With the way the New Orleans Saints structured training camp, defensive coordinator Brandon Staley said no group on the defense received more reps than the unit’s rookies.
The Saints, after all, used five of their nine draft picks on Staley’s side of the ball. And even though none of those players started in last weekend’s season-opener, the goal of the heavy workload in camp was to get them up to speed in case they were suddenly forced to play.
Jonas Sanker is the first test case to see if the approach pays off.
“We’re not afraid of playing young guys,” Staley said. “I know he’ll maximize his opportunity.”
Sanker, a third-round pick out of Virginia, will get an opportunity to start at safety Sunday after veteran Julian Blackmon suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in last weekend’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
The Saints, who host the San Francisco 49ers this weekend, turned to the rookie because of how he came on strong throughout the summer, notably recording a game-tying interception in a preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
But beyond one individual moment, Staley said Sanker had a “really big jump” in the last two preseason games and against New Orleans’ starting offense in practice when the 1’s would face the 2’s. That caused Sanker to leap up the depth chart, passing safeties Jordan Howden, Terrell Burgess and Ugo Amadi along the way.
“I’m just excited,” Sanker said. “I’ve just been preparing all summer. I had a lot of time to get used the system and get used to the way they do things. So really just excited and ready to get rolling.”
Sanker used the summer to learn what the Saints wanted from him. At Virginia, the 6-foot, 206-pound safety mostly played in the box — meaning he’d be near the line of scrimmage to wreak havoc with physical hits.
But the Saints signed veteran Justin Reid this offseason to play in the box, and so to avoid complete overlap, New Orleans’ staff had Sanker focus more on the backend. That spot was more uncertain given Blackmon’s injury history and Tyrann Mathieu’s sudden retirement before training camp.
Now, the Saints are hoping Sanker can provide stability.
He played just one defensive snap in his debut.
“Jonas is going to do an awesome job,” coach Kellen Moore said. “He’s prepared, ready. … You know, we’re not going to put all the weight on him, but we feel like we’re in a really good position.”