The Who Dat nation was out in full force for the first Saints training camp practice open to fans. Absent for a 2nd straight day was cornerback Grant Haley, as he deal with the death of his father. Rookie tight end Dylan Soehner was the only other players not seen on the practice field.
Returning to the field were corner PJ Williams, offensive lineman Derrick Kelly II and kicker Wil Lutz.
A familiar face is back but was not at practice yet. Tommylee Lewis finished last season on the practice squad in New Orleans but was not re-signed after his contract expired. The 28-year-old tallied just 19 yards from scrimmage in five games. For his career, Lewis has totaled 257 receiving yards and 49 rushing yards in 39 games. His most memorable moment is a lowlight; the uncalled illegal hit he took in the 2018 NFC championship game against the Rams.
Hill starting QB again
It was Taysom time for a 2nd straight day as Hill opened practice as the starting quarterback. Coach Payton said yesterday though that there will be a consistent rotation with him and Jameis Winston. We could see the former top overall pick running with the one’s tomorrow morning.
The first pass for Hill was a miss, as he was targeting Marquez Calloway. Tight end Adam Trautman grabbed the crowd’s attention with great effort to catch a pass from Hill in team drills. Deonte Harris also caught a few balls from him while in stride.
Winston picked dup where he left off yesterday; picking apart the 2nd defensive unit. He hooked up with Deonte Harris finding him over the middle, and also connected with Chris Hogan for a gain of about 15 yards. The WR made a leaping grab and likely saved an interception. Winston was definitely sacked once by Noah Spence coming off the edge.
Looking for a leg
The punter competition doesn’t get a ton of attention, but the Black & Gold are searching for someone to replace the reliable Thomas Morstead.
Nolan Cooney was handling things today and has a few wobblers, but also boomed several punts with big hang time. The rookie is battling Blake Gillikin for the gig, who was placed on injured reserve a year ago.