Saints' Young Quarterbacks and Youth Shine At Day 8 Of Training Camp

Day 8 of Saints training camp saw the offense respond after the defense looked like they were going to make it another long day at first.

Day 8 of Saints Training Camp / Hendrix Media | Saints News Network

IRVINE -- After a day off and rest, the Saints were back at it on Friday for Day 8 of training camp. This was a good and physical practice for the team today, which saw the offense bounce back a little after the defense looked like it was going to have another big day. Here's all of my notes, observations and more from the practice session.

Today's recap is sponsored by FOCO. FOCO is a leading manufacturer of sports and entertainment merchandise, with a product line that includes apparel, accessories, toys, collectibles, novelty items, and more. You can score New Orleans Saints gear and save 10% off your purchase using the code SNN10 and going to the link here.

Saints Training Camp Recap - Day 8

Khalen Saunders / Hendrix Media | Saints News Network

Saints Training Camp Recaps

• Day 1 Notes | Video Recap | Pod
• Day 2 Notes | Video Recap | Pod
• Day 3 Notes | Video Recap | Pod
• Day 4 Notes | Video Recap | Pod
• Day 5 Notes | Video Recap | Pod
• Day 6 Notes | Video Recap | Pod
• Day 7 Notes | Video Recap | Pod

ATTENDANCE

Quite a few absences for Day 8, with the wide receiver room being nicked up. Cedrick Wilson Jr. (groin), Equanimeous St. Brown (hamstring), Bub Means (leg/shin), Demario Davis (hamstring), Nick Saldiveri (calf) and Trajan Jeffcoat (elbow) were not out there, as well as a new absence with rookie Jaylan Ford. Jermaine Jackson left practice today early with a lower right leg injury, which appeared to be hamstring related.

Bryan Bresee (foot) returned to practice, but did not participate in drills or team. Shane Lemieux was working off to the side with a trainer with his helmet, as well as Juwan Johnson. Johnson was doing a bit more jogging and has been trending in the right direction. The Saints offense will benefit a lot when he does get back into the lineup. Marshon Lattimore (hip flexor) and Kendre Miller (hamstring) were both observers of practice, but it was more in the early stages of walkthroughs and drills.

TRANSACTIONS: The Saints cut Nathan Peterman and brought in Samson Nacua, the older brother of Puka. He was out there in No. 89. New Orleans waived/injured Tommy Hudson and signed Marquez Callaway, and he was out there in No. 82. Dennis Allen said they know what they have in Callaway and that Nacua is physical and caught his eye with some blocking today.

QUARTERBACK PERFORMANCE

This was a Rattler over Haener day, and they now get a few extra reps without Peterman in the mix. Here's how each quarterback finished and how each team series went for everyone.

• Derek Carr: 9/15 (2/5, 2/2, 2/3, 2/3, 1/2)
• Spencer Rattler: 7/10, TD (2/4, 1/1, 1/1, 1/2, BONUS - 2/2)
• Jake Haener: 9/11, 2 TDs (2/3, 1/1, 2/2, 1/1, BONUS - 3/4)

TEAM SERIES ONE - RED ZONE

Derek Carr (2/5)

• 15-yard-line: Incomplete, short middle intended for Chris Olave. Khalen Saunders had the pass breakup at the line of scrimmage.
• 12-yard-line: Complete, sideline right. Flag on the play for ineligible receiver. Also, Nathan Shepherd had a sack on the play.
• 8-yard-line: Incomplete, sideline left intended for Dallin Holker (Tyrann Mathieu). Nathan Shepherd had the pressure on the play.
• 6-yard-line: Complete, right side short to Rashid Shaheed. Foster Moreau had a solid rep in pass protection on the play.
• 5-yard-line: Derek Carr keeper middle. Kendal Vickers had the pressure and stop. Taliese Fuaga had a solid rep against Chase Young in pass protection.
• 4-yard-line: Incomplete, throwaway. Chase Young had the sack.

Spencer Rattler (2/4)

• 15-yard-line: Complete, right side short to Chris Olave (Anfernee Orji). Payton Turner had the pressure on the play.
• 12-yard-line: Complete, flats right short to James Robinson (Anfernee Orji).
• 9-yard-line: Incomplete, middle end zone intended for Michael Jacobson (Anfernee Orji). Throw was off-target.
• 6-yard-line: Keeper right. Good coverage by Rezjohn Wright on the play and Cam Jordan and Nathan Shepherd had the pressure.
• 5-yard-line: Incomplete, middle end zone intended for Mason Tipton (Kool-Aid McKinstry). This was after a re-huddle and the Saints had great coverage on the play.

Jake Haener (2/3, 2 TDs)

• 4-yard-line: Complete, touchdown left to Mason Tipton (Rico Payton) on a post route.
• 15-yard-line: Incomplete, throwaway left end zone intended for Jesper Horsted (Lawrence Johnson). Kyler Baugh had pressure on the play.
• 6-yard-line: Complete, touchdown right side to Jesper Horsted (Ugo Amadi). Isaiah Foskey had pressure on the play.
• 4-yard-line: Keeper left, Isaiah Foskey with the pressure and sack. Haener did keep running and ended up getting into the end zone.

TEAM SERIES TWO

The offense ran these from the 40-yard-line to start, but also increased up to the 32 for some snaps. Derek Carr's first snap was a run left with Alvin Kamara that was stopped by Willie Gay Jr. and Carl Granderson. Taliese Fuaga had good run support on the play. Jamaal Williams got a handoff in the middle that he cut back on that was stopped by Pete Werner. Cam Jordan got stepped on during the play, but walked it off and stayed in. Carr's first pass was a good hookup to Chris Olave on the right side for an intermediate gain after a boot by Carr. Carl Granderson had a solid rep against Fuaga and pushed him back on the play.

The next play was a touch pass completion to Rashid Shaheed that he took to the left side for a decent gain. Carl Granderson was in a position to make the stop, and also Dallin Holker had a nice block on Pete Werner. The next play was a stretch right run to Alvin Kamara, who made a really nice juke to get free. Honestly, that might have been a 38-yard rushing touchdown. I don't think anyone was getting him. The final play was a run to the left with Jamaal Williams that went nowhere due to Alontae Taylor setting the edge and Willie Gay Jr. and Chase Young finishing him off.

Spencer Rattler's first snap was a run in the middle with Jordan Mims that D'Marco Jackson and Kool-Aid McKinstry stopped. There was also a flag on the play for a hold on the offense. Rattler came back with a big hookup to Chris Olave, who got wide open to the right side off some waggle action. James Robinson got an inside run to the left that saw Granderson put a good arm tackle on him. Robinson got it again on a stretch play to the right that got to the second level. The final play was a fake jet sweep that went right with Mims on a flip out that could have went for a 32-yard touchdown. He did a nice job to beat Shemar Jean-Charles.

Jake Haener's first snap was a middle run with James Robinson that Khristian Boyd stuffed. There was a false start before the next play, but then Haener hooked up on a good throw and catch to Stanley Morgan Jr. for a 21-yard gain working against Mac McCain. Isaiah Foskey had the pressure. Jacob Kibodi got a toss right on the next play that Anfernee Orji got a nice stop on. The final play was a James Robinson run inside that he bounced more to the middle, but it was a short gain due to a stop by Kyler Baugh and Anfernee Orji.

TEAM SERIES THREE

This started at the 35-yard-line and worked up to the 16-yard-line for Derek Carr's third series. It started with a nice deep sideline connection to Taysom Hill on the back shoulder. Taliese Fuaga had a strong rep against Carl Granderson. The Saints offense tried an end around to Chris Olave on the next play that Granderson blew up for a big tackle for loss. Jamaal Williams got a run inside for a short gain due to a combined Cam Jordan and Khalen Saunders stop.

The next throw was incomplete near the end zone on a deep left throw to Chris Olave. He tried to make a one-handed grab on it, and Paulson Adebo was flagged for interference on the play. Trevor Penning had a solid pass pro rep on Cam Jordan. Alvin Kamara got a stretch run to the right on the next play that Khristian Boyd and Pete Werner stopped. His final play was a middle hookup to Dallin Holker. Lucas Patrick did a nice job to come across for a block on the defender.

Rattler's series started with a hookup to Dallin Holker to the left, but was brought back due to an illegal shift by him. This also came after a re-huddle by the offense. The next play was an outside run to the left by James Robinson that was stopped by Anfernee Orji. Jordan Mims got a run to the right on the next play that saw Nathan Shepherd come in with a nice arm tackle for first contact and Carl Granderson cleaned it up for a tackle for loss. The final play saw Rattler get sacked with Payton Turner and Isaiah Foskey playing meet at the quarterback. He did take off afterwards.

Jake Haener got his series going with a short hookup to Michael Jacobson on a boot left. It was a nice throw on the run by him. He had a toss right to Jacob Kibodi on the next play that Anfernee Orji was in on for a tackle for loss. He hit Jacobson again for a short completion to the right that Monty Rice made a good hit/stop on. The final play was a Jacob Kibodi run to the left that got into the second level and had some thumping on the play with Lawrence Johnson losing his helmet in the process.

TEAM SERIES FOUR - RED ZONE

Derek Carr (2/3)

• 15-yard-line: Alvin Kamara run left to the second level.
• 11-yard-line: Jamaal Williams short run middle, Carl Granderson stop. Williams took exception to something on the play and was not happy with Granderson and continued to yell at him for a couple of minutes.
• 10-yard-line: Complete, Sideline right out to the 2-yard-line to Rashid Shaheed (Paulson Adbeo).
• 7-yard-line: Complete, Dump off right to Alvin Kamara (Pete Werner) with a Cam Jordan pressure/sack.
• 5-yard-line: Taysom Hill QB power up the middle. Nice hit by D'Marco Jackson and then Roderic Teamer coming in to help stop him, but Hill kept churning. Carr went split out to the right. It's the first time we've seen it.
• 3 yard-line: Incomplete, End zone left to Chris Olave. Shemar Jean-Charles made a nice play on the ball to help break it up. There was pressure on the play as well.

Spencer Rattler (1/2, TD)

• 15-yard-line: Incomplete, throwaway right. Flag on the play, as Cam Jordan was held by Oli Udoh.
• 11-yard-line: James Robinson short run right. D'Marco Jackson and Anfernee Orji combined for the stop.
• 9-yard-line: Jordan Mims outside left tackled for loss by Shemar Jean-Charles. Chase Young was also around the area to potentially make a play.
• 7-yard-line: Complete, touchdown back middle end zone to Dallin Holker (Jordan Howden). This was a pretty connection that saw Holker leap up over the middle to get the pass, secure it and get the offense a score. Chase Young was also coming on the play. Real good awareness and patience by Rattler.
• 5-yard-line: Jordan Mims short run middle. Chase Young got him first and then Khaleke Hudson came in for the big hit.

Jake Haener (1/1, TD)

• 3-yard-line: Complete, touchdown right to Michael Jacobson (Roderic Teamer). Pretty needle thread to Jacobson who also made a nice catch with outstretched hands on the play and then had the balance and awareness to get into the end zone from a weird angle.
• 10-yard-line: Jacob Kibodi short run left. Nice stop by Anfernee Orji.
• 7-yard-line: Jacob Kibodi short inside zone right (Niko Lalos).
• 4-yard-line: Designed QB draw up the middle for a touchdown. Kyler Baugh was close on the play.

Derek Carr (1/2)

• 10-yard-line: Complete, sideline right comeback route to Chris Olave (Alontae Taylor).
• 7-yard-line: Alvin Kamara short middle run (Khalen Saunders). Nice job by Saunders to blow this up, and on the play I saw Dallin Holker absolutely throw a heck of a block on Carl Granderson. I've seen few people get him off balance like that. They had some words following the play.
• 4-yard-line: Incomplete, sideline right intended for Mason Tipton (Paulson Adebo). He was out of bounds despite making the catch. We saw some jawing ater the play between Lucas Patrick, Taliese Fuaga and Cam Jordan.

BONUS SERIES

One of the things I noticed during the extra work is that assistant wide receivers coach Denarius McGhee was calling plays here. The first team were running and this continues to be a development period for many players. This series started on the 30-yard-line.

Rattler's first play was a toss right to Jacob Kibodi that went for a short gain with Anfernee Orji and Khaleke Hudson combining for the stop. He'd hit his two throws on the ensuing plays, a short completion over the middle to Jordan Mims that had Niko Lalos on him with pressure and then a completion to Dallin Holker for an intermediate gain to the right. Rattler did a nice job navigating the pocket on the first throw, and on the second one Isaiah Foskey did have a sack, but naturally it's allowed to play out. The final play was a Kibodi run to the left that had a huge hole open, but he either didn't see it or something was going on for him not to get there. Monty Rice had the stop.

Haener's first snap was an incompletion to Dallin Holker in the left flats. It was a low throw and not his best. He came back to hook up with Mason Tipton over the middle on a 23-yard gain for the next play. He then had a short completion to Jameson Robinson over the middle that Monty Rice and Khaleke Hudson stopped. Jacob Kibodi had a run the outside left on the next play that was stopped short by Orji, and the final play of practice was a short connection to Jesper Horsted off a bootleg left. Haener can make a good throw on the run.

1-ON-1 HIGHLIGHTS

A few throws stood out more than the others, but Kevin Austin Jr. got into the end zone twice, beating Rico Payton deep left for a touchdown from Jake Haener and then doing it against against Ugo Amadi via a Spencer Rattler pass.

A.T. Perry had a really solid bounce back day here. He went 3/4 and all of his reps were on Kool-Aid McKinstry. The only one he didn't get was an overthrow by Rattler. He made some nice jukes at the line and got passes from Rattler and Haener. He did get flagged on a back shoulder hookup, but it was good seeing Perry having that kind of response after a rather slow start to camp.

With the officials out there, we got to see more flags on how things played out. For instance, Rezjohn Wright had a hands to the face penalty working against Mason Tipton that led to an incompletion to the right. Newcomer Samson Nacua also had a solid rep against against Shemar Jean-Charles in which he ended up making a one-handed grab on a comeback route.

Marquez Callaway ended up finishing 3/4 on the day. Rashid Shaheed won all three of his reps, which were all against Paulson Adebo. Iron sharpens iron, as they say. Two plays that went a bit rough was a dropped touchdown in the end zone from Mason Tipton on a Rattler pass and then two plays later a drop by Stanley Morgan Jr. in the end zone from Rattler. He tried to get it with one hand, but just wasn't there. Tipton had another where he had one in and out of his hands on a comeback route.

LAGNIAPPE

• The officials were out at practice and will be here through Sunday. It's Ron Torbert's crew. Dennis Allen said that he wants them to call things pretty tight while they're here.
• The Saints were holding some tryouts prior to practice, which appeared to be for the tight end room. We'll see if anything comes of it.
• Kendre Miller really needs to get back onto the field. It's becoming evident that Jordan Mims is playing well and threatening for a spot right now.
• Thought Jake Haener, Spencer Rattler, Dallin Holker and Anfernee Orji had solid practices. This might have been Haener's best.
• Allen on Jahri Evans going into the Saints Ring of Honor. “Jahri’s a stud.” He said people don’t understand how good of a guard he really was. “I don’t think anybody protected the interior of the pocket better than Jahri did.”
• Jake Haener is going to have a procedure on his face for the skin cancer on Monday. Allen's expectation is that he's back on Wednesday.
• Allen praised Alontae Taylor, saying that he's leaps and bounds better than where he was at last year and that he’s embraced the slot role. The best thing he has seen from Taylor is ‘A want to and a willingness to do the job we’re wanting him to do.’
• Wide receivers were using rugby balls during drills, something that Ross Jackson wrote about previously.
• Honed in on the defense more today, and it's hard not to notice how much power Chase Young has in his drills. Everything I've been told from inside the building is all positive and that he's really impressed a lot of people.
• Allen had a pretty good tone setter during walkthroughs with the linebackers and secondary. The defense needs to know all the routes when they go through these, especially when they run them to simulate the offense. He made it a point to call some players out.
• Charlie Smyth handling field goals today, finishing 3/4 in each frame. He's now 22/27 from camp. He had makes from extra point, 37, 41, extra point, 44 and 44. He missed his first kick, an extra point and then later missed from 59, as he was wide left.
• It was a Matt Hayball punting day, and he got off some nice boots. Here's his hang times: 4.05, 4.15, 4.44, 4.37, 4.36, 4.70, 4.63, 4.50, 4.63, 3.75 (went out of bounds) and 4.24. The final punt saw the punt team have a flase start. He gets some good distance out there and changes direction on his kicks (helicopter) when he's trying to pin opponents inside their own territory.
• Kick returners were Rashid Shaheed, Jermaine Jackson (until he got hurt), Taysom Hill and Alontae Taylor. Ugo Amadi, Rashid Shaheed, Marquez Callaway, Mason Tipton and Chris Olave all fielded punts.

The Saints will be back at it on Saturday with another padded practice, and we'll break down everything on our Second And Saints show for you to check out.