Intensity turns up as Saints have first day in full pads at training camp

METAIRIE, La. (WAFB) - Football is now in full swing and the New Orleans Saints are in full pads on Monday, July 31, for the first time during camp.

The best highlight from Monday’s Saints practice came from rookie quarterback Jake Haener. In eleven-on-eleven drills, Haener connected with Rashid Shaheed down the left side in stride for a long touchdown. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore had his moments in team drills as well. Lattimore had a couple of pass breakups, one of them coming against Michael Thomas on a quick slant.

“The best thing that I have seen from Lat in these first five days of practice is the way he is working and the way he is competing. If he continues to practice that way, then I would anticipate that he would perform at the level we expect him to perform at and that we are used to him performing at,” said head coach Dennis Allen.

Thomas and Paulson Adebo had a good back-and-forth in 1 on 1′s. Adebo got an interception on the first rep. MT got his one back with a tough back shoulder catch as he fell to the ground.

“Mike’s highly, highly competitive, and he wants to be perfect on every single play, and the reality is we are working back into that. So I think for him and his confidence and going out there and being able to make some contested catches and make some plays offensively, I think that was good for us to see, good for him to see, and we will continue to ramp him up as we go along,” Allen said.

Obviously, the physicality turned up with this being the first padded practice of camp, and Jimmy Graham sure got the memo. In team drills, Graham caught a short pass, turned it up field and put his shoulder into the chest of Troy Pride. The two got up and exchanged words, most of the words coming from Pride. Graham may be 36 years old, but he still proving to these young cats that he is still about that action.

Click here to report a typo.

Copyright 2023 WAFB. All rights reserved.