Saints Welcome Texans To Practice

The Saints held a joint practice with the Houston Texans on the outdoor fields at the Saints’ training facility Wednesday morning. The squads went at it from 8:20 to 10 a.m.

NEXT UP: The two squads will practice again Wednesday afternoon at 3:15 p.m. Saints head coach Sean Payton said he hoped to be able to practice outside in the afternoon session, weather permitting.

BREES ENJOYS JOINT-SESSION: QB Drew Brees said he was impressed with the efficiency of the joint practice and said it is good to “stack up” against other teams.

“Their defensive scheme is very different than what our Saints defensive scheme is,” said Brees. “We as an offense get a brand new look at a lot of different things. I think both teams benefit in that regard.”

BETTS IN PADS: Newly-acquired RB Ladell Betts was in pads Wednesday morning after being limited in his first practice with the Saints on Tuesday. Payton said they will ease Betts into the practice rotation as he is recovering from a knee injury.

CASILLAS RETURNS: LB Jonathan Casillas returned to practice Wednesday morning after missing time due to a shoulder injury.

METCALF MOVES UP: OT Terrance Metcalf ran at first-team left guard in team drills during Wednesday’s morning session.

SHARPER ON FAVRE: The Saints open the regular season on Sept. 9 against the Vikings. Vikings QB Brett Favre returned to practice on Tuesday. Saints S Darren Sharper, who was teammates with Favre on the Green Bay Packers, said he was not surprised by No. 4’s return or the attention it received.

“I think it has been like that the entire offseason, starting from last offseason,” said Sharper. “That is a circus to be expected though. It was pretty much predicted, who didn’t know he was coming back?”

Sharper said he hopes Favre returns for good and said being his former teammate benefits him whenever the two face.

“The experience that will benefit me is that I have played against him and practiced against him many times,” said Sharper. “I know a lot of nuances in his game that I can kind of pick up and anticipate some things a lot quicker than other guys.”

SAINTS-TEXANS RIVALRY: RB Reggie Bush said the Saints and Texans have started to develop a rivalry after practicing with them over the past few years.

“In a funny kind of a way, it has kind of turned in a rivalry,” said Bush. “We were talking earlier about how the temp wasn’t as physical as it usually is when we practice against them. We will see what happens later on.”