Still no Tyrann Mathieu at Saints training camp. The safety is dealing with a personal matter and there is no word when we can expect his return.
TE Juwan Johnson, DE Tanoh Kpassagnon and OL Sage Doxtater were also not present for Thursday’s workout.
We did catch a glimpse of Pete Werner who went on the non-football injury Wednesday. He was doing some work on the side along with DE Marcus Davenport, who remains on the physically unable to perform list.
Rookie WR/RS Rashid Shaheed is also on the non-football injury list.
PAYTON TURNER STANDS OUT
Second-year defensive end Payton Turner has only been on the field for two days this offseason, but he's made his presence known. The big pass-rusher got through for what would've likely been two sacks, the second of which came when he bullrushed LT Jerald Hawkins off his feet late in the day.
"Defense dominated today, and one guy in particular: Payton Turner," said WWL's Mike Detillier, adding that Kentavius Street and Malcolm Roach were impressive stuffing the middle.
Turner wasn't in action for OTAs or minicamp as he recovered from offseason shoulder surgery, but he was at the facility working throughout and the work appears to have paid dividends early on.
MIKE THOMAS STEADY
Day 2 was much of the same for MT, and that's a good thing. He continued to work in individual drills, but sat out the team portions of practice.
After more than a year without practice, getting out for back-to-back days could be called a positive sign. The next step for him will be running reps against live defenders, though it remains unclear when that'll be.
DAVENPORT GETTING BACK IN SHAPE
When Mickey Loomis spoke earlier this week he indicated that Marcus Davenport landing on the PUP list was more about fitness than recovery. He's working back from a finger amputation as well as offseason shoulder surgery.
Davenport could be seen running sprints alongside Pete Werner off to the side of the Day 2 action, and notably was not wearing any protection on his amputated left pinky. It remains to be seen if it will have any impact on his game from a pass-rushing perspective, but it appears to be fully healed as he works back into shape.
OFFENSE SCUFFLES
It's not unusual early in camp, but the offense just looked a step slow on Day 2. Jameis Winston connected with Alvin Kamara a few times out of the backfield, which is a good sign, but things are still getting dialed in downfield. The most positive element was on a scramble play when he broke the pocket and displayed his mobility on that surgically repaired knee. He looked smooth, comfortable -- that's the sort of thing I'm more concerned about at this stage.
The prettiest throw of the day belonged to Andy Dalton, though it was bookended by less-than-stellar results. The protection broke down for what would've been a sack anyway, but the backup lofted a ball perfectly to Deonte Harris downfield. The defender gets some credit for making a play on Harris' arm, but it'd have gone down as a drop in a game. Harris was upset, hurling the ball down the field. But that deep shot ability will continue to be a weapon in certain personnel groupings.
The play of the day goes to Kirk Merritt, again on a near miss. The Destrehan native ran a quick out and hauled in a high ball from Ian Book with Smoke Monday chasing in coverage. It would've been out of bounds, but was still an impressive display of hands with the caveat that he'll need to dial in the sideline GPS a bit.
SPECIAL TEAMS MARQUEZ?
The wide receiver room is crowded these days, but could Marquez Callaway end up being a key contributor on special teams?
Based on the work it appears that could be in the cards, with Callaway spending Day 2 working as a gunner with the first-team punt coverage unit.
"Marquez played a lot of special teams in college, played a little of it in the pros. But they're looking for that guy who can be that gunner," Detillier said.