CORNERSTONE: New Orleans Saints Taliese Fuaga’s ELITE Play Pivotal for Future SUCCESS, Young QBs

CORNERSTONE: New Orleans Saints Taliese Fuaga’s ELITE Play Pivotal for Future SUCCESS, Young QBs

the New Orleans Saints need Tali Fong to continue his dominance on the offensive line not just for 2025 but for the sake of their future we got all of that and a little bit of land yap for you on today’s episode of Locked On Saints you are Locked On Saints your daily New Orleans Saints podcast part of the Locked On podcast network your team every day what is good Huda Nation and Huda family i am your host your friend Ross Jackson New Orleans native your New Orleans Saints expert and credentialed member of the media covering those New Orleans Saints as the Saints beat writer over at louisiana sports.net and on today’s episode of Locked on Saints the New Orleans Saints have announced their training camp dates to let you know which ones are going to be open spoiler alert it’s almost all of them here in Louisiana we’ll also take a look at the New Orleans Saints tight end room which has some talent but could potentially use more the big question is whether or not they’re going to be able to find it and to kick everything off today we’re taking a look at starting right tackle Tales Fonga who started off with an incredible rookie season and the Saints desperately need him to continue that dominance on the offensive line not just for the sake of 2025 but beyond as well we appreciate you very much whether it’s your first time or your next time being here with us this time making us your first listen and being an everyday hero on the show which is a proud part of lockdown podcast network your team every day new Orleans Saints first round pick from 2024 tells Fuango was phenomenal as their starting left tackle all throughout the 2024 season all throughout his rookie season playing a position that he ain’t even played before in his time he had always been a right tackle particularly with his few years over at Oregon State made the switch over to left tackle took it all in stride and became one of very few players along with Trevor Penning who moved from left tackle to right tackle to play all 17 games last season and to play nearly 100% of the snaps on offense uh Fua was outstanding he allowed six sacks over the course of the season but five of them came in three games that included a three-game sack up against the Denver Broncos in week seven a week before that against Tampa he allow or three sack game against the Denver Broncos in week seven a week before that he allowed one against Tampa a week later he allowed one against the Los Angeles Chargers did not allow another sack until week 17 up against the Las Vegas Raiders he had a fantastic season he was excellent he was one of the highest graded tackles rookie offensive lineman last year as well and the Saints are going to need him to continue that as he moves back now to his inherent position right the position that he played in college at Oregon State at right tackle while rookie Kelvin Banks Jr plugs in at left tackle the top 10 selection and rookie from this year’s draft but the Saints need Tellelles Fuanga not just to perform again in 2025 for the sake of 2025 but because if he and Kelvin Banks end up panning out on either side of that offensive line left tackle and right tackle then all of a sudden the conversation is very different for them moving forward throughout their rebuild as they continue to uh you know try different things out here in 2025 but then potentially flip their roster more going into 2026 2027 seven and beyond new regime new coaching staff a lot of players returning but there’s always the opportunity that you’re going to see players end up departing and then you’ll need to be able to manage that attrition and one way to manage that attrition is to have money to spend and one way to have money to spend is to have some of your most important positions locked down by players that are already extended or that are still on rookie contracts and the Saints are entering their best financial health in a really really long time and a guy like Tales Fanga panning out over at right tackle would be a major win for this team congruent to all of the other players that they have that are going to be stepping into major roles that have either already been extended and are already on extended contracts or that are operating in that cost effectiveness of a rookie contract so here’s what I mean if Wonga and Banks work out right tackle left tackle respectively the Saints get two of the most important positions on their team those tackles and in particular the blindside tackle with Calvin Banks Jr but in either case those tackles on rookie contracts for the foreseeable future for the next at least four years you get four years of Kelvin Banks on his rookie deal you get four years of Fonga on a rookie deal plus his I would expect already at this point we’ll find out how the next couple of years go but fifth year option that would be a part of that as well you also have a potential quarterback on a rookie contract and either Spencer Rattler or Tyler Shuck or perhaps a quarterback going into next year’s draft you have Chase Young who’s already been extended and is operating on that three-year $17 million per year deal and you have the opportunity now to extend Alante Taylor potentially before the season begins and you know that you’ve got some other extensions that you need to work out but outside of that the Saints big money moves could be going towards adding talent to this team in the short window following their one or two years of rebuilding that they’ll undergo here in 2012 2025 as well as in 2026 then they’ll have to revisit all the different things and figure out how it is and they’re going to make the money work by then the salary cap’s over $300 million probably at that point and so they will have their opportunities to get all of those things figured out but in the short term if this is a team that wants to find its way to being competitive again and a playoff team again and finding its way to contention over the course of the next four years or so Kelvin Banks Jr Tales Fonga those guys panning out are going to be a major and massive part of their ability to be able to build that contender which you can build through the draft and then supplement by spending money in free agency and the Saints have not really truly been able to go out there and spend money in free agency like you would like to see them do when it comes to building these contenders here over the course of the past few years dealing with the restructured contracts the big drop in salary capuh following the COVID year having to uh uh deal with you know they got the you got veterans that are on you know fully guaranteed deals or or not fully but like massively guaranteed deals majority guaranteed deals things like that guarantees that have come from some of those restructures that’s going to be shedding over the course of the next few years and so when you get players at tackle when you get a player at quarterback when you have somebody that’s locked down when it comes to edge rusher when you have young wide receivers when you have you know good defensive playmakers a potential starting corner number one corner and Kool-Aid McKenry also on a rookie contract we’ll see how things go for Yonas Sanker and his development how he fits in quincy Riley how he fits in danny Stzman how he fits in you have this opportunity now ahead of you that if some of these young guys all pan out you have a team that’s young and that is not costing you a lot of money which then allows you to be able to funnel resources into going out and grabbing those additional star-studded pieces that can come in and help take your team to the next level so that’s a big reason why I think that Talia Fonga following up with out seeing that sophomore slump in 2025 would be a humongous opportunity and a good step forward for New Orleans and I have no doubts that he’ll do that if I’m being completely honest he was outstanding in his transition from college to the pros even though he was playing technically speaking out of position moving from right tackle to left tackle now he returns to the position that he’s most familiar with at right tackle no matter what you’re facing very talented edge rushers who move around and rush from one side of the line one snap rush from another side of the line another snap you’re already going to be facing premier edge rusher talent no matter where it is that you’re lining up in today’s NFL it’s just the truth and now you get this opportunity to bookend him with a guy on a first round rookie contract a top 10 pick in Kalvin Banks Jr just a year after Fong was drafted at 14th overall and by the way you also get a chance now to take another first round pick in Trevor Pinning move him into left guard and if he pans out there that is a far more manageable contract extension to go down the road on more sooner than you’ll have to go down the road on those two tackle contracts so also very good situation there for New Orleans as well to maintain a little bit of that cost effectiveness the other reason simply that I believe that Tales Fong is incredibly important and vital to the Saints future and success in that future moving forward is because of the fact that he’s going to protect your most valuable asset in terms of your quarterback and so not seeing him take steps back would be a good sign in terms of being able to build trust for that young quarterback and of course what he’s also able to do for your run game as a tenacious run blocker we could sit here and talk about the sacks that he allowed the pressures that he allowed all these other things but he was also phenomenal in the run game as a relentless blocker and matched up with and got the better of some of the best edge rusher talent in the NFL so for Fonga being able to pan out here going into his second year back at right tackle massive for the New Orleans Saints all right coming up next we’ll take a look at the New Orleans Saints tight end room who many feel still needs to be shored up but the issue is that there’s not a lot of options out there which means that if the Saints want that position group to take a step forward the guys in the room are going to have to do it we got that coming up for you next as we continue on with today’s episode of Locked on Saints part of Locked on Podcast Network your team every day today’s episode of Locked on Saints is brought to you by our friends over at Monarch Money the absolute best app that I probably have on my phone uh because of all of the help that it gives me when it comes to not just managing my finances but building my wealth as well one app allowing you to be able to maintain things like budgeting accounts spending investments and more look one of the things that I found out was that I’m spending way too much money on having food delivered and that was a bit of a thing that was going on during the season it’s a busy time all that so now when I’m at home a little bit more I can go ahead and budget more appropriately when it comes to my food spinning helping me to save up money for some trips coming up for next year’s road trips and everything so it’s awesome i absolutely love Monarch Money you will too go and check it out take control of your finances today with Monarch Money use the promo code locked on NFL at monarchmoney.com for 50% off of your first year that’s monarchmoney.com and that is promo code locked on NFL for half off your first year monarchmoney.com promo code locked on NFL all right family if the New Orleans Saints want to continue to build up their tight end room they’re going to have to do it with the players that are already in the building because no one’s saving them in June when it comes to free agency the new tight end room I think is more talented than people give it credit for i just don’t think that it was taken advantage of properly by the coaching staffs in the past play calling um game planning all these other pieces i think very much that this tight end room is going to surprise some people going into 2025 and beyond i think a lot of that has to do with the talent that’s already there but I also think that a lot of it has to do with the way that guys like Kell Moore and TJ Paganetti are going to utilize these tight ends not just in the passing game for Kell Moore but the way they’re going to be schemed into the run game for TJ Paganetti and of course I don’t mean them running the ball but I mean their efficiencies and their productivity and their help and aid in creating a better run game in 2025 um I think that all of this is kind of on the way for New Orleans and I think that the tight end room led by Joan Johnson and Foster Marorrow are going to be the ones that are are going to be a big part of what the Saints are able to do successfully for that room of course but I do think that if the Saints want to shore that room up they’re going to need some of the guys towards the back half of that room to really start to stand forward so I I think typically when we talk about the Saints tight end room people assume that there are three locks for the roster joan Johnson Foster Maro as well as Taesm Hill now of course there’s the injury question with both Maro and Hill to where we’re not sure yet when they’re going to be ready it does seem that it has been indicated that Fossam Maro will be ready faster than Taesm Hill but we’ll see where things go right training camp will be the actual proving ground for that but Taesm Hill had a significant lower leg injury in December there’s a good chance that he potentially starts my estimation is that there’s a good chance that he starts on pup anything faster than that is not impossible but certainly would be surprising it would be a pleasant surprise I’m sure for a lot of folks uh Foster Marorrow also had a lower leg injury the final game of the season but he’s been on the sideline a lot more we’ve seen Taesm Hill the one day we’ve seen Fostaro literally every day of OTAAS and mandatory mini camp that we were we were present and Kell Moore seemed to indicate that Maro was a little bit further along than he is willing to kind of have discussions around TE Hills timeline so we’ll see where things go there but I I do think that there is a fourth player that is a lock for the roster for me assuming that he stays healthy and that’s Jack Stall who came over from Philadelphia last year the tight end that is a uh brings elite level physicality but also is maybe a little bit an underrated athlete in that way but ran a 46 has some violent run after catch ability uh has some good athleticism does some good route running as well also maybe does a little bit more than I think that people realize because of the role that he served in that Philadelphia Eagles offense a lot of which he would do in this New Orleans Saints offense as well particularly bringing some more physicality to that run game so I think that those four guys are really the top players when it comes to the position group it’s just that two of them you kind of have to ask the question when is is is the big thing right but Jawan Johnson’s at the top of that position group he got the extension this off season kell Moore seems so excited for what he’s going to be able to do on the field jawan Johnson seems so excited for what Kell Moore is going to ask him to do on the field so I would expect Jan Johnson to be a little bit more of an impact player earlier than he has typically gotten put into the fold or brought into the fold in the past couple of years when he was typically brought in a little bit late um so with all of that considered the next questions become how many tight ends will the New Orleans Saints keep and who ends up taking those other roster spots cuz I talk to a lot of fans when I’m walking around the city and stuff like that i walk a lot uh and so I can be found walking around quite often and we talk and everything and sometimes the tight end room is kind of one of those places where when I ask people what they think the biggest needs are for the team they’ll typically say something along the lines of wide receiver and tight end and the tight the wide receiver room is a big one because of size is usually what the conversation is there but I don’t think the Saints are actually particularly worried about that and then the other one that always comes up is tight end and I think typically it’s because fans have understandably been a little bit underwhelmed with the what I will say is the usage of the tight ends more than it is the actual talent of the tight ends that are in the room it’s just that they haven’t really gotten involved until much later we broke this down on previous episodes and things like that but the core idea being that they’ve been more a part of the offensive line early and then it’s as if partway through the season the the the the previous play callers have gone like “Oh wait they can catch.” And then they kind of figure out a way to get them started and involved in the tight end room that is my assessment and my assessment only uh so where that can change happens with the usage and the deployment of those tight ends and responsibilities that they’re given starting in week one as opposed to later on when the wide receivers have dealt with injury and then all of a sudden you know in the past they’ve had to turn to the tight ends to help out in the passing game instead of in the run game so on and so forth so if the Saints do want to find but but here’s the thing about that about finding help for that position group and people kind of see it as a need is that ain’t nobody out there ain’t nobody out there that’s going to help you at this point in June the remaining free agents that include guys like Gerald Everett and Mercedes Lewis who are either 40 or late you know pushing into the the later 30s uh Jordan Atkins Micole Puit CJ Uzzama these are all guys that are beyond their opportunity to be immediate impact players hayden Hurst so on and so forth there’s not a lot of these players that are out there on the market at this point particularly free agents that you can just go out there have them put pin to paper have them show up in New Orleans and then you’ll be able to do that that’s evidenced actually by the Saints having signed Seth Green from the UFFL as opposed to signing an NFL free agent because the NFL free agent stock doesn’t offer much promise right now so if the Saints are going to want to see if the Saints feel similarly that they need to see another player you know added to this position group or whatever or what have you they’ll need to find it from the players that are currently in the position groups room and so let’s look at those players three players are ones that have that Saints fans are familiar with and that have been around don Hulker who was an undrafted free agent rookie last year same thing for Triton Welsh but Triton Welsh joined a little bit late coming out of Wyoming and then you also saw Michael Jacobson who has been with the team since 2022 22 23 24 yeah I think that’s right and so he’s been around for a little while and has been somebody that has been a staple a mainstay on the team’s practice squad and so for all of that 22 23 24 yeah I think this is his third so I think he joined at 23 when it comes to to to Michael Jacobs and my apologies and so you’re hoping that one of those guys steps into a larger role and cracks the 53 the newcomers along with Seth Green is Maliki Mataval who was drafted in the seventh round mataval being a guy that during his early days at Oregon was mostly utilized as a blocker and then after he transferred to UCLA 6’6 260 lbs they finally said we should throw him the football and then all of a sudden he made some nice plays being this really good uh uh pass catcher and route runner as well and so the Saints have some talent down there but I think instead of going to the free agent market which does not offer much promise the Saints are going to need to see if a fourth or fifth tight end really stands out from the guys that are already inside the building don Hulker certainly has the versatility the athleticism all those other pieces drayton Welsh absolutely has the athleticism and is a really really fundamentally sound player michael Jacobson has gone out there and flashed constantly throughout training camps can he finally turn that into consistent enough play to earn him a spot on the 53 we’ll find out so I think that if the Saints are going to want to shore up that tight end room the same way that some fans most fans a lot of fans feel that they need to they’re going to have to do it with one of the young guns in their room that’s the way that they’re going to have to go about it and then of course figure out when Taesm Hill is going to be able to get back out on the field all right coming up next we’re wrapping up the show taking a look at the New Orleans Saints training camp schedule which has been announced and I’ll tell you the number of training camps almost all of them that will be open to the public while here in Louisiana we got the coming for you next as we continue on with today’s episode of Lockdown Saints part of Lockdown Podcast Network your team every day let’s get it huda Nation the New Orleans Saints have announced their training camp schedule and as a part of announcing their training camp schedule have also announced nine open practices for fans and let me tell you that’s the majority of practices that will be open to you uh and that’s an exciting exciting uh proposal because look this is a return to New Orleans for training camp right they did their entire training camp out in Irvine California last year while they were renovating the cafeteria and other parts of the New Orleans Saints training facility uh out in Mey the Saints will now return to me for their first 11 practices of training camp then they will take their training camp back to UC Irvine Zotz they will take the training camp back there for another five or so practices basically beginning like right before the Chargers game on August which is on August 10th and then stay there for a little bit before they come back before the next preseason game so I wanted to go over the dates that the Saints will be practicing the dates that are open to you which is where we’re going to start cuz I think that’s what’s most important to you and we’ll also take a look at what’s going on for the Saints over in Irvine as well so the Saints announced nine open dates that is nine out of 11 open dates for or excuse me that is nine open dates out of 11 total practices that the Saints will hold at uh the training facility in Mey so that is all but two practices that will be open so you will get to see if you’re able to grab tickets uh and everything like that which you were able to begin to reserve on kind of a sliding scale this morning from 9:00 a.m i think it’s season ticket holders at 9:00 a.m on the 1st 9:30 a.m for those on the wait list and then general public at 10:00 a.m so go and get those tickets if you haven’t already if you’re you’re hearing this and it’s before that go and check it out if you’re watching this and it’s after that go ahead and grab them if they’re still available uh and get your tickets the Saints will have open practices July 23 24 25 27 28 and 30 so it’s five in the last couple weeks of July and then they’ll have August 2 3 and 5 will be their uh final open dates of training camp on August 6th they will head to Irvine i will be out there i’ll be covering those practices out in Irvine California for you bringing you everything just like we did last year so Saints opening up nine practices is great and look I don’t know if this is a Kellen Moore thing but I’m gonna kind of give Kell Moore a little bit of a pat on the back here because this feels like a Kell Moore thing um Kell Moore was open and honest about practices and training camp returning to not just returning to New Orleans this was all the way back April 1st when we were in Palm Beach for the annual meetings and he was open and immediately honest about the team having and bringing practices back to me this year but he also was open and honest about the fact that they will likely take camp to the West Coast for a little while some of that is to build camaraderie actually I’ll explain that in a moment but some of that’s to avoid the heat and stuff like that but I think there’s more important team bonding team building stuff that’s connected with that then as the team wrapped up after cancelling the last day of mini camp so they could all go to 504 uh which was awesome they ended up or or rather Kell Moore ended up making it very clear the dates that they were heading to Irvine that they would basically be there from the 6th through the 15th and they will be holding practices from the 7th through the 14th and that’s what we learned uh more in depth on Monday but we already knew that range of dates thanks to Kellen Moore uh earlier this offseason and now finally they’ve opened nine of the 11 practices during this period while they are in me none of the practices in California are going to be open that is not going that is not a surprising thing the logistics all this other stuff i’m just saying I know my alma mater the logistics are not easy and the logistics are not uh I’m just going to I’m just going to leave it at that the logistics are not easy that’s all I’m going to say and so I think that when I look at where the Saints are when it comes to the openness that they have been able to expend around training camp the fact that they have opened training camp and even opened the two days of mini camp that they didn’t cancel right two days of mini camp were open the one day that wasn’t open to mini camp they did cancel shocker um that this all very much feels like Kell Moore and the New Orleans Saints making a concerted effort to get themselves reconnected to their fan base and I think that that is a good thing i think that’s a good stretch i think that’s a good piece i think that’s a good measure by this team and it has to start with Kell Moore put this in Kell Moore’s hands and let him be the messenger let him be the one that gets to be the hero in all of this i think it’s the right move by New Orleans and I think that all of these decisions are the right decisions by the team which make no mistake about it are happening up top too dennis Lousia uh uh Mickey Lumis like they’re all a part of these conversations too and they’re all a part of these decisions as well but I think it’s interesting that a lot of the information is coming from Kell Moore or it’s just you know the press release like we saw for the official announcement of the dates um and but then look look I I I think the other things that you look at is even the schedule release kell Moore was a part of the schedule release video how fun was that um you also see this idea of the Saints taking mini camp not mini camp I’m sorry training camp back out to California i think it’s a concerted effort part of it is getting out of the heat yes but the other part of it is Kell Moore has pushed so much this idea of being a team not just playing football and the idea of going out to California puts them in a position to where they’re practicing together they’re living together they’re eating together they are uh heading you know they’re hanging out with one another they’re spending time with one another they’re going and doing recreational things together like there is a lot more to the value of taking training camp out of New Orleans and or not even taking training camp out of New Orleans but taking training camp away from your team facility than just getting out of the heat in this situation there is a camaraderie bonus that comes with it but that doesn’t have to be the entire off seasonason or entire length of training camp like this had to do last year so I do think that there is something sort of twofold in terms of the value that going out to California brings for this team uh so look those are the dates nine open dates you can find more i have a a story for you over at louisianaapasports.net new Orleansaints.comraining camps where you can get your tickets make sure you go and check that out if you see me say hi as I always like to say all right coming up in tomorrow’s episode I want to continue taking a look at some of the important pieces in this New Orleans Saints draft class next up I want to take a look at Yonas Sanker and what his actual opportunities might be from his rookie year and then trying to project out a few years ahead as well so have a little fun there we appreciate you very much as always making us a part of your day part of your routine for saying yes to me and the show if you see me please say hi if you need anything else around your New Orleans Saints in between these episodes make sure you follow me on your favorite social media RossJackn O hit me up know how the family’s doing let me know how you’re living let me know how you moming them and trust that nation I’ll holler at you

Taliese Fuaga’s performance could reshape the New Orleans Saints’ future potential. The second-year tackle’s success, alongside rookie Kelvin Banks Jr., may redefine the team’s rebuild strategy. Especially when it comes to protecting Spencer Rattler and Tyler Shough.

Juwan Johnson, Foster Moreau, and Taysom Hill are presumed roster locks along with Jack Stoll, but injuries factor in. Can young talents like Dallin Holker or Moliki Matavao step up?

Nine open sessions in Metairie offer fans a chance to reconnect with the team. The UC Irvine stint provides valuable bonding time away from the New Orleans heat. Kellen Moore’s influence on this schedule hints at a renewed focus on fan engagement.

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