For the past few months, I’ve heard quite a bit about the AI information bot known as ChatGPT. It was the subject of an episode during this past season of “South Park”. More importantly, I’ve heard how it’s such a game-changer that writing jobs are done for. We’ll see about that as I’m not too worried about it, but then again, I’m sure newspaper employees said the same thing about the internet in the mid-1990s.
When our editor Nick Shepkowski decided to ask ChatGPT what it thought Notre Dame’s 10 best football players were, I decided to follow suit and ask the same question but for the 10 best men’s basketball players instead. Keep in mind that even the bot knows this list is subjective:
“Please note that there are many other outstanding players who have played for Notre Dame and could also be included on this list.”
So keep that in mind as you go over the following list, which also includes ChatGPT’s description of each player:
Well, that’s odd. The New Orleans Saints released veteran long snapper John Denney and free agent kicker Blair Walsh to their practice just one day after both players were signed to the practice squad. Saints coach Sean Payton explained the additions as emergency contingencies should their starters be unavailable for the playoffs, which is possible given the unpredictability of COVID-19. So what gives?
There are a couple of possible reasons for the quick turnaround. Bringing the players into the facility often requires them to be tested for the coronavirus along with everyone else each day, keeping their records up to date and easing the time limit for their activation should an absence pop up at the last minute. It’s likely that both Walsh and Denney will be reported to visit the team facility again in the days leading up New Orleans’ Divisional Round game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers so that their testing history remains accurate.
And as for the quick sign-and-release: this may have been done to guarantee both players receive a pay check for the week as members of the practice squad, even if they were technically only on the roster for a day. Both of them are in town practicing away from their teammates in quarantine, so it makes sense to find a way to pay them for their time (within the framework of the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement, of course).
So keep an eye out for more transactions involving these two. Other changes to the practice squad reported on the daily transactions wire for Wednesday included the release of wide receiver Jake Lampman, while three players were re-signed: defensive tackle Anthony Zettel, and wide receivers Austin Carr and Jake Kumerow.
The New Orleans Saints activated safety D.J. Swearinger from COVID-19 reserve and shuffled their practice squad for the postseason.
The New Orleans Saints filed a number of roster moves on the daily NFL transactions wire Monday evening, including the return of veteran safety D.J. Swearinger from the league’s COVID-19 reserve list. But the team also brought in emergency options for their specialists, like kicker Blair Walsh and long snapper John Denney.
The New Orleans Saints called up practice squad wide receivers Juwan Johnson, Austin Carr, and Tommylee Lewis for Week 8 against the Bears.
With absences mounting in the receiving corps, the New Orleans Saints made a handful of roster moves in the leadup to Sunday’s matchup with the Chicago Bears. They called up a trio of wide receivers from their practice squad as well as a reserve offensive lineman, which makes sense with starting right guard Nick Easton still sidelined by an Oct. 12 concussion.
Still, it will take everything this group has got to help replace Michael Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, and Marquez Callaway, leaving Tre’Quan Smith and Deonte Harris as the most-experienced receivers left on the active roster. Here’s a quick run-down of the latest Saints roster moves:
Both wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders and cornerback Ken Crawley were placed on the COVID-19 reserve list this week, prompting the New Orleans Saints to promote a pair of wide receivers from the practice squad: veteran Austin Carr and rookie Juwan Johnson. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill first reported the roster moves.
Per an NFL rules tweak, these will not count against each other player for future promotions (the new CBA allows for two practice squad call-ups per player each season). Because they are filling in for teammates on COVID-19 reserve, both players are granted a temporary exemption. Carr has already had one game-week promotion so he is still allowed one more, while Johnson retains both of his future opportunities.
Johnson was signed by the Saints as an undrafted rookie out of Oregon, where the 6-foot-4, 231 pounder struggled to stay healthy after transferring from Penn State. He impressed with his blocking in training camp and was quickly signed to the practice squad after roster cuts.
Additionally, the Saints signed backup guard Will Clapp to the 53-man roster after losing wide receiver Bennie Fowler to injured reserve with a shoulder injury. Clapp has been signed, released, and re-signed six times this year as he bounces between the practice squad and active roster.
And the Saints may not be finished yet. They can call up two more practice squad players as typical game-day roster additions, but they could wait until pregame warmups on Sunday to decide whether more help is needed. So stay tuned for updates.
The New Orleans Saints benched prominent rookies TE Adam Trautman and DT Malcolm Roach for Monday night’s game with the Los Angeles Chargers
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The big headlines for the New Orleans Saints inactive list are the names dressing out: starters including defensive end Marcus Davenport, cornerback Marshon Lattimore, tight end Jared Cook, and left guard Andrus Peat will join their teammates on the field at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome against the Los Angeles Chargers.
But what’s a little more interesting is who didn’t dress for this Week 5 prime-time game. Two prominent rookies, tight end Adam Trautman and defensive tackle Malcolm Roach, are each healthy scratches. Trautman has been playing often and led the team in snaps played at tight end just two weeks ago, but he’ll be replaced on Monday night by practice squad call-up Garrett Griffin. Roach, one of two rookies to play 100-plus snaps in the first four games, is also taking a backseat to last year’s breakout Shy Tuttle.
Additionally, the Saints are activating wide receiver Austin Carr from the practice squad. Returns specialist Deonte Harris was ruled out with a hamstring injury, and while the logical choice to replace him on punts and kickoffs would be rookie wideout Marquez Callaway — one of the best punt returners in college football the last few years — the Saints may have liked what they’ve seen out of Carr better in practice. He’s rehearsed the role with Callaway and Harris before.
If nothing else, maybe he’s a buffer between Alvin Kamara and the kicking game should Callaway make a mistake. The Saints shouldn’t be putting their most important player in the kicking game. We’ll find out at kickoff in just an hour or so.
The New Orleans Saints signed veteran slot receiver Austin Carr to their practice squad, making him the ninth wide receiver on their team.
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Things are very much in flux for rosters around the NFL as teams tweak their depth charts and work last-minute deals before the start of the regular season. That activity extends to the New Orleans Saints, who brought veteran slot receiver Austin Carr back to their practice squad. The Saints reported the move on the daily NFL transactions wire.
Carr will occupy one of the final two available spots on the 16-man practice squad; the Saints previously announced deals with 14 additions. He will also be the ninth wide receiver in New Orleans, including five players listed on the 53-man roster. The full list:
Michael Thomas (roster)
Emmanuel Sanders (roster)
Tre’Quan Smith (roster)
Deonte Harris (roster)
Marquez Callaway (roster)
Lil’Jordan Humphrey (practice squad)
Bennie Fowler (practice squad)
Juwan Johnson (practice squad)
Austin Carr (practice squad)
Carr, a 26-year old slot specialist, has appeared in 23 games with the Saints since 2017 (including the playoffs). He’s totaled 11 catches on 19 targets, gaining 111 receiving yards while converting 6 first downs and scoring a pair of touchdown receptions. He appeared in six games for the Saints last season before his year ended on injured reserve, averaging a career-high 33 snaps per game.
It’s a sign of greatly improved depth in the receiving corps that Carr didn’t make the team after training camp, but keeping him on the practice squad as a reserve option isn’t a bad idea. He’s seen more NFL action than many free agents available right now, and already knows the Saints playbook. If they run into injuries or absences due to COVID-19, the Saints could do worse than calling him up again.
The New Orleans Saints had just one spot left on their 90-man offseason roster, leading to some fun speculation among fans. Would the team use that vacancy to target one of the many veterans out there in free agency, going for broke on another pass rusher like Everson Griffen or Jadeveon Clowney?
No, it turns out. ESPN’s Field Yates reported Thursday that the Saints re-signed veteran slot receiver Austin Carr, which the team confirmed to be a one-year deal. Carr will be the thirteenth receiver to compete for five or six roster spots in training camp later this summer.
While he’s played often in his first three years with the team (averaging 22 snaps per game), Carr has rarely gotten open and drawn just 19 targets, including the postseason. He’s parlayed those opportunities into 11 catches to gain 111 receiving yards, scoring two touchdowns and converting six first downs.
We’ll see if Carr is able to make the roster again in 2020. He faces steep competition, but carries an edge as someone experienced in the Saints’ system. That could give him a leg up over undrafted rookie free agents like Oregon’s Juwan Johnson or Tennessee’s Marquez Callaway.
The dust has settled on the sprint to the start of the new league year, and the New Orleans Saints were the only team in the NFL to activate a first-round restricted free agent tender — and they issued it to backup quarterback Taysom Hill.
While a few other teams around the league did use second-round tenders, the majority of qualifying players received original round-level tenders or nothing at all. That was the case for the other Saints restricted free agents, with offensive lineman Cameron Tom, wide receiver Austin Carr, and cornerback Justin Hardee each testing the open market (long snapper Zach Wood agreed to a four-year contract extension).
As for their exclusive-rights free agents: only All-Pro special teams ace J.T. Gray was tendered, with both linebacker Colton Jumper and wide receiver Keith Kirkwood allowed to look for other offers. The decision to let Kirkwood go is disappointing given the hype he earned in training camp last summer, but a yearlong hamstring injury kept him off the field for much of the 2019 season.
That said, Kirkwood’s chances of turning it around aren’t over just yet. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill reports that Kirkwood could re-sign with the Saints, just not at the rate his exclusive-rights tender would have qualified for.
It’s time for the New Orleans Saints to make contract decisions on restricted free agents like Taysom Hill, Justin Hardee, and Austin Carr.
Many New Orleans Saints players are set to enter unrestricted free agency, giving them the opportunity to negotiate with new teams and potentially land a big payday. However, five of their teammates are going into March’s signing period with restricted free agency status. Here’s what that means.
Restricted free agents can negotiate with other teams, but their current squad can claim the right of first refusal through exercising one of several different one-year contract tenders. But the ability to match contract offers comes with a price.
The latest projections from Over The Cap suggest tender values in the range of $4,667,000 (for first-round pick compensation) to $3,278,000 (second-round pick compensation), and $2,144,000 (for original-round draft pick compensation). Those totals are fully-guaranteed against the salary cap.
New Orleans doesn’t have a good history with restricted free agency. They have only used the lowest tender level in recent memory, and rarely matched opposing contract offers. They let wide receiver Willie Snead leave uncontested when the Baltimore Ravens signed him to a two-year, $7 million deal in 2018. Backup tight end Josh Hill signed a three-year, $7.5 million offer sheet with the Chicago Bears in 2016, but the Saints matched it and extended him again in 2018.
They didn’t even tender defensive tackle Tyrunn Walker back in 2015, despite it only costing about $1.54 million at the time and Walker having shown some rare bright spots in a historically-bad defense (the Detroit Lions signed him to a one-year, $1.75 million deal, and re-upped him the next season). He’s an example of a player the Saints hoped they could keep on a veteran’s minimum salary, which is obviously a riskier option.
But things are projecting differently in 2020. There’s a good chance the Saints exercise one of the more-valuable tender options; in fact, they may have to. They could also work out long-term contract extensions if they so choose; Saints kicker Wil Lutz did just that last year, when he was a restricted free agent. Here are the five Saints players that qualify, and what the team should do with each of them.
Justin Hardee, cornerback
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Hardee’s had an interesting career path, and now he’s one of the Saints’ central special teams aces. He plays often on the punt and kickoff units, and led the team in snaps played in the game’s third phase (362) last season, outpacing even Craig Robertson (324) and Taysom Hill (286). He’s someone the Saints coaches have invested years of development in, and should definitely try to keep around for the future.
The question they have to ask now is how much Hardee’s contributions are worth. He doesn’t play defense (just 37 snaps logged last season) and is still learning the position’s finer points after entering the NFL as a wide receiver. He can’t be counted on just yet to be a top backup behind Marshon Lattimore and Janoris Jenkins. But his presence on special teams speaks for itself, and the Saints might do well to sign him to the lowest contract tender, then wait and see whether the market can set a price on his long-term contract value.
