NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The Saints made several roster moves following the team’s rookie minicamp. Fullback Michael Burton, defensive lineman Geneo Grissom, wide receiver Cyril Grayson Jr., center Marcus Henry, tackle Ulrick John, linebacker Colton Jumper, running back A.J. Ouellette, defensive back David Simmons Jr., defensive tackle Sylvester Williams and wide receiver Micah Wright all signed with the club. The team waived running back Darnell Holland, defensive lineman Tomasi Laulile and cornerback Darius Williams. Henry originally signed with the Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2016. Jumper spent last training camp in New Orleans. Of the ten players they signed, only Oulette, Wright and Simmons were rookies. Copyright 2019 WVUE. All rights reserved.<doc-sep>The New Orleans Saints correctly diagnosed punt returner as an area of weakness on their team, and took action to address it this offseason. They poached longtime Minnesota Vikings return specialist Marcus Sherels in free agency. After the 2019 draft, they added rookie Deonte Harris, the NCAA record-holder in return touchdowns. Either of those prospects could be an upgrade over the mediocrity the Saints had in that area of the game not just last year, but for several years. In 2018, four different Saints fielded 24 punts to gain 157 yards. Alvin Kamara led the group with 12 returns, averaging 6.8 yards per attempt. Tommylee Lewis (now with the Detroit Lions) was the runner-up with eight attempts, averaging 7.5 yards per return. Veteran Brandon Tate (cut after just one game) and Taysom Hill made up the difference. The group combined for just 10 punt returns of 10 or more yards, none of them meeting the 20-yard mark. Their restults were mediocre at best. Sherels experienced a totally different 2018 season, returning 23 punts for 276 yards (an average of 12.0 yards per attempt). 11 of his returns gained 10 or more yards, and six of them went further for 20 or more yards — flipping field position is nothing new to him. That’s exactly what the Saints need at the position. On the other hand, Harris has all the makings of a big-time rookie signing. He was prolific at Assumption College in Division II football, setting the NCAA All-Division record for return touchdowns (14) with his abilities on both punts and kickoffs. As a senior in 2018, he fielded 10 punts for 190 yards (19.0 per attempt) and scored a touchdown return. In his career, he’s brought back 48 punts and gained 981 yards (a ridiculous-to-type 20.4 yards per return), eight of them ending in the end zone. The Saints could very well not go wrong with either option. Sherels is the proven veteran, while Harris is the intriguing rookie. It should be an intense contest throughout the season to see which of them wins the job. Finally resolving the punt return problem is probably a big reason why the Saints hired new special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi. They’ve done well limiting opposing teams on punt returns, thanks to the efforts of punter Thomas Morstead and gunners like Chris Banjo and Justin Hardee. With NFL rules changes diminishing the impact of kickoff returns, big punt returns are one of the few ways special teams units can impact field position.<doc-sep>Sean Payton impressed with Saints rookie class so far Share Shares Copy Link Copy Hide Transcript Show Transcript JOB. I APPRECIATE THAT. HEY EVERYBODY SHARIF. ISHAK IN METAIRIE WITH YOUR SPORTS AND IT’S THAT TIME OF THE YEAR SAINTS ROOKIE MINICAMP TH BLACK AND GOLD WITH TWO PRACTICES IN THE BOOKS 75 PLAYERS TAKING PART IN THE ROOKIE MINICAMP AND YOU STARTING TO WONDER HOW HARD IS IT FOR SEAN PAYTON TO MAKE HIS EVALUATIONS WITH THAT MANY PLAYERS PRACTICE IN AND WITH THEM JUST WEARING HELMETS AND JERSEYS FOR US MORE THAN ANYTHING. IT’S THE INSTALLATION. YOU KNOW HOW THEY’RE PICKING THINGS UP. ARE THEY LEARNING IT? ARE THEY, YOU KNOW ABLE TO TAKE TAKE IT TO THE FIELD. OBVIOUSLY. WE’RE NOT INSTANTLY EVALUATING. THERE’S CERTAIN ELEMENTS OF THE GAME WITHOUT SHOULDER PADS ON YOU DON’T REALIZE UNTIL YOU GET TO TRAINING CAMP AND GET THEIR NUMBER OF PLAYERS HERE ON THE TRYOUT THE PLAYERS HERE THAT WE SIGNED AS FREE AGENTS. THERE’S SOME VETERAN PLAYERS AND THEN THERE’S THE PLAYERS WE DRAFT. SO THERE’S A COMBINATION OF FOUR DIFFERENT GROUPS. YEAH FOR DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PLAYERS, WHICH CERTAINLY CAN BE VERY TOUGH TO PAY ATTENTION TO BUT ALL EYES ARE ON THE 5F PICKS, ESPECIALLY THE SECOND ROUND OF THE GUY THEY MOVED UP TO GET TEXAS A&M CENTER ERIC MCCOY, AND HE WAS JUST HAPPY TO GET ALL OF THIS FUN STARTED AND A BLACK AND GOLD UNIFORM THE WHOLE COMBINE ALL THAT WHOLE PROCESS IS VERY LONG VERY VERY LONG. SO I’M REALLY EXCITED TO BE HERE AND ACTUALLY BE IN THIS POSITION. I THINK IT’S A REALLY GOOD FIT. YOU KNOW, I’M LOVING THIS GAME SO FAR. LIKE I SAID, I’M STILL LEARNING STILL MAKING MISTAKES, AND I’VE GOT A LONG WAY TO GO ANOTHER GUY. THE SAINTS ARE VERY EXCITED ABOUT IS CHAUNCEY GARDINER JOHNSON A GUY THE BLACK AND GOLD FELT LIKE THEY STOLE WHEN THEY MOVED UP IN THE FOURTH ROUND TO SNAG HIM. SEAN PAYTON IS IMPRESSED SO FAR AND FEELS LIKE THE ROOKIE SAFETY FROM FLORIDA IS VERY VERSATILE. THANK YOU CAN PLAY OVER THE SLOT IN THE NICKEL ROLE AND ALSO PLAYING THIS IS ONE REPS EVEN HIS CORNER, BUT HE’S GOT SOME VERSATILITY WORK FOR YOU KNOW, HE’S THE CANARY IS DEEP ITSELF. SO I’ JUST HERE TO WORK NOT KNOWN AS GIVE YOU A JOCK LIKE OH SAY, OH MY HOW YOU GOT HERE. SO HUNGRY TO GO OUT THERE AND WORK AND COMPETE WITH THE GUYS. I THINK NEXT WEEK WE GOT OT A LIVING IS I’M JUST READY TO GO OUT THERE, YOU KNOW JUST BE HUMBLE OPEN UP TO INJUSTICE SIXTH ROUND PICK A QUANT HAMPTON IS ALSO LISTENING. WELL PICKING UP THINGS IN THIS CAMP EVEN COMIN UP WITH AN INTERCEPTION. THANKS TO A TIP PASS BY GARDNER JOHNSON AND THE ROOKIE SAFETY FROM RUTGERS IS A GUY WHO SAID AFTER HE GOT DRAFTED THAT IT WAS STAR ON SPECIAL TEAMS, IF THAT HELPED THEM MAKE THE SQUAD ANY PHASE OF THE GAME THAT YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE AND DEFINITELY WANT TO DO ESPECIALLY SEEMED A MOST IMPORTANT, BUT SOME I’VE DONE MY WHOLE CAREER IN COLLEGE, SO I THINK MY SKILL SAYS SHE WAS ME I CAN PLAY SPECIAL TEAMS HER TOO. HE’S A HUMAN CAN SEE ALREADY. HAVE A NICE LITTLE RELATIONSHIP TO EACH OTHER. SO WE’RE OUT THERE WERE ALWAYS COMMUNICATE AND STUDYING. THEY’RE OUT THERE AS WELL. HE’S DEFINITELY THE COMPANY TO COME BY SAME PLACE. I THINK I LOOK OUT FOR EACH OTHER. YOU KNOW, YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT’S GOIN TO HAPPEN. YOU KNOW, HE COUNTED AS QUESTION TWO GU WHO ALWAYS BEEN THAT ROOKIE MINICAMP FOR THE BLACK AND GOLD AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL HOLD OTAS, WHICH WILL START ON MAY 21ST, THEN HAVE MANDATORY MIN GET LOCAL BREAKING NEWS ALERTS The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox. Submit Privacy Notice<doc-sep>
The New Orleans Saints added two players after successful tryouts at rookie minicamp: former LSU track star and journeyman wide receiver Cyril Grayson, and former North Park cornerback David Simmons Jr. Josh Katenstein of the Times-Picayune first reported the signings for Grayson and Simmons. Grayson’s NFL career has largely meant stints on the practice squad with the Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, and Chicago Bears. Not allowed to both run track and play football for the Tigers, Grayson instead earned four national relay titles and was a late addition to LSU’s 2017 pro day. He gave a lengthy interview with Robert Klemko of Sports Illustrated, narrating how his big break with Seattle came about. He’s obviously an impressive athlete, having timed the 40-yard dash in just 4.33 seconds at 5-foot-9, 183 pounds. He also showed enough moves in Saints minicamp to warrant a spot on the crowded receivers depth chart. Josh Katzenstein of the Times-Picayune shared a video of one of his receptions: Here’s Grayson making a catch in traffic pic.twitter.com/rWEGpRpfFf — Josh Katzenstein (@jkatzenstein) May 11, 2019 As for Simmons, he is a tall (6-foot-2, 185 pounds) cornerback from North Park University in Chicago. He stood out on special teams in his college career with 11 blocked kicks, six of them coming as a senior in 2018. He started frequently in the secondary and recorded 202 tackles (146 solo), deflecting 38 passes in 39 career games. The Saints run deeper at defensive back than almost anywhere else on the team, so he’ll have to show some serious aptitude on the special teams units to earn playing time during the preseason.