Backup Mike Bell made the most of his opportunity, starting in place of Reggie Bush and helping the New Orleans Saints romp to a 38-14 road victory over the Houston Texans. Bush was held out of the game with a strained calf, and Bell filled in admirably rushing for 100 yards in the easy victory. New Orleans improved to 2-0 on the NFL preseason, while Houston evened their record at 1-1.

Bell is a former Denver Broncos starter who has the inside track to lock up the third running back roster spot. After the game, he talked about his big afternoon:

\”I just wanted to show the team that I could come here and be a consistent running back. This kind of game was great because it reminds me that I can still play running back. Just to get the carries, and to make the most of this opportunity, that was a real confidence builder.\”

Saints coach John Payton commended the effort, but said that it wasn\’t a surprise due to Bells solid performance in training camp:

\”He really has done a really good job. I was encouraged again to see him playing so well.\”

Texans starting QB Matt Schaub moved the ball fairly well in limited playing time, but couldnt put points on the board. Houston head coach Gary Kubiak put the loss into perspective:

\”It\’s a humbling game. You can walk out of the stadium one week and feel good about yourself, and then walk out the next week and wonder what the heck is going on. We got pushed around. We have to play better than that up front in order to be successful.\”

Linebacker DeMeco Ryan agreed:

\”We take too much pride in what we do to go out and perform the way we did today. That\’s not who we are.\”

For the Saints, Drew Brees split time at QB with Mark Brunell.. Brees was 9 of 14 for 87 yards and a touchdown, while Brunell was 5 of 6 for 96 yards. Brees had missed three days of practice last week to attend his mother\’s funeral. Clearly the Saints have a deep and versatile offense, but need to execute more soundly than they did last year. Talent isn\’t the problem for the Saints; mistakes, however, are.

New Orleans will continue their NFL preseason run next Saturday against the Raiders at Oakland. Houston will host the Minnesota Vikings next Monday night. The Saints will get the NFL regular season underway on Sunday, September 13th as they host the Detroit Lions while the Texans will play at home against the New York Jets.