Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
By Ross Jackson
METAIRIE, La. – The New Orleans Saints have wrapped up their final practice day of Week 2 ahead of their bout with the San Francisco 49ers. No concerning new absences were noted during the portion of the session that was open to the media.
Here are the players that were not seen during the option portion of Friday’s practice:
S Julian Blackmon (Shoulder)
DE Chase Young (Calf)
Starting left guard Trevor Penning was spotted, out of uniform, observing the offensive linemen while the group was going through individual drills. While he wasn’t participating in practice, just being seen on the sideline is an important step of progress for the 2022 first-rounder as he works to return to the field.
Right tackle Taliese Fuaga was back again and participated throughout the open portion of the day. He was upgraded from not participating to limited on Thursday. Continued upward momentum for the lineman.
It’s worth noting that kicker Blake Grupe wasn’t seen, but that isn’t out of the ordinary as specialists will often work outdoors or elsewhere during certain portions of the practice day while the rest of the team is in the indoor facility. We’ll wait to see the injury report, but it could be nothing.
Speaking of specialists, long snapper Zach Wood was seen on the sideline across the indoor facility stretching and talking with punter Kai Kroeger as well as kicker Charlie Smyth. His progress will be an intriguing one to watch once the practice report is available. Should he be unavailable for Sunday’s game, the Saints have some names they feel they can turn to for emergency long-snapping needs.
Special teams coordinator Phil Galiano also revealed some of the Saints players capable of long snapping in emergency situations:
Taysom Hill (of course) when healthy. Also Cedrick Wilson, Nephi Sewell, Moliki Matavao and John Ridgeway on that list
— Mike Triplett (@MikeTriplett) September 11, 2025
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