The final step of the offseason program is underway, as the team went through the first of two mandatory minicamp practices Tuesday afternoon in Metairie.
spoke glowingly of his team before practice started because he was happy with the buy-in heโs gotten from his roster this offseason, and that was validated Tuesday, as every player who was supposed to be there was in attendance.
New Orleans went through a roughly 90-minute practice, working in one 7-on-7 period and two 11-on-11 periods โ the latter of which focused on offensive tempo.
Attendance
Several key players were on the field but held out during the competitive periods of Tuesdayโs minicamp session, including running back Alvin Kamara, , first-round pick Jordyn Tyson and second-round pick Christen Miller. All of those players were in uniform and participated in noncontact periods, but none of them played in 11-on-11 or 7-on-7.
Running back Kendre Miller, who is working his way back from an ACL injury that ended his 2025 season, and receiver Damian Alford were present but not participating.
The following players were not spotted during practice: receivers Mason Tipton and Bub Means, running back Devin Neal (who suffered an undisclosed injury last week during OTAs), cornerback Dalys Beanum and defensive linemen Keeshawn Silver and Zxavian Harris.
Quarterback Hunter Dekkers and a pair of wide receivers, Steven Sims and Tay Martin, were at the facility on a tryout basis.
Observations
Top receivers Olave and Tyson watched the competitive periods from the sideline, which is not ideal but also affords the Saints a longer look at the options behind them.
It is evident that New Orleans is deeper at both receiver and tight end. While Olave and Tyson will command a significant percentage of the target share when theyโre on the field, the cupboard is not bare behind them โ and the Saints might find themselves with some tough decisions when it comes time to trim the roster.
Take Ronnie Bell, for example. The former Michigan standout has only eight catches in three NFL seasons โ including his brilliant one-handed touchdown in Week 18 with the Saints last year โ but he was busy Tuesday. Working with the second and third teams, Bell hauled in six of his seven targets during competitive periods.
Or take the tight ends, who were active in the passing attack Tuesday. Between them, the Saints tight ends were targeted on 17 of the 36 drop-backs, with rookie tight end Oscar Delp hauling in three catches while working with the second team.
The players who one would think would be the top options at receiver behind Olave and Tyson โ Devaughn Vele, JaโLynn Polk, Bryce Lance and Trey Palmer โ had relatively quiet days in terms of targets. Vele was the most active among the three, catching one of his three targets (though one of his incompletions was a great leaping catch of a tight-window throw from Tyler Shough, but Vele landed just out of bounds after being pushed by the defensive back).
Even without big contributions from that group, the offense operated fairly smooth โ which is a good sign for the Saints offense.
Odds and ends
Kicker Charlie Smyth made four of his six field goal attempts, with his two misses coming from 51 (wide left) and 54 (wide right) yards. Smyth closed the session by drilling a 56-yarder. The Saints decided to have Smyth compete with undrafted rookie Mason Shipley this summer rather than bringing in a veteran. Smyth continues to show his impressive leg strength, but he will still need to prove he can be a consistent option after a short stint during the regular season in 2025.
Itโs hard for offensive and defensive linemen to make their presence known in these sorts of practices, but Carl Granderson batted down a pair of passes at the line of scrimmage during Tuesdayโs practice.
Take this with a grain of salt because nobody was wearing pads and itโs hard to get a true idea of what things will look like when tackling is live, but Travis Etienne looks as explosive as he was advertised to be. He gets through the hole in a hurry.
Reserve defensive back Beanie Bishop was responsible for the lone turnover Tuesday, intercepting an off-target pass from Zach Wilson that caromed off tight end Cody Hardyโs fingertips. Bishop is working as the third-team slot cornerback behind Jonas Sanker and Jayden Price.