Stop us if you’ve heard this one before, but Mason Tipton had a good day at New Orleans Saints training camp. The second-year wide receiver caught at least four passes in team drills, including a deep shot from Spencer Rattler. Just like last summer, his speed and smooth movement skills flashed.
One important person who took note of that? First-year head coach Kellen Moore, who spoke well of Tipton’s performance in his media availability after practice: “He’s an excellent player, I love his work ethic, I love the detail that he plays with. He’s done an excellent job out there today. He certainly had a couple of opportunities and he took advantage of it. He’s been really, really reliable.”
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A favorite of ex-Saints head coach Dennis Allen, Tipton made the Week 1 roster last year and appeared in 11 games, but he faded as the season wore on, and was benched not long after Darren Rizzi took over as interim head coach. While he was thrown to 26 times in his rookie year, Tipton finished with just 14 receptions for 99 yards, converting only two first downs. His longest catch gained 15 yards. It wasn’t what the team expected out of the speedster.
Hopefully this year he can put it all together. Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed are on top of the depth chart, but the options behind them don’t inspire a ton of confidence. Between a past-his-prime Brandin Cooks and an unproven Bub Means, the Saints don’t have much to lean on. Journeymen like Cedrick Wilson Jr., Kevin Austin Jr., Dante Pettis, and Donovan Peoples-Jones round out the group. That might not be good enough. If Tipton’s growth is real, he could develop into a real difference-maker for New Orleans. Let’s see if he can keep this momentum going.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints training camp: Second-year WR Mason Tipton flashing again