Tag: Smoke Monday

Ottawa RedBlacks select former Auburn WR Nick Mardner with 1st round pick

Mardner is heading to Canada to continue his football career after spending one season on the Plains.

Wide receiver [autotag]Nick Mardner[/autotag] spent just one season on the Plains, but it was enough time to catch the eyes of Canadian Football League scouts.

Mardner, who played for Auburn during the 2023 season after transferring in from Cincinnati, was selected in the 1st round of the CFL draft on Tuesday, going 2nd overall to the Ottawa RedBlacks. As a native of Oakville, Ontario, Mardner is the first Auburn player in history selected in the CFL draft due to his national designation.

Following his selection, Mardner becomes teammates with former Auburn wide receiver [autotag]Eli Stove[/autotag] on Ottawa’s roster. He is also the sixth former Auburn player on an active CFL roster joining [autotag]Brandon Council[/autotag], [autotag]Zakoby McClain[/autotag] (Saskatchewan), [autotag]Smoke Monday[/autotag], [autotag]TD Moultry[/autotag] (Montreal).

Mardner had a solid career as a wide receiver at Hawaii and Cincinnati before transferring to Auburn for his final collegiate season. He totaled 81 catches for 1,488 yards and 11 touchdowns at his two previous stops but failed to record a catch at Auburn. According to Pro Football Focus, he appeared in four games last season for 37 total snaps. He was the most active in Auburn’s loss to Georgia on Sept. 30, where he participated in 18 snaps.

Mardner now joins a long list of former Auburn players who have also played in the CFL including Darvin Adams, Nick Coe, Nick Marshall, and  Ryan Davis.

Saints waive fan-favorite DB Smoke Monday, could return to the practice squad

The New Orleans Saints have waived fan-favorite DB Smoke Monday, an undrafted free agent for the team last offseason | @ClutchWDN

The New Orleans Saints have made a somewhat surprising roster move, waiving DB Smoke Monday, according to Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football. Monday was a UDFA signing for the Saints last offseason, who missed all of last season with a torn ACL.

Monday played the sixth-most defensive snaps this preseason on the Saints, so he did receive ample opportunity to have a chance at the roster. However, in this span of time, he only had one pressure, five tackles (on six attempts), and allowed two out of four targets he faced to be received.

With his versatility across the secondary, he could be a candidate to return to New Orleans via the practice squad, however. With 20 of his snaps coming from the box, 53 at free safety, five in the slot, and one at outside corner, he clearly is able to move around the field.

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8 Saints players who need a great game vs. Texans to make the roster

With roster cuts looming, some Saints must end the preseason on a high note to secure their spot on the depth chart. 8 players to watch vs. Texans:

We’re days away from one of the busiest — and most difficult — days on the NFL calendar, with the New Orleans Saints and every other team cutting their rosters down from 90 contracts to just 53 on Tuesday, Aug. 29.

A lot of Saints players have already earned their roster spots at training camp practices and through two preseason games. But some others are still on the roster bubble and a strong performance against the Houston Texans on Sunday night could seal the deal. At the same time, an underwhelming outing could be the push the coaching staff needs to go with a different player.

These eight players can’t afford to let a good opportunity pass them by:

Marcus Maye’s Florida DUI court date scheduled just before Saints training camp

Marcus Maye’s Florida court date has been scheduled just before Alvin Kamara’s Nevada appearance, and the likely start of Saints training camp:

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Here’s an update on Marcus Maye’s legal situation from ESPN’s Katherine Terrell, who reports that Maye has a new court date in Florida related to his Feb. 2021 DUI case. Terrell broke the news that Maye is scheduled to appear in court on July 25 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Maye was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and causing property damage while driving under the influence, along with a citation for reckless driving.

If this year’s Saints training camp schedule is the same as last year’s — beginning on the last Wednesday in July — then it would open on July 26. That start date is sandwiched in-between court appearances for Maye in Florida and Alvin Kamara in Nevada, where Kamara is facing felony assault charges stemming from a Feb. 2022 beating at a Las Vegas nightclub.

So we would potentially have a very full week with Maye’s court date in Florida on Tuesday, July 25, the Saints opening training camp on Wednesday, July 26, and Kamara appearing in court in Nevada on the following Monday, July 31. We’ll see how it all shakes out in the weeks and months ahead.

This is potentially a big opportunity for other players ranked behind Maye on the depth chart. If he misses time with an NFL suspension once this DUI case is finally concluded (possibly missing three to eight games), look out for hungry young players like Jordan Howden and Smoke Monday to seize the moment in an audition. Even having Maye out of the picture for training camp will open up valuable reps in practice for those youngsters to cash in.

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7 New Orleans Saints returning from injuries in 2023

High-profile players like Michael Thomas and sleepers like D’Marco Jackson and Smoke Monday are among 7 New Orleans Saints returning from injuries in 2023:

The New Orleans Saints have an interesting mix of high-profile starters and sleeper talents returning from injuries in 2023. We’re not counting new additions and rookie draft picks like running back Kendre Miller (meniscus) or others dealing with health challenges (such as tight end Foster Moreau), only players who were on the team last year and who have been brought back for the upcoming season.

Some of them are going to vital to the team’s overall success. Let’s recap each situation with organized team activities on the horizon:

4 second-year Saints who are looking to make a splash in 2023

Smoke Monday and D’Marco Jackson are just some of the second-year New Orleans Saints players who are looking to make a splash in 2023:

The 2023 NFL Scouting Combine is here, and so much attention is being paid to the upcoming rookie class that it’s easy to overlook the players that came before them. And the New Orleans Saints’ list of second-year pros has a lot to offer. We’re making an effort to look past the obvious big names like first-round picks Chris Olave and Trevor Penning, for whom expectations are already high, and instead highlighting some guys who either got a raw deal with injuries or who are better positioned to make plays now than they were last summer.

With that in mind, here are some of the second-year Saints we’re eager to see on the practice field:

2022 Auburn football preview: Safety

Zion Puckett is the leader of a talented group at safety for Auburn.

Auburn will be without a former leader in [autotag]Smoke Monday[/autotag] at safety but [autotag]Zion Puckett[/autotag] is ready for his turn to be the leader of the group.

He was Auburn’s No. 2 safety last season and is the undisputed top dog this year. While the second starting spot is up for grabs, the secondary coach [autotag]Zach Etheridge[/autotag] has several interesting options in [autotag]Cayden Bridges[/autotag] and newcomers [autotag]Marquise Gilbert[/autotag] and [autotag]Craig McDonald[/autotag], who both have plenty of experience.

Another key player is [autotag]Donovan Kaufman[/autotag], who will spend time at both nickel and safety and is once again looking to create disruptive plays, something he excelled at doing last season.

Wide Receiver Preview

Tight End Preview

Running Back Preview

Offensive Line Preview

Quarterback Preview

Edge Preview

Defensive Line Preview

Linebacker Preview

Cornerback Preview

Former Tiger included in “rising star coaching” list

Do not be surprised to see Travis Williams’ name linked to future head coaching vacancies.

During the mid-2000s, Auburn linebacker [autotag]Travis Williams[/autotag] was considered to be one of the best at his position.

Now, he is considered to be one of the best assistant coaches in the nation.

Williams was recently included in a list titled “25 assistants deserving strong head coach consideration” from On3 for his success in leading UCF’s defense as well as recruiting efforts.

Following a successful playing career at Auburn, Williams began his coaching career on the Plains, serving as an analyst from 2009-11. He spent time away from Auburn during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, gaining experience in on-the-field roles. He returned to Auburn, re-uniting with coach Gus Malzahn in 2014, where he would serve a variety of roles until 2020, when Malzahn was relieved of his coaching duties.

Williams was not retained on the staff once current head coach Bryan Harsin was hired, which allowed Williams to follow Malzahn to UCF, which is where he resides today.

One of Williams’ strong suits is recruiting. While at Auburn, he was responsible for bringing players such as [autotag]KJ Britt[/autotag], [autotag]Smoke Monday[/autotag], and [autotag]Zakoby McClain[/autotag], as well as players that are still on Auburn’s roster including [autotag]Owen Pappoe[/autotag] and [autotag]Wesley Steiner[/autotag] to the Plains.

During his career on the Plains from 2002-05,  Williams recorded 214 tackles, 22.5 of those were for a loss. His best season came during Auburn’s undefeated season in 2004, Williams made 80 stops with 9.5 tackles for loss and four interceptions.

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Michael Thomas looks good and 5 more takeaways from Saints training camp

Michael Thomas and Tyrann Mathieu take sizable steps forward in their progress and more practice notes from Saints camp Day 9, via @RossJacksonNOLA:

Since the first day of New Orleans Saints training camp, wide receiver Michael Thomas has been the center of attention. After a little bit of a respite from the spotlight with the return of safety Tyrann Mathieu, the trend continues. Thomas took a sizable step forward in today’s camp, as did Mathieu, in front of hometown fans. Here are our key takeaways from the Saints’ ninth practice day:

Former Auburn safety suffers “significant” knee injury

It is unknown what the exact injury is at this time.

A former Auburn safety and NFL rookie may have to wait a little bit longer for his NFL debut.

[autotag]Smoke Monday[/autotag], who was signed as an undrafted free agent for the Saints over the offseason, suffered what NFL reporter Mike Garafolo referred to as a “significant” knee injury in training camp on Tuesday. The unfortunate event occurs on the heels of recently signed safety Tyrann Mathieu leaving training camp for personal reasons.

Monday was poised to make his NFL debut after being projected as a late-round pick, but he eventually went undrafted and signed with New Orleans. Monday was impressing in camp and especially garnered the phrase of Mathieu, who praised his work ethic over the offseason.

In his last year at Auburn, Monday boasted 64 tackles, one interception and six pass deflections. It isn’t known exactly what injury Monday suffered, but we’re likely to know more in the coming days.

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