NATCHEZ &045; A defensive guy back in his playing days, New Orleans Saints head coach Jim Haslett was flanked by two starters on defense to help handle what was going to come.

Not the upcoming season. That’s three months away.

They were prepared to take questions about the team’s defense during the Saints’ Western Regional Caravan stop in Natchez Thursday during a luncheon at Bowie’s Tavern. Defense was the vice of a team that set a team record for points scored a season ago, and Haslett, defensive end Darren Howard and cornerback Ashley Ambrose didn’t mind fielding the questions on how the unit was going to be better in 2003.

&uot;I’m excited,&uot; Haslett said. &uot;We’ve done a lot of good things the last couple of years, but we’ve fallen short. We’ve got a young football team. We don’t have any draft picks from the 1990s. I truly believe we’ll have a good football team. They’re all good guys who work hard.&uot;

The team went to work on that aspect in the off-season with free agent signings, trades and draft picks after allowing 20 or more points in its first 15 games. Gone are Sammy Knight, Norman Hand and Charlie Clemons, and new faces include Tebucky Jones at safety, first-round-draft-choice Jonathan Sullivan and Ambrose.

&uot;We’ve got some guys coming in,&uot; Howard said. &uot;We have experience in the back end, and we’re young up front. We should be fine there. He (Hand) contributed a lot the last couple of years. We’re young and energetic. We’ll get out there and try to get after it. I think we’ll surprise a lot of people.&uot;

Howard likes the defensive front, and Ambrose and Jones &045; both veterans brought in to improve the secondary &045; will give the Saints a different look in hopes of defending the pass and tackling downfield better.

Jones came over in a trade with New England, while Ambrose &045; a native of New Orleans, product of Mississippi Valley State and one-time Saint &045; will allow the Saints to go with three corners and one very fast safety in Jones.

&uot;Sammy is good football player who made some plays for the Saints for a long period of time,&uot; Haslett said. &uot;The way the game is played nowadays, you have to have three good corners in this league and somebody who can cover a receiver. It’s hard to cover a Deuce McAllister when he comes out of the backfield.&uot;

Outside of defense, most of the talk was on the quarterback situation &045; returning starter Aaron Brooks and newcomer Todd Bouman, who the Saints landed from the Vikings to replace Jake Delhomme to serve as a back-up.

Haslett said Brooks had surgery for a torn muscle in his shoulder, and he’s getting back into playing shape.

&uot;He’s been throwing the last two weeks,&uot; Haslett said. &uot;We’re not letting him throw any deep balls yet &045; just short stuff. But he’s going to be fine.&uot;

As for Bouman, he had a chance to work out some with the receivers in the mini-camp. His high-powered darts caught the attention of the receivers quick, including Jerome Pathon.

&uot;He has a very strong arm,&uot; Pathon said. &uot;But he just got into the system, and it’ll take a while to get started.&uot;

Said Haslett: &uot;He’s a big guy. He won a high school slam-dunk championship. He’s really a good athlete. He’s a real gunslinger. He’s got a strong arm on him.&uot;