From no-name to Saint-hood: Colston earned credit

Payton's creativity on offense helped the Saints lead the league in passing on their way to the NFC Championship Game. With veteran Joe Horn injured the second half of the season, Colston's play was a necessity.

What made his season so amazing is that most rookie receivers struggle in a big way. The adjustment is huge in terms of seeing a lot more coverages than they see in college and they're far more complicated. Rookie receivers also have to be much more physical since the corners in the NFL have a tendency to mug receivers at the line of scrimmage.

At 6-feet-4, 220 pounds, the physical part wasn't as much of a problem for Colston as it is for some smaller receivers. As far as understanding coverages, he said a big help was the way his team played in college.

"We used a lot of four and five-receiver sets," Colston said. "We spread people out and that gives you a chance to see the coverage better and understand the principles and concepts. That helped me a lot."

Even so, there were days when he wondered if he'd ever move up the depth chart. In his first minicamp his head was spinning, the coaches in his ear all the time. But by the summer, his confidence increased. As it did, so did the excitement of the staff.

Nobody, though, could have expected that he'd be the No. 1 receiver by season's end. Colston didn't.

"I gradually got more and more reps, and when I did I knew I was moving up," Colston said. "But it happened so fast."

By the time the opener against Cleveland rolled around, he was a starter. He caught four passes for 49 yards and a touchdown that day, and a fantasy love-fest began.

"A lot of people told me I helped them out all year in their league," Colston said.

Now comes the tough part -- doing it all again.

In talking to him, you get the feeling Colston isn't at all bothered by the expectations of being the No. 1 receiver. He expects to have much of the same type of season he had as a rookie, even better. So what if teams will now focus their coverage toward him? That's a challenge, and they won't be getting a rookie anymore.

Hours spent watching film have helped him pick out some flaws from his rookie season. Those are the things that will be improved, he said.

"I was physical, but after watching the film of myself I wasn't as physical as I should have been," Colston said. "A lot of little stuff like that will help make me better."

With Bush on the roster, Colston will almost always be that other star from the 2006 draft class.

It's Reggie this and Reggie that.

"Seeing all those cameras around Reggie all the time, I don't know how he handled it sometimes," Colston said. "But it helped keep it away from me. It helped let me concentrate on football."

People don't need to see the name on Bush's credit card to know his identity. That could change this season for Colston. Another big season and those serving him won't even need to wait to see the name on the card to know they're serving a star.