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Can Kaden Elliss Replace Demario Davis? The Saints' Biggest Defensive Question · AFR Saints

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Saints back on the practice field OTA action this week
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: as that continues. Kaden Ellis is back in New Orleans
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: and he met with reporters upon his return, which is
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  Speaker 1: it's an interesting decision. Listen, if you listen to the show,
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: you know how I feel about it. I'm devastated to
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  Speaker 1: Mario Davis left. I think it's a terrible decision by
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  Speaker 1: New Orleans not to offer him the two year contract
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  Speaker 1: with the guarantees he wanted. I don't care that he's
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: thirty seven years old. He has shown no sign of decline.
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  Speaker 1: This feels like to me a redo of the Darren
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  Speaker 1: and Sprolls decision. And Sean Payton's perspective always was you'd
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  Speaker 1: rather get rid of a player a year too soon
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  Speaker 1: than a year too late. You can understand that. But
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  Speaker 1: Darren Sproles went on to continue his outstanding career in Philadelphia,
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  Speaker 1: and the Saints really missed that presence offensively. I look
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  Speaker 1: at the decision they made to not retain to Mario
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  Speaker 1: Davis in a similar light. I don't care what his
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: age is. He takes exceptional care of it, of his body,
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: he has been durable, and my goodness, he had the
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  Speaker 1: two most productive years of his career the last two seasons.
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  Speaker 1: There's no sign of decline. He's actually improving, which is
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  Speaker 1: incredible to think. But the Saints made the decision they
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: did and in so doing, brought Kaden Ellis back to
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  Speaker 1: New Orleans. He got a player that's almost a decade
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  Speaker 1: younger than to Mario Davis, and Kate Nellis talked about
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  Speaker 1: that role having to replace to Mario Davis.
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  Speaker 2: He'll be very daunting. He's a special player, special man,
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  Speaker 2: special leader. That's not what it is. I'm coming here
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  Speaker 2: to be Kaden Ellis and b and meet got great
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: people around me, great teammates, great coaches, and the leadership
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  Speaker 2: will be dispersed to out the team because Tomorrow's got
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  Speaker 2: a special voice. And uh, that's not what I'm here for.
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: Yeah you are, Like, that's quite literally why you're there.
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  Speaker 1: They let the Mario Davis walk and they signed you
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  Speaker 1: to come back and be the starting Mike linebacker. Like,
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  Speaker 1: that's literally why you're here. So I'm not saying you
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  Speaker 1: got to wear fifty six and you know where the
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: Man of God head band. Uh, if you did, I'd
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  Speaker 1: actually hate you forever. If you did that, it'd be blasphemous,
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  Speaker 1: but like that's literally why you're there. And when you're
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  Speaker 1: talking about a guy in the Mario Davis who is
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  Speaker 1: one hundred and fifty tackle a year guy, and kay
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  Speaker 1: Nellis throughout his career has not been that. As a
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  Speaker 1: matter of fact, the you know, the the best, the
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  Speaker 1: best career, The best season he's had defensively is sixty
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  Speaker 1: six tackles. I mean, I'm sorry, is forgive me that
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  Speaker 1: was assistant tackles is one. He's had one season with
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  Speaker 1: one hundred and fifty tackles. I mean he went when
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  Speaker 1: he first actually got on the field in New Orleans.
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  Speaker 1: These are his his his tackle by year statistics. One five,
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  Speaker 1: seventeen seventy eight. In his final year in New Orleans,
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  Speaker 1: he goes to Atlanta one two, one fifty one, one
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  Speaker 1: oh seven. So he's become a hundred tackle guy, but
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  Speaker 1: still not And he's played every game by the way,
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: he played every game his three years in Atlanta. So
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  Speaker 1: the durability is there, that's for sure. And he's been
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  Speaker 1: one hundred tackle guy, but not to the degree to
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  Speaker 1: Mario Davis has been. But you're talking about a guy
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  Speaker 1: who is thirty years old. Where to Mario is thirty seven,
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  Speaker 1: so you're talking about a guy's by seven years younger,
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  Speaker 1: not quite as productive, but you're hoping he continues to
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  Speaker 1: develop indu a Sturties comment or with David Edge as well.
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: Just to be clear, L's also talked about adapting to
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: Brandon Staley's defense.
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: We're going it's really awesome getting to spend time with
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: Peter Sermon and Brandon Staley and all these guys to
• 3:37
  Speaker 2: get to hear how they, you know, skin the cat.
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  Speaker 2: There's a lot of ways to do it, and the
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  Speaker 2: way they do it is a lot of the same
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  Speaker 2: thing I've done, and there's a lot of different things
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  Speaker 2: that I haven't done before. It's really cool to learn
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  Speaker 2: from them, first off, foremost, and there's special lines and
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  Speaker 2: Brandon's got a really special defense here. Everybody's spotted and
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  Speaker 2: everybody's dialed, and I'm excited to, you know, play my partner.
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  Speaker 1: I will be. It's very clear when you look at
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  Speaker 1: the Saints defensively and what they're doing is they are
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  Speaker 1: they're choosing to turn the page from an era of
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  Speaker 1: Corps veterans. Obviously to Mario is gone. As we just
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: talked about, Cam Jordan still not under contract and very
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: likely is not going to be back in New Orleans.
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  Speaker 1: Tyron Matthew is gone. You traded Marshaun Lattimore. Even the
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  Speaker 1: young defensive backs you've now seen walk with Alante Taylor
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  Speaker 1: and paulson A deebo a season to go sign with
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  Speaker 1: the Giants. You have turned over a new leaf defensively.
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  Speaker 1: It is, and it's it's strange because we've become so
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  Speaker 1: accustomed for a decade and a half now plus to
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  Speaker 1: these familiar and voices and styles with this organization, and
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: they're all gone by and large, So it's different and
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  Speaker 1: it's taking some adapting and some getting used to. But
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  Speaker 1: really what I want to see is the Saints defense
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  Speaker 1: build upon last year. I mean, New Orleans was sixteenth
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  Speaker 1: in the NFL last year in total defense, right in
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  Speaker 1: yards allowed. So the fact, I'm sorry they were twenty fourth,
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: and so I am hopeful that another year with Brandon Staley,
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  Speaker 1: the young players that got playing time last year take
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  Speaker 1: a step forward. Maybe you see them go from twenty
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  Speaker 1: fourth to top half of the NFL. I'm not saying
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  Speaker 1: you got to go top ten, but can you be
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  Speaker 1: top half? And you couple that with a maturing offense
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  Speaker 1: with a lot of offense with a lot of weapons,
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  Speaker 1: a quarterback getting more experience. Maybe that is the blend
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  Speaker 1: that gets the Saints to a ten win season, which
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  Speaker 1: could probably win you that division this year if you
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: can get to ten and seven. So, while we're all
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: really excited about Tyler Shuck and the offense, justifiably so,
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  Speaker 1: not only because it's going to be fun to watch
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  Speaker 1: what Shuck can do after a nine game sample over
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  Speaker 1: seventeen and now you add Jordan Tyson the mix, you
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: go get Travis Aitchen, you seemingly have fortified your offensive
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  Speaker 1: line adding Edwards, and you're gonna get McCoy back healthy. Mean,
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  Speaker 1: all the things we talked about a bunch, But like
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  Speaker 1: I think, we're excited to see that offense elevate. But
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  Speaker 1: we've seen really good offenses in New Orleans complemented by
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  Speaker 1: terrible defenses, and the team's not be very good. Mean,
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  Speaker 1: twenty twelve, they went seven to nine. That was the
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  Speaker 1: worst defense statistically in the history of the NFL. No
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  Speaker 1: defense a lot more yards than that twenty twelve Saints
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  Speaker 1: defense as of that time. So can they play complimentary football?
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  Speaker 1: Be interesting to see you're one to year two in
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  Speaker 1: Brandon Saley's defense, how they might be able to make
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  Speaker 1: that step,