METAIRIE, La. – The New Orleans Saints had to act quickly this week after learning the stunning news that long snapper Jon Dorenbos will require open-heart surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm.
They brought in at least five long snappers for a group audition on Friday before settling on second-year pro Zach Wood, who spent the past two offseasons with the Dallas Cowboys.
“We kind of treated it like ‘The Voice,’” Sean Payton cracked. “(General manager Mickey Loomis) and I were in a chair, the pro department, special teams. And we just kind of hit the buzzer and turned around.”
Of course, Payton said the Saints also had done their due diligence, grading the tape of every candidate in the preseason or past NFL experience or college experience and always have a “ready list” at every position in the case of injuries, etc.
And they had actually gone through a similar scenario with former long snapper Justin Drescher, who signed just days before a Thursday game in 2010 before sticking in the role for nearly seven years.
Meanwhile, Payton said Dorenbos has been researching options around the country to decide who will perform his surgery, which probably will ]take place in the next week or 10 days.
“He and I have had a lot of chance to reflect over the last two days. He’s an amazing guy,” said Payton, who again credited Saints physician Dr. John Amoss for discovering Dorenbos condition after he was traded from the Philadelphia Eagles. “You know, (Dorenbos’) perspective, as you can imagine, has been outstanding. He looks at it in a way in which you could argue that the trade itself saved his life.”
