The Green Bay Packers are going to be having a joint practice with the New Orlean Saints Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Having joint practices with other teams helps the players get a feel for the game early. The players play at full speed instead of the slowed down speed of practice. It’s beneficial for both teams and all players. For the Packers, the Saints is a prefect team to have joint practices with specifically for their wide receivers. I already mentioned how important defense is in my last post, but that doesn’t mean receivers aren’t important also. Here is why having joint practice with the Saints is a good test for the Packers receivers.
The Saints have good cornerbacks
The Saints defense has been a top defense for the past five plus years. That doesn’t seem to change this year. One reason for this is because of their great cornerbacks. We must start with marathon Lattimore, the leader of the defensive backs for the Saints. After a couple of down years, for his expectations, he had a good year in 2021. He logged 3 INTs, 16 pass deflections, allowed 57% completion when targeted, and was graded 77.3 in PFF. Those are all great numbers for a starting cornerback, whether you’re thrown to or not. Whoever practices against him is going to have their hands full.
Paulson Adebo is their second corner and is coming off a good rookies season. He started his career with 3 INTs, 5 pass deflections, allowed 65% completion when targeted, and graded 60.3 in PFF. Not great numbers, but definitely a good start to his career. Look for him to be even better in year two, giving whoever lines up across him in joint practice trouble.
Bradley Roby is their third corner. While he never did live up to expectations with the Broncos, he still has the talent to be a serviceable DB. He has the speed to keep up with receivers and could help give the Packers receiver depth good competition in joint practice. Oh, and they also have…
Good safeties also
Just when you looked at the corners of the Saints and thought that it couldn’t get tougher to play against, then you see their safeties. In the offseason they signed Tyrann Mathieu, aka The Honey Badger. While he may not be in his prime, he is still one heck of a safety who can do everything the Saint sneed him to. Not only is he athletic but he can predict a route by watching the receiver or the QB. The Packers receivers will have to learn from him to know how to deal with other safeties and corners with such football knowledge and awareness.
They also signed Marcus Maye, who I believe is an underrated safety. He only played in six games last year, so not a lot of production there. The year prior though, he recorded 2 INTs, 2 sacks, and graded a whopping 82.9 in PFF. The Packers will have to work for every big play with Maye playing against them in joint practice.
P. J. Williams can play either safety or in the slot. He has done quite well over his career with the Saints. Last year he recorded 3 INTs and a 70 in PFF. He will be hard to beat for the third or fourth receiver on the Packers depth chart
The last DB is C. J. Gardner-Johnson. He has been a good player for the Saints who can also play safety or in the slot if needed to. Last year, he recorded 3 INTs, 2 sacks, but a 62.2 in PFF. He does lose receivers and isn’t great in coverage, but he does get after the ball. It will benefit the Packers receivers to play against someone so aggressive.
Conclusion
When I researched the stats of the Saints DBs, one thought came to mind: Wow, that is a lot of interceptions. This group is very talented and one of the best. John DeShazier highlights on how well the defense did in their first preseason game against the Houston Texans. Now, I know it’s the Texans but still all NFL players are in the league for a reason. This makes it the perfect test for the Packers receivers and a great opportunity for them to develop into what fans and Rodgers hope they will be. The preseason game will also help but the starters will most likely spend more time in joint practice against each other than in the preseason game. Keep an eye on the highlights over the next two days.
