3 takeaways from Saints unofficial depth chart ahead of preseason opener

The New Orleans Saints recently released their unofficial depth chart for preseason, and it comes with a few noticeable surprises.

Most of the depth chart appears to be self-explanatory; for example, the quarterback room includes Jameis Winston, Andy Dalton, and Ian Book. Nothing to analyze there, other than the slight chance of new signing K.J. Costello ousting Book.

Elsewhere on the offense, James Hurst predictably sits at starting left tackle ahead of Trevor Penning while Adam Trautman and Taysom Hill share the TE1 spot. On the defense, Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye sit ahead of P.J. Williams and Ceedy Duce.

It’s just preseason, and there’s plenty of time for players to rise and fall down the depth chart. This will likely be the first of many depth charts to come, but we’ve come up with a few notes on the chart for you to peruse in your spare time.

Here are three takeaways from the Saints unofficial depth chart in the preseason.

Saints takeaway No. 3: Chris Olave is ranked low in the WR room

On most preliminary depth charts, veterans are usually listed ahead of rookies, so seeing Chris Olave behind Tre’Quan Smith and Marquez Callaway really isn’t that surprising.

Olave has been getting plenty of reps with starters throughout training camp, and he almost certainly will get his first taste of preseason in Saturday’s matchup against the Houston Texans.

The 2022 first-rounder has looked the part of an elite starting-caliber receiver so far in camp, and he’s been generating great chemistry with Jameis Winston to boot.

NOLA paid a king’s ransom to nab Olave in the draft, but he could turn into a real franchise superstar and can start his career off strong in 2022. Long story short: it’s not the least bit concerning that Olave sits behind more experienced players like Smith, but we can nearly guarantee that Olave will get his number called before Smith does.

Keep an eye on Olave this preseason.

Saints takeaway No. 2: Abram Smith is badly losing the RB battle

The running back depth chart could look vastly different when Week 1 rolls around, and the initial ordering of NOLA’s RB room appears to be based on seniority.

Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram are confident locks for the top two spots, but the rest of the unit remains up in the air. What sticks out the most may be undrafted rookie Abram Smith finishing dead last behind the likes of Dwayne Washington, Malcolm Brown, and Tony Jones Jr.

Smith, who played linebacker for a brief stint in his college career, set a single-season record as a senior at Baylor with 1,621 yards and 12 touchdowns. The Saints were high on Smith when they acquired him earlier this summer, and Smith could still make out to be RB3 material.

NOLA has typically rostered four running backs in years past, which means Smith will compete with a handful of other unproven talents for either an RB3 or RB4 position.

Each running back should get his chance to shine in the spotlight in preseason, and it’ll be up to Smith to separate himself from the pack in the next few weeks.

Saints takeaway No. 1: Carl Granderson sits ahead of Payton Turner at starting DE

This is yet another instance of a veteran outranking a younger player, but it’s still intriguing to note. Carl Granderson is listed as the right defensive end with Payton Turner behind him, though it may not be long until Turner leapfrogs him for the starting role.

Granderson has looked solid this training camp, reportedly bulking up and improving his run defense this offseason.

That being said, Turner has looked far more impressive and primed for a breakout second season.

Whereas Granderson arguably offers more value as a third-down specialist (he played 34 percent of special teams snaps in 2021), Turner has serious potential to develop into a pass-rushing mainstay in NOLA.

Don’t forget about Marcus Davenport, either, who remains on the PUP list and likely won’t feature in the preseason opener against Houston.

All this depth chart talk should be taken with heaps of salt as it’s still very early in the preseason. Time will tell if the Saints’ rookies and second-year players can overtake the veterans in 2022.