METAIRIE, La. – After a week of looking as healthy as they have been since the opener, the New Orleans Saints are again dealing with multiple practice absences. Ahead of their Week 9 matchup with the Carolina Panthers, the Saints were without seven players on Wednesday. However, some key returns parallel the losses as well.
Here is today’s attendance during the portion of practice open to the media:
Not Seen:
WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. (Hip)
WR Bub Means (Ankle)
CB Marshon Lattimore (Hamstring)
RB Kendre Miller (Hamstring)
S Tyrann Mathieu
CB Rico Payton (Back)
DL Kendal Vickers
Returned:
QB Derek Carr
LB Nephi Sewell (21-day window opened)
OL Nick Saldiveri
OL Shane Lemieux (21-day window opened)
New:
CB Tre Herdon was wearing No. 28
Getting Carr back to the lineup will certainly help the Saints’ offense move the ball and score more reliably than over the course of his absence. However, the losses on defense are now stacking up in a concerning way.
The team is already without starting cornerback Paulson Adebo for the remainder of the season, and now Lattimore and Payton are dealing with injuries as well. That could be a challenging situation to navigate, though the Panthers don’t present much of a challenge with their passing game. So this could perhaps time up well for New Orleans to absorb the loss of those players.
Another concerning name on the absence list is in the secondary, starting safety Tyrann Mathieu. With fellow starter Will Harris Jr. also out in the defensive backfield, the team could be looking at slim numbers if Mathieu is not back on the field this week. The injury report, which will be shared Wednesday afternoon, will shed more light on this.
One interesting note: wide receiver Chris Olave, who was checked for a concussion last weekend against the Los Angeles Chargers after having cleared protocol that same week, was wearing a guardian cap with a team cover over the top throughout practice. Wearing a guardian cap in practice isn’t surprising, everyone does. However, wearing it with the slip cover worn in games signals at least a chance that he plans to wear it during the game in Carolina.
