Who steps up? More Covid problems, breaking down Friday’s news

Another day, more bad Saints news was reported. The Saints continue to lose guys, and now are becoming so short handed their 4th stringers getting ready to play. 

Covid outbreak continues 

The Saints continue to take blows to their team as Covid continues to spread within the team. The Saints had already placed 11 total players on the Covid list this week and four more were added on Friday.

Special teams ace and now pro bowl gunner J.t Gray was added to the Covid list along with some assistant coaches going on the Covid list as well. To go along with that, Saints right tackle Ryan Ramczyk who’s been dealing with a knee injury was placed on the Covid list as well. The Saints took more blows to the team when linebacker Demario Davis and running back Dwayne Washington were placed in the Covid list as well. The team just can’t catch a break as now 15 players are now on the Covid list along with three assistant coaches. 

Those current 15 players include Demario Davis, Malcolm Jenkins, Taysom Hill, Ryan Ramczyk, JT Gray, Dwayne Washington, Trevor Siemian, Kaden Elliss, James Carpenter, Jeff Heath, Jalyn Holmes, Jordan Mills, Christian Ringo, Adam Trautman, and Juwan Johnson.

Who will step up?

We know as of now that P.j Williams will fill in for Malcolm Jenkins. 

In for Demario will probably be Pete Werner, we could also see Chase Hansen get signed back to the roster and fill in on some special teams roles and extra depth at linebacker. 

And of course we all have heard that rookie quarterback Ian Book will be the starter for Hill and Siemian. 

In for Trautman and Johnson we’ll see Nick Vannett and Ethan Wolf with the possibility of some Adam Prentice at tight end. 

In for J.t Gray we could see KeiVarae Russell or possibly Kevin White get elevated from the practice squad and fill in for the pro bowl gunner. 

At offensive tackle we’ll see James Hurst and possibly Jerald Hawkins take the starting roles.

The next players I mention will likely be special teams contributors filling in for guys like Jeff Heath and Dwayne Washington or provide extra depth on the offense or defense. I would expect to see Sharif Finch, Josh Adams, Will Clapp, and Dylan Mabin pop up 

Sean Payton returns 

After missing about a week, head coach Sean Payton returned to the Saints facility on Friday. He’s been cleared to return to practice and will now take over the head coaching duties once again. Having Sean Payton back will be critical as to how the Saints prepare Ian Book along with the rest of the team in terms of a game plan. 

An update on Jameis 

Quarterback Jameis Winston is currently in rehab after undergoing surgery on his knee. He’s been progressing well in his rehab and has started doing workouts to strengthen up his knee back to full health. He began full weight bearing exercises a few days ago and has been progressing well. 

Saints find quarterback help

With the Saints only having one active quarterback on the roster available for Monday, the team went out and signed veteran quarterback Blake Bortles. He will practice with the team on Friday and will back up rookie quarterback Ian Book as he makes his first NFL start.

Injury report 

Saints

DNP

Terron Armstead (knee)

LP

Marcus Davenport (shoulder), Tre’Quan Smith (shoulder)

FP

Marcus Williams (shoulder)

Dolphins 

FP

Jesse Davis (knee), Brandon Jones (elbow), Phillip Lindsay (ankle), Adam Shaheen (knee), Zach Sieler (neck), Trill Williams (neck)

Transactions 

Ryan Ramczyk, J.t Gray, Demario Davis, Dwayne Washington, assistant defensive backs coach Cory Robinson, assistant offensive line coach Zach Strief, and coaching intern Sterling Moore were all placed on the Covid list. 

The Saints signed quarterback Blake Bortles. 

Written By Kadin Janisch

If you need to contact me email me at whodattnation@gmail.com and I’ll try to get back to you.

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