The Saints have bucked recent trends in the way they’ve built their offensive front. While a top priority for many teams is finding an elite tackle to protect their quarterback’s blind side, the Saints placed more emphasis on their interior line, acquiring and keeping two of the best guards in the NFL in the 6-foot-4, 318-pound Evans and 6-5, 343-pound Nicks. With the middle of the line strong enough to hold its ground consistently, offensive tackles don’t have to tie up defensive ends so much as divert them into a wider rout into the backfield while Brees steps up in the pocket. "Other teams don’t do that because they can’t," Strief said. "It’s not like we came up with something no one ever thought of. It’s just that we have an interior that can do it."