Saints Coach Innovating Game Simulation Techniques To Better Prepare Players

New Orleans Saints running backs coach Derrick Foster introduces new drills, adjusts on the fly to better prepare his ball-carriers for in-game action.

May 11, 2024; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints running backs coach Derrick Foster gives direction during rookie minicamp at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

With new faces come new innovations, and the New Orleans Saints found a pioneer in running backs coach Derrick Foster. All over training camp, creative and unique game prep drills can be spotted. Tight ends coach Clancy Barone keeps his group on their toes by constantly cycling drills to better mimic game flows. Wide receivers coach Keith Williams uses rugby balls to help players develop their hands. Quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko scaffolds his quarterback drills like a Ph. D. physics professor. Foster has developed unique ways to emphasize player preparation through drills focused on simulating the game.

There is no better way to replicate the speed at which a running back experiences a play developing in front of him than to have them actually running through gaps in practice. However, that is tough to create and present during individual drills while the offensive line is on the opposite side of the field doing their own workouts. So Foster went to the drawing board and introduced a new-to-the-Saints drill.

Dig this new (to the Saints) RB drill the #Saints are running at camp. pic.twitter.com/L23fYOp5Pa

— Ross Jackson (@RossJacksonNOLA) July 24, 2024

"I just kind of want to implement something that will kind of give you the idea of having three different rush lanes," Foster told Saint News Network. "Some people talk about bounce, bang, bend, cut back lanes, keeping the backside, jump cuts and all this kind of stuff. And you got different lanes. So I want to simulate those in game type of decisions and practice the best way I can."

Foster then took things a step further in day two of training camp. After using three gaps as seen above, the coach adjusted the drill to just two gaps and introduced the handoff/mesh point.

Another RB gap drill, this time two gaps with handoffs. pic.twitter.com/mEYkK9n0tl

— Ross Jackson (@RossJacksonNOLA) July 25, 2024

The mesh point references the point at which the ball is exchanged from the quarterback to the running back in a handoff. It is a fundamental part of the game that gets taken for granted but has to be worked. Foster likened the practice to free throws and layup lines in the NBA. That exchange may seem simple, but a fumbled exchange late in a game with small lead could be a striking blow to a team's chance to win.

The reason for the adjustment from three gaps to two was connected to the previous day's practice. "The first day we didn't have a really good rep at running inside zone tracks," Foster said. "And so I wanted to take out one of the shoots (the red gates under which the backs are running) and I wanted to go back to day one and work on making sure that (the back's) shoulders were square. I wanted to make sure that we weren't just focusing on the read keys, but making sure we were focusing on the footwork and the technique of the of the drill."

Foster has an undeniably clear vision in his work. Fitting for a running backs coach. He incorporates all of these intriguing and nuances drills, but does so with their value to the players in mind first and foremost. It can very easily be seen the benefit of him being a former player. His ability to "read and react", if you will, to the work being done the previous day and then provide drills that work on identified issues shows an initiative and awareness to his players' needs that is surely appreciated.

Foster helped former Los Angeles Chargers running back Austin Ekeler amass 44 total touchdowns from 2021 to 2023, the most in the NFL during that time. Clearly his attention to detail had an impact on the west coast. Now he is paired with one of the league's best dynamic threats at the position in running back Alvin Kamara. The hope is that he will bring a similar impact to the Big Easy.