The New Orleans Saints are through five days of practice, just one of which was in pads. But it wouldn't be a training camp news cycle if we didn't overreact ... right?
So that's a bit of what we did on the latest episode of Inside Black & Gold, where we broke down a host of topics, including three players who we'd call early standouts and three who are off to slow starts.
Listen to the full episode in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here. The full episode also includes breakdowns on the latest injuries, key returns and big questions remaining heading into the rest of camp.
STANDOUTS (exceeding expectations)
First, it's important to qualify what these terms mean. Right now a standout would be a player who has strongly exceeded expectations. There are a number of players who have met expectations, and that's certainly a positive, but not what this list is about.
Here are the three standouts after the first week:
WR MASON TIPTON
- WHY: I mean, it's pretty simple. We're talking about a UDFA that won't let us stop talking about him. Every year there seems to be at least one, but the Yale standout just seems to have the edge you need to carve out a spot on an NFL roster. He's got the speed and subtle route-running that has found him open time and time again. He's made plays in 7s, 11s and 1-on-1s, and he profiles to have a strong return skillset. There's a long time for him to fall back to the pack, but right now there's no question he's an early standout.
LB PETE WERNER
- WHY: The former Ohio State linebacker is going into a contract year and there was undoubtedly pressure already. That was ramped up when the Saints brought in Willie Gay and the question was how Pete would respond. If the early indications are true, he did that exactly how the team hoped. He's looked energized and flat-out fast. He's been flying from sideline to sideline to break up these wide zone sets, and he had one of his best days in the first padded practice. Gay has also looked good, but the conversation could soon be exclusively about his new role, and not whether he takes Pete's.
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RB JORDAN MIMS
- WHY: I could've gone a number of ways with this pick, but the more under-the-radar names feel appropriate to talk about right now. Jordan had no business being in the roster conversation going into the season. He even participated in rookie minicamp for the extra reps. But he's been consistent and available. He's flashed good vision and burst. His hands have been legit and he's got good chemistry with college teammate Jake Haener. He's still got an uphill climb and would probably need some help from other guys ahead of him not getting the job done, but for now I feel comfortable having him on here.
Honorable mentions: WR Rashid Shaheed; G Cesar Ruiz; DT Khristian Boyd
SLOW STARTS
This is another one we need to define because it can go a few different ways. This isn't about, say, a UDFA who is struggling at the NFL level. Moreso a player that went in with reasonably high expectations to take an early step forward that just hasn't done it. I'm also not quitting on any of these players, but I want to see them get going. Here's the list:
WR A.T. PERRY
- Why: I was having the same conversation about Perry this time last year, but he proved to be a bit of a gamer. It's possible I'm overreacting again, but I certainly was hoping to see the second-year pro asserting himself more at this point. The big WR really came on strong at the end of last season but he's been a bit invisible in the new offense. I'd wager that he's been displaced in the WR3 conversation by Cedrick Wilson thus far. He's got a lot of time to change that narrative and we've seen him step up his game when the actual games start, but it sure would be nice to see him come on strong over the next two weeks.
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CB ALONTAE TAYLOR (slot)
- WHY: This is a tough one and I might be being too harsh on the third-year corner, who certainly hasn't been bad. He's been competing and getting all of his reps in the slot should be helpful as he builds into that role. I still don't think he's in any real danger of losing it. I just think his coverage quality has been a bit erratic, and I'm holding him to a high standard. I think he has the ability to be a lockdown player in the Saints' scheme and I don't know if we've gotten there yet. I also watched him get burned by Mason Tipton in 1-on-1s yesterday, so maybe there's some recency bias. Mostly I need to see him making more plays on the ball and generally being in the right position more often. I'm confident he won't be on this type of list for very long.
RB KENDRE MILLER
- WHY: This one shouldn't take much to explain. We have a third-round pick from last year with a massive opportunity to seize a role, and instead it's been a failure to launch. It's been made pretty clear that the team sees this is a work issue, and not simply bad luck. He's working through rehab and we should see him back soon, but hopefully this has been a wakeup call for him. Otherwise the other name on this list could very much displace him ... a name like Antonio Pittman comes to mind, who was beaten out by UDFA Pierre Thomas back in the day. It was the right choice then ... we'll see if history repeats itself.