The New Orleans Saints went inside for the entirety of practice for the first time, and what followed was an intense day of drills.
There was a heavy run focus, but in all it was a one-sided affair. The kind way to phrase it would be: The defense dominated.
“I’d say this is [Carr's] poorest practice, if you look at all the OTAs and the minicamp that we got to witness and so far in training camp, he’s a little off-kilter and our defense might have had something to do with that," Bobby Hebert said. "It’s true what he said, though. You don’t want the offense to always kick the defense’s behind, because that’s not good for the season. In theory you want it to kind of be 50/50, but I think at times it was inaccurate footballs.”
Carr completed four of his five passes in 7s, but nothing downfield. He and Keke Couttee were completely on different pages during the first set of 11s, with a pass airballed into empty space. The offense will have a chance to re-center with a day off on Thursday, then a return to practice on Friday.
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TAKING ATTENDANCE
First things first, Scott Lashley -- who was injured in practice on Tuesday -- has been waived. The team has signed Tommy Kraemer as OL depth.
Here are the players who weren't seen at practice on Wednesday:
- CB Bradley Roby
- RB Alvin Kamara
- RT Ryan Ramczyk
- LG Andrus Peat
- DE Carl Granderson
The only player whose absence is definitely injury related is Peat, who hobbled off the practice field on Monday with a quad injury and has yet to return. Kamara's absence was definitely not injury related, as he is in New York for a meeting with Roger Goodell. The remaining absences could simply be rest days to double up on the planned day off.
Alontae Taylor and Calvin Throckmorton left with minor issues, but neither is thought to be significant. Andrew Dowell also hobbled off the field with an apparent lower-body injury after making a tackle during team drills, but he was seen moving around without issue later in the practice.
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MARSHON VS MIKE T
Mike Thomas talked about the Buckeye battle between himself and star cornerback Marshon Lattimore, and described it as "good on good." Mike's going to get some and Marshon's going to get some, and that's what happened in 1-on-1 reps during today's practice.
The first rep went to Marshon, who stuck in MT's hip pocket downfield and made an excellent play to knock away a pass thrown by Derek Carr to the outside shoulder. Lattimore has looked excellent all camp, and today was no different.
The second rep went MT's way, as he worked upfield, bluffed outside then cut in to create significant separation. Carr found him for what would've been a big gain. Advantage, MT.
The third rep is tougher to gauge. Marshon was in good position, but Mike T cut inside and appeared to have a chance to make a tough catch. Lattimore looked to get his arm in and break it up. Thomas was visually frustrated after the play and indicated that the ball needed to go to his back-shoulder. He's not wrong, as based on the position he'd have been able to plant and work back to the ball for a completion if it'd been placed there. So we'll call this one inconclusive based on the ball placement. Carr and Thomas have both said the chemistry between QB and WR is a work in progress, but it's coming along well. That was a good example of the progress needed.
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TRE'QUAN HAS BEEN GOOD
Some folks might find this tough to hear, but Tre'Quan Smith has been one of the more consistent receivers in camp, particularly in 1-on-1 reps. He's got extensive experience, so that's not necessarily a surprise, but it goes to something Dennis Allen said earlier this week: He gets underrated as a receiver, and considering the level of "dirty work" he's willing to do, that's nothing to scoff at.
“No matter who is covering him, Tre’Quan Smith has beat them,” Hebert said.
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ANTHONY JOHNSON CONFIDENT
The Saints have been very healthy thus far on the defensive side of the ball, but one of the few players we hadn't got a look at throughout OTAs and minicamp has been one of the most impressive in Anthony Johnson.
The former Virginia Cavalier is 6-2, 205 and looks as confident as anyone out there despite limited reps. He's won a lot of reps, and had a nice strip of the ball against Rashid Shaheed in 1V1s. I think he's got some versatility, too. There's a long way to go, but he's someone to keep an eye on.
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JAMES HURST COULD START ... SOMEWHERE
Andrus Peat is hurt and has missed back-to-back practices, but I'm not sure he's the starter even when he gets back. James Hurst is versatile, durable and confident. He's the player I want working in tandem with Trevor Penning. No shade on Peat, I just don't trust him to stay on the field and I want consistency next to Trevor. Hurst could also start at LT if needed, but that job is set up for Penning to win, and anything else would be a disappointment.
It also looks like Landon Young has been shifted to the left side, at least for now, and Storm Norton was taking first team reps at LT with Ramczyk out. All that said, the offensive line didn't handle itself well at all, so maybe further shuffling is needed.
“It was an el sucko day for them across the board," Mike Detillier said. "Tackle, guard, center every one of them got beat.”
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PAYTON TURNER SHOWING UP
At the risk of overhyping a player people have been very critical of, Payton Turner has continued to show up and has been in the backfield constantly, flushing out QBs or stuffing runs. If he can continue that and it isn't a mirage, this pass rush can be much scarier.
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