2005 New Orleans Saints season

2005New Orleans Saintsseason
General manager	Mickey Loomis
Head coach	Jim Haslett
Home field	Alamodome,San Antonio, Texas Giants Stadium,East Rutherford, New Jersey Tiger Stadium,Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Results
Record	3–13
Division place	4thNFC South
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	CLeCharles Bentley

The2005 seasonwas theNew Orleans Saints' 39th in theNational Football League(NFL) and the sixth and final underhead coachJim Haslett.

The season began with the team trying to improve from their 8–8 record from 2004. The Saints played two preseason games in theLouisiana Superdomebefore being forced to evacuate New Orleans due toHurricane Katrina.They were forced to play the rest of the season on the road, splitting their games between their temporary headquarters at San Antonio’sAlamodome,and LSU’sTiger Stadiumin Baton Rouge, and even playing their first home game atGiants Stadium.

The season ended with a 3–13 record, their equal-worst record alongside1996and1999since their1–15 1980 season,and the firing of Jim Haslett. He was replaced bySean Paytonthefollowing season.

This was also Aaron Brooks' last quarterback season as he was released during the offseason, thus being replaced byDrew Breesin the same season Sean Payton was hired.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Main article:2005 NFL Draft

2005 New Orleans Saints draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	13	Jammal Brown*	Offensive tackle	Oklahoma
2	40	Josh Bullocks	Free Safety	Nebraska
3	82	Alfred Fincher	Linebacker	Connecticut
4	118	Chase Lyman	Wide receiver	California
5	152	Adrian McPherson	Quarterback	Florida State
6	193	Jason Jefferson	Defensive tackle	Wisconsin
7	232	Jimmy Verdon	Defensive end	Arizona State
Made roster*Made at least onePro Bowlduring career

Personnel

Staff

2005 New Orleans Saints staff

Front office Owner –Tom Benson Executive vice president/general manager –Mickey Loomis Senior football administrator – Russ Ball Director of player personnel –Rick Mueller Director of college scouting – Rick Reiprish College scouting coordinator – Rick Thompson Head coaches Head coach –Jim Haslett Associate head coach/running game coordinator –Jack Henry Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator –Mike Sheppard Quarterbacks –Turk Schonert Running backs –Johnny Roland Wide receivers –Jimmy Robinson Tight ends – Bob Palcic Assistant offensive line –Jim Pyne Offensive assistant/quality control – Chip Beake

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator –Rick Venturi Defensive line –John Pease Linebackers –Winston Moss Senior defensive assistant/secondary –Willy Robinson Defensive assistant/cornerbacks –Greg Brown Defensive assistant/quality control –Ty Knott Defensive assistant/special projects – Joe Alley Special teams coaches Special teams coordinator – Al Everest Strength and conditioning Strength and conditioning – Rock Gullickson Assistant strength and conditioning – Adam Bailey

Roster

2005 New Orleans Saints final roster

	Quarterbacks 4Todd Bouman 2Aaron Brooks 5Adrian McPherson Running backs 44Mike KarneyFB 25Fred McAfee 32Antowain Smith 27Aaron Stecker 28Anthony Thomas Wide receivers 81Az-Zahir Hakim 19Devery Henderson 87Joe Horn 83Donté Stallworth Tight ends 89Lamont Hall 86Zach Hilton 82Nate Lawrie 80Shad Meier		Offensive linemen 60Ben ArchibaldT 70Jammal BrownT 72Wayne GandyT 61Montrae HollandG 64Kendyl JacoxC 75Jermane MayberryG 67Jamar NesbitG 63Chad SetterstromG Defensive linemen 92Tony BryantDE 94Charles GrantDE 93Darren HowardDE 77Rodney LeisleDT 91Will SmithDE 97Johnathan SullivanDT 79Jimmy VerdonDE 98Willie WhiteheadDT 95Cedric WoodardDT 66Brian YoungDT		Linebackers 57Colby BockwoldtOLB 56Alfred FincherMLB 52Sedrick HodgeOLB 59Ronald McKinnonMLB 51Terrence MeltonOLB 53T. J. SlaughterOLB Defensive backs 23Fred BookerCB 35Fakhir BrownCB 29Josh BullocksFS 21Jason CraftCB 37Steve GleasonSS 34Mike McKenzieCB 40Mel MitchellSS 24Dwight SmithSS 22Fred ThomasCB 33Joey ThomasCB Special teams 17Mitch BergerP 3John CarneyK 47Kevin HouserLS		Practice squad 13Josh DavisWR 74Augie HoffmannG 45Keith JosephRB 16Lance MooreWR 76Russell RabeLB 46Nate SchurmanFB 14Levon ThomasWR Reserve lists 50James AllenLB(IR) 20Jay BellamyS(IR) 65LeCharles BentleyC(IR) 85Ernie ConwellTE(IR) 84Michael LewisWR(IR) 15Chase LymanWR(IR) 26Deuce McAllisterRB(IR) 88Nate PooleWR(IR) 78Jon StinchcombT(IR) 55Courtney WatsonLB(IR) --Boo WilliamsTE(IR) Rookies in italics 53 active, 11 reserved, 7 practice squad

Preseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game site	Recap
1	August 12	Seattle Seahawks	L15–34	0–1	Louisiana Superdome	Recap
2	August 18	atNew England Patriots	W37–27	1–1	Gillette Stadium	Recap
3	August 26	Baltimore Ravens	L6–21	1–2	Louisiana Superdome	Recap
4	September 1	atOakland Raiders	L6–13	1–3	McAfee Coliseum	Recap

Regular season

Schedule

Louisiana State'sTiger Stadiumduring one of the Saints' home games in 2005

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Game site	Recap
1	September 11	atCarolina Panthers	W23–20	1–0	Bank of America Stadium	Recap
2	September 19	New York Giants	L10–27	1–1	Giants Stadium	Recap
3	September 25	atMinnesota Vikings	L16–33	1–2	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	Recap
4	October 2	Buffalo Bills	W19–7	2–2	Alamodome	Recap
5	October 9	atGreen Bay Packers	L3–52	2–3	Lambeau Field	Recap
6	October 16	Atlanta Falcons	L31–34	2–4	Alamodome	Recap
7	October 23	atSt. Louis Rams	L17–28	2–5	Edward Jones Dome	Recap
8	October 30	Miami Dolphins	L6–21	2–6	Tiger Stadium	Recap
9	November 6	Chicago Bears	L17–20	2–7	Tiger Stadium	Recap
10	Bye
11	November 20	atNew England Patriots	L17–24	2–8	Gillette Stadium	Recap
12	November 27	atNew York Jets	W21–19	3–8	Giants Stadium	Recap
13	December 4	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	L3–10	3–9	Tiger Stadium	Recap
14	December 12	atAtlanta Falcons	L17–36	3–10	Georgia Dome	Recap
15	December 18	Carolina Panthers	L10–27	3–11	Tiger Stadium	Recap
16	December 24	Detroit Lions	L12–13	3–12	Alamodome	Recap
17	January 1	atTampa Bay Buccaneers	L13–27	3–13	Raymond James Stadium	Recap

Game summaries

Week 1: at Carolina Panthers

Week 1: New Orleans Saints at Carolina Panthers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	7	7	3	6	23
Panthers	7	0	7	6	20

atBank of America Stadium,Charlotte, North Carolina

• Date:September 11
• Game time:12:00 p.m.CDT/1:00 p.m.EDT
• Game weather:Sunny, 79 °F (26 °C)
• Game attendance:72,920
• Referee:Tom White
• Recap

Game information

First quarter NO –Deuce McAllister4-yard run (John Carneykick), 5:23.Saints 7–0.Drive: 17 plays, 80 yards, 9:37. CAR –Steve Smith Sr.33-yard pass fromJake Delhomme(John Kasaykick), 0:37.Tied 7–7.Drive: 11 plays, 93 yards, 4:46. Second quarter NO – Deuce McAllister 2-yard run (John Carney kick), 4:37.Saints 14–7.Drive: 11 plays, 40 yards, 5:46. Third quarter NO – John Carney 29-yard field goal, 4:31.Saints 17–7.Drive: 7 plays, 17 yards, 3:26. CAR –Stephen Davis1-yard run (John Kasay kick), 0:21.Saints 17–14.Drive: 12 plays, 63 yards, 4:10. Fourth quarter NO – John Carney 48-yard field goal, 11:56.Saints 20–14.Drive: 9 plays, 38 yards, 3:25. CAR – John Kasay 39-yard field goal, 6:17.Saints 20–17.Drive: 14 plays, 73 yards, 5:39. CAR – John Kasay 46-yard field goal, 1:04.Tied 20–20.Drive: 9 plays, 41 yards, 1:55. NO – John Carney 47-yard field goal, 0:03.Saints 23–20.Drive: 8 plays, 44 yards, 1:01. Top passers NO –Aaron Brooks– 18/24, 192 yards CAR –Jake Delhomme– 19/31, 212 yards, TD, 2 INT Top rushers NO –Deuce McAllister– 26 rushes, 64 yards, 2 TD CAR –Stephen Davis– 13 rushes, 81 yards, TD Top receivers NO –Ernie Conwell– 6 receptions, 71 yards CAR –Steve Smith Sr.– 8 receptions, 138 yards, TD

Week 2: vs. New York Giants

Week 2: New York Giants at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Giants	14	7	3	3	27
Saints	0	10	0	0	10

atGiants Stadium,East Rutherford, New Jersey

• Date:September 19
• Game time:7:30 p.m. EDT
• Game weather:Partly cloudy, 77 °F (25 °C)
• Game attendance:68,031
• Referee:Ed Hochuli
• TV announcers (ABC):Al Michaels,John Madden,Michele Tafoya,andSam Ryan
• Recap

Game information

First quarter NYG –Brandon Jacobs1-yard run (Jay Feelykick), 13:25.Giants 7–0.Drive: 4 plays, 10 yards, 1:28. NYG –Tiki Barber6-yard pass fromEli Manning(Jay Feely kick), 4:13.Giants 14–0.Drive: 13 plays, 86 yards, 5:55. Second quarter NO –Joe Horn21-yard pass fromAaron Brooks(John Carneykick), 14:11.Giants 14–7.Drive: 11 plays, 76 yards, 5:02. NYG – Tiki Barber 12-yard run (Jay Feely kick), 1:54.Giants 21–7.Drive: 6 plays, 36 yards, 1:33. NO – John Carney 21-yard field goal, 0:05.Giants 21–10.Drive: 9 plays, 24 yards, 1:10. Third quarter NYG – Jay Feely 39-yard field goal, 7:48.Giants 24–10.Drive: 6 plays, 15 yards, 2:36. Fourth quarter NYG – Jay Feely 30-yard field goal, 6:37.Giants 27–10.Drive: 16 plays, 74 yards, 6:47. Top passers NYG –Eli Manning– 13/24, 165 yards, TD NO –Aaron Brooks– 27/45, 375 yards, TD, 3 INT Top rushers NYG –Tiki Barber– 22 rushes, 83 yards, TD NO –Deuce McAllister– 15 rushes, 47 yards Top receivers NYG –Plaxico Burress– 5 receptions, 64 yards NO –Joe Horn– 9 receptions, 143 yards, TD

Despite being played at Giants Stadium, this was officially a home game for the Saints as theLouisiana Superdomewas being used as an emergency shelter in the aftermath ofHurricane Katrina.

The Saints out gained the Giants, finishing the game with 422 yards of total offense compared to New York's 257. However, the Saints' offense also committed six turnovers that resulted in 17 points for the Giants.

Week 3: at Minnesota Vikings

Week 3: New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	0	6	3	7	16
Vikings	17	7	0	9	33

atHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome,Minneapolis, Minnesota

• Date:September 25
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:None (played indoors)
• Game attendance:63,952
• Referee:Pete Morelli
• TV announcers (Fox):Ron PittsandTim Ryan

Week 4: vs. Buffalo Bills

Week 4: Buffalo Bills at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	7	0	0	0	7
Saints	0	13	0	6	19

atAlamodome,San Antonio, Texas

• Date:October 2
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:None (played indoors)
• Game attendance:58,688
• Referee:Bill Vinovich

Week 5: at Green Bay Packers

Week 5: New Orleans Saints at Green Bay Packers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	3	0	0	0	3
Packers	14	21	10	7	52

atLambeau Field,Green Bay, Wisconsin

• Date:October 9
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:Partly cloudy, 52 °F (11 °C)
• Game attendance:70,580
• Referee:Tony Corrente
• TV announcers (Fox):Kenny Albert,Brian Baldinger,and Drew Smith

Week 6: vs. Atlanta Falcons

Week 6: Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Falcons	3	14	0	17	34
Saints	7	3	7	14	31

at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas

• Date:October 16
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:None (played indoors)
• Game attendance:65,562
• Referee:Bill Carollo

Week 7: at St. Louis Rams

Week 7: New Orleans Saints at St. Louis Rams – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	14	0	0	3	17
Rams	0	7	0	21	28

atEdward Jones Dome,St. Louis, Missouri

• Date:October 23
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:None (played indoors)
• Game attendance:64,586
• Referee:Mike Carey

Week 8: vs. Miami Dolphins

Week 8: Miami Dolphins at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Dolphins	3	6	2	10	21
Saints	3	0	3	0	6

atTiger Stadium,Baton Rouge, Louisiana

• Date:October 30
• Game time:3:05 p.m. CDT
• Game weather:Mostly sunny, 76 °F (24 °C)
• Game attendance:61,643
• Referee:Tom White

Week 9: vs. Chicago Bears

Week 9: Chicago Bears at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	7	3	7	3	20
Saints	3	7	0	7	17

at Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

• Date:November 6
• Game time:3:05 p.m. CST
• Game weather:Cloudy, 85 °F (29 °C)
• Game attendance:32,637
• Referee:Bill Leavy
• TV announcers (Fox):Kenny Albert and Brian Baldinger

QuarterbackAaron Brooksagainst theChicago Bears

Week 11: at New England Patriots

Week 11: New Orleans Saints at New England Patriots – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	0	7	0	10	17
Patriots	7	7	7	3	24

atGillette Stadium,Foxborough, Massachusetts

• Date:November 20
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CST/1:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather:Sunny, 51 °F (11 °C)
• Game attendance:68,756
• Referee:Gerry Austin
• TV announcers (Fox):Ron Pitts, Tim Ryan, andButch Stearns

Week 12: at New York Jets

Week 12: New Orleans Saints at New York Jets – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	0	14	0	7	21
Jets	3	6	7	3	19

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

• Date:November 27
• Game time:7:30 p.m. CST/8:30 p.m. EST
• Game weather:Partly cloudy, 49 °F (9 °C)
• Game attendance:77,152
• Referee:Terry McAulay
• TV announcers (ESPN):Mike Patrick,Joe Theismann,andSuzy Kolber

Week 13: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 13: Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Buccaneers	0	7	0	3	10
Saints	0	3	0	0	3

at Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

• Date:December 4
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CST
• Game weather:Partly cloudy, 74 °F (23 °C)
• Game attendance:34,411
• Referee:Pete Morelli

Week 14: at Atlanta Falcons

Week 14: New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	3	14	0	0	17
Falcons	7	14	9	6	36

atGeorgia Dome,Atlanta, Georgia

• Date:December 12
• Game time:8:00 p.m. CST/9:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather:None (played indoors)
• Game attendance:70,083
• Referee:Ron Winter
• TV announcers (ABC):Al Michaels, John Madden, Michele Tafoya, and Sam Ryan

Week 15: vs. Carolina Panthers

Week 15: Carolina Panthers at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Panthers	7	10	7	3	27
Saints	7	0	0	3	10

at Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

• Date:December 18
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CST
• Game weather:Partly cloudy, 55 °F (13 °C)
• Game attendance:32,551
• Referee:Tony Corrente

Week 16: vs. Detroit Lions

Week 16: Detroit Lions at New Orleans Saints – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Lions	0	7	0	6	13
Saints	0	3	6	3	12

at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas

• Date:December 24
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CST
• Game weather:None (played indoors)
• Game attendance:63,747
• Referee:Larry Nemmers

Week 17: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 17: New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Saints	0	10	0	3	13
Buccaneers	7	10	0	10	27

atRaymond James Stadium,Tampa Bay, Florida

• Date:January 1, 2006
• Game time:12:00 p.m. CST/1:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather:Cloudy, 74 °F (23 °C)
• Game attendance:65,379
• Referee:Jeff Triplette

Standings

NFC South
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(3)Tampa Bay Buccaneers	11	5	0	.688	5–1	9–3	300	274	W2
(5)Carolina Panthers	11	5	0	.688	4–2	8–4	391	259	W1
Atlanta Falcons	8	8	0	.500	2–4	5–7	351	341	L3
New Orleans Saints	3	13	0	.188	1–5	1–11	235	398	L5

See also

• Effect of Hurricane Katrina on the New Orleans Saints

External links

• 2005 New Orleans SaintsatPro-Football-Reference.com