Any second-year player should come into the offseason looking like a more confident version of his rookie self, and that's exactly what Spencer Rattler did on Thursday.
Rattler looked decisive working with the first team, hitting all eight of his passes in 7-on-7 drills and doing so impressively. There weren't any late dumpoffs to goose those numbers. Every ball was fired in, including one with so much velocity over the middle that it seemed to knock TE Juwan Johnson off his feet.
Rattler's best throw was a ball up the seam to Michael Jacobson that was thrown to a spot as the TE cleared a defender and found the receiver's hands in stride. It was an NFL throw and a confident one. It was a day that built on the positives the QB showed in his rookie season, while the negatives -- and a defense to help cause them -- were largely absent.
There will be no full, 11-on-11 drills in OTAs and head coach Kellen Moore will be the first to say this is a lot more about taking the classroom to the field than the true QB competition. Still the statement from Rattler was pretty clear on this day: He's going to have something to say about it.
It'll take a pretty impressive showing to convince the new coaching staff that their second-round rookie should wait to start on the bench, but the showing today made that, at the very least, feel possible. As a former 5th round draft pick in this scenario, a fair shot is really all you can ask for.
Moore said that all three QBs took first-team reps over the three-day OTA session and that rotation will continue into camp. Jake Haener won't be a part of that over the next month due to an oblique strain, meaning rookie Tyler Shough (more on him below) will get all the work he can handle over that span.
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TAKING ATTENDANCE
The attendance was generally positive for the first set of OTAs and head coach Kellen Moore said none of the absences were concerning.
These are the players I didn't see in any capacity on Thursday:
- RB Alvin Kamara
- TE Taysom Hill
- S Tyrann Mathieu
- S J.T. Gray
- LB D'Marco Jackson
- LB Demario Davis
- DT Davon Godchaux
- DT Nathan Shepherd
- DE Chase Young
There were four additional players who were in attendance and not participating due to previous injuries, all four of whom are not expected to be participating in on-field work prior to the full training camp:
- QB Jake Haener
- CB Quincy Riley
- TE Foster Moreau
- TE Dallin Holker
Kamara has typically not attended OTA sessions, making his absence expected. Previously we've seen veteran players, including Tyrann Mathieu, miss one or more of these sessions but appear for the rest. We'll have to see how attendance develops throughout the next month.
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SHOUGH SETTLING IN
You really should never react too strongly in any direction this early into the offseason process, but there was no question the rookie is still getting his bearings at the NFL level.
It might have stood out more because of how crisp Rattler looked prior to Shough taking the ball, but he seemed a tick slow on his reads. On one play he worked all the way through his progression and found Kevin Austin to the backside, but he'd almost never have that much time in a game. It's a good example of why going by camp stats is never the way to do it.
In all Shough went 7-for-8 on his reps and seemed to get more comfortable as the day went on. He also had the play of the day when he executed a hard pump fake and hit Rashid Shaheed in stride up the sideline for what would've been a touchdown if the receiver didn't step out of bounds.
This is simply dipping a toe in the water of this QB competition. At this stage a year ago Rattler looked a little shaky but by the end of minicamp had settled in nicely. I expect Shough to do the same.
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OL SHUFFLE
Moore has said to expect players to move around throughout camp, but there was none of that on Thursday. The first team OL from start to finish was:
- LT: Kelvin Banks Jr.
- LG: Trevor Penning
- C: Erik McCoy
- RG: Cesar Ruiz
- RT: Taliese Fuaga
My question going in was whether the team might opt for continuity over having two players change positions, but clearly that's not a concern -- and I agree with it. Penning is on the final year of his deal, if he can fly at guard, fantastic, otherwise you've got your bookend tackles and go back to the drawing board at left guard. I like the idea of keeping Banks at tackle if he's ready as a rookie, and Fuaga is certainly comfortable on the right side.
The bigger question as this process goes will be: Is Penning actually the best left guard on the roster. As of this week the second string OL broke down as follows:
- LT: Landon Young
- LG: Dillon Radunz
- C: Will Clapp
- RG: Nick Saldiveri
- RT: Josh Ball
It's not hard to understand why Moore would feel confident in this scenario. He's coming off a season in which the Eagles converted a former first rounder in Mekhi Becton to a guard, with the transition starting later in the offseason, and he rode that OL to a Super Bowl..
Still, if Penning struggles with the position switch, I wouldn't be surprised to see a quick trigger for the established veteran. At this point there's zero physicality. We'll learn more when the pads come on.
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SPEED IS BACK
It had been so long I almost forgot what it looked like to see the Saints with speed on offense. That was back in droves today with Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed and newcomer Brandin Cooks all full participants. There was no question whether Olave would be, considering he was back to practice at the end of last season and his issue is head injuries, but Shaheed already being a full go as he comes back from a torn meniscus is very positive.
All three guys were moving very well and they make this offense dynamic. Welcome back.
The Saints utilized a good amount of crossing patterns today, and I have to imagine that's something they lean into with this array of receivers. Get the defense running horizontally, good luck.
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SLIM KENDRE?
It's entirely possible that his change to the 5 jersey is just creating an optical illusion, but I thought Kendre Miller looked noticeably slimmer on the first day of practice than I remember him being to close out last season. It's notable because his ability to maintain his body physically is the biggest thing he needs to improve.
When I asked Moore about the young RB with a checkered past with the former coaching staff, the new Saints head coach was quick to point to the blank slate on Day 1. Previous seasons won't be held against him. Still, it's on Kendre to put some positive things on his new slate. He's an unquestionably talented RB and I sure hope we get to see that this season.
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OUTSIDE CAM-BACKER?
The Saints currently have 17 defensive linemen listed on the roster, and it'll be fascinating to see how they're deployed. There were three important rotation players missing today in Godchaux, Young and Shepherd, so it's possible it was just a numbers game today, but Cam Jordan got a good bit of run as a standup outside linebacker in both 7-on-7s and the 9-on-7 walkthrough.
It's interesting because Cam arrived at camp last year the lightest he'd ever been with the goal of developing into more of a speed rusher off the edge. He was greeted with the news that he'd be asked to play more DT and immediately put the weight back on. Could he finally get his wish in Brandon Staley's scheme?
Cam has always been a better athlete than he's been given credit for and he'd much rather work outside than inside. It'll be fascinating to watch if he sticks at that position throughout the season.
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MINOR TWEAKS
The Kellen Moore era is here, and with it some notable -- albeit small -- changes. One is that practice jerseys now feature names on the back, something that I've never seen in my time covering the Saints. It makes memorizing jersey numbers a little less mission critical (and honestly it just looks better).
We also saw concurrent offense-defense drills on each end of the field, though it's possible that was simply to maximize the abbreviated practice time stipulated in the CBA. The Saints also practiced inside on the day despite very reasonable conditions outside.
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LAGNIAPPE
UDFA Hunter Dekkers is likely to see some reps as things go forward, but not today. With Jake Haener looking on with an injury, it was Shough and Rattler splitting all the reps. ... Dante Pettis made a nice sideline grab early in the practice. He's a guy I think makes the roster for special teams, and that decision is made easy because he's proven useful on offense in a pinch. ... Isaiah Foskey was working with the first-team defense today. We'll have to see if that continues once the numbers are full, but it sure would be nice to see that kid get some opportunities.