Until now, Pierre Thomas could not recall playing for a football team at any level that was 10-0, or averaged 36.9 points per game, or had 18 different players score touchdowns.
So the running back says that the New Orleans Saints’ accomplishments this season have been remarkable, even if the teams they’ve beaten have a combined 37-63 record.
“It doesn’t matter,” said Thomas, who leads the Saints with 584 yards and five TDs rushing. “Every team is tough in this league. You can’t take anybody for granted. If some people want to say the teams we played were not that good, they have freedom of speech. That’s their choice. That’s their opinion. But we know that every team is trying to beat us and it’s going to be a competitive game — always.”
Of the teams beaten by the Saints, those with the best records to this point are the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, who are both 6-4. Six of the Saints’ victories have come against teams with four wins or fewer, including two one-win teams.
Their remaining opponents include a pair of 7-3 teams, New England and Dallas, starting with the Patriots next Monday night. New Orleans also will play road games against Atlanta (5-5), Carolina (4-6) and Washington (3-7), and a final home game against Tampa Bay (1-9), who the Saints demolished 38-7 on Sunday.
n The Saints have brought back Mike McKenzie to replace cornerback Leigh Torrence, who will miss the rest of the season with a shoulder injury.
RAIDERS — Bruce Gradkowski waited so long for a second real shot as a starting quarterback in the NFL that he knows not to be overly satisfied after one game.
After starting 11 games as a rookie in 2006 for coach Jon Gruden in Tampa Bay, Gradkowski bounced around the league the past few years, going from Tampa Bay to St. Louis to Cleveland before finally ending up with the Raiders before this season.
Gradkowski had been let go by three teams and started only one game since his rookie season, a disastrous season finale for Cleveland at Pittsburgh last season.
“I was very fortunate to get all the experience I did as a rookie,” Gradkowski said. “I was coached very well at the time. I learned a lot. It was good experience. You shift around here and there, and then finally you catch on and get a break. Hopefully, we can make this last.”
RAMS — St. Louis quarterback Marc Bulger will be sidelined three to six weeks because of a fractured left leg sustained in Sunday’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
STEELERS — Pittsburgh Steelers backup quarterback Charlie Batch injured his left wrist after replacing Ben Roethlisberger during an overtime loss in Kansas City and could miss the rest of the regular season.
CHARGERS — Police are investigating a claim that San Diego cornerback Antonio Cromartie hit someone in the head with a champagne bottle at a bar shortly after the team returned from a victory in Denver.
CARDINALS — Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt says he had a long talk with Kurt Warner on the flight home, and the quarterback was “very upbeat and alert” following a blow to the head in Sunday’s’ victory over St. Louis.
CONCUSSIONS — The NFL and its players union have approved independent doctors to evaluate head injuries for about half of the league’s 32 teams as part of a new program.
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