Tag: saints news

NFL monitoring Chargers vs. Saints status as Hurricane Hilary approaches

The NFL is keeping a close eye on Hurricane Hilary’s forecast.

The Chargers are set to host the Saints in a preseason game on Sunday, but the NFL is monitoring the situation with Hurricane Hilary as it approaches the West Coast.

“We continue to monitor the weather and will (update the situation) if anything changes,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Friday, per NOLA.com’s Jeff Duncan.

There are no plans to cancel or move the game as of now.

The storm has intensified to Category 4, and Southern California is under a tropical storm watch for the first time ever. No tropical storm has made landfall in So Cal since Sept. 25, 1939, according to the National Weather Service.

Kickoff is slated for 4:05 pm PT at SoFi Stadium.

Sights and sounds from Chargers, Saints joint practices – Day 2

Some highlights from the Chargers’ second joint practice with the Saints.

The Chargers hosted the Saints for two joint practices before their preseason matchup on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

Below are some sights and sounds from the second session at Jack Hammett Sports Complex, courtesy of media members and fans in attendance.

Sights and sounds from Chargers, Saints joint practices – Day 1

Some highlights from the Chargers’ first joint practice with the Saints.

The Chargers are hosting the Saints for two joint practices, Thursday and Friday, before their preseason matchup on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

Below are some sights and sounds from the first session at Jack Hammett Sports Complex, courtesy of media members and fans in attendance.

Watch: Chargers WR Keenan Allen makes spectacular one-handed grab vs. Saints

Keenan Allen is having a great summer.

The Chargers had the first joint practice with the Saints on Thursday.

Both teams had their fair share of moments, but one of the day’s biggest highlights was a one-handed catch by wide receiver Keenan Allen.

Allen was one-on-one with Saints cornerback Bradley Roby in coverage, and he beat him off the line. Quarterback Justin Herbert then found him down the field and Allen put his body on the line to reel in the pass.

Allen proceeded to throw the ball into the crowd.

While he is getting up in age, set to be 31 this season and coming off an injury-riddled campaign, Allen is still a play-maker when healthy, as evident from catches like this. He is still one of the best route runners in the league and is a safety blanket on third down.

Allen has been vital to the Bolts’ offense throughout his professional career. During that span, Allen has caught 796 passes for 9,287 yards and 52 touchdowns.

Saints to start Ian Book vs. Dolphins with Taysom Hill going on COVID-19 reserve

The Saints will start rookie QB Ian Book against the Dolphins this week with Taysom Hill and Trevor Siemian going on COVID-19 reserve

The Saints will have yet another new starter at quarterback this week when they face the Dolphins on Monday night. According to Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Saints will start rookie Ian Book against Miami in Week 16.

Trevor Siemian and Taysom Hill are both being placed on COVID-19 reserve and it appears neither player will be available against the Dolphins – despite the game being played on Monday night.

Book will be the Saints’ fourth different starting quarterback this season, with Siemian, Hill and Jameis Winston being the other three.

Book is a fourth-round rookie out of Notre Dame but he has yet to throw a regular-season pass in the NFL. In college, he threw for 8,948 yards and 72 touchdown passes with 20 interceptions, completing 63.8% of his passes.

At 7-7, the Saints are currently ninth in the NFC, so they need every win they can get the rest of the way. Starting their fourth-string quarterback against a surging Dolphins team certainly won’t help the cause.

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Report: Lions are hiring Saints’ Aaron Glenn as defensive coordinator

Aaron Glenn is joining Dan Campbell with the Lions as their new defensive coordinator.

https://twitter.com/rapsheet/status/1351631959265603591?s=21

The Saints will need to find a new secondary coach this offseason because Aaron Glenn is on his way out. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, The Detroit Lions are hiring Glenn as their defensive coordinator. He follows Dan Campbell, who is now Detroit’s head coach.

Glenn coached the Saints’ defensive backs for the last five years, arriving in New Orleans in 2016. The Saints were his second NFL team as a coach, previously working with the Browns as their assistant DBs coach.

Glenn was an up-and-coming candidate this offseason, and even interviewed with the Jets for their head-coaching vacancy. The Lions are getting a strong leader to work alongside Campbell, while this leaves a void on Sean Payton’s coaching staff in New Orleans.

NFL Week 8 picks: Who the experts are taking in Saints-Bears

The Saints are favored over the Bears in the eyes of NFL experts and oddsmakers.

The New Orleans Saints have won three games in a row, and they’d love to make it four straight with another victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon. They’ll be on the road and outside the friendly confines of the Superdome, but New Orleans has still been the better team up to this point – as evidenced by sportsbooks making them 4.5-point favorites.

NFL experts are of the belief that the Saints will leave Chicago with a fourth straight win, as many of them are picking New Orleans to win this Week 8 tilt. According to NFL Pick Watch, a whopping 86% of experts are taking the Bears to win outright on Sunday. The Rams, Titans and Bucs are the only road teams with a higher percentage of experts picking them to win.

When you factor in the spread, experts are less confident in the Saints covering the 4.5-point spread. Still, 65% of them are taking New Orleans to win by at least five points.

The Saints are only 2-4 ATS this season and have won their last three games by a total of 12 points, but Chicago’s offense has been stagnant all year and it’s unlikely the Nick Foles-led Bears will be able to keep up with New Orleans on the scoreboard.

Saints injury report: Michael Thomas, Nick Easton out vs. Bears

The Saints will once again be without Michael Thomas on Sunday afternoon.

The New Orleans Saints will once again be without Michael Thomas on Sunday against the Bears. He has been ruled out for Week 8 with ankle and hamstring injuries, marking his sixth consecutive game missed. He hasn’t played since the season opener.

In addition to Thomas, center Nick Easton and wide receiver Marquez Callaway have also been ruled out. Terron Armstead was limited all week with an elbow injury, but he’s good to go for Sunday’s matchup.

No other players have an injury designation heading into this weekend.

On the Bears’ side, there are far greater injury concerns. Allen Robinson is doubtful as he remains in the concussion protocol, while Cody Whitehair has been ruled out.

Cordarrelle Patterson, Khalil Mack and Eddie Jackson are all questionable, as is defensive back Sherrick McManis.

Jameis Winston attends BLM march with his son

New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston attended a Black Lives Matter march this weekend with his son, and documented it on Instagram.

Jameis Winston has been keeping his head held high this offseason and remaining positive ever since the Buccaneers decided to part ways with the former Heisman Trophy winner.

Winston has been hitting the field, spending time with his son and lovely new bride, and offering words of support and encouragement for people on Instagram. Now, more than ever perhaps, people need some uplifting words given the protests that have swept our nation in the weeks following the death of George Floyd.

Yesterday, the New Orleans Saints quarterback took to the streets with others for a Black Lives Matter march, and even brought his son along to be a part of it. Check out some screenshots from Winston’s Instagram story below.

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Bucky Brooks comes to Jameis Winston’s defense

After New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston raised some eyebrows with his recent comments. Bucky Brooks came to his defense.

Jameis Winston had a season for the ages in 2019, which was both good and bad, as the former number one overall pick threw for 5,109 yards, 33 touchdowns and 30 interceptions, becoming the first player ever to throw for 30 touchdowns and 30 picks in the same season.

Winston’s performance didn’t do him any favors, though, as the Bucs opted to let Winston walk in free agency as they turned their sights on Tom Brady. Winston eventually landed in New Orleans with the Saints on a one-year deal where he will serve as a backup to Drew Brees.

And while Winston may not be a starter heading into 2020, he still found himself turning some heads this week after comments he made to Bleacher Report’s Tyler Dunne where he said that “historically I’m one of the best quarterbacks to play the game.”

Many people may have been quick to laugh off this comment, but Bucky Brooks of NFL.com came to Winston’s defense by taking a closer look at the numbers.

Per Brooks:

“Jameis just became the eighth quarterback in league history to pass for 5,000 yards in a single season, joining Dan Marino, Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Matthew Stafford and Drew Brees, who’s actually accomplished the feat five times. At age 26, Winston has thrown for the second-most passing yards of any NFL quarterback through five seasons, trailing only Manning. Moreover, Winston has more touchdowns (121) through his first five seasons than Brett Favre (108), Kurt Warner (101), Brady (87) and Brees (80). Think about that: The guy who has been the butt of all jokes since becoming the first quarterback with 30 touchdown passes and 30 interceptions in a single season is a certified baller with a slate of numbers that put him in the same early-career stratosphere as a number of Hall of Fame types.”

Brooks does point out that concerns about Winston’s decision making are fair, but believes we are over-blowing his turnovers. It’s unfortunate that we won’t see Winston starting this year. It would’ve been interesting to see how he would have responded after that 2019 season and being let go in favor of Brady.

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