McAlister joins Saints

• By SHELDON MICKLES
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Nov 19, 2009 - Page: 1C

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METAIRIE — Some relief for the New Orleans Saints battered cornerback position came Wednesday morning in the form of three-time Pro Bowl pick Chris McAlister.

McAlister, a first-round draft pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 1999, was signed to a one-year contract after a Tuesday workout in which former Amite High School and San Diego Chargers cornerback Cletis Gordon also auditioned for club officials.

It wasn’t immediately known if McAlister, who hasn’t played in 13 months, will be ready for Sunday’s game with the Tampa Bay Bucs. But at least the Saints will have some depth at the position in practice this week.

“I really don’t know what my role is going to be. I’m just here to produce,” the 11-year veteran said when asked if he expects to play against the Bucs. “It’s up to the coaches and up to the team. I’ve been picking up the defense and learning, but it’s still football at the end of the day.”

The Saints finished Sunday’s game against the St. Louis Rams with only three healthy cornerbacks after Tracy Porter sprained the medial collateral ligament in his left knee in the third quarter. He could be sidelined four to six weeks.

The Saints were already playing without their other starting cornerback as Jabari Greer missed the Rams game with an injury to his left groin. Greer did not practice again Wednesday, and his availability for Sunday’s game was not known.

That left the Saints with former LSU standout Randall Gay, who started in place of Greer, rookie Malcolm Jenkins and seldom-used reserve Leigh Torrence. Gay usually plays in the nickel and dime packages.

“We’ve been through this before,” Gay said Wednesday. “Last year, it seemed like corners were going down every week. When it happens, everybody has to be ready.

“Injuries happen every week. That’s why you don’t keep just two cornerbacks on your team. You keep multiple corners, and the people that come in need to step up and make plays. That’s what I’m going to try to go out there this week and do.”

While Gay was victimized for two touchdown passes last week by Rams wide receiver Donnie Avery, Saints coach Sean Payton said Wednesday that he didn’t play that badly.

“He graded out better than you would have thought,” Payton said, noting that on the first one the Saints were coming with a full blitz and didn’t get to the quarterback. “The next play was really a play above his head. We have a lot of confidence in Randall Gay. Those were two good plays by St. Louis.”

McAlister, 32, was released by the Ravens on Feb. 19 after a lingering problem with the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. The injury caused him to miss eight games in 2007 and 10 more a year ago before he had surgery in November and was put on injured reserve.

The 6-foot-1, 210-pound McAlister enjoyed a solid career with the Ravens, intercepting 26 passes with five touchdowns before what he called a “bitter divorce” with the team. He also had two tackles and an interception in the Ravens’ victory over the New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV.