The next stage in the New Orleans Saints offseason is here with rookie minicamp kicking off; 20 first-year pros and dozens of tryout players will gather at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center and get their first taste of life in the NFL over the weekend. Between their nine draft picks, eleven undrafted free agent signings, and all those hopefuls competing on a tryout basis, we should expect some changes to the Saints’ 90-man offseason roster.

With that in mind, we’ve broken it down by every position on the team. Here’s the state of the depth chart going into rookie minicamp; for clarity, we’re ordereing players by these criteria:

Returning startersEstablished backupsReturning from the practice squadRookie draft picksRookie free agents

So really this is just our best guess on how things stack up until the Saints show us otherwise. Expect a lot of movement in the months ahead.

QuarterbacksDerek CarrSpencer RattlerJake HaenerTyler Shough (rookie)

Shough won’t be at the bottom for long. He’s expecting to play early with Carr’s status in doubt, but Rattler should push him at practice every day. Are we writing off Haener too soon? His lone start last season was a disaster, but maybe he’s learned from that experience.

Running backsAlvin KamaraKendre MillerJordan MimsClyde Edwards-HelaireXazavian ValladayVelus Jones Jr.Devin Neal (rookie)Marcus Yarns (rookie)

Look for Neal to rocket to the top of this group by the end of training camp. He just has an extra gear that other guys in the mix lack, and he was so dependable at Kansas you have to think his coaches will be lobbying for him to get more opportunities through the preseason. The Saints can’t keep asking Kamara to do everything by himself.

Tight endsJuwan JohnsonFoster MoreauDallin HolkerTreyton WelchMichael JacobsonJack StollMoliki Matavao (rookie)

Holker needs to watch his back; if he struggles to handle his blocking assignments, someone like Stoll or Matavao could climb the depth chart and take his spot. He just isn’t going to get many targets behind Johnson and Moreau, so we need to see more physicality from the second-year pro.

Left tackleTaliese FuagaLandon YoungJosiah EzirimKelvin Banks Jr. (rookie)

Right now, we’re assuming the plan is for Fuaga to remain the starter at left tackle, but that could change. If the Saints move him back to his college position it would be so Banks replace him. Young and Ezirim have each been cross-trained at the left and right tackle spots to help improve depth.

Left guardDillon RadunzNick SaldiveriLandon YoungKyle HergelKelvin Banks Jr.

There’s a lot of crossover here, so we’re covering our bases by mentioning it. Young played a lot of snaps at left guard last year whenever Lucas Patrick was injured. The best path to getting Banks on the field as a rookie without disrupting the rest of the line may be starting him at guard, but we’ll see. Radunz was signed to compete for this job, too.

CenterErik McCoyWill ClappKyle HergelTorricelli Simpkins III (rookie)

Not much going on here, but Hergel did get reps in practice at all three interior line spots last season. Hopefully the Saints can count on Clapp stepping up if McCoy misses time. They went 1-11 in games he missed or exited early due to injury last year.

Right guardCesar RuizKyle HergelEaston Kilty (rookie)

Again, not much is changing here. Hergel took all of the second-team snaps at right guard in training camp last summer. Unless Kilty is going to supplant him in that role, it’s unlikely the Saints shake up this part of the depth chart.

Right tackleTrevor PenningLandon YoungJosh BallRyan Ramczyk (injury)

Now it gets tricky. Does Taliese Fuaga move to right tackle? We can’t rule that out, but we probably shouldn’t expect it, either. Both he and Penning did good things at their spots last year; obviously Fuaga is much further ahead, but Penning finally showed positive progress after several frustrating seasons on the left side. The smarter play after drafting Banks may be to give Penning the chance to secure a long-term contract and prove he can hold up as a 17-game starter. But we’ll see. Ramczyk will remain on the 90-man roster until his retirement is processed after June 1.

Wide receiversChris OlaveRashid ShaheedBrandin CooksBub MeansCedrick Wilson Jr.Keivn Austin Jr.Mason TiptonDante PettisChris Tyree (rookie)Moochie Dixon (rookie)

It’ll be really interesting to see how Kellen Moore organizes the wide receivers after the Saints’ past systems lumped them all together. There isn’t really a defined slot or possession wideout in his offense, or at least there hasn’t been before, so the pecking order needs to sort itself out here. But the group’s overall lack of size is worth noting.

Special teams

Punters: Matthew Hayball, James Burnip (undrafted)

Kickers: Blake Grupe, Charlie Smyth

Long snapper: Zach Wood

The Saints were given a roster exemption for Smyth, the second-year kicker from Ireland, and if he can clean up his accuracy from short range he just might take Grupe’s job. He was stunningly consistent from 50 or even 60 yards last summer. There should be a real battle brewing between Hayball and Burnip, too, so the Saints could be on their fourth punter in four years since they cut Thomas Morstead (Blake Gillikin in 2021 and 2022, Lou Hedley in 2023, and Hayball in 2024).

Nose tackles (0-tech)Davon GodchauxJohn Ridgeway IIIKhristian BoydOmari Thomas (rookie)

Thomas is listed as a defensive end on the team website but at 6-foot-4 and 325 pounds it feels unlikely he’ll play there. He mainly guarded the B gaps at Tennessee between the guard’s outside shoulder and the tackle’s inside shoulder, but with the Saints he figures to line up closer to the football. Godchaux should be expected to start and two of the three guys behind him likely won’t make the team.

Defensive tackles (3-tech)Bryan BreseeNathan ShepherdKhalen SaundersVernon Broughton (rookie)

While he does run a 3-4 base, Brandon Staley mixes in plenty of four-man fronts and we should expect him to make room for talents like Bresee (after all, he did it for Aaron Donald). The question is which of the players behind Bresee make the team and how many snaps they get each week. There could be some crossover here at the nose tackle and 3-4 defensive end groupings, too.

Defensive ends (5-tech)Cameron JordanJonah WilliamsJasheen Davis (rookie)

We’re calling them a 5-tech for simplicity’s sake (lining up on the tackle’s outside shoulder) but Staley plays guys from this archetype head-over the tackle or against the blocker’s inside shoulder, too. We shouldn’t expect Jordan to line up in a two-point stance out at the 7-tech spot at this stage in his career. There’s room in Staley’s playbook for him to get after the quarterback from a familiar alignment. Davis was a wildly productive team leader at Wake Forest and could make some noise in training camp.

Edge rushers (7-tech)Chase YoungCarl GrandersonIsaiah FoskeyChris Rumph IIFadil Diggs (rookie)

Just like with the other defensive line techniques, these guys get moved around out on the edge, too. Don’t be shocked when Young or Granderson rushes from a wide-nine alignment way outside the tight end’s outer shoulder. That’s how Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack and Leonard Floyd have been used in Staley’s system before. Can Foskey finally show something in that role?

LinebackersDemario DavisPete WernerNephi SewellAnfernee OrjiD’Marco JacksonJaylan FordIsaiah StalbirdDanny Stutsman (rookie)Tyreem Powell (rookie)

This is kind of a similar situation to wide receiver, where the roles available are designed to be pretty similar. Just two of these guys get on the field at a time so we should see at least a couple of familiar backups and recent draft picks let go during roster cuts. Davis is nearing the end of his impressive career and Werner has not been impressive, so someone like Stutsman could rocket up the standings with a strong summer.

SafetiesTyrann MathieuJustin ReidJordan HowdenJ.T. GrayUgo AmadiMillard BradfordJonas Sanker (rookie)Elliott Davison (rookie)

Sanker should leap ahead of guys like Howden and Amadi this summer, or at least that needs to be the expectation. Gray’s prowess on special teams may protect him from what’s looking like a crowded position group. Mathieu is approaching the end of the line and the Saints need to keep looking for possible replacements, even after signing Reid as their big-ticket purchase in free agency.

CornerbacksAlontae TaylorKool-Aid McKinstryIsaac YiadomRico PaytonRejzohn WrightTravion FlluellenQuincy Riley (rookie)Dalys Beanum (rookie)

We’re putting high hopes on Riley, but he needs to defeat some tough competition to climb the depth chart. Yiadom has started NFL games before. Payton had some impressive moments as a rookie. Taylor could play more snaps outside in Staley’s defense, but we’ll see. The Saints have to be hoping for a big Year 2 jump out of McKinstry. Doesn’t this group feel like it could use another player?