Some Details On New Saints Quarterback Joe Callahan

The Saints claimed QB Joe Callahan after Green Bay put him on waivers.

According to NOLA, Sean Payton and the Saints coaching staff took a good hard look at Callahan in his preseason games, and liked what they saw.

"He's a young player who I think has some pretty good feet in the pocket," Saints coach Sean Payton said. "His preseason was fairly impressive. We watched every throw... He's someone we felt that we wanted to look at."

Callahan, standing at 6'1", is a rookie quarterback out of Division III Wesley, arrived in New Orleans three days before the Saints played a home game against one of their division rivals, the Carolina Panthers.

This gave him the opportunity to see what the atmosphere was like for a Saints home game, as well as get a close-up look at Drew Brees. He liked what he saw, as the Saints fought to win the game.

Callahan describes himself as a pocket passer who is able to extend a play by looking downfield instead of tucking, and running.

In college, that's exactly what he did, throwing for over 5,000 yards, and 55 touchdowns his senior year. He continued to learn in Green Bay with Aaron Rodgers.

Drew Brees is, of course, one of the best at extending a play, and looking downfield. Callahan showed his excitement for learning from Drew.

"Drew in the game against the Panthers showed signs of extending the play in a little bit different way," he said. "I'm excited to learn and kind of pick up some of the good habits that Drew has."

Offensive coordinator for Wesley, Chip Knapp, says that Callahan "is missing the nervous gene." He's able to evade rushers while keeping his eyes downfield. Knapp said some people struggle with doing that, but Callahan isn't one of them.

Callahan started his last three years of college, and played in a hurry-up offense, allowing him to change plays at the line of scrimmage, much like NFL quarterbacks do.

He proved to be a quick learner in Green Bay, and will be tested in New Orleans, as, according to Knapp, he was given a 4-inch think playbook.

This gives the Saints four quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. Luke McCown is Brees' back-up, while Garret Grayson is on the practice squad. Sean Payton says that they'll now work with both Grayson, and Callahan.

In Callahan's four preseason game outings, he completed 61.4 percent of his passes for 499 yards, three touchdowns, and no turnovers.

After the Packers were forced to crunch their roster due to injuries, they put Callahan on waivers, and the Saints scooped him up.