Saints Minicamp: Day 1 Takeaways and Observations

What went down at Saints minicamp on Day 1? Here's all of our notes and observations from Tuesday's practice.

Saints minicamp hit the ground running on Tuesday, with the team having their first of three practices. New Orleans mostly worked on some situational football today, and we got some pretty good action on the day. Here's all of my notes and observations from practice.

Saints Minicamp Notes and Observations - Day 1

ATTENDANCE

Among those not spotted today included Rashid Shaheed, Cesar Ruiz, and Anthony Johnson. Dennis Allen said after practice that Shaheed is dealing with a groin injury. He also missed last week's OTAs. Kendre Miller, Eno Benjamin, Nick Saldiveri, Trevor Penning, and Miller Forristall were among those present, but not participating. Cam Jordan did not appear to be participating in team drills today, but was present for stretches.

Among the newest faces trying out during Saints training camp include wide receivers Keke Coutee and Lynn Bowden Jr. Pat Elflein was supposed to be in attendance as a try-out, but is waiting for a better opportunity. Michael Thomas was present for stretching and was out on the field some, getting some good work in with Derek Carr.

FAMILIAR FACE IN THE HOUSE

Ted Ginn Jr. was out at practice, and he's here helping with the wide receiver room during minicamp. Dennis Allen said they'll see whether or not he'll be back for training camp, but pointed out him being a veteran presence that's played for the team that understands how they do things.

TAYSOM TIME 

Taysom Hill is going to fill a lot of different roles this year. He was with the quarterbacks and tight ends, even getting reps in 7-on-7. Dennis Allen said, "He's going to get getting quarterback work. He's going to be getting tight end work. He'll be a move guy for us. He'll have some of the quarterback run stuff that we do with him. We'll work with him in the passing game." Hill was also the primary personal punt protector during drills.

ROTATION LOOKS 

Offensively, the Saints rolled with James Hurst, Andrus Peat, Erik McCoy, Calvin Throckmorton, and Ryan Ramczyk along the offensive line. The second pairing consisted of Landon Young, Lewis Kidd, Alex Pihlstrom, Yasir Durant, and Storm Norton. Without Shaheed in the picture, Keith Kirkwood and Tre'Quan Smith worked with the first-team more.

Defensively, New Orleans was working out of a Dime look with a three-man front. The team was focusing on some last-minute game situations guarding the sideline and deep shots. They rolled out a look with Payton Turner, Nathan Shepherd, and Carl Granderson on the defensive line. Demario Davis and Pete Werner were at linebacker, with the secondary consisting of Paulson Adebo and Marshon Lattimore on the outside, but also including Tyrann Mathieu, Jordan Howden, and Marcus Maye. Smoke Monday also rotated in with the first-team defense.

CARR IMPRESSED BY KAMARA 

“I just absolutely love him," Derek Carr said on Alvin Kamara. "Great teammate, great energy about him, and very explosive. He’s so smooth on film, you really just don’t know how good he is. Obviously you see the film, but then when you get in person, he ran a couple routes where I looked at Jake (Haener) today like, ‘Bro, that’s not normal."

Carr added, “Just being around him just for a little bit in the building, people don’t know how smart he is at football, he knows what to see, he knows what route to run, he knows how to use his help, that combined with his athletic ability, you see why he’s had that production.” 

CARR-THOMAS CONNECTION

There was a period where Derek Carr and Michael Thomas were working off to the side on some backshoulder throws. Carr said the connection has been unbelievable so far. He was very complimentary of his strong hands and pointed it out as a reason why he's so good at contested catches. He also talked about his mentality, having a killer instinct.

QB PERFORMANCE

Derek Carr went 5-of-6 in 7-on-7 and 1-of-4 in team (more on that shortly). Jameis Winston finished 4-of-4 and 0-of-2 with a pick. Taysom Hill got two reps in 7-on-7, completing both of his passes.

LATTIMORE IMPACT

Marshon Lattimore had a pass breakup on the very first play of 7-on-7's, which is something you love to see. Getting him back in the mix is really important, and as Mickey Loomis mentioned the other week that the team is counting on him and Thomas to return to form.

TOUGH SITUATIONAL OFFENSE 

New Orleans worked in their two-minute offense to close out team drills today, and it didn't go all that well. Derek Carr's series saw him go 1-of-4, with two passes being dropped by Tre'Quan Smith. It was an ugly sequence. Carr had Smith over the middle working against Demario Davis, but the pass was dropped. The next play saw him try Jamaal Williams, but the ball was thrown at his feet with Tyrann Mathieu in coverage. Carr then threw a strike to Smith deep over the middle that was dropped working against Davis again.

For the Jameis Winston series, it went for just two plays. The first pass was a drop by Foster Moreau, and the second pass intended for Shaq Davis was picked off by Ugo Amadi to put the field goal team on the field. These things happen, so let's see what the response is like on Wednesday.

KICKER BATTLE HEATING UP

Wil Lutz continued to look good on the day, but Blake Grupe also stepped in to put on a nice showing to close out practice. We are heading towards a legitimate kicking battle in training camp. Even if Grupe can't get the job, there might be a few teams interested when the time comes. Of course, we want to see more.