Saints Training Camp: Who Will Secure the Offensive Tackle Spots?

Who gets the start at each tackle position and if Trevor Penning comes along are two of the biggest questions the Saints have during training camp.

May 11, 2024; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga (75) looks on during the rookie minicamp at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Just one day separates us from the veterans reporting to Saints training camp. Saints News Network will be out in California to provide coverage for the whole duration, so be sure to stay tuned for all the latest and greatest. New Orleans officially starts practicing on Wednesday, and their first padded practice comes on July 30.

As training camp approaches, we wrap up our offensive preview for the Saints by looking at the tackle spot, which sees both the left and right starting job up for grabs.

Saints Position Previews: Quarterback | Running Back | Wide Receiver | Tight End | Interior Offensive Line

Saints Training Camp Position Preview - Offensive Tackle

Sep 24, 2023; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Trevor Penning (70) during warmups prior to the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports / Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Depth Chart: Trevor Penning, Taliese Fuaga, Landon Young, Oli Udoh, Justin Herron, Josiah Ezirim

Biggest Storyline: Will Trevor Penning Put Things Together?

Next to what happens with Alvin Kamara, this is one of the biggest storylines of Saints training camp. Trevor Penning was given a clean slate and fresh start entering this season, and the early progress has been praised by the coaching staff.

Penning got some work in with Duke Manyweather during the offseason, something he's done in the past. Some of Manyweather's insight is interesting, as he answered a fan in mid-October on if he could be fixed.

"Penning is actually a good example of what I was talking about yesterday! He is a big and athletic dude with bad intentions, sometimes coaches almost over coach those type of guys because they think they have a higher ceiling, what I’ve seen work, is you let those guys do what they do and self-organize. As a coach you fine tune and help them make it as efficient as possible so that they can replicate it! The more shi*t you pile on, the further you get them away from their “super power”

New offensive line coach John Benton said that the plan was to move Penning to right tackle even before they picked Taliese Fuaga. He's stressed athleticism as a significant trait the linemen need to have for the offense the Saints are installing.

"Everything is very positive so far (with Penning)," Benton said at minicamp. "He's experienced some bad luck, (but) we're 18 days into it he has been at every practice, every training session. He's healthy, he feels good. I thought he looked good (Tuesday). I think all arrows are up on Trevor right now, and just keep that going."

For Penning's sake, the Saints need him to be the player they drafted this season, regardless of what spot he goes in. He's one of the most important players watch in camp.

Biggest Camp Battle: Either Tackle Spot

Since we got a concrete answer on Ryan Ramczyk this year, things can officially move forward. His outlook was doubtful to begin with, and his football future is in jeopardy. We'd honestly be surprised if we ever see him play football ever again. His unavailability coupled with James Hurst retiring and Andrus Peat leaving in free agency leaves both tackle spots open for the Saints.

Trevor Penning and Taliese Fuaga are obviously the frontrunners for both spots, but who goes where is to be determined in the evaluation process. We won't overlook the others on the roster, as Landon Young has played all over the line for the Saints and started in four contests last season to go along with three seasons of strong availability. Justin Herron appeared in a good bit of games in his first two seasons with the Patriots, but injuries have plagued him in the past two years with the Raiders. We previously highlighted Oli Udoh in the interior preview, and the team closed out their draft by taking Josiah Ezirim at 239th overall in Round 7.

Wild Card: Taliese Fuaga

New Orleans used their first-round pick to take Taliese Fuaga at 14th overall, who we assumed was going to plug in at right tackle, but Dennis Allen said that the team knew he could play there already and opted to swap him to left tackle. We'll be curious to see if he moves any during training camp, but the foreseeable future shows him protecting Derek Carr's blindside.

Fuaga is solid and should perform admirably at the next level, but it's just a matter of where.

Early Roster Projection

We'll give Penning and Fuaga the benefit of the doubt of making the roster of course, and beyond that we'll stick with Landon Young due to his versatility and experience. As I pointed out in the interior offensive line piece, whoever can show some versatility ends up making it in here, and that's why I'd have to go with Oli Udoh.

One other possibility is the Saints bringing in someone else to the mix during training camp. It could happen at every position, but there's obviously some real importance of getting the tackle spots right this year. The days of seeing an offensive line go the distance for a full season just doesn't happen, and if the Saints can't get the results and development needed early, they could turn here. Let's just hope it's not too late in the process.