I am self-imposing a Brett Favre-related embargo until anything of substance happens, so onward ...

Saints fans quitely are nervous about the possibility of DT Sedrick Ellis, their first-round pick (No. 7 overall), not signing on time before the start of camp.

This is different than a young quarterback not signing on time, because Ellis is expected to step in right away and start for a defensive that needs to improve to make this a playoff team. 

One factor that has to be mentioned is that the Saints have lost a key member of their negotiating team, Russ Ball, who left to work for the Packers. The Saints have done a pretty good job recently of getting their picks in camp on time -- I think Reggie Bush, who missed four days of practice in 2006, was the only one who has been late in recent years -- but it appears that the negotiations now fall to general manager Mickey Loomis or director of football administration Khai Harley. Ball was replaced by Harley.

The signing of Chiefs DT Glenn Dorsey will be crucials to the Saints' negotations with Eugene Parker, Ellis' agent. If that happens late, the Saints might not get something done on time. That said, Ellis is not expected to be a very long holdout, so the possibility of missing more than one preseason game appears very low.