Saints reunite DL coach Ryan Nielsen with one of his N.C. State proteges

The New Orleans Saints signed free agent DT T.Y. McGill, reuniting coach Ryan Nielsen with one of his former students at N.C. State.

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A huge part of the New Orleans Saints’ recent success was the wave of changes to the coaching staff back in February 2017, when Saints coach Sean Payton made the tough but necessary decision to part ways with longtime assistants like linebackers coach Joe Vitt and defensive line coach Bill Johnson. Other developments followed as Payton scoured his staff looking for areas that needed improvement, even though many of the coaches he had to fire had been with him since he first came to New Orleans.

In their place, he went looking for teachers. And he found a great one in defensive line coach Ryan Nielsen, who had held that post with the North Carolina State Wolfpack since 2014. He was twice nominated for the Broyles Award, which recognizes the nation’s top assistant coach; former Saints coach Joe Brady won it this year for his impact on the LSU Tigers offense.

Nielsen recruited and coached up a unit that included multiple future NFL players, including four who would be picked in the first four rounds of the 2018 NFL Draft: Bradley Chubb (Denver Broncos), B.J. Hill (New York Giants), Justin Jones (Los Angeles Chargers), and Kentavius Street (San Francisco 49ers).

What all of these players have in common — and what Nielsen has instilled in the Saints’ defensive line — is sound technique that’s been refined after years of training. He teaches his players to engage opponents by striking them in their chest pads, translating skills from the weight room (specifically the bench press) to the practice field. It’s done wonders for inexperienced athletes the Saints have brought in over the last few years, like David Onyemata and Marcus Davenport (each of whom only really picked up playing football on defense in college).

On Wednesday, the Saints reunited Nielsen with one of his former students by signing journeyman defensive tackle T.Y. McGill. McGill was a senior on the 2014 squad Nielsen joined, functioning as the leading voice in the room that younger teammates like Chubb and Hill looked up to. McGill flourished under Nielsen’s coaching, racking up a career-best eight tackles for loss and three sacks before signing with the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted rookie. He’s since spent time with nearly a dozen teams while trying to find his way in the NFL.

Now they’ll get the chance to work together again, and Nielsen can put his one-time protege through a week of practice in New Orleans before Monday’s game with the Indianapolis Colts. McGill will probably be competing with second-year pro Taylor Stallworth (who is on the practice squad after playing 365 snaps last season) to dress for this week’s kickoff, so he’ll need to rely on every tool and lesson Nielsen once taught him to keep his NFL career going strong.

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First injury report for Chargers ahead of matchup vs. Vikings

Here is a look at the first injury report of the week for the Los Angeles Chargers and Minnesota Vikings.

The Los Angeles Chargers concluded their first practice ahead of their matchup against the Minnesota Vikings on Wednesday.

Here is a look at today’s injury report:

There were zero non-participants, which is a very good sign for a team that was banged up earlier on in the season.

Linebacker Uchenna Nwosu (ankle) and wide receiver Mike Williams (knee) were the only players that practiced in a limited capacity.

Here’s a look at the Vikings’ injury report:

Wide receiver Adam Thielen is expected to return to the lineup this weekend after missing the past four games with a hamstring injury.

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Lu Dort providing OKC with valuable defensive minutes during roadtrip

With Terrance Ferguson sidelined due to injury, Thunder rookie Lu Dort has stepped up to play the role of defensive stopper.

Oklahoma City is down to Dort.

The Thunder rookie provided OKC with valuable minutes during the team’s 104-90 win over the Utah Jazz on Monday. With Terrance Ferguson still sidelined with hip soreness, Dort played the role of defensive stopper against the Jazz and guard Donovan Mitchell.

Monday’s game was just the third appearance for the Thunder by the two-way player. Dort did spend the preseason with Oklahoma City but has spent the majority of his time since October in the NBA’s G-League with the OKC Blue.

As such, there isn’t a lot of film available for teams to study, and as Maddie Lee of The Oklahoman pointed out when Dort was matched up against Mitchell, the Jazz guard didn’t seem to know what to do.

The third-year point guard suddenly lunged forward, shifting side to side. Dort backpedaled with deliberate steps.

Mitchell crossed to his left and drove to the basket. Dort shuffled in lockstep. Until they reached the free throw line. Mitchell raised his right forearm and knocked Dort to the ground. Dort didn’t get the offensive foul call, but an off-balance Mitchell air-balled the scoop shot.

Billy Donovan has gone to Dort out of necessity. As previously mentioned, Ferguson on with the team on the road trip but has not played, Hamidou Diallo is out with an elbow sprain, and on Monday night, Danilo Gallinari couldn’t go due to an ankle injury.

Dort has scored much in either of the last two games, scoring just two against Portland and nine against Utah while picking up six and four personal fouls, respectively. But he’s drawn tough defensive assignments, and his teammates have seen the value that Dort has been able to bring.

“I mean, Dort,” Thunder guard Dennis Schröder said, “he did a great job just pursuing, making him (Mitchell) uncomfortable. It was a great team effort as well, but Lu, he deserved that one. And he scored as well.”

Oklahoma City continues their road trip on Wednesday night when Dort and the Thunder take on the Kings in Sacramento. Tip-off is at 9 p.m. CT.