There are a lot of routes to making an NFL roster, and Ellis Merriweather was asked to take probably the most difficult one.
The former UMass standout wasn't a draft pick, heck, he wasn't even a priority UDFA signing. He was one of dozens of players invited for a rookie minicamp tryout, and his performance there was enough to get him brought back for OTAs, minicamp, training camp and now a key role for the Saints in the preseason.
"Every single day I just go in there with my head down, just ready to work and show them that I deserve to be out here, and God is good," Merriweather said after the Saints' win over the Chiefs. "I finally was able to do that today.”
After an injury to rookie Kendre Miller early in the second half, it was Merriweather who picked up a starring role and performed well. He was aided by a few helpful voices in his ear in the form of stars Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas, who helped keep him locked in on the details, rather then the overwhelming atmosphere.
Merriweather finished the game with 24 yards rushing on nine carries, along with another 17 yards receiving on two catches, including a thrilling touchdown late in the game as the Saints drove needing a touchdown. The connection between he and Jake Haener was clear, and it was anything but a coincidence. They regularly FaceTimed during the offseason to go over install, and that extra prep work manifested in a big moment Sunday at the Caesars Superdome.
“The kid grinds," Haener said of his RB. "He loves football, and I think in this league, everybody is about making a living and doing something positive for your family and the people around you. But that kid just loves playing football and I gravitate toward him.”
And if you ever questioned that love of football, just know that a member of the UMass Minutemen over the past few seasons certainly needed that. Merriweather played in 22 games for the Independent program over the few years, his team lost 20 of them. It's not often the program puts a player into the NFL, either, and they were well behind their former teammate, actually pausing their fall work to watch Merriweather in action.
He said they were sending him videos of the team getting hyped after his big plays.
"This being the first game, too, the first introduction to NFL football. It’s like, yea, I can get down with this," Merriweather said, "and I just want to keep growing and developing.”
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So how can that happen? Merriweather is still probably a longshot to land on the initial 53-man roster, but the next few weeks will be massive for him either way. With Miller expected to miss some time with a knee sprain and Kirk Merritt dealing with a hamstring issue, there will be plenty of work for the rookie alongside Kamara and backup Jamaal Williams out in L.A. as the team holds joint practices with the Chargers ahead of a Week 2 preseason matchup.
The Saints have also reportedly signed former LSU standout Darrel Williams as RB depth.
It'll be yet another opportunity to hone is craft, and particularly the advice that he got from Michael Thomas in game that helped him have such an impressive showing late against the Chiefs.
“That’s one thing that I was told that I was brought in here to do, be a bully, use my pads. That’s the biggest thing, the biggest coaching point that we’ve been working on since camp is just getting my pads low and making these defenders pay," Merriweather said. "That’s one of the main things that Michael Thomas was telling me today, like ’these DBs don’t want to tackle you. Get low and run through their face.’ And as the game progressed I felt like I started to get more into the rhythm of doing that.”
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