Day two of Saints camp featured the defense and forcing more turnovers

METAIRIE, La. (WAFB) - Last year, the Saints defense finished ninth in points allowed per game and fifth in total yards. That was good but to reach another status, they have to get the football. In 2022, the unit was second to last in turnovers with 14.

“That’s part of being a great defense you have to be able to create takeaways. We have been able to do that in the past and we weren’t able to do that as well as we wanted to last year and so getting back to that is important for us,” said Saints linebacker DeMario Davis.

“We call them, defensively, we call it takeaways because no one gives us the ball. We have to go out there and take it away,” said head coach Dennis Allen. “The ball is the most important thing on the field so we focus a lot on it. It’s good to see our guys taking the coaching from the meeting room onto the field.”

One of the interesting battles in camp will be at the defensive end positions.

Carl Granderson enters his fifth year with the black and gold and is coming off his best season statistically. There’s also former first-round pick Payton Turner, who has been bitten by the injury bug. Doesn’t that sound familiar but can Turner flip the page and become the pass rusher the Saints need on that other side?

In today’s practice, Turner got a lot of first-team reps and got some pressure on the quarterback.

“Who’s going to be that guy that is going line up on the other side of Cam Jordan? Someone is not going to be given that role, somebody is going to have to take that role and look he has earned the right to get those reps and now it’s what are you going to do with them,” said Allen.

“I am coming in with a different mentality. Stay healthy, maintain weight, and stay strong so coming into this season it’s a new team, I’m trying to make my teammates better by competing and everybody else around me so I am trying to do my job and everything else will take care of itself,” said Granderson.

Click here to report a typo.

Copyright 2023 WAFB. All rights reserved.