The New Orleans Saints may have dropped their preseason opener, but that didn't leave the Cajun Cannon Bobby Hebert any less bullish on what he saw from the defense.
Playing with backups -- and admittedly against the Jaguars backups -- the Saints saw elite contributions from a host of depth players as they sprinted out to a 20-6 lead at halftime. The offense was held off the scoreboard in the second half of the 24-20 defeat.
"I said this at halftime, man, everyone's fired up," Hebert said. "You're probably high-fiving if you're in that number at the game or you're watching at your house, whatever. You're ecstatic."
Brought to you by TRANESOUTH: It's hard to stop a Tranewww.audacy.comHear Bobby Hebert's full postgame rant in the player above, or in the video atop the page.
There were several standout performances, but none more impressive than that of Jaylan Ford, who pulled the start as the mike linebacker and was all over the field throughout the first half. He logged seven total tackles and a quarterback hurry, and his interception in the red zone shut down what looked to be a promising opening drive for Jacksonville. It's the second consecutive season that he's picked up an interception in a preseason tilt vs Jacksonville.
"He looked like Demario Davis or Jonathan Vilma or the Dome Patrol," Hebert continued. "He's someone that's going to provide depth on the back end as far as how we count on him."
Ford drew the start because the Saints opted to sit all of their first-team offense and defense, a group that included LBs Pete Werner, Kaden Elliss and Danny Stutsman.
That meant an extended run for players vying to make names for themselves and carve out a space on the roster. Former Central Michigan standout Michael Heldman logged a pair of sacks, while Jayden Price picked up an interception and a pair of passes defensed in the star role.
Price is a player that Hebert thinks has played his way onto the roster, a key depth piece behind Jonas Sanker. Price was a standout at North Dakota State and began his career with the Atlanta Falcons before stints in the CFL and UFL. He latched on with the Saints last preseason and stuck around for the year on the practice squad.
"Talk about a diamond in the rough that is truly uh just taking advantage," Hebert said. "He's truly in the conversation of who's really stood out, and you're constantly taking notes on him. So, guess what? Not only in practice, but he shows up in the game, too."
The Saints defense's next chance to shine will happen out in L.A., where they scheduled for a pair of joint practices against the Dallas Cowboys and L.A. Rams before a preseason matchup with the Rams on Saturday at SoFi Stadium.
