Roster cutdown day is always exciting, but based on recent history and the numbers game, it's always smart to avoid overreacting to the first 53-man roster the Saints put out.
That group is guaranteed to change, and in this case it could happen quickly, a fact the gang broke down on SportsTalk Tuesday evening.
"If you’re on the team next Tuesday, you know you’ve made the roster, but there is gonna be some movement here and what Deuce [McAllister] brought up and we’ve talked about this, 4-5 new players on this roster," Mike Detillier said on SportsTalk. "It would not surprise me and, you know, a lot of times you feel so elated if you’re a young player, you made the 53-man roster and everything else and, you know 48 hours, 72 hours later you get called, you know, coach, hey, listen, we rethought this and we’re gonna go a little bit different direction."
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A lot will likely depend on whether the Saints can get certain players to the practice squad. Veteran players can sign immediately, but any player with fewer than four accrued seasons will have to clear waivers first. Those players can't be signed to the 16-man practice squad until after 3 p.m. Wednesday. That group could balloon to 17 if it includes Charlie Smyth, who would be able to carry an international pathway player exemption.
A position group where the Saints are almost certain to see changes is at offensive line, where they only have eight players total on the active roster as of Tuesday, including Nick Saldiveri who has missed several weeks with a calf injury. In most seasons the team will carry between 9-10 on the OL.
"What we’re looking at today is not necessarily the 53 we’ll be looking at a week from now," Detillier continued.
A few surprises for Detillier included Mason Tipton, a wide receiver who made the roster despite being hurt and missing all three preseason contests. Mike D was also surprised to see Shemar Jean-Charles hit the waiver wire, though he says the team made the right call in keeping UDFA Rico Payton around. The Saints kept four total UDFAs including Payton, Tipton, TE Dallin Holker and punter Matthew Hayball.
"I just felt as though a young corner, and he didn’t get off to a great start in training camp and he really picked up the pace," Detillier said.
