The media was finally allowed access to OTAs for the first time today and some information is starting to come in on how things are going. Most significant perhaps is that Jairus Byrd is having back surgery today to fix some “disc” issue. If you read the ProFootballTalk link I posted there I agree with most of the sentiments. Despite Sean Payton assurances that this surgery wouldn’t have happened if this were the regular season and that he’d be ready for training camp, it makes you wonder if the Saints knew about this medical problem before they signed him to a huge contract. If not, with his injury history on top of this issue would they have made the investment had they known? Hard to know if something like this passes the routine physical a player gets before signing a contract or not. Either way, definitely far from an ideal situation but the timing and prognosis aren’t a cause for huge concern. At least not yet.
Beyond that Joe Morgan was limited. That to me is surprising in that while he had a major knee injury he’s had a full year to get ready for now. If he’s not able to really practice I have to wonder how much he’s going to be able to show coming training camp. A little more concerning is that Tyrunn Walker is still having knee issues after a season full of problems last year. The offseason clearly wasn’t enough to get him ready to go 100% at this point. Health could be the thing that stands in the middle of him making the roster as a reserve this year. I don’t see the Saints hanging onto his potential indefinitely if he can’t get healthy and on the field. More surprising is that Patrick Robinson is playing and running with the 1s. That means nothing at this point, but at least he’s healthy enough to run and practice. Surprising when you consider that his knee tear came over a month after Morgan’s. This is a make it or break it season for both Robinson and Morgan’s NFL careers. John Jenkins was also missing from practice with no reason stated.
Word is the point of emphasis was creating turnovers. Rob Ryan showed tapes of Peanut Tillman to his players perfecting the old school ball punch for a forced fumble. Obviously the Saints aren’t stopping at the Byrd signing in attempting to get more takeaways. That’s the one thing missing from this defense being utterly dominant, though with more risks comes more big plays given up so hopefully they’ll find the right balance.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
