Saints’ defensive line depth keeps ‘rolling’ in win over Chargers

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — If you want to believe in the depth of New Orleans’ defensive front seven, well, this was the game for you.

Obviously, we need to take everything from Sunday’s 22-17 preseason win over the Chargers with a California-sized grain of salt. The Saints rested 28 total players, including 19 of their 22 projected starters. The Chargers rested even more players, meaning the Saints defense didn’t face the likes of Justin Herbert, Austin Ekeler, Keenan Allen, Mike Williams or a bona fide starting NFL offensive line.

Nevertheless, Saints defensive linemen Payton Turner, Malcolm Roach, Tanoh Kpassagnon, Bryan Bresee, Khalen Saunders and linebacker Jaylon Smith were among those who took full advantage of the situation while the Saints defense dominated the first 28 minutes of the game. (Then DE Niko Lalos added an exclamation point by looking like a first-team All-Pro in the fourth quarter.)

STRIP SACK!!!Payton Turner sacks Easton Stick, the ball comes out, and Bryan Bresee recovers it!!!#Saints | 📺: FOX-8 pic.twitter.com/MulMFgFWcB— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) August 20, 2023

“Man, when we’re rolling, we’re rolling man,” Turner said when asked how good he thinks the revamped defensive line rotation can be. “I think we’ve got every piece we need to be a dominant D-line up front. Just need to stay healthy and keep competing and keep getting each other better.”

Obviously we’re going to need to see these types of performances on a consistent basis in games that matter a helluva lot more than this one did. But Sunday’s flashes were extra notable because they matched those we’ve been seeing throughout training camp.

More importantly, heading into the summer, the Saints’ front-seven depth was arguably the biggest question mark we had on this entire roster — that wasn’t injury-related.

The Saints opted for a massive makeover this offseason after their defensive line performance took a dip in 2022. They let DE Marcus Davenport, DTs David Onyemata and Shy Tuttle and pass-rushing linebacker Kaden Elliss get away in free agency while deciding to invest instead in free agent defensive tackles Saunders and Nathan Shepherd. Then they used their first two draft picks on DT Bresee and DE Isaiah Foskey (who hasn’t been as promising as the rest of the group, yet).

As of this time last month, it felt like the Saints’ front seven was made up of DE Cameron Jordan, LBs Demario Davis and Pete Werner — and a whole bunch of unknowns.

That’s probably still true. But if you’ve been following our daily coverage of camp even before Sunday’s performance, you know we’ve ranked DE Carl Granderson, Turner and Roach as three of the biggest risers on the entire roster. Bresee and Saunders have also been big pluses.

Now, suddenly, you can throw Smith into that mix after he just signed as a free agent last week.

Our @HardhideWhiskey Player of the Game goes to LB Jaylon Smith. pic.twitter.com/RnFgRPANWn— NOF (@nofnetwork) August 21, 2023

Smith started things off Sunday night by making two great third-down stops while the Chargers went three-and-out on their first three drives. The first was a big-time hit that stopped running back Joshua Kelley a yard short of the first-down marker. The second was a pass breakup in the open field in single coverage against receiver John Hightower.

Then Turner and Bresee combined to make an even bigger play early in the second quarter. Turner twisted inside to sack quarterback Easton Stick and force a fumble, which Bresee recovered.

Dennis Allen started with some things he liked Sunday (Kendre Miller, takeaways among them). But the 14 penalties didn't sit well."We won the game and I’m pleased about that, but there is a ton of crap that needs to be cleaned up." https://t.co/NtjVUpgsDt— Mike Triplett (@MikeTriplett) August 21, 2023

“That’s kind of the stuff that we’ve seen him doing in training camp. And that’s why we drafted him where we did,” coach Dennis Allen said of Turner, a first-round pick in 2021 who has yet to live up to his potential with just 13 games played and three sacks through two seasons. “I think, you know, here’s a kid that has had a lot of injury issues, which has forced him to miss a lot of time. And therefore he’s missed a ton of development. So it’s really been an unfair assessment of the player up to this point. But I do think he’s had a good camp, and I do think he made some nice plays tonight.”

Turner tallied two QB hits Sunday night and another last week.

“(I’m) not quite (doing) everything I want to do. You’re always gonna have reps you want back. Everybody does every game, it doesn’t matter how great you play. … But I do feel like I’m making progress,” said Turner, who has been fully healthy this entire offseason for the first time in his young career. “And then just being the same player every down, that’s kind of the focus right now.

“Just my pad level, especially on my pass rush, I feel like I get high sometimes. And then just keep working on a plan, keep working on what works for me.”

I slow-mo’ed my way through replays of every defensive snap in the first half and starred Turner, Roach, Bresee and Kpassagnon at least three or four times each for pressures or run stuffs. Bresee, Kpassagnon and linebacker Zack Baun each batted a pass in the first half, too.

Kendre Miller's first exposure to blitz pickup couldn't have gone better, and it might be the key to getting him on the field early in the seasonhttps://t.co/nww8Lnd4HU— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) August 21, 2023

Of course they all took turns having some quiet snaps, as well. But even if the former first-round picks aren't ready to be breakout stars just yet, the point is the depth of options that appears to be emerging across the line — where the Saints love to rotate throughout games to keep everyone fresh and active.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Foskey is ready to make an early impact with the line. His quiet summer continued Sunday night with him being noticeably blocked out of the way on multiple plays, including one that led to Allen sharing some feedback with him on the sideline.

“That was a play I thought he should’ve been able to finish and make the play. And so I expressed to him that I expect him to be able to make that play. That’s why we drafted him where we drafted him,” Allen said of Foskey being out of position on QB Easton Stick’s 6-yard touchdown run before halftime. “Now, that being said, I’ve seen some improvement out of this player. I’ve seen him cut it loose a little bit. I hold him to a standard of expectation that he should’ve made that play.”

stick shiftin into another gear pic.twitter.com/ZcO0Yu8vZS— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 21, 2023

The Saints need the light bulb to come on for Foskey sooner than later. But the good news is that, for now, it feels like they have enough depth to be patient with him — as much as you can believe what you see in August, anyway.