Saints practice updates: Thursday, August 24th

The New Orleans Saints are back in the Big Easy for their final preseason matchup against the Houston Texans. On Thursday, a lot of news came out from Saints practice: Jake Haener, Michael Thomas and Shaq Davis all impressed, Steve Gleason made an appearance, and we got a big injury update from Dennis Allen.

First, WR Rashid Shaheed returned to practice for the first time since injuring his groin earlier in camp. He participated in individual drills as the team slowly works him back to 100%.

WR Michael Thomas reportedly DOMINATED Thursday’s practice. He had seven catches in team drills, three more in 7on7’s and seemingly looks like himself once again.

Head coach Dennis Allen told the media they expected there to be a time when Thomas started looking like his 2019 self, and he feels that he’s finally getting to that point.

And with some more news on the wide receivers, rookie WR Shaq Davis has continued to build on his preseason performance with back-to-back impressive practices. Today, he and fellow rookie, Jake Haener, hooked up on a tight window throw in the redzone. Haener put it low in a spot that only Davis could catch it, and he came up with the grab in tight coverage.

Fan favorite and New Orleans legend, Steve Gleason, made an appearance at Saints practice on Thursday. Gleason made one of the most iconic plays in Saints history, blocking a punt against the Falcons in the first game back in the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina.

Since then, Gleason was diagnosed with ALS and established the Team Gleason Foundation, which aims to raise awareness and empower people with ALS to live a purposeful life. Gleason has always been welcomed back to practices and games by the team and is a legend in the city of New Orleans.

And finally, Dennis Allen gave the media an update on star cornerback Marshon Lattimore’s injury. Allen said that there is no structural damage to Lattimore’s knee, and they’re just being patient with it to make sure it heals completely. Lattimore is expected to be back for the Saints season opener on September 10th.

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