Exactly how explosive can this offense be? That's a difficult question to answer right now.
But there's no question that Rashid Shaheed is one of their most dynamic pieces. After missing about a week of practice due to a hamstring issue, he got back into full practice today for the first time and the threat of his speed alone changes things.
In one rep he caught a screen on 3rd and 15 and darted upfield for 13 yards before the defense could get a hand on him. He caught another ball for an 8-yard gain in the 2-minute session, and he also had one of the nicer looking kickoff returns on the day (an area that we haven't exactly seen many explosive returns yet despite the new rules).
What Shaheed's absence made pretty clear was that outside of Chris Olave, this isn't exactly a WR room loaded with burners. Having both of those guys on the field at the same time changes how defenses can operate.
TAKING ATTENDANCE
We continue to see several players working off to the side with trainers, more on that below, but here are the players we didn't see participating in today's practice.
- DB Ugo Amadi (groin)
- WR A.T. Perry (ankle)
- LB Pete Werner (shoulder)
- CB Marshon Lattimore (hip)
- RB Kendre Miller (hamstring)
- CB Paulson Adebo (groin)
- S Millard Bradford
- RB Alvin Kamara (back)
- DB Mac McCain
- LB Isaiah Stalbird
- G Nick Saldiveri (calf)
- DL Trajan Jeffcoat (elbow)
- WR Mason Tipton (hamstring)
- TE Michael Jacobson
There were a few other injuries to note, including another hamstring issue for rookie LB Jaylan Ford after he worked his way back from an issue earlier in camp. That's a frustrating development for a young player trying to compete for a spot on the roster. There was also an injury scare for Cesar Ruiz, who went down in some clear pain and seemed to have an issue with his right leg midway through the day's session. He walked gingerly over to the trainers and got worked on, but fortunately he was able to return later in the session. That'll be an injury situation to track. Shane Lemieux took over at RG during Ruiz's absence, so I expect he'd be leaned on if Ruiz misses any time.
On the positive side, rookie wide receiver Bub Means (shin) returned to full participation for the first time, while Equanimeous St. Brown (hamstring) continued to work in a red, non-contact jersey. LB Demario Davis (hamstring) also continued to go through walkthrough and individual drills, but did not participate in team sessions.
We also saw Werner, McCain, Amadi and Adebo getting work off to the side with trainers, indicating they are nearing a return. Lattimore and Miller are also getting work prior to practice, but it's unclear how close they are to returning.
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CARR SHARP
There are questions with this offense that we've talked about extensively, particularly involving the offensive line, but Carr hasn't let that slow him down the last few days. He was impressive on Tuesday, going 11-for-11 in team drills, and completed his first 7 attempts of the day on Wednesday before finishing out the day 7-10.
The connection between Carr and Olave is continuing to build, and there was a nice pitch and catch down the right sideline over tight coverage for what would've been a big gain. We'll have to wait and see how things develop when the pass rush is allowed to hit, but QB1 seems to rounding into form as the season approaches.
The Saints are working in as many game scenarios as possible during these practices without the joint sessions. We're seeing game-like substitutions, down and distance, and so forth. So strong performances in these practices are especially nice to see.
2-MINUTE
On a windy day that made long field goals feel a bit impossible, both sets of 2-minute action asked for that. The scenario was end of half, with 90 seconds and a timeout remaining for the offense, drive starting at the 30 yard line.
Both drives -- one by Carr and one by Rattler -- moved the ball into plus territory quickly but were ultimately doomed by penalties. Carr's drive ended with a ball to James Robinson short of the sticks that forced a 59-yard field goal attempt. Blake Grupe's kick died in the wind and landed short and to the right. Carr went 4-7 with completions to Jordan Mims, Foster Moreau (who had a strong day overall), Shaheed and Robinson.
Rattler went 2-for-2 on his drive (Jacob Kibodi and Stanley Morgan) but allowed the clock to tick a bit too much on the early downs and had to spike the ball at the 40-yard line. Grupe's attempt from 58 had the distance but the wind pushed the ball out to the right.
It's worth noting that Rattler worked with the 3s on the day, but it was him getting the 2-minute set rather than Jake Haener. My instinct would be that the decision was an indicator that roles will be flipped in the upcoming preseason game, making the end-of-half scenario something that made more sense for him to work on. If the Saints work end-of-game scenarios, I imagine you'd err toward Haener's end.
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CONFIDENCE GROWING
There are a few players on this Saints roster who I'd look at and say confidence might be an issue, but let's focus on the positive today.
Two players in particular who seem to be building more and more confidence are Taliese Fuaga and Alontae Taylor. That's important, because a rookie starting at a key position better feel like he can get the job done. He says he's been leaning a good bit on Lucas Patrick, the veteran who has been manning the LG spot since Nick Saldiveri went down with his injury. He says Patrick has been a source of insight, encouragement and just general good vibes, he even noted that sometimes Patrick will give him random hugs if he feels it's time for one.
Taylor on the other hand came into the league a confident player, but that seemed to go away a bit last year as he ran into some struggles shifting inside to the slot. He was even benched in two of the final three games to close out the year due to repeated issues in coverage. We haven't seen that this year and he's looked more and more comfortable as camp has gone on. This defense has a chance to be special.
LAGNIAPPE
Refs were out there today -- a day earlier than was initially scheduled -- and we saw a few too many penalties. False starts, holding, OPI, you name it, we saw it. After 9 penalties in the preseason opener, that's a subject that'll get annoying real fast if it continues. ... Roman Harper is working with the DBs this week. Not a bad person to learn from. Might he get into coaching down the road? ... The Saints have brought TE Mason Fairchild back, but he's changed numbers. He was in No. 80, which is now being worn by Shaq Davis, so the TE is in No. 82 now. The Saints cut Kyler Baugh to make room. ... As mentioned above, Foster Moreau has had a few solid days of camp. If Juwan Johnson isn't ready to start the year maybe he can make a bigger impact than we've been expecting? Either way he's a guy we're constantly hearing from in practice. ... The Saints have been working on some situational kickoff drills all camp, but today was an interesting one with those groups working on kicks short in the landing zone. I don't know if it's something you want the kickers to do, necessarily, but it is something return units have to be ready for. You could probably count on one hand the number of times last year a returner had to field a kickoff beyond the 10 yard line. If there are short kicks like that this year, returners have to be ready to handle it.