Shockey doesn’t play in game

• By SHELDON MICKLES
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Aug 24, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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CINCINNATI — Tight end Jeremy Shockey, who was expected to make his New Orleans Saints’ debut in Saturday night’s preseason game with the Cincinnati Bengals, did not dress out for the contest.

Shockey, who is coming back from a fractured leg and ankle injury suffered last December when he was with the New York Giants, had practiced more this week than all of training camp and coach Sean Payton said as late as Thursday the goal was to play Shockey for a quarter.

On the Saints’ first play from scrimmage, however, Mark Campbell was in the game while Shockey stood on the sideline wearing a white T-shirt and black shorts with a towel around his neck.

“I decided not to go with him tonight,” Payton said after the Saints’ 13-0 win. “I would say he’s real close and he wanted to go. He had a good week of practice and a good pregame warmup, I just didn’t want any setbacks. So I’m going to err on the side of caution.”

Colston, Bush injured

Saints wide receiver Marques Colston left the game after taking a big hit from Bengals cornerback Leon Hall at the end of the Saints’ first possession, while running back Reggie Bush was sidelined late in the first quarter.

Colston was trying to pull in a throw from Drew Brees when Hall jarred the ball loss and sent Colston sprawling. Colston, who suffered bruised ribs, was on all fours in the end zone for a few seconds before walking off on his own power. Payton said X-rays were negative.
Bush had a contusion to his quadriceps, fullback Kevin Dudley sprained his left ankle and defensive end Josh Savage came out of the game with a hyextended right elbow.

Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer left late in the first half with a bloody nose and cut lip.

Good start

Port Allen native Tracy Porter, the Saints’ second-round draft pick this spring, made his first start at cornerback when he opened on the right side in place of veteran Jason David.

After David struggled in last week’s loss to the Houston Texans, Porter was given an opportunity to practice with the starting defense this week as Usama Young nursed a hamstring injury.

Porter came up big on the Bengals’ first play from scrimmage, an end around by wide receiver Antonio Chatman. Porter aggressively fought through a block by wide receiver Glenn Holt and poked the ball out of Chatman’s hands although Holt recovered for the Bengals.

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