Day 3 Saints camp notes: Jake Haener gets his day in QB battle

Throughout the OTA and minicamp process and even leading into training camp, head coach Kellen Moore made it clear that he saw the QB competition as a three-horse race. Those statements were met with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Rookie Tyler Shough and second-year pro Spencer Rattler? Of course they're in the mix. But Jake Haener, the player drafted two offensive regimes ago. Will he really be in the mix? Is he really going to be handed valuable first-team reps?

We got the answer on Friday: Yes, yes he will.

On a steamy day in Metairie that featured the first rainfall of camp, Haener took the ball first and showed a strong command of the offense. He completed his first pass of the day to Juwan Johnson and went 4-for-4 in 7-on-7s. People won't want to hear this, because for whatever reason people seem to find it easy to completely dismiss Jake Haener, but he's running the offense crisply. He had a nice ball to Shaheed that went down as an incompletion due to quality defense from Kool-Aid McKinstry. It's a good example of why the stats can be misleading, because it was a good decision and throw, but goes as an "X" on the stat line.

I still think he's a distant third in a three-horse race and at some point you need to prioritize reps, but there's no harm in having three QBs you feel like you can trust on gamedays. One injury and he's your backup. More on the QB battle below.

TAKING ATTENDANCE

There were several veteran players not in the rotation on Friday, but Moore said those were all scheduled rest days. There are no health issues at this point. Chris Olave did go off the field early in the session and looked to be dealing with some sort of foot issue, but he returned to practice and showed no ill effects. It's something to monitor.

The players who I didn't see participate in team drills:
- DT Davon Godchaux
- DE Cam Jordan
- LB Demario Davis
- WR Brandin Cooks
- RB Alvin Kamara
- C Erik McCoy

Don't take that list as gospel. It was a difficult attendance day because those players were still in attendance and wearing uniforms. McCoy's absense is notable because in the past he's told us that when QB1 is on the field, he's on the field (if he's healthy). Ted Rath and Co. clearly have a plan and considering where the team's health has been in recent years, there are no bad ideas.

QB2 and QB3

So what about the rest of the QBs? Moore said he felt like this was the best day of offensive operation to this point in camp, and I'd agree. All three guys had strong days, albeit with some of the veterans missing.

One thing of note is that Rattler took second-team reps, which seems like a tell as to where this race is right now. He's the only one of the three to not be third in the rotation. He continued to look confident and delivered the ball well, multiple times completing balls in tight windows to Mason Tipton. He found Michael Jacobson up the seam to close out his day and other than a false start (there have been a few too many of those for my liking) I don't have much to gripe about. If he continues to play at this level the rest of camp, he'll be tough to knock off.

I've seen some takes that boil down to: 'why waste a day?' I don't know, because I don't see a day with the third team as a wasted day. I see it as a low-pressure opportunity for a young quarterback to build confidence, and that's what I saw happen.

Shough had probably his most complete day, albeit against the third team, and it was a strong way to close out the first week of practice. His best throw -- and probably the best throw I've seen from anyone -- came on a ball to Juwan Johnson where he carried multiple defenders and hit Juwan on the hands for what would've been a 30-plus-yard gain.

There have been some struggle points where you're seeing development, but then there are throws where you just sit back and say "yep, that's why he's here."

CAMP TIPTON IS BACK

Mason Tipton was the talk of camp last year, having such an impressive performance that he made the 53-man roster despite not appearing in a preseason game. The issues came in the regular season, when despite ample opportunities due to injuries he failed to make an impact.

We were reminded today why the hype was there in the first place. Now in No. 15, he was all over the field, catching at least five balls -- several in tight coverage. Hopefully this time around he can prove he's more than just an Airline All Star.

CENTER OF ATTENTION

The center really never wants to be talked about, because it's almost always a bad thing. That's what happened with Kyle Hergel today, who got run at the position with the second and third team due to McCoys absence, and there were multiple low snaps. He'll have to be better to stick around.

The good news is that Will Clapp is the actual backup center, and I had to check my roster late in the session to remind myself who he was. That's a win, and some quality work for the former LSU standout today. That's one the low-key perks of veteran rest days.

BIG YEARS AHEAD

I'm kind of in hype mode today, I don't know why, I'm just in a good mood, and I can't help but look at a pair of Saints players and see the potential for massive seasons. Those two guys are Juwan Johnson and Rashid Shaheed, who have done nothing but impress me throughout camp.

Shaheed put on 10 pounds of muscle this offseason and is now up to 190 pounds, and you can see it. After coming into the NFL undersized, he's now built like a WR that can win at all three levels, and that's what he's focused on. The speed will always be there, the return ability and deep shot prowess will be there, but it's on Kellen Moore to make sure the ball gets to him in space. If that happens more often, he's got All Pro potential and we're seeing it flash on a daily basis.

I'll say similar things about Juwan, but that's not exactly a bold take. The frustration with him to this point is that EVERYONE can see the ability in flashes and it just disappears far too often. I don't see that happening this year. Juwan is healthy (unlike last year) and he's really got not competition for targets at the TE position. Heck, he's the only big-bodied option the team has in general. Based on what we've seen thus far I'm expecting him to push 100 targets on the year, blowing his previous career high (66) out of the water.

STUTSMAN WORKING

I'm starting to really like this linebacker room, and it's because of the depth. Yesterday I talked about Jaylan Ford, and today it's Danny Stutsman. For a young player he reads and reacts well and while his footspeed might not be elite, he gets to the spot as well as anybody. I think he'll be a special teams ace in Year 1, but there's a lot of upside to mine.

GRUPE IN THE RAIN

There was a funny moment in Friday's practice when Blake Grupe took the field to kick. The skies opened up for about 10 minutes and the wind picked up from right to left. It's a kicking competition after all, and Blake had a legitimate test.

He squeezed through an extra point with a tight margin, but he nailed his next three kicks without issue (39 right, 44 left and 49 right). His final kick of the day was his first miss of camp, coming from 49 yards on the left hashmark. It looked good off his foot, but the wind carried it outside to the left.

That puts him 9-of-10 in camp. It's now on the Saints to bring out the hose and spray Charlie Smyth while he's kicking next. It's only fair.