Tag: Nick Saldiveri

Saints’ offensive line experiencing a youth movement in 2024

The New Orleans Saints new scheme prioritizes offensive line’s athleticism. This shift coincides with a drop in the unit’s average age:

The New Orleans Saints offensive line is going through a youth movement. By their scheme, it is necessary. Trevor Penning highlighted Klint Kubiak’s wide zone scheme for utilizing the athleticism of the offensive line. That change of direction has also coincided with the unit getting much younger. Not every change can be tied scheme, but it does feel like an intentional shift.

Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz are the only returning starters from last season. Trevor Penning is excluded because he spent most of the season on the bench. The offensive line’s average age drops from 28.2 to 24.6 years old. Even if Shane Lemieux starts at left guard ahead of Nick Saldiveri, the average age only rises to 25.2, which would still be a 3-year drop from last year’s average age.

James Hurst was the oldest player on the line last year, and he simply didn’t fit the new offensive scheme Kubiak is installing. He was the one player who needed to be replaced. New Orleans has always valued athleticism, so the pieces were already there. Of the new starters, first round pick Taliese Fuaga is the only one who wasn’t on the roster in 2023. His experience in a similar scheme, however, may provide one of the smoother transitions to Kubiak’s offense.

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Nick Saldiveri taking all first-team reps in Saints left guard competition

Nick Saldiveri was viewed as a future starter at guard when the Saints drafted him last year. He’s taking charge of the competition early at OTAs:

Nick Saldiveri seems to be in the lead in the New Orleans Saints left guard battle, for now. James Hurst retiring before the NFL draft and Andrus Peat leaving in free agency meant the Saints would need a new starting left guard. But this would have been a move the Saints should have considered even if Hurst didn’t retire. The new scheme requires more mobility than Hurst has shown. Insert Saldiveri.

In the second day of organized team activities open to local media, the second-year pro took all the first team snaps at left guard, per Locked On Saints host Ross Jackson. This was a departure from the approach seen the week prior. Last week, Saldiveri and Shane Lemieux split time in the starting lineup. Saldiveri taking all first team reps suggests he’s ahead of Lemieux, at least for the moment.

The Saints haven’t made it to training camp just yet so the battle is far from over. New Orleans could also be alternating days in the starting lineup. That won’t be known until media is allowed to watch consecutive practices. Saldiveri was viewed as a future starter when they traded up to draft him last year, with the first pick in the fourth round, so him taking over at left guard would be the intended outcome. Saldiveri played right tackle almost exclusively at Old Dominion so he’ll need every rep he can get. He’s off to a good start in 2024.

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Saints make 4 last-minute roster moves, put rookie draft pick on injured reserve

The Saints made four last-minute roster moves before kickoff with the Panthers, putting a rookie draft pick on injured reserve:

The New Orleans Saints reported four last-minute roster moves on the daily NFL transactions wire before Sunday’s kickoff with the Carolina Panthers, most notably putting rookie draft pick Nick Saldiveri on injured reserve.

Here’s what you need to know about each of these latest transactions:

Rookie report card: Grading the Saints 2023 draft class at midseason

Rookie report card: How do you grade the New Orleans Saints 2023 draft class at midseason? Have Bryan Bresee and his peers met expectations?

So much hype is built up for the annual NFL draft class, but it isn’t always fair to put such high expectations on rookie players. In many cases there are well-established veteran players in place ahead of them who they need to outwork for snaps in practice, much less in games. And that’s before other inhibiting factors like injuries and suspensions get in the way of their development.

Keep that in mind as we go through our New Orleans Saints rookie report card. The Saints’ 2024 draft class hasn’t had many opportunities to distinguish itself going up to the Week 11 bye, and the seven remaining games in the regular season are going to be critical for many of them. Here’s how we grade each first-year pro’s performance at midseason:

Saints’ draft-day trades have yet to pay off on game days

The Saints made a couple of trades during the 2023 NFL draft that have yet to pay off on game day. Several rookie draft picks are healthy scratches at midseason:

The New Orleans Saints made a couple of trades during the 2023 NFL draft that have yet to pay off on game day, with several rookie draft picks on the inactive report as healthy scratches at midseason: namely offensive lineman Nick Saldiveri and quarterback Jake Haener.

We should preface this by acknowledging that few draft picks, especially mid-rounders like Saldiveri and Haener, are expected to be big contributors. They’re here to watch and learn and develop into players who can help the team later on down the line. It’s a yearslong process for many young pros.

Still, it’s dispiriting to see the Saints invest so many resources in players and get so little in return during their rookie year. They moved up from No. 115 to No. 103 for Saldiveri, expecting a run on offensive linemen early in the fourth round, and he was the prospect they liked the most. It cost them the No. 165 pick (a fifth rounder) to make this move.

But Saldiveri has played just 18 snaps on offense and 19 snaps on special teams through four games; he’s otherwise been a healthy scratch. He started at right tackle during his entire college career at Old Dominion but the Saints have converted him to left guard, only to dress veterans on game day instead. How have the offensive linemen drafted right after Saldiveri performed?

  • Blake Freeland (No. 106 to the Indianapolis Colts) has started five of his seven games at both right tackle (219 snaps) and left tackle (130), totaling 349 snaps.
  • Jake Andrews (No. 107 to the New England Patriots) has been limited to special teams, playing 24 snaps across eight games.
  • Anthony Bradford (No. 108 to the Seattle Seahawks) has started four of his six games at right guard, logging 313 snaps.
  • Dawand Jones (No. 111 to the Cleveland Browns) has started six of his seven games at right tackle, seeing 465 snaps.

One offensive lineman picked after the Saints’ initial selection at No. 115, Sidy Sow (the No. 117 pick by the Patriots), has played 229 snaps across four starts in six games, all at right guard. Two others, Braeden Daniels (No. 118 to the Washington Commanders) and Carter Warren (No. 120 to the New York Jets) have been active for one game between the two of them, only playing special teams.

So the Saints correctly judged the way the board was breaking. But did they take the right player? Do they have the right plan for maximizing Saldiveri’s abilities so he can help the team? It’s a question worth asking when the offensive line has been a mess for most of the season and veterans like Cam Erving have been signed off the street to start at Saldiveri’s college position while the rookie is stuck watching games from the sidelines.

Ultimately this isn’t a big deal. Dressing Saldiveri as the eighth lineman on Sunday against the Chicago Bears instead of someone like Max Garcia or Landon Young isn’t going to dramatically shift the game plan or final result. But it’s not the best use of resources for a Saints team that pinches every penny and scrutinizes every decision when it comes to salary cap management. General manager Mickey Loomis plays fast and loose with draft picks, and it’s gotten him burned at times. Not getting more production out of the multiple picks invested in Saldiveri and Haener is disappointing.

But that’s not to say things can’t turn around. If Saldiveri develops into a starting-quality left guard when Andrus Peat or James Hurst leave in free agency over the next two offseasons and holds that spot down for years, no one will remember him spending his rookie year on the bench.

The same goes for Haener. If he can be a capable backup quarterback for a long time like Chase Daniel was, it’s not going to matter that the Saints effectively so much to get him (trading their 2024 fourth-round pick to move up from No. 227 in the seventh round to No. 127 in the fourth).

Team-building isn’t an easy process in the NFL, and it rarely goes smoothly. Player development is not a linear process. Hopefully both young pros can learn from their experienced teammates and make a positive impact later on down the road.

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Saints’ projected offensive line vs. Jaguars looks like a recipe for disaster

ESPN reports the Saints plan for Cam Erving to make his first start at right tackle since 2016, with Andrus Peat moving back to left tackle against the Jaguars:

Yikes. The projected New Orleans Saints offensive line for Week 7’s game with the Jacksonville Jaguars looks like a recipe for disaster. With starting offensive tackles Ryan Ramczyk and James Hurst ruled out with injuries (as well as their top backup Landon Young), ESPN’s Ed Werder reports that the Saints are planning to start Andrus Peat at left tackle while bringing up Cam Erving from the practice squad to play on the right side.

It’s a baffling decision. Erving has not played right tackle since 2016, his second year in the NFL; the Saints traded up for Nick Saldiveri in this year’s draft, and on paper he looks like a much better candidate for this job. He logged more than 2,200 snaps at right tackle in college at Old Dominion during his 38-game career. The Saints coaching staff has tried to convert him to left guard instead of playing him at his natural position.

And Peat hasn’t lined up at left tackle since 2019, when he played a grand total of 6 snaps. He hasn’t spent extensive time at that position since the 2017 season. There’s little reason to believe he’ll be an upgrade over Trevor Penning at the left tackle spot given his past struggles and limited success after moving to guard, but the Saints are determined to keep Penning on the bench.

Here’s the projected starting lineup and their backups for Thursday night’s game with Jacksonville:

  • Left tackle: Andrus Peat (Trevor Penning)
  • Left guard: Max Garcia (Nick Saldiveri)
  • Center: Erik McCoy (Garcia)
  • Right guard: Cesar Ruiz (Garcia/Saldiveri)
  • Right tackle: Cam Erving (Ruiz)

The Saints could also bring up Tommy Kraemer (who has some right tackle experience) or Mark Evans II (a college left tackle the team moved to guard) from the practice squad to add further depth, but we don’t know whether they’ll be available Thursday night. The Saints are making some bold decisions here. We’ll see how that works out against a talented Jaguars defensive front.

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Saints rookie guard Nick Saldiveri set to make his NFL debut against Bucs

Another rookie draft pick is set to make his New Orleans Saints debut. Look for Nick Saldiveri to be active on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers:

Another rookie draft pick is set to make his New Orleans Saints debut. Look for Nick Saldiveri to be active on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers now that right guard Cesar Ruiz has been ruled out for a concussion. Saldiveri was the team’s first pick in the fourth round out of Old Dominion, where he played right tackle. He’s spent most of his time at left guard with New Orleans.

But hold your horses: Saldiveri likely won’t feature in the starting lineup with James Hurst taking Ruiz’s place at right guard and Andrus Peat filling in on the left side. Saldiveri has been inactive for each of the team’s first three games while veteran teammates like Peat, Max Garcia, and Landon Young were activated to wait their turn as backups.

The Saints had a couple of offensive linemen on the practice squad in Tommy Kraemer and Mark Evans II (who was recently re-signed) but neither of them were elevated for Week 4’s game-day roster, which suggests Saldiveri will be the eighth lineman to dress on Sunday.

Still, let’s hope he makes the most of his opportunities whenever he does get to go into the game. The Saints’ rookie draft class hasn’t made a huge impact this season beyond first-round defensive tackle Bryan Bresee; specialists Lou Hedley and Blake Grupe haven’t been as consistent as hoped through the first month, and other draft picks like defensive end Isaiah Foskey, running back Kendre Miller, and wide receiver A.T. Perry have all been inactive at times. Getting something out of Saldiveri would do a lot to improve their standing as a group.

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Saints announce inactive players for season opener vs. Titans

The Saints Week 1 inactive players are headlined by their rookie class, including Kendre Miller and Isaiah Foskey. Here’s the
full list:

Both the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans head into the season opener without many injuries. The Saints had their shortest injury report in years this week. The Saints have already ruled out Tre’Quan Smith. That’s no surprise as he hasn’t practiced since suffering a groin injury earlier in training camp. J.T. Gray was also ruled out with a shoulder injury. Rookie Kendre Miller hasn’t participated all week due to a hamstring injury, but was labeled as questionable.

The Titans only had one player ruled out during the week of practice, cornerback Tre Avery. All other players on their injury report were upgraded to full participants before the week was over.

Here are the final inactives:

Positions where the Saints got better in the 2023 offseason

Our first real look at the New Orleans Saints is just days away in their preseason opener. Here’s where they got better in the offseason | @crissy_froyd

The New Orleans Saints come off of a disappointing 2022 season in which they finished third in the division with a 7-10 overall record — and it’s quite a testament to how lowly the NFC South was last year considering the Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished on top of it with an 8-9 record.

But if the Saints’ offseason moves end up paying dividends, quite a different picture will be painted when all is said and done in 2023 as New Orleans has very much taken a playoffs-or-bust approach. With their first preseason game just days away, let’s recap the road that got them here.

Here’s a look at a handful of places the Saints have improved on paper between the 2023 NFL draft and preseason moves:

Added competition could lead to change at offensive guard this year

Andrus Peat and Cesar Ruiz are entering the last year of their contracts. Their short- and long-term future with the Saints will be decided this year | @southexclusives

Offensive guard is a position that enters New Orleans Saints training camp with short-term and long-term intrigue. Your starters from last season, Andrus Peat and Cesar Ruiz, both return from injuries. They’re each entering the final year of their contract as well. The team placed an emphasis on building depth in this room in the offseason by adding veterans Trai Turner and Max Garcia. Turner suffered a season-ending injury but the intention to improve was there.

The marquee depth piece added was Nick Saldiveri, picked early in the fourth round of this year’s draft. He might not be just a backup, at least not for long. Could he push Peat for the starting job at left guard? Possibly, though he played right tackle in college. If not this year, Saldiveri will likely be in the running next year and beyond for a starting job. Ruiz seems to be more steady in his spot after hitting his stride in 2022. Peat, however, doesn’t have that same level of comfort after injuries and inconsistent play marred his career.

James Hurst is a wild card here. He’s a left tackle who has filled in at both guard spots before. If Trevor Penning can hold down the left tackle spot, there’s a chance Hurst might compete inside. Here are the guards currently rostered after Turner’s injury: