IRVINE, Calif. — The Saints are out of the Gulf Coast heat, and into the Rams’ old digs an hour south of L.A. in Orange County. Here’s what we took from a morning with them …
• The questions here start with what will happen with the offensive line. Right tackle Ryan Ramczyk is gone for the year, so the revised plan is to flip former first-rounder Trevor Penning over from left tackle to right tackle and install new first-rounder Taliese Fuaga, a right tackle for his two years starting in college, at left tackle. It also looks like Nick Saldiveri, the team’s fourth-round pick out of Old Dominion, is trending to start at guard opposite Cesar Ruiz. How this all comes together under the watch of new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak and John Benton, the line coach he brought with him, will go a long way toward determining how far these Saints can go.
• Speaking of Kubiak, one thing he’s given the team right away is a new identity, and clear foundation that’s very user-friendly. The reality is that, similar to what happened in New England, the Saints offense (under Sean Payton and Pete Carmichael) became very complex over the years, to leverage the best out of a generational quarterback. So the team kept adding and adding to what it was doing without subtracting much, which works for Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and not too many other players. Derek Carr probably gave the Saints their best chance at getting the most out of such a scheme last year, but it was a lot for younger guys. So what Kubiak’s bringing, a system that’s easier on players, should help to get the team moving faster and more decisively around Carr, who’s had a nice offseason.
• On the other side of the ball, the questions are in the same area—with the big people. The coaches know what they’ve got in Cameron Jordan and Carl Granderson along the line, and the success of the group, and maybe Dennis Allen’s defense as a whole, will ride on how far everyone else can take it. Steps forward from Payton Turner, Isaiah Foskey and Bryan Bresee would be huge, and the staff is excited to see Chase Young get back into the swing of things coming off a pretty scary neck injury. One potential sleeper for this group to watch would be sixth-round pick Khristian Boyd. And it’s probably not overstating things to say that whether or not the Saints get back to the playoffs depends on how things come along on each side of the line of scrimmage.
• Receiver is another spot that needs to be sorted out over the next few weeks. The Saints challenged Chris Olave to get bigger and stronger this offseason, and work to become better after the catch and on contested catches. Clearer answers will come after the pads go on, but he looks like he’s made real progress in those areas thus far. Elsewhere, the explosive Rashid Shaheed will have a role, and veterans Cedrick Wilson Jr. and Equanimeous St. Brown will try and hold off a crew of younger guys.
• There’s also excitement over what Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill can do within the new offense. After a lot of speculation on his contract situation, Kamara does have an offer from New Orleans, and he’s practicing full steam ahead with Kubiak. It should be interesting to see what Hill can do with new coaches getting a fresh set of eyes on him and maybe injecting some different ideas on how to use him.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Saints Training Camp Takeaways: Klint Kubiak Seeking to Simplify Offense.
