 150 yards in total offense, including 14 catches out of the backfield. He was on the field for nearly every offensive play, and Shanahan is at least saying that he'll ride Helu as long as he can. Though many will shy away from Helu due to past performance of Shanahan backs, Helu is worth owning and starting in all formats. At least until Shanny changes his mind. WR Earl Bennett, Chicago After finally getting clearance to play, Bennett didn't waste any time becoming Jay Cutler's favorite target on Monday night in Philadelphia. He caught five passes for 95 yards and a touchdown, with Cutler looking to him on almost every third down passing play. The Bears offense has been crying out for a go-to guy in the passing game, and a healthy Bennett appears to be that player. He should...

Fred Jackson is a top-20 back, not a top-10 back. In week 1, he ran for 112 yards. He followed that with a 117 yard, 2 score performance in week 2. And I mentioned last week that Jackson is a low-end RB2. But don't get carried away. He will be very productive, but if an owner in your league wants to offer top-10 compensation, take it. Matthew Stafford is ready to make the leap. He's got a cannon attached to his arm. He's got arguably the most gifted receiver in the game. And he's got a defense that will allow the offense to do whatever it wants. Stafford is showcasing the talent that made him a #1 overall pick. He's a QB1 (with injury risk), and in leagues where I have both Stafford and Big Ben, I'm starting Stafford if all things are equal. The Chiefs are dreadful, and it's only going to get worse. It was already pretty bad when they had one of the most electrifying backs in the league in Jamaal Charles. But early in their game against the Lions, Charles tore his ACL. I know that owners will wonder what to do. Unfortunately, neither Thomas Jones nor Dexter McCluster really has his skill set. Jones will get the majority of carries, and McCluster will be worth more in a PPR league. Kansas City appears to be a black hole, so it may be better to look elsewhere anyway. Sorry... Cam Newton can play. Seriously. Week 1 we chalked up to a terrible Cardinals defense. But when he throws for even more yards against the Packers, we have to take notice. He can play, and perhaps more surprisingly, Head Coach Ron Rivera and his staff are putting him in a position to make plays. Even though he threw 3 interceptions, they know he's their best shot. Newton is easily a matchup play, and is slowly making his way up the boards. He's at least a top-15 QB, if not higher. Vincent Jackson is scary good. Against the Patriots on Sunday, Jackson caught ten balls for 172 yards and 2 touchdowns. He's an absolute stud, and playing for that offense with that quarterback, he's a top-10 guy, easily. Philip Rivers is clearly looking for him, and he was unbelievable against a shaky Patriots' pass defense. He'll get more attention in the weeks to come, but he'll still produce. Darren Sproles is the Saints running back you want. Mark Ingram and Pierre Thomas may get more publicity, but the Saints are a passing team. Sproles is dynamic out of the backfield, and if Brees finds him in space or on a screen, it's a big gain. He has 15 catches, over 100 yards, and a score in 2 games. While the ...