After a day dominated by the New Orleans Saints offense, Demario Davis and the defense responded very well on Thursday. This was the team’s final practice before their first preseason matchup on Saturday in Houston. As they prepared for the Texans, and by extension the NFL regular season, New Orleans proved it still has the talent to be a wining team led by a strong defense. Here are our observations from Day 14 at Saints training camp.
Biggest story: The defense bounces back
Quarterback Andy Dalton led off 7-on-7s Wednesday with five straight touchdowns, three of which to wide receiver Michael Thomas. On Thursday, the defense took over from the very beginning of those drills with a pass break up (PBU) by safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and cornerback Bradley Roby’s fifth interception of training camp. From there, the unit rarely let up.
Cornerback Jordan Brown notched a PBU later in the drill, safety Tyrann Mathieu had his own in redzone team drills on an Alvin Kamara option route, and defensive end Taco Charlton had a sack in the very next second-team series after beating undrafted free agent rookie Sage Doxtater. The defense clearly took exception to Wednesday’s performance and bounced back strong on Thursday.
Play of the day: Tyrann Mathieu shows his value
It’s hard to believe that Mathieu is in New Orleans on a contract that averages less than $10 million per year. His play so far throughout camp exemplifies production and value far beyond that. Today, he matched up with Kamara who was running one of his famed “choice routes” from the backfield.
These routes allow the running back to react to the way he’s being defended. If running out to the flat draws outside leverage by the coverage assignment, he can bounce back inside and cross the middle of the field. He can also choose to sit down where there’s a hole in zone coverage. This gives Kamara a lot of freedom to counter what the defense is doing. There’s a lot of trust in place for these kinds of routes. Mathieu however, was not fooled.
It looked like he got a great read on where Kamara was headed after dipping his hips and coming out of his break. The All-Pro safety trusted his instincts and pounced into the passing lane to break up the pass from Dalton. These types of plays may seem small in camp, but they can save scores and win games in the regular season.
Michael Thomas update: Glad to be back
While Thomas wasn’t super-involved in Thursday’s practice, he shared how much he’s appreciated being able to participate in practices in front of Saints fans on Twitter. There was a lot of talk over the past year or so around Thomas and whether or not he was bought in when it came to New Orleans. It’s pretty clear he is. Returning to training camp immediately as it began, continuous development, spiking footballs after touchdowns in practice and sharing his appreciation for the fan base. Thomas has look outstanding in camp so far, add that to his clear buy-in when it comes to head coach Dennis Allen, wide receiver coach Kodi Burns and more important figures around the organization and it could not be more clear that “Can’t Guard Mike” is back.
Undervalued return: Wil Lutz is automatic
Lutz was missed last year. An 83.3% field goal rate is the worst percentage the team has seen since 2017 with the exception of 2020. With a rotation of four kickers, the Saints went 25/30 on field goals with a long of 52 yards. Since camp opened, Lutz is 32/33 with the only miss coming from 57 yards out.
After he missed that 57-yard attempt, he went back out for an unofficial rep and knocked it through with plenty of leg left to go. Lutz has been nearly automatic this training camp. His consistency and familiarity with long snapper Zach Wood and punter/holder Blake Gillikin could end up being the difference between wins and losses throughout 2022.
New faces: Saints sign two new defensive backs and a new passer
The Saints needed some additional hands a couple of key spots going into their final practice and first exhibition game against the Texans. After addressing those spots, there were three new jersey numbers to sort out. The red jersey emblazoned with No. 19 was former Mississippi State quarterback KJ Costello, No. 47 was Iowa safety Jack Koerner, and No. 37 was newly signed cornerback Brian Allen. Allen was so new to the team we had to cross reference the last name on his helmet with the team’s tryout list from last week.
Attendance: Marshon Lattimore and Zack Baun spotted
Players we did not see today:
- QB Jameis Winston
- LB Pete Werner
- CB Alontae Taylor
- DT Jaleel Johnson
Players working off to the side/present but not participating
- CB Marshon Lattimore
- LB Zack Baun
Seeing Baun and Lattimore present was a great sign for their progress. Baun worked with trainers off to the side throughout the day. Lattimore was dressed and with the team for walkthroughs, but did not take the field. He remained off to the side through drills outside as well. All good news for two defensive players at positions that have been hit hard by injury this offseason.
Defensive back Bryce Thompson has reverted to injured reserve after clearing waiver and defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson has been released.
Injury Update: Taylor's injury not anticipated to be major
Allen gave an update on Taylor (rookie cornerback from Tennessee) and his injury in his post-practice presser. “I don’t think it’s anything serious,” Allen said. “He’s dealing with a hip flexor or something like that.” Clearly not much concern around Taylor’s condition. Would be great to see him Saturday against the Texans, but getting back for the Green Bay Packers joint practices would be excellent as well.
Other practice notes: Running back competition is about to heat up
With the preseason game on the way, it should provide a great look at the running back unit. Can the players battling for a spot break tackles? Catch passes in space? Pass protect? Between Dwayne Washington, Devine Ozigbo, Tony Jones Jr. and Abram Smith, there is a lot of talent to sift through. Saturday should provide some helpful information.
Wide receiver Dai’Jean Dixon is catching Allen’s eye with his size and mental acuity. Allen had some great things to say about Dixon when asked during his presser. The Nicholls State wideout will get a chance to show what he can do in game situations soon.
Rookie offensive lineman Trevor Penning wants defenders to hate his guts. “If the guy across from you hates you, you’re doing your job.” he told media on Thursday afternoon. The quote is on-brand for his physical plays style. While Penning has drawn a lot of attention for his camp scuffles, it’s clear that his play on the field is ready to speak for itself.
