During warm-ups for Saturday's afternoon Saints practice out in Metairie, Phil Collins' 'In the air Tonight' blared over the speakers. When the signature drum solo dropped, most of the players joined in with air drum sticks.
But that was probably the most high-energy moment as the team continued to work on situational football ahead of a preseason showdown with the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday.
NFL teams don't run two-a-day practices anymore, but after a night practice at the Caesars Superdome Friday, the team was back out on the field less than 24 hours later for a practice that was well attended, but with a few notable absences. Players we didn't see on Saturday:
- K, Wil Lutz
- WR, Tre'Quan Smith
- RB, Alvin Kamara
- WR, Chris Hogan
- DT, Malcolm Roach
- DE, Payton Turner
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Both Kamara and Hogan participated in Friday's practice, and were likely off for rest. Turner's extended absence is a difficult sign for the first-round rookie who had come on strong early in training camp. He didn't suit up in the Saints' preseason opener, and it appears highly unlikely he'll be out there on Monday.
The most concerning absence is Smith, who has now missed three straight practices after returning earlier this week following a run of missed practices.
ANOTHER BOMB TO DEONTE; DPI TO KEVIN WHITE
Each quarterback was responsible for one effective deep play, though under different circumstances. Jameis Winston's connection with Deonte Harris continued to thrive as he hit the speedy receiver on a deep corner route against single-high coverage. Safety Marcus Williams and linebacker Demario Davis were chasing the play, which likely would've resulted in a touchdown.
Later in the day Taysom Hill took a shot to newly signed WR Kevin White, who had a step on Natrell Jamerson in coverage. The ball was a bit underthrown, but Jamerson didn't get his head around as White worked back to it, resulting in a flag for defensive pass interference thrown by one of the refs in attendance.
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TONY JONES JR. CONTINUES TO SHINE
If second-year running back Tony Jones Jr.'s mission this offseason was to make himself incredibly difficult to cut, he's succeeded. After shining in the team's preseason opener against the Ravens, he took advantage of the extra snaps with Kamara's absence to continue opening eyes on Saturday, particularly in red zone drills.
With the team starting from the 15-yard line -- with Winston at QB -- Jones took a carry up the middle and crashed down to just short of the goal line on his first touch in that set of drills. With Hill taking over for the next set of downs, he ran a quick hitch out of the backfield and caught a ball working back toward the QB, turned upfield to his inside shoulder and powered into the end zone.
Later on in the red zone set, with Ian Book at quarterback, he took another carry up the middle for a touchdown.
Jones isn't guaranteed a roster spot by any stretch, but he's doing everything he can to show he deserves it.
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ANDREW DOWELL MAKING PLAYS
Earlier in camp Saints coach Sean Payton singled out linebacker Andrew Dowell as someone who frequently seemed to be coming up with big plays, and that didn't change Saturday. He burst through for a tackle-for-loss well behind the line against Devonta Freeman in red-zone drills. Three snaps later, Dwayne Washington caught a pass to the right flat and appeared to have an easy lane to the end zone. But Dowell came seemingly out of nowhere, got his arms up around Washington's shoulder pads and hurled him out of bounds short of the goal line.
Payton spent time on Saturday preaching the importance of "4-point plays," which means plays that determine whether a drive ends in a 7-point touchdown or a 3-point field goal. Showing up in 4-point moments is a good way to get yourself on the right side of the roster bubble.
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ALDRICK ROSAS HAS A BIG LEG
Well, Aldrick Rosas is a big guy in general. The Saints' new muscle-bound kicker showed off his leg at Saturday's practice, launching 10 kicks at the uprights indoors and connecting on eight of them.
He took two attempts from 54 yards. He pushed the first 54-yarder to the right while aligned from the right hash, but drove the second through easily from the left hash. If he can get the kicks straightened out, there's no doubt he can be a weapon from distance if he indeed ends up being the guy to replace Wil Lutz as he recovers from core muscle surgery. The team had previously signed Brett Maher, but he reportedly suffered an injury while warming up for the preseason opener against the Ravens and was waived days later.
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Follow Jeff Nowak on Twitter @Jeff_Nowak or contact him by email at jeffrey.nowak@audacy.com