Announcement AMA with TCUDan, June 24 (Starting NOW) (1 Viewer)

Hello Dan,

More of a legal question than a football question…

Marcus Maye was charged with a DUI and later charged with driving with a suspended license. Any idea as to potential league suspensions and how do you think this will affect the progress of the secondary?

Thanks!
I don't know any more than you guys about the potential league suspensions, but I don't think it'll mess with the secondary too much. Aside from WR, I think the position where the Saints added the most quality depth was at S--and not just with Maye and Honey Badger. I think Justin Evans was a really underrated pickup. PJ Williams performed well in spots last season. Smoke Monday has a really good shot at making the roster. There will be some hard cuts at WR and S during the preseason.

I'd expect PJ to get the start in Maye's absence and have confidence in him to hold down the fort. There may be a slight adjustment period when Maye comes back, but it's not like he's coming into a defense where he has to be THE GUY. There is a huge difference between losing/gaining a piece vs a chunk (chunk being a critical player, like Demario Davis or Cam Jordan).
 
Thanks again for hosting these, much appreciated

Regarding teams in our situation:

A long term head coach leaves and a long term coordinator takes over

Is there a protocol for contact?

In our case does Dennis Allen call up Sean Payton to ask advice on this or that, ask about game planning, or how to handle this player or that player, or this situation or that situation?

Is it appropriate for Sean to call Dennis just to offer advice or ask how things are going? How's Cam Jordan doing? What's Kamara's mindset right now? How is Michael Thomas looking and getting along with everyone? How is Taysom adjusting?

Is it out of bounds for Sean to call the players directly?

Or is it cold turkey? no contact, "it's your team, these are your players, these are your problems, I'm not the coach anymore"
That's really more of a personal issue than any kind of protocol issue. I know the last team I left and handed over to my DC, I gave him his space. We spoke frequently on whatsapp just shooting the s*** and friendly stuff, but I didn't tell him how to run the team. When he did ask for advice it was when stuff off the field--politics, contracts, personalities, etc--got a little tough to handle (it was his first HC job).

That said, this is the NFL and DA has been a HC before and has been in the league for a while. He knows how to gameplan, how to practice plan, how to set rosters, how to run meetings--and I'm sure a lot of it will be very similar to how it was all done under Payton. There's no reason for DA to need Payton as a consultant.

I'm sure they'll stay in contact. Text messages, a phone call here and there. Share funny memes or whatever and Payton will congratulate him every time they win. Same with the players. But Payton doesn't seem like the guy to overstep any boundaries.
 
Dan, on paper we have a deep and talented secondary across the board. With both starting safeties new to our concepts how long would you anticipate it will take for these guys to fully mesh and get fully in sync! These early Divisional games are important and a guy like Brady will exploit any missed assignments thus my question!
 
Dan, on paper we have a deep and talented secondary across the board. With both starting safeties new to our concepts how long would you anticipate it will take for these guys to fully mesh and get fully in sync! These early Divisional games are important and a guy like Brady will exploit any missed assignments thus my question!
I don't know if Maye will be available day-1, but I wouldn't expect it to take Mathieu long to mesh at all. Hopefully Maye, especially, will be more plug and play. Communication COULD be an issue early, especially for Maye if the coverage calls are put on him as the FS... but I really don't anticipate many issues here.
 
I like Abram Smith a lot and think he could eventually be a Chris Ivory-type of RB. But I don't know if he's there yet, and that's a big gamble to put on an undrafted rookie (though I like him better than the other RBs on the roster not named Ingram or Kamara). With Kamara likely to face at least a 6-game suspension (*apparently*... I only know as much as you guys), I would be completely shocked if the Saints don't bring in another RB, and wouldn't be surprised if they traded for one.

I was disappointed David Johnson didn't work out. I thought he'd be a pretty good fit.

Thanks Coach, I feel the same way, I don’t think the Saints are done improving their roster yet….it is hard to believe how fast good RB’s can nosedive, I’m guessing for DJ multiple injuries over the years….
 
How much does potentially no kamara for 6 weeks influence our play calling?

With our WR corps, and Winston's arm ability, do you thing we come out the gate slinging it?
 
How much do you think that Ingram has in the tank at this point? Can he be a legit centerpiece of the running game? And is there anyone out there who could be available that would be better?
 
How much does potentially no kamara for 6 weeks influence our play calling?

With our WR corps, and Winston's arm ability, do you thing we come out the gate slinging it?

My general expectation is that with or without Kamara, the offense will look a little more like it did in 2009--aggressive balance, with the offense slinging it early to establish a lead and running it late to seal the deal. I think without Kamara you'll definitely see less throwing to the back out of the backfield, and Jameis is more of an outside and downfield passer anyway.

I don't know if it will necessarily affect the balance in terms of snap distribution. More in terms of run efficiency/production. Hopefully the running game will still be enough to keep defenses respecting it.
 
How much do you think that Ingram has in the tank at this point? Can he be a legit centerpiece of the running game? And is there anyone out there who could be available that would be better?
I still have a lot of faith in Ingram. Despite his age, he has never had to be a bell-cow back. He's always shared the backfield and that means there's still a lot of tread on the tires. I think he is still easily a 4+ YPC back and could have a 15-20 carry game here and there (though I'd prefer he not have more than a couple, if any at all).

I don't see a back available who is a significant upgrade. He's a strong leader, knows the Saints offense well, is solid in all three phases (rushing, receiving, and pass pro), and with the Saints passing game getting a pretty heavy dose of juice, hopefully will be running against a lot more nickel defenses.

Hopefully the Saints can use him on early downs vs. nickel looks and have someone else to run in heavy/short yardage (if necessary). Maybe that back is Abram Smith? Who knows.
 
Good Afternoon Coach,

What other needs do you see for the team? With the potential three headed monster at WR and when AK41 is back is the need for a receiving TE as crucial? What about a penetrating DT?

All of those would be nice to address. I think another RB is important... maybe the coaches think they have 3 backs in-house who can shoulder the load in Kamara's absence, but I don't see it. Wouldn't mind seeing them trading a late-round pick for a proven ball carrier.

TE, I want to see what Juwan Johnson does in preseason. I think they're still evaluating TE... finding a weapon in FA at this point is unlikely, and I don't think it's worth trading for a guy.

DT, couldn't hurt to get another guy in the rotation. Street is intriguing and I've heard good things about him coming out of camp.

LB might be another position where they could use some depth but I kinda like the guys they have. Wilson was a good pickup, Kaden Ellis has apparently had a great offseason thus far, and Jackson is very intriguing.

Interior OL is always on my mind, but not unless the guy they're bringing in is a known commodity who can compete for a starting job.
 
All of those would be nice to address. I think another RB is important... maybe the coaches think they have 3 backs in-house who can shoulder the load in Kamara's absence, but I don't see it. Wouldn't mind seeing them trading a late-round pick for a proven ball carrier.
Why trade when David Johnson is available.
 
Why trade when David Johnson is available.

I like David Johnson if he's at his form from 2 years ago (I suspect he is), but apparently either he or the Saints didn't think the fit was right.

Doesn't mean the door is closed, I suppose... but it also led me to believe they're looking elsewhere.
 
Hey guys, enjoyed the session as always! Fewer questions than usual, but it's a slow news period and the weekend. I'll try to do the next AMA more in the middle of the week.

I'll leave it open for now in case anyone wants to throw in some late questions. If not, until next time! :winkthumb:
 
What do you of the future of Prentice @ FB?
Can he relieve some pressure on the RB lineup?
 

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