METAIRIE, La. -- After intercepting a pass in Saturday’s preseason game against the New England Patriots, second-year New Orleans Saints safety Pierre Warren was rotating in with the starters during Tuesday’s practice.
It wasn’t necessarily a promotion, though. Coach Sean Payton explained that Warren is among a number of players the team needs to see more of as we get closer to the roster cut-down days. And that might mean working them into the mix earlier with the starting and second-string units during Sunday’s preseason game against the Houston Texans.
"There’s real good competition at safety," Payton said. "In order to get a better feel for where Pierre's at or where Kenny Phillips is at or where Jamarca Sanford's at or where Vinnie Sunseri is at, it would behoove us to get them more work earlier in the game so we could get more film to evaluate.
"Receiver, the same thing would apply. I think it would apply some in the defensive line. So there’s a handful of position groups where you may look at it and say it’s stacked up or there’s a logjam. So we’ve gotta get those guys more playing time.'
Payton stressed that there is still "a lot that is undecided" as the Saints head toward their third preseason game, during which the starters usually play into the second half.
Payton said he and general manager Mickey Loomis and others have begun to put together "rough lists." Periodically one of them might say to the other, "Hey, today give me six receivers." But he said it’s not to the point where they are moving magnets on or off the depth-chart board.
"This weekend’s game is important for a lot of these players," Payton said. "This whole week is important. ... That begins to take place next week when we have to make decisions."
Teams must cut their rosters from 90 players to 75 on Sept. 1, then to 53 on Sept. 5.
As for Warren, I had him on my first two projected 53-man roster before he was the final cut from my most recent projection last week. I just felt he had started to disappear too much this summer as he slipped down the depth chart. So obviously his interception came at a great time.
Warren definitely has a great chance to get on the right side of that bubble, especially if he continues to develop on special teams -- an area where he said he has improved this year.
Warren barely missed the cut in Saints camp last summer after being signed as an undrafted free agent out of Jacksonville State. But the Saints brought him back later in the season because of injuries, and he stepped up big-time, starting at free safety and intercepting two passes in a Week 15 win at Chicago.
Warren knows he needs more moments like that to help seal the deal in the coming weeks.
"I feel like (my camp) could be better, but there’s still a long way to go," said Warren, who is asked what he’d like to do better.
"More turnovers," he said. "I always want to have a turnover, at least every day."