Kellen Moore fully understands that stability is a major key to success at any level of football, but the new Saints head coach is more than willing to shake things up early on.
Nowhere was that more evident during Thursday's OTA session than along the offensive where, both both tackles from last year were at new positions. Taliese Fuaga shifted back to the right tackle spot he played in college, while Trevor Penning was lined up at left guard, his third different position in three seasons. Rookie Kelvin Banks Jr. took over at left tackle.
"It’s just a matter of putting the best five out there on the field," Moore said, "giving ourselves opportunities and the versatility that provides."
It's likely there's some level of cross-training that goes on throughout the season, but the most significant move is for Penning, a 2022 first-rounder who struggled with injuries as a rookie, then was benched in Year 2 after starting at left tackle in Week 1. He saw some level of success shifting to right tackle in 2024, but the Saints clearly saw room for improvement when they selected Banks at No. 9 overall.
Penning has never played guard, but his demeanor and physicality profile well for that position -- even if he's a bit bigger than you'd typically find at the position. His teammate, Fuaga, is excited about the switch.
"Penning going to guard, I think, is pretty cool because he’s a really explosive dude, if you guys really watch his game, and especially out of a three-point stance," Fuaga said. "I think he’s a bully when it comes to that stuff.”
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That bullying nature is what the Saints surely thought they'd be getting when they drafted Penning out of Northern Iowa, but raw and slow-to-improve technique became an issue.
The technique of playing guard? Yes, that'll be something to learn as well, but recent history is on the Saints' side. New Orleans watched a successful transition for a former first round pick in Andrus Peat, who was picked as a tackle out of Stanford and made three consecutive Pro Bowls at the left guard spot. Moore and a good number of his coaching staff were also part of a similar transition last year when the Eagles signed Mekhi Becton, who had played tackle exclusively with the Jets after they picked him in the first round of the 2020 draft.
It not only wasn't a major issue, the Eagles were able to ride that OL to a Super Bowl behind one of the best rushing attacks in NFL history.
In this case Penning even has a bit of a headstart, with conversations of a position switch coming even before the draft. Becton didn't change positions until the end of OTAs.
"[Penning's] doing an excellent job," Moore said, "he’s embracing it.”
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As far as the other position switch, it appears clear that the Saints see Fuaga's rookie season as the outlier for what is expected to be a prolific career at right tackle. It's the spot that Fuaga played all four years at Oregon State, and one he only was moved off of due to necessity a year ago.
Moore somewhat brushed away the idea that switching across the line is a monumental shift, with an assist from Fuaga himself.
"I think we make bigger deals out of it than it really is," Moore said, "because you talk to Tali and he’s like, ‘OK, cool, I’ll go to the right tackle.’ Next day it’s as easy as can be."
Fuaga himself described it as a situation where he needs to "knock the rust off" but otherwise the picture is an OL group that the Saints hope can turn into a strength -- and fast.