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Aug 25, 2023

Saints' Payton Turner taking advantage of health, every rep

After a pair of high-intensity joint practices out in L.A., there were dozens of Saints -- mostly at the top of the depth chart -- who didn't suit up at SoFi Stadium last Sunday. Payton Turner wasn't

After a pair of high-intensity joint practices out in L.A., there were dozens of Saints -- mostly at the top of the depth chart -- who didn't suit up at SoFi Stadium last Sunday. Payton Turner wasn't among them.

But don't take that as a negative. After two seasons marred by injuries that only allowed the former 1st-round pick to get on the field for 10 games, health is a blessing. He is one of a select few Saints players to have not yet missed a single day of practice. That's no coincidence.

"I feel like I’ve gotten in a good routine of taking care of my body," Turner told WWL, "taking care of what needs to be taken care of for me to go out there and feel good at practice and me to go out there and feel good on gameday.”

It's a message that resonates even louder considering he's sharing a meeting room with Cam Jordan, possibly the best example of an ironman the present-day NFL has to offer. Jordan, like many others, is well aware of the flashes he's seen from the former Houston Cougar.

In his first career game, Turner racked up five pressures and a sack. He missed Week 1 with an injury, and his season ended after Week 8 due to a shoulder issue. In Week 8 of the 2022 season he racked up a pair of sacks against now-Saints QB Derek Carr during a shutout of the Raiders. A few weeks later he was made a key 4th down stop in a win over the Rams, and as he was getting out of the pile to celebrate he had his ankle rolled up on. He didn't play again until Week 17.

"We see glimpses, and then [Turner's] sort of been bitten by a little nagging injury here or there, and I’m just looking forward to more glimpses," Jordan told me earlier this offseason. "You can see a glimpse, you can see the picture. You can see the picture, you can understand what the painting’s about. I’m trying to figure out exactly what the painting’s about in game time."

One of the biggest glimpses yet came early against the Chargers. Turner set up LT Austen Pleasants with some outside power moves. Then he turned on the speed to work inside and got right to QB Easton Stick for a strip sack that swung momentum in the game and fulfilled one of the key edicts of the 2023 offseason: get the ball out. Rookie Bryan Bresee recovered the ball, and the Saints were in the end zone a few plays later.

STRIP SACK!!!Payton Turner sacks Easton Stick, the ball comes out, and Bryan Bresee recovers it!!!#Saints | 📺: FOX-8 pic.twitter.com/MulMFgFWcB

"It’s an emphasis every camp, but especially this camp given our lack of turnovers last year, lack of takeaways," Turner said. "So I think we’re doing a really good job about just emphasizing it, each day, we come out here, punching at the ball, getting the ball out, making everything about the ball.”

The next question becomes: Exactly how much will Turner play this season, even when healthy? Jordan is as entrenched at it gets at the left DE spot, and it appears Carl Granderson has locked down the starting gig across from him. But that's more of a title than anything. Dennis Allen has indicated there would be something of a rotation at that spot, with Tanoh Kpassagnon also serving as a veteran presence in that mix.

The Saints will also likely implement the NASCAR package a good bit on passing downs to get more speedy pass-rushers on the field. The DL group keeps stats in the meeting room, and they go well beyond the box score. It doesn't matter if you play one snap, if you come away "statless," you'll be paying for it in some way. Still, however it happens, Turner is ready to make an impact in an all-important Year 3.

“Every time you’re out there," he said, "is an opportunity for you to make a play.”