Saints' Dennis Allen evaluates Alontae Taylor's play after first preseason game

First- and second-round picks in the NFL Draft are generally expected to contribute pretty quickly, and that was certainly the case for former Tennessee cornerback Alontae Taylor in 2022.

Taylor was a second-round NFL Draft pick by the New Orleans Saints and was able to contribute despite some injuries in his rookie year.

Now fully healthy, Taylor has really stood out for the Saints in this year’s camp, and the organization is counting on him to help contribute in a new role in the secondary, playing nickelback.

“Overall I think Alontae’s had a really good camp,” head coach Dennis Allen said. “I think he’s still getting used to playing inside in the slot. And look, that’s just part of the deal with growing up and playing in our league.”

Alontae Taylor played a good deal outside as a rookie, where he thrived after recovering from an early-season injury.

He appeared in 13 games and started nine, racking up 46 tackles, a tackle for a loss and 11 passes defended. That was quality production for a rookie.

Now the Saints are moving him inside to nickelback as a result of some other personnel moves and the fact that nickelback is a key role.

“If everybody’s just an outside corner, somebody’s got to go inside,” Allen said. “So he’s going in there and getting some work. He’ll learn from his mistakes, he’ll keep getting better from it.”

Alontae Taylor spent four seasons at Tennessee and was a real leader for the Volunteers. He racked up 162 tackles, 5.0 tackles for a loss, 0.5 sacks, four interceptions, three forced fumbles, a blocked kick and 19 passes defended.

News positive on Kendre Miller’s knee injury

While Alontae Taylor is happy to be healthy again and competing in fall camp, some other Saints haven’t been quite so lucky. The team has been incredibly banged up at running back of late.

But it’s not all bad news, at least for running back Kendre Miller, who suffered a knee sprain during Sunday’s preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, Miller will not have to have surgery to repair anything.

After undergoing an MRI on Monday, it appears Miller’s injury is not severe enough to require any surgical work. Pelissero said the rookie will still miss time, but there’s “optimism” for his return by Week 1 when the Saints take on the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 10.

In a 26-24 win for New Orleans on Sunday, prior to his injury, Miller had four carries for a gain of five yards. He also had one catch for one yard in his NFL preseason debut.