The New Orleans Saints held their first session of mandatory minicamp Tuesday at the practice facility in Metairie, but one of last season’s breakout wide receivers notably was missing.
Rashid Shaheed was absent from the last set of organized team activities a week ago. Since those were voluntary, nothing was thought of it. Tuesday’s absence sparked questions.
Saints coach Dennis Allen said Shaheed has injured his groin.
Shaheed was in the locker room after practice, so he was around in some capacity. He said the soft-tissue injury happened about two weeks ago during OTAs. It’s nothing serious, and his lack of participation is cautionary.
As an undrafted rookie out of Weber State last year, Shaheed made his name known as soon as he was given a chance. His first-ever offensive touch turned into a touchdown. Then, so did his second.
In 12 games overall, Shaheed had 28 receptions for 488 yards. He scored three touchdowns total — two receiving, one rushing.
Prior to Tuesday's news, Shaheed was nothing but optimistic about his second season.
In addition to Shaheed, offensive lineman Cesar Ruiz and defensive back Anthony Johnson were not seen during Tuesday’s workout. Ruiz was at OTAs but a nonparticipant all three weeks as he continues to rehab a foot injury. Johnson was also at OTAs but exited the third and final media-viewing period early with trainers.
Like Shaheed, both could have been somewhere else in the building since Allen did note the Saints had everybody in attendance.
These players were dressed but did not participate Tuesday: running backs Kendre Miller and Eno Benjamin, offensive lineman Nick Saldiveri and tight end Miller Forristall.
Offensive line
Center Erik McCoy had friends this time.
During OTAs, McCoy was the only projected starter present and active on the offensive line. Right guard Ruiz and left tackle Trevor Penning were there but solely watching. Penning is also rehabbing a lingering foot injury.
McCoy took his place at center Tuesday, with Andrus Peat next to him at left guard and James Hurst at left tackle. Calvin Throckmorton was on the other side of McCoy at right guard, and Ryan Ramczyk was at right tackle.
The second wave looked like this from right to left: Storm Norton, Yasir Durant, Alex Pihlstrom, Lewis Kidd and Landon Young. That left Scott Lashley, Mark Evans and Koda Martin in a smaller third group.
Secondary
Alontae Taylor received a fair amount of reps as a slot defender in the Saints' nickel package during OTAs, but with Bradley Roby back in the mix, Taylor returned to his normal spot as an outside corner. Roby resumed the position at slot.
Taylor, rotating with Paulson Adebo with the starters, lined up alongside Marshon Lattimore, who made his offseason return Tuesday. Lattimore battled an abdomen injury in 2022 and missed 10 games.
Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye were the safeties, as expected.
Hybrid role
Taysom Hill remains listed as a tight end on the roster, and Allen said there are no plans to change Hill’s role in that position room.
That didn’t stop Hill from spending a majority of Tuesday’s practice throwing with quarterbacks Derek Carr, Jameis Winston and Jake Haener.
Finding Hill’s black jersey among the select reds was no surprise, though. Last season saw a very similar situation unfold. Hill remained a tight end and still threw passes in 11 games. All in all, Hill was responsible for 575 yards rushing, 240 yards passing and 77 yards receiving. He finished with a team-high nine touchdowns total.
“We're going to utilize him in a lot of different roles,” Allen said. "He's a weapon offensively for us that can do a lot of different things. Our thought is to get him involved in a lot of different areas.”
Lagniappe
The offense as a whole focused on its two-minute install. There were three dropped passes. Defensive back Ugo Amadi picked off Winston, too. … Wide receiver Michael Thomas was back again. Thomas stretched with the team and then worked off to the side with quarterbacks. He did not partake in drills. … Wide receiver Tre’Quan Smith went down amid dropping a pass and walked off with trainers afterward. He did not leave the field completely but did sit on a sideline cooler while being attended to. … With Shaheed out, the Saints had wide receiver Malik Flowers return punts. He was joined by Keke Coutee and Lynn Bowden, who were in New Orleans on a tryout basis and among the wide receivers position group when not doing special teams. The rotation went Flowers, Coutee and then Bowden. ... Former Saints wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. was in town to help coach his old position group. He played in New Orleans for three of his 14 professional seasons, from 2017-19. ... The Saints will hold Day 2 of minicamp Wednesday.
