Willkommen » shot at an SEC defense yet.---AP

NEW ORLEANS -- Time will tell if the stunning comeback the New Orleans Saints pulled out before getting this week off will be a confidence-building turning point or a mere reprieve from an otherwise miserable season.Its too early to make judgments already, said Saints fullback John Kuhn, who scored three TDs, including the winner last weekend. Its going to be nice to take this momentum into the bye, get healthy, come back, kind of get refocused.For now, the 1/3 Saints -- who might have been 0-4 if not for a fourth-quarter meltdown by San Diego last weekend -- can take some solace in the fact 13 other NFL teams were also 1/3 or worse through Week 4. In the NFC South, theyre tied for second, two games out of first with 12 to go.Meanwhile, optimism stems from the anticipated return of several injured regulars in coming weeks, making the timing of the Saints bye week rather fortuitous for the banged-up club.We have a chance to get a number of guys back that have been out; obviously that number has been high for us -- unusually high this early part of the season, Saints coach Sean Payton said. It falls at a good time for a number of players.Starting left tackle Terron Armstead (knee), starting middle linebacker James Laurinaitis (quad), projected starting linebacker Dannell Ellerbe (quad), tight end Josh Hill (ankle) and left guard Senio Kelemete (hamstring) all missed last Sundays game with injuries. The Saints have characterized them as week to week, providing hope that any or all of them could be back by the time the Saints return to action Oct. 16 against Carolina in the Superdome.Additionally, safety Kenny Vaccaro (ankle) and receiver Willie Snead (toe) played through their recent injuries last Sunday. Vaccaro said he and a number of other players would be spending the week off getting treatment at team headquarters.We need it, Vaccaro said of the week off. A lot of guys dont like the early bye because you kind of want it in Week 10 after youre really, really beat up. But weve had so many injuries early and a lot of guys that are playing are banged-up, so itll be exciting to see guys out there fresh, flying around.And in just a few more weeks, starting cornerback Delvin Breaux and first-round draft choice Sheldon Rankins, a projected starter at defensive tackle, could be back. Both of them have broken legs.Yet the schedule only appears to get tougher. And some of the Saints statistical rankings -- particularly on defense -- havent been flattering through the first month.Having ranked 31st in the NFL in defense the past two seasons, New Orleans remained 31st through Week 4, allowing 422.8 yards per game. Perhaps even more concerning for the unit is being dead last in points allowed per game at 32.5. Even last weekend, the Saints gave up plenty of yards (346) and points (34), but came up with a pair of fumble recoveries inside the final seven minutes to give quarterback Drew Brees a chance to lead his latest comeback with a pair of short touchdown drives. The Saints defense then came up with one of its best series of the season to close out the win, producing a sack, followed a couple plays later by an interception on fourth-and-long.We have some momentum based on the way the fourth quarter (in San Diego) finished. Yet, there are a lot of things that need to be cleaned up, Payton said. Were going to see a stretch of good opponents coming up here. If you start with Carolina and then you go to the next week, Kansas City, and the week after that is Seattle. All of those teams were playoff teams (last year) and played extremely well.Payton said coaches are spending much of the bye week analyzing the performance of individual players and re-evaluating which personnel groupings serve the team best in various situations. Even before the bye, some lineup adjustments were made.Rookie free safety Vonn Bell, a second-round draft choice out of Ohio State, started ahead of Jairus Byrd, a former Pro Bowl player with Buffalo who represented New Orleans highest-profile free-agent acquisition in 2014.The job for us is going to be during this bye to look closely at what were doing -- not just defensively or offensively or in the kicking game (and) make sure we have our best players on the field, Payton said.New Orleans first two losses came down to the last possession, meaning even minor improvements could have made the difference between 1/3 and 3-1. Payton is confident his players arent making any pessimistic assumptions that the success rate of the final 12 games will resemble that of the first four.There is enough veteran leadership in this room and players that understand how difficult it is to win each week, and yet how attainable it can be, Payton said. Certainly, getting that win (in San Diego) is a boost of confidence -- and we needed it.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFLCustom Edgar Martinez Jersey . -- About a third of the way through the regular season, the Washington Wizards are at . Edgar Martinez Jersey Large . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide. http://www.custommarinersjersey.com/ . The 17-year-old native of Marystown, N.L., pulled out of Skate Canada International last month in Saint John, N.B., with the same problem. Cheap Mariners Jerseys . -- Mike Smith never saw his first NHL goal go in. Custom Mariners Jersey China . Most important, perhaps, it went off without a hitch. Organizers poked a little fun at the now-infamous opening ceremony gaffe that saw only four out of five snowflakes open up into rings, leaving the Olympics logo one ring short.AUBURN, Ala. -- No. 17 Texas A&M and Auburn have each faced a tough nonconference test and another one that wasnt so challenging.Now, they get a chance to discover whether theyve made some progress in the Southeastern Conference Western Division. The Tigers (1-1) and Aggies (2-0) open league play Saturday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium in a matchup of two teams who havent fared so well in the SEC the past couple of seasons.Auburn has lost three straight against Power 5 conference teams since beating Texas A&M last season. The Aggies, meanwhile, get another chance to prove that theyve made progress both with quarterback Trevor Knight and as a defense after ranking among the SECs worst at stopping the run in 2015.The game will be another test cause thats basically where we are as team, Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said. Everyone waiting to see who we are and what we can do. Our team enjoys that kind of attitude. Thats been kind of the attitude about us since Week One.Thats when the Aggies survived an overtime win over UCLA before routing Prairie View A&M 67-0. Auburn took No. 5 Clemson down to the wire in the opener before rolling over Arkansas State, 51-14.Let the battle for SEC West positioning begin. Neither team has had a winning league record in the past two seasons.Auburn is a slight favorite in the game, but the visiting team has won the last four meetings.It is a little weird, Auburn guard Alex Kozan said. Normally the home team advantage, but 2012 obviously that wasnt going to happen. (In) 2013 we kind of shocked them a little bit, 2014 they shocked us and then 2015 we got them again, so hopefully we can break that little weird streak.With a win, Texas A&M will have started 3-0 in three consecutive seasons for the first time since 1939-41.---Some things to watch when No. 17 Texas A&M and Auburn play on Saturday:BLOCKINNG GARRETT: Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett has one sack in the first two games, but Auburn knows how formidable a pass rusher he is and has two new starting tackles.dddddddddddd It pretty much looks like he was created in a video game to rush the passer, Tigers guard Alex Kozan said. Hes long, athletic and he can bend.DEFENDING AUBURNS RUN: Coach Gus Malzahns Tigers racked up 462 rushing yards in last weeks win over Arkansas State, with tailbacks Kerryon Johnson and Kamryn Pettway both topping 120 yards. Texas A&M has allowed 2.3 yards per carry through two games.What you saw from UCLA was downhill lead, power team and toss, Sumlin said. Different run attack than a Gus Malzahn team. More of a misdirection. Dont get it confused. Its a power attack. But its power and misdirection and get your eyes somewhere. You have to have lot of eye discipline.QB STABILITY: Both Knight and Auburns Sean White appear to have stabilized the quarterback situations. Theyve also each flashed some running ability. White was one of just three Auburn quarterbacks to play against Clemson in Malzahns failed experiment but clearly is the No. 1 guy now, with John Franklin III so far used as essentially a Wildcat QB.FACING AGGIES WRS: Clemsons Mike Williams burned Auburns secondary down the field a number of times, and Texas A&M presents even more receiving threats with Christian Kirk, Josh Reynolds, Ricky Seals-Jones and others.PETTWAYS ENCORE: Pettway hadnt logged a carry for Auburn before last weeks 15-carry, 152-yard coming out party. The 6-foot, 240-pounder provides a definite change of pace to the smaller Johnson but hasnt had a shot at an SEC defense yet.---AP college football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '