Tag: Trey Hendrickson

2020 AP All-Pros: Saints shut out of the 1st team after sending 4 players in 2019

A year after landing four players on the AP All-Pro first team, the New Orleans Saints were shut out, with just three on the second team.

The Associated Press announced the players named to its 2020 All-Pro first team, and none of the four New Orleans Saints who earned places on the 2019 list were brought back for 2020.

That includes wide receivers Michael Thomas and Deonte Harris (who made it in last year as a returns specialist) as well as right tackle Ryan Ramczyk and linebacker Demario Davis, who each started a full 16 games in 2020 while continuing to play at a high level. Thomas and Harris each ended the season on injured reserve and weren’t able to match their historic 2019 paces, so that makes sense.

Neither Davis nor Ramczyk should have been snubbed from the first team, though Nola.com’s Amie Just reports they joined running back Alvin Kamara on the second team.

Kamara was ranked behind Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry, who scored four fewer touchdowns than Kamara while fumbling two more times and averaging nearly a full yard less per touch. Instead of Davis, the AP voters picked San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner. Titans right tackle Jack Conklin made the cut over Ramczyk.

What’s baffling is that Saints left tackle Terron Armstead wasn’t even seriously considered for the first or second team, despite having put up some of the best game tape you’ll see from any player in the league this season. Neither was defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who finished the regular season tied for the second-most sacks in the league.

It’s disappointing all around to see the Saints’ standouts not recognized for their efforts. Maybe they can make up for it by going all the way to the Super Bowl instead.

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Trey Hendrickson tied Aaron Donald’s regular season sacks total on 200 fewer snaps

New Orleans Saints DE Trey Hendrickson tied Los Angeles Rams DT Aaron Donald’s sacks mark on 200 fewer snaps, ranking second-most in the NFL

Trey Hendrickson has been the breakout player of the year for the New Orleans Saints, finishing the 2020 regular season with 13.5 sacks — enough to tie Los Angeles Rams superstar Aaron Donald for the second-most in the NFL, trailing only Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt (15.0), a favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year.

While they all play different positions, this achievement is no less impressive because of it. If anything it’s more remarkable when you consider that Hendrickson had exactly 200 fewer pass-rush snaps (369 in 15 games) than Donald (569 in 16 games) over the course of the season, per Pro Football Focus.

That works out to an average of 24.6 pass-rush snaps per game for Hendrickson, which translates into 8.1 more games’ worth of opportunities for Donald to go chase quarterbacks around on a Sunday afternoon. In other words, Donald effectively played a season and a half more of football than Hendrickson, at least in terms of their pass-rush opportunities. And the Saints defensive end was right there with him in the final sacks tally.

Now, sacks aren’t the end-all be-all for pass rushers these days. The sample size is often just too small to really take away any valuable information. Disruption on a per-snap basis is a better sign of production, and Donald has that in spades with 98 pressures on the season, resulting in a PFF pass-rush productivity rating of 10.4. For comparison, Hendrickson had 49 total pressures and a rating of 9.2. PFF’s pass-rush productivity rating is formulated by finding how often players created pressures against their opportunities, weighted towards sacks.

So even with the difference in volume, Hendrickson was still nearly as impactful relative to how often they each played, which is impressive enough on its own.

So it’ll be fascinating to see where things go from here. Hendrickson is headed for free agency in the spring, and he’ll be a hot commodity on the open market if the Saints aren’t able to retain him. That’s just one of the many subplots we’ll be watching during a complicated offseason for New Orleans.

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4 keys to a Panthers win over the Saints in the last game of the season

Here are four keys to the game that can help Carolina get there.

The Carolina Panthers aren’t supposed to beat these New Orleans Saints. Even with all of their running backs ruled out, the NFC South champs are still favored by six points heading into today’s game. Call it overconfidence, but we’re feeling an upset brewing.

Here are four keys to the game that can help Carolina get there.

Offense: Embrace Curtis Samuel, Stop Trey Hendrickson

At this time of year every team is banged up and these Panthers are no exception. With Christian McCaffrey and Mike Davis both out, they need other playmakers to step up. Last week, wide receiver Curtis Samuel answered the call and led this team both as a rusher and a receiver. Every game is different, so it’s unlikely that will happen again, here. That said, offensive coordinator Joe Brady should continue putting Samuel to work in different ways because No. 10 is on fire and has only had one quiet game in the second half of the season.

As for their opponents, New Orleans has a lot of disruptive athletes in their front seven. In 2020, the worst of them has been defensive end Trey Hendrickson. He leads his team with 12.5 sacks this season and also has 24 quarterback hits. Meanwhile, the Panthers will be down to playing their sixth left tackle if we see Matt Kaskey replace Michael Schofield. Not great. Whoever is on the blindside, they’ll need some extra blocks to help out otherwise Hendrickson could wreck the whole game-plan.

Defense: Contain Taysom Hill, keep Drew Brees off-balance

The Saints are equally short-handed on offense. Alvin Kamara is on their COVID-19 list and every other RB is a close contact, so they’re all sidelined. Michael Thomas is also still on IR, leaving the cupboard pretty bare. That means we’ll probably see an expanded role for Sean Payton’s favorite gadget weapon, QB/TE Taysom Hill. While he’s not a great passer Hill has proven to be a capable rusher this season, averaging 5.2 yards per carry and scoring seven touchdowns. Carolina’s tackling needs to be on-point or else Hill will run wild on them.

Finally, the most important factor in deciding this game will likely be how well defensive coordinator Phil Snow can throw Drew Brees off. He did an excellent job of flustering Aaron Rodgers marrying multiple fronts with aggressive coverage. The pass defense was also stifling in last week’s win over Washington. It will be more difficult without Brian Burns, but if Snow can keep the trend going and knock Brees off-balance it might just be enough to finish the season with a victory.

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Final Saints vs. Panthers injury report for Week 17

The New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers finalized their Week 17 injury report after Friday’s practice session, including status updates

The New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers finalized their Week 17 injury report after Friday’s practice session, including game status updates for players managing various ailments. Here’s what you need to know:

4 New Years Resolutions the Saints should adopt in 2021

The New Orleans Saints have a list of changes and decisions to consider going into 2021, with hours left to figure it out on New Years’ Eve.

Ringing in the new year is a time for change, for big decisions, and for resolutions, and even the New Orleans Saints aren’t exempt from that. They’re knocking on the door of the playoffs with some questions yet to be answered about who they are, where they’re headed, and what sort of legacy they might be leaving behind. Exciting as their season has been, we still don’t really know what their identity is.

And the Saints can change that for the better with some tweaks after flipping to a fresh calendar. They won’t play their next game until 2021 has come around, so it’s time to do some self-scouting and decide what kind of team they want to establish themselves as in the new year.

Saints-Panthers injury report upgrades Trey Hendrickson, David Onyemata

The New Orleans Saints’ injury report for Week 17’s Panthers game upgraded DE Trey Hendrickson and DT David Onyemata to full participation.

The New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers updated their Week 17 injury report after Thursday’s practice session, with several players noting upgraded practice participation. Here’s what you need to know:

Saints include DE Trey Hendrickson (neck) as late addition to injury report

The New Orleans Saints reported defensive end Trey Hendrickson (neck) as a late addition to their Minnesota Vikings injury report.

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A short week makes it harder on everyone in the NFL, including the training staff. Because the New Orleans Saints are facing such a brief turnaround between Sunday’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs and Friday’s matchup with the Minnesota Vikings, they just held a walkthrough instead of a full-contact practice session on Tuesday. That meant the team doctors had to estimate participation for various players listed on the injury report.

And it means defensive end Trey Hendrickson was a late addition to the Tuesday injury report, which the Saints later announced. Hendrickson exited the Chiefs game with a neck injury, and after reconsideration the Saints’ doctors estimated that it would have limited him in practice on Tuesday. We’ll have a better idea of his status following Wednesday’s practice.

Hendrickson, 26, has enjoyed a breakout year with the Saints in 2020. He’s tied with Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald for the second-most sacks in the NFL (12.5), trailing only Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt (13.0). 2020 is also the final year of Hendrickson’s low-cost rookie contract, meaning he’s set for a big deal in the spring — either via an extension with New Orleans, a lucrative free agent offer from another team, or possibly a fully-guaranteed franchise tag. Hopefully he can remain healthy and cash in on a well-deserved pay day.

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Demario Davis, Trey Hendrickson among Saints Pro Bowl snubs

The NFL released its 2021 Pro Bowl rosters, snubbing New Orleans Saints players like LB Demario Davis and DE Trey Hendrickson.

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The New Orleans Saints have sent more players to the annual Pro Bowl than most teams over the last few years, but their selections for this year’s all-star roster featured several critical snubs.

Talents like linebacker Demario Davis and right tackle Ryan Ramczyk were both overlooked, despite both players earning All-Pro recognition in 2019. And they weren’t the only oversights, with special teams ace Justin Hardee also left out in the cold. Trey Hendrickson, the breakout pass rusher of the defense currently tied for the NFL sacks title, didn’t get a nod either.

Saints players who made it to the 2019 event but weren’t brought back include quarterback Drew Brees, wide receiver Michael Thomas, tight end Jared Cook, kicker Wil Lutz, and return specialist Deonte Harris. The absences of Brees, Thomas, and Harris make sense given the time they’ve lost to injuries, while Cook and Lutz have seen their performance dip a bit in 2020.

Former right guard Larry Warford opted out of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic after appearing in three consecutive Pro Bowls with the Saints.

There won’t be a Pro Bowl played this season because of that public health crisis, so there won’t be alternate selections, either. But there’s still importance to the event given contract incentives for players around the league. At least five members of the team were picked up for this year’s game, so the Saints will be well-represented in the history books.

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Trey Hendrickson ties Aaron Donald for NFL sacks lead, on fewer snaps

New Orleans Saints DE Trey Hendrickson is tied with Rams DT Aaron Donald for the NFL sacks lead, unless Steelers LB T.J. Watt can upset them

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The breakout year of Trey Hendrickson has continued, with the New Orleans Saints pass rusher adding two more sacks to his season total after Week 15’s game with the Kansas City Chiefs. He’s up to 12.5 sacks on the year so far, good enough to tie Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald for the most sacks in the NFL.

They aren’t alone at the top, though. While Hendrickson and Donald are tied at 12.5, they’re trailed closely by Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt (12.0) and Green Bay Packers defender Za’Darius Smith (11.5). Watt is scheduled to face the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday night, so he’ll have a shot at taking the lead.

What’s most impressive about this is that Hendrickson has achieved this high sacks total on the fewest opportunities in the group. As pointed out by Nick Underhill for NewOrleans.Football, he’s the only player out of these top four sack artists to see fewer than 400 pass-rush snaps, per Pro Football Focus:

  1. Trey Hendrickson: 353 pass rush snaps
  2. T.J. Watt: 432 pass rush snaps (MNF pending)
  3. Za’Darius Smith: 482 pass rush snaps
  4. Aaron Donald: 504 pass rush snaps

It’ll be fascinating to see who ends up on top at the end, but Hendrickson doing more with less than his competition is noteworthy. However, he could be unavailable for Week 16’s matchup with the Minnesota Vikings. Underhill reported that Hendrickson suffered a stinger — a nerve injury common in contact sports — late in Sunday’s Chiefs game.

He might be able to return in time for Friday’s kickoff, but the short week of recovery time could keep him inactive. We’ll know more once the first Saints injury report is released, so check back for updates.

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The Athletic lists 4 Saints free agents among top names to watch in 2021

New Orleans Saints 2021 free agents like Trey Hendrickson and Marcus Williams were listed by the Athletic’s Shiel Kapadia as names to watch.

Which New Orleans Saints free agents will get re-signed in the offseason? Who could be on the radar for other teams looking to poach them in 2021? The Athletic’s Shiel Kapadia listed 50 of the biggest names on track to test the market, and a couple of Saints starters made the cut — with some of their teammates also worth considering. Here’s who might be on the move in the spring: