Only one more meaningless football game before the real action starts, but in the meantime there are still some questions to answer.
Here's a 6-pack of things I'm watching for when the Saints host the Chargers in the preseason finale on Friday at the Caesars Superdome:
- Does Jameis play? It's tough to say for sure, but it'd be a good injection of confidence heading into Week 1.
- Can Kirk Merritt stand out at RB? The WR has been converted to the RB room. Let's see if he can make a compelling case for a roster spot.
- Can Trevor Penning finish? The Saints rookie looked much improved in his second preseason start. If he can take another step forward, you'll start feeling really good about the LT position this season.
- Who steps forward at linebacker? I'd be surprised to see either Demario Davis or Pete Werner, but the roster feels wide open behind him. Two of Chase Hansen, Jon Bostic, Nephi Sewell, Zack Baun and Eric Wilson feel like they could snag a roster spot. Today's performance might be the key.
- Special teams standouts? It's easy to forget, but more often than not it's the performance on kickoffs/punts and kickoff/punt coverage that makes the difference at those final roster spots.
- A win would be nice. The results might not actually matter, but a losing atmosphere can be contagious. It'd be nice to feel a winning environment heading into the season, and it'd also be nice to see Ian Book take a step forward (but I'd settle for no fumbled snaps).
Related
━━━━
THE GAME | PRESEASON WEEK 3
- WHO: Chargers (0-2) at Saints (0-2)
- WHEN: Friday, Aug. 26 at 7 p.m. (central)
- WHERE: Caesars Superdome, New Orleans
- TV: FOX
- LISTEN: WWL AM-870; FM-105.3 & the Audacy app
- PREGAME: First Take with Steve Geller & Jeff Nowak, 3-5 p.m.; Countdown to Kickoff with Bobby Hebert & Kristian Garic, 5-7 p.m.
━━━━
THE SCORE
Refresh page for latest updates
Related
━━━━
THE HIGHLIGHTS
WUUUUUUUT?
Tre'Quan Smith didn't catch it, but he helped. The refs, they didn't Marquez Callaway alertly caught the ricochet for what goes in the books as a 24-yard gain. No touchdown because the refs blew it dead. Cool, guys.
On the other hand, not a great moment for Tre. He went into the injury tent afterward. I'm starting to really wonder about his place on the roster.
━━
MARK INGRAM TD NO. 2
Yep. Yep.
━━
MARK INGRAM TD NO. 1
Yep.
━━
FIRST-AND-20? NO PROBLEM
The OL did Jameis Winston no favors on his lone drive, picking up a pair of penalties. But no worries, Jameis finds Jarvis Landry on 2nd-and-14, and man ... that's pretty (though he probably should've taken the free money underneath. We can worry about that another day).
Check back for updates throughout the game
Related
━━
Check out our new podcast Inside Black & Gold, wherever you get your podcasts. LINKS: Apple | Spotify | Audacy ... remember to rate and subscribe!