When Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore finished rev

METAIRIE Youth Da’Norris Searcy Jersey , La. (AP) — iewing game video of the latest performance by New Orleans’ defense, he came away unimpressed, but not discouraged.“We didn’t get up for that game and that’s on us. We know we’ve got to step it up,” Lattimore said after practice Wednesday, as the Saints prepared for their postseason clash on Sunday with Carolina. “It’s the playoffs, so that’s in the past. We’re going to get the job done. We didn’t lose our confidence at all. We’re good. We’re going to get up for this game for sure.”Lattimore and fellow Saints defenders not only have to address their recent back-sliding as a unit, but also for the presence of star Carolina tight end Greg Olsen, who didn’t play in either of these teams’ previous two meetings this season.“You’re talking about one of the better tight ends in the game. Not having him is significant and having him is huge,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “He’s smart. He’s tough. He blocks for the run. He enjoys competing and quite honestly, he does so many little things well in regards to zone or man, that third down or red zone — pick a situation — it’s just significant.”Olsen missed nine games with a foot injury this season. He played in Carolina’s last four regular season games Blue James Bradberry Jersey , with as many as nine receptions in one game.“We do some things with Greg that we didn’t get a chance to do when he wasn’t with us,” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. “Gregg’s a pass-catching threat, a good route runner, got good hands.”He has just 17 catches for 191 yards and one touchdown this season, and had only one reception in Carolina’s loss to Atlanta last week.Still, Saints defenders expect Olsen to be a factor in a win-or-go-home playoff game.“Him and Cam have timing together, chemistry,” Saints safety Vonn Bell said. “He knows the offense. He’s a (former) Pro Bowler. He knows how to use his body” to keep defenders from getting to the ball in flight.“We just know he’s a passing threat,” Bell added.The Saints improved from 27th defensively overall to 15th this season. They also enjoyed considerable increases in sacks, from 30 to 42, and interceptions James Bradberry Jersey 2019 , from 9 to 20.Yet a 31-24 loss at Tampa Bay in the regular season finale “left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth,” Payton said.The Saints’ defense gave up 455 total yards in Tampa Bay. The Bucs converted 13 of 18 third downs and their lone fourth-down attempt. If not for three interceptions — one by linebacker Craig Robertson and two by rookie safety Marcus Williams, the Saints might have struggled just to keep it close.“We’ve got a fire lit up under us to come out here and play the way we know we’re capable of playing,” defensive tackle Tyeler Davison said. “Our details weren’t exactly on point like they need to be that last game.”The Bucs gained 110 yards rushing and had two receivers go over 100 yards, including Chris Godwin, who caught a go-ahead, 39-yard touchdown pass with 9 seconds left.“Definitely sour to end it with not our best performance of the year by far,” Saints defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins said. “But the beauty of this is we get another shot, and this time it really means something.”Notes: LT Terron Armstead (thigh), DE Trey Hendrickson (ankle) and TE Michael Hoomanawanui (concussion) all practiced on a limited basis on Wednesday after not playing in Tampa Bay last Sunday. … Several other regulars practiced on a limited basis, including leading receiver Michael Thomas (hamstring) Stitched Da’Norris Searcy Jersey , guard Senio Kelemete (knee), tight end Josh Hill (shoulder) and special teams regular Justin Hardee. Panthers linebacker Thomas Davis arrived at work bright and early Monday morning to some unexpected fanfare after serving a four-game suspension for testing positive for PEDs.He was greeted by smiling teammates Luke Kuechly and Mike Adams, who stood at the front door to the team’s stadium holding it open for him. Coach Ron Rivera wore a new black t-shirt with a blue silhouette of Davis celebrating a big play that read “I’M BACK” during his news conference. Several other coaches and players strolled through the locker room wearing the t-shirt as well in support of Davis.Davis’ return, combined with the possible return of tight end Greg Olsen from a broken foot this week and the team’s dramatic 33-31 win Sunday over the New York Giants 鈥?Graham Gano booted a 63-yard field goal through the uprights with 1 second remaining allowing the Panthers to improve to 3-1 鈥?had the locker room abuzz on Monday.“We got our leader back,” Panthers linebacker Shaq Thompson said of Davis, Carolina’s all-time leading tackler.Rivera said as long as the 35-year-old Davis is in good football condition, he will start his 147th career regular season game this Sunday against the Washington Redskins.Davis told teammates he’s been channeling his energy the past month into working out and getting in the best shape of his life 鈥?which naturally led to some good-natured banter in the locker room.“Yeah, he swore he had a six-pack, (but) he has about a two-pack,” joked cornerback Captain Munnerlyn.Munnerlyn said that Davis, who he views as his older brother Youth Jarius Wright Jersey , greeted him Monday by grabbing him tightly around the shoulders. He had to remind Davis he’d just played a football game on Sunday and was still sore.“I know he has a lot of built-up aggression in him right now,” Munnerlyn said with a laugh. “The Washington Redskins can get ready because I know that first week back when somebody touches the ball he’s going to want to go full throttle.”Rivera said he thought about giving the players a day off on what is known as “victory Monday,” but decided against it because he didn’t want Davis to have to wait until Wednesday to reunite with his teammates.“If he could have, he would have been here at the stadium at 12:01 a.m. (when his suspension was lifted), but unfortunately he would have been here by himself,” Rivera said.Along with welcoming him back, it was clear the Panthers were also trying to cheer Davis up. He announced on Twitter last week that his father had died.“I think being around the guys will be a good getaway for him,” Munnerlyn said.Davis posted a video on his Twitter in April acknowledging he tested positive for an estrogen blocker but said it was completely unintentional and “in no way would I ever do anything to cheat this game.” The 2015 Walter Payton Man of the Year award winner said he has been taking the same supplements for the last seven or eight years and never had any issues before.Davis didn’t talk to reporters Monday, saying he’d prefer to wait until later in the week as is normally his routine.The Panthers have clearly missed Davis’ energy and knack for making big plays. The Carolina defense squandered an 11-point fourth quarter lead on Sunday to Eli Manning and the Giants, only to get bailed out by Gano’s field goal.“We missed Thomas everywhere, on the practice field Stitched Jarius Wright Jersey , in the locker room,” Panthers defensive coordinator Eric Washington said. “When he’s removed from the building you feel the impact, you feel the void. You don’t replace Thomas Davis.”Rivera called Davis a “special locker room guy.”Olsen’s potential return is good news for Carolina’s offense.He led the team in yards receiving for three straight seasons from 2014-16, but has been plagued by a broken bone in his foot the past two seasons causing him to miss a combined 12 games. He re-broke his foot in the team’s Sept. 9 season opener, but is expected to practice fully on Wednesday and could play against the Redskins.“As long as (the doctors) are happy with how it is healing, a lot of it will be based on how I feel,” Olsen said. “That’s where we are right now. … How I feel will guide what I can and can’t do.”___