The first two New Orleans Saints preseason games are in the books, and we’ve learned a lot from their performance in exhibition matchups. So how does it change the outlook in our 53-man roster projections? What about the practice squad?
That’s what we’re working to resolve today, going through the roster by each position group and making our best guess at which players might make the cut next week. There’s still time for some guys on the bubble to strengthen their case, and others are still on the fringe.
For the practice squad, six spots are reserved for veteran players with two or more years of experience in the NFL; the other ten slots are for rookies and those with just one accrued season.
With a flurry of trades and veteran signings around the corner while dozens of players are released in the cut-down from 90 to 53, here’s where the Saints currently stand:
Quarterbacks (3)
- No. 4 Derek Carr
- No. 2 Jameis Winston
- No. 14 Jake Haener
- Roster cuts/practice squad: N/A
No changes here. Haener has improved each week, but it would have to take a very strong trade offer to pry Winston out of New Orleans.
Running backs (4)
- No. 30 Jamaal Williams
- No. 25 Kendre Miller
- No. 35 Ellis Merriweather
- No. 34 Darrel Williams
- Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 33 Kirk Merritt
- Reserve/suspended: No. 41 Alvin Kamara
Miller eased some concerns with a strong game against the Chargers. Merriweather is still ahead of Merritt, who could return to the practice squad once Kamara has served his three-game suspension, unless the Saints choose to kick Williams or Merriweather down to it.
Fullbacks (1)
- No. 46 Adam Prentice
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Roster cuts/practice squad:
No. 47 Jake Bargas
Prentice may have this in the bag.
Tight ends (4, plus 1)
- No. 83 Juwan Johnson
- No. 82 Foster Moreau
- No. 80 Jimmy Graham
- No. 7 Taysom Hill
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Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 87 Lucas Krull,
No. 81 Jesse James,No. 86 J.P. Holtz
Graham’s health is a big factor here, as it’ll decide whether the Saints carry three or four tight ends. Hopefully his apparent seizure was a one-off. Krull’s dropped passes likely take him out of contention for that fourth spot so he’s back on the practice squad instead.
Wide receivers (5, plus 3)
- No. 12 Chris Olave
- No. 13 Michael Thomas
- No. 22 Rashid Shaheed
- No. 17 A.T. Perry
- No. 84 Lynn Bowden (returns specialist)
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Roster cuts/practice squad:
No. 10 Tre’Quan Smith,No. 18 Keith Kirkwood,No. 11 Bryan Edwards, No. 88 Shaq Davis, No. 15 Kawaan Baker, No. 85 Jontre Kirklin
Smith hasn’t played a single snap through two preseason games or practiced in weeks after suffering an injury, and we know exactly how limited his skills set is. That’s probably not going to stop the Saints from keeping him on the 53-man roster anyway. They just can’t quit him. He’ll outlast us all. In this scenario, though, we’ve decided to call it quits.
A lot of fans were impressed by Davis catching 5 passes for 83 yards in the exhibition games and are worried he won’t clear waivers. Every team in the NFL has a couple of players they regard this way. It’ll be fine. Kirkwood has become a favorite of the coaching staff and, like J.T. Barrett, Austin Carr, Will Clapp, and Andy Tanner before him, may simply get a room key at the team hotel to stay nearby when they need him.
Bowden has been the best returns specialist in preseason, though safety Ugo Amadi has looked nice fielding punts. The Saints like to keep a dedicated returner on the roster early in the season so that could be enough for him to get a spot. Baker and Kirklin are both effective coverage players and either of them could wind up on the practice squad because of it.
Offensive tackles (3, plus 1)
- No. 70 Trevor Penning (left)
- No. 71 Ryan Ramczyk (right)
- No. 67 Landon Young (swing)
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Roster cuts/practice squad:
No. 72 Storm Norton (right), No. 66 Lewis Kidd (left),No. 61 Chuck Filiaga (right)
Young might not be healthy enough by the time the season starts, so it could be worth keeping Kidd or Norton on the roster to be safe. But either of them could be activated for Week 1 without any issue. You’d like to see depth improve here by adding a veteran blocker like Jason Peters as a mentor and insurance plan for Penning.
Offensive guards/centers (5, plus 3)
- No. 74 James Hurst (left guard)
- No. 78 Erik McCoy (center)
- No. 51 Cesar Ruiz (right guard)
- No. 75 Andrus Peat (left guard)
- No. 64 Nick Saldiveri (swing guard)
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Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 76 Calvin Throckmorton (swing guard),
No. 73 Max Garcia (center),No. 65 Alex Pihlstrom (center), No. 62 Tommy Kraemer (left guard), No. 68 Mark Evans II (right guard)
Look, this isn’t a good group. It’s about league-average, to be fair, but that’s beneath the Saints’ usual standards. Neither of the backup centers have been very effective. All of the backup guards have been penalty magnets, but Throckmorton’s starting experience would make it very unlikely he clears waivers to return to the practice squad. Can New Orleans roster six interior linemen? That’s not likely either with just three of them playing at a time and four or five dressing on game days.
The Saints badly need a talent infusion here behind the starters, and hopefully moving Hurst to left guard accomplishes that by bringing Peat off the bench with Saldiveri. For now we’ll look for safety in numbers on the practice squad.
Special teams (3)
- No. 5 Blake Gillikin (punter)
- No. 3 Wil Lutz (kicker)
- No. 49 Zach Wood (long snapper)
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Roster cuts/practice squad:
No. 39 Lou Hedley (punter),No. 19 Blake Grupe (kicker)
Gillikin has kind of regressed from what we’ve seen before, but rookie punter Lou Hedley hasn’t done enough to push him for a roster spot. All fans can really do is hope Gillikin gets his groove back. Lutz has had a spirited competition with Blake Grupe but the only way he isn’t on this roster if another team makes a compelling trade offer. Otherwise it isn’t worth making a move given how evenly both kickers have performed.
Defensive ends (5, plus 1)
- No. 94 Cameron Jordan (left)
- No. 96 Carl Granderson (right)
- No. 98 Payton Turner (right)
- No. 92 Tanoh Kpassagnon (left)
- No. 55 Isaiah Foskey (right)
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Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 54 Niko Lalos,
No. 93 Kyle Phillips
Phillips has performed admirably, and he deserves all the credit for capitalizing on Kansas City’s mistake in the first preseason game with a clutch interception. But Lalos has been sensational, and his three sacks against the Chargers punched his ticket for the practice squad — or another roster if he doesn’t clear waivers. It would be great to roster him, but the Saints only keep five defensive ends and often rest Kpassagnon or Turner (or this year, Foskey) as a healthy scratch with so few snaps to go around. There isn’t room for him given their investments at the position.
Defensive tackles (4, plus 1)
- No. 93 Nathan Shepherd
- No. 99 Khalen Saunders
- No. 90 Bryan Bresee
- No. 97 Malcolm Roach
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Roster cuts/practice squad:
No. 57 Prince Emili,No. 77 Jerron Cage, No. 95 Jack Heflin
The Saints have carried as few as three defensive tackles on the 53-man roster at times, so it’s going to be very tough for Heflin to unseat Roach for that fourth spot or open up a niche for himself as the fifth man. That’s just the numbers game, and it’s unfortunate, because he’s been maybe their most consistent interior pass rusher through two preseason games. As with Lalos, the XFL proved to be a great developmental opportunity for Heflin, and it shouldn’t shock anyone if he gets poached by another team.
Linebackers (6, plus 2)
- No. 56 Demario Davis
- No. 20 Pete Werner
- No. 59 Jaylon Smith
- No. 45 Nephi Sewell
- No. 43 Ryan Connelly
- No. 52 D’Marco Jackson
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Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 53 Zack Baun,
No. 42 Ty Summers, No. 58 Anfernee Orji,No. 40 Nick Anderson
This is a lot of linebackers for a team that only plays them two at a time, but it’s the established precedent for New Orleans. They’ve even rostered as many as seven of them in the past. It’s weird. But linebackers are key special teams players for the Saints, and that’s how guys like Sewell, Connelly, and Jackson have separated themselves.
It’s how Baun has gotten by, too, with the coaching staff refusing to give him opportunities to what he does best and rush the passer. Other linebackers on the team do more defensively while making just as many contributions in the kicking game. Another team should try and trade for Baun so they can at least save face for working so hard to move up for him back in 2020.
Safeties (6, plus 1)
- No. 32 Tyrann Mathieu
- No. 6 Marcus Maye
- No. 48 J.T. Gray
- No. 28 Lonnie Johnson Jr.
- No. 31 Jordan Howden
- No. 0 Ugo Amadi
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Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 24 Johnathan Abram,
No. 38 Smoke Monday
The depth chart appears set here through two preseason games: Mathieu and Maye play the majority of snaps, with Amadi making enough plays in the slot to at least back up Bradley Roby there. Howden has taken P.J. Williams’ role as the dime back. Johnson is a versatile corner-safety hybrid who can capably man both positions. Gray is an All-Pro special teams ace.
This is the deepest position on the team, and Abram would make the 53-man roster if one of the players above him were moved or otherwise unavailable (which, considering Maye is likely to be suspended three games at some point soon, may happen). Monday just hasn’t separated himself from the pack and may need to pursue other opportunities.
Cornerbacks (4, plus 3)
- No. 23 Marshon Lattimore
- No. 29 Paulson Adebo
- No. 1 Alontae Taylor
- No. 21 Bradley Roby
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Roster cuts/practice squad: No. 27 Isaac Yiadom,
No. 37 Troy Pride Jr., No. 44 Adrian Frye, No. 36 Anthony Johnson
Pride went into the second preseason game with a slight edge on Yiadom, but he was fouled a couple of times and Yiadom’s interception tipped the scales the other way. At the end of the day they’re competing for a spot on the practice squad while the Saints continue developing Frye and Johnson. If safety isn’t the strongest position on the depth chart, it’s cornerback.
Taylor’s poor performance covering the slot might suggest Adebo is going to remain the starter outside, but it’s too soon to say that with certainty (Adebo only played a handful of snaps against the Chargers and was still penalized after leading the team in fouls last season). The Saints want to get Taylor on the field and they might accept some bumps and bruises as he picks up a new position to accomplish it. This battle isn’t over just yet.
