As the eight players that fill the practice squad feel some relief in coming back to the team in some aspect, they still have t wonder if they'll ever make it back up to the main roster of 53. The thing is that it is at least good for them to be affiliated with one of the NFL teams in some capacity at least, instead of just being out there a part of nothing.
With the cuts coming on Saturday night and the New Orleans Saints getting down to the league mandated 53-man roster, eight men were able to be put on the practice squad. These players will be able to practice with the team throughout the season and will be there able to be called up at any time if need be. The eight players making up the Saints' practice squad are:
~ QB Sean Canfield
~ DT DeMario Pressley
~ WR Montez Billings
~ G Brandon Carter
~ LB Harry Coleman
~ CB Reggie Jones
~ FB Matt Clapp
~ TE Dustin Mitchell
Let's take a look at all eight players and see if they ever really have a chance to be called up to the main roster during the 2010 season.
Sean Canfield: It was kind of a given that Canfield would end up as the quarterback on the practice squad because most veterans (Patrick Ramsey) don't find themselves there. The only way Canfield would ever be called up to the main roster during the 2010 season is by way of some disastrous occurrence with the quarterback situation. The rookie had promise coming out of college but then just showed nothing during training camp and never even saw any action during the preseason except for a few kneel downs.
DeMario Pressley: Probably the one with the greatest chance of being called up at some point is Pressley. It was a bit of a surprise to see him end up cut because he has a lot of talent and was most likely only a few decent plays away from staying on the main roster. The interior line for the Saints is solid, but not overly strong. Sedrick Ellis is a beast at his position, but next to him remains a bit of a question mark. Anthony Hargrove and Remi Ayodele are good players, but not great and and slip-up in production could mean an opening for them to be replaced. Chances are that Pressley will be on the active roster at some point during 2010.
Montez Billings: There is not much of a chance of Billings being called up at all. Talk about something drastic needing to happen in order for this to occur. The Saints actually kept six wide receivers with Adrian Arrington staying on and if they did need an extra receiver, I'd expect them to find an out of work veteran instead. Billings didn't show much at all and it's a surprise to me that he was left on while Larry Beavers was shown the door early.
Brandon Carter: Carter is a really decent young prospect on the offensive line with great size. The kid is 6'6" and weighs in at 319 pounds. It's possible he could be in the NFL at one point or another, but the Saints have a great o-line and some nice depth to begin with so chances don't look good for him this season.
Harry Coleman: Much like many that were cut, Coleman was simply the victim of overcrowding at his position. Even with the loss of Jonathan Casillas for the season, there is just a lot of veteran and young talent at the linebacking position making him expendable. But he was too valuable not to keep around so the Saints made sure to keep him on the practice squad. Coleman plays with a lot of speed and intensity out there so it wouldn't at all surprise me to see him brought up maybe for a couple games for special teams and possibly even back-up linebacker.
Reggie Jones: Yet another player to show up in a stacked position. Jones was not even close to cracking the starting spot over Jabari Greer or Tracy Porter, but he might have had a shot at the back-up position. When it all boiled down to the end, it was either Jones or Leigh Torrence staying on the team and it was close. Had Torrence not returned that interception for a score against the Chargers then maybe Jones would be on the team right now. One mistake to many and we could see Jones taking over as the main back-up at cornerback with Randall Gay.
Matt Clapp: Clapp is a prospect that hasn't been a part of the Saints all season but was actually signed as an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma by the Detroit Lions. While not a bad prospect, Clapp likely wouldn't be the player brought up to the roster if there was an injury to Heath Evans. Last year there was an injury to Evans and back-up tight ends sometimes filled the fullback spot. That's a valuable extra roster spot that could go to another back-up and it won't be Clapp.
Dustin Mitchell: A tight end with plenty of ties to Louisiana and he won't see the main roster this season either. The Saints surprisingly kept four tight ends after the preseason with Tory Humphrey obviously doing enough to impress and maybe also because of concern over rookie Jimmy Graham's ankle. Either way, don't expect to see Mitchell on the 53 at all this year.
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Great analysis of the Saints 2010!
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