THURSDAY: 11:12am: Meachem is back out on the field today and continuing to audition for the Saints, Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune tweets.
WEDNESDAY, 3:54pm: Meachem didn’t practice today because of a foot injury, writes Katherine Terrell of NOLA.com. He remains in the running for a contract.
12:02pm: There’s no sign of Meachem at Saints practice, but the other tryout guys are back today, Christopher Dabe of The Times-Picayune tweets. That could be an indication that Meachem is not in the team’s plans, but we’ll have to wait for further developments.
TUESDAY, 4:58pm: The Saints tried out nearly a dozen players on the first day of their minicamp Tuesday, according to Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com. Notably, receiver Robert Meachem and a pair of veteran defensive ends – Darryl Tapp and Matt Shaughnessy – were among those who auditioned.
Meachem previously worked out in April for the Saints, and if he signs with them, it would be his third tenure with the club. New Orleans used its first-round pick (27th overall) in 2007 on Meachem, who went on to catch 141 passes and 23 touchdowns there before signing with the Chargers in 2012. After an uninspiring season in San Diego, Meachem rejoined the Saints, picked up just 23 receptions and two scores in 26 games from 2013-14, and hasn’t played since. The Saints aren’t exactly loaded at wideout beyond Brandin Cooks, Willie Snead and second-rounder Michael Thomas, however, so it seems the soon-to-be 32-year-old Meachem will have a legitimate chance to crack the roster if the team signs him.
Tapp, meanwhile, is a 10-year veteran who spent the previous two campaigns in Detroit and appeared in all 32 of its regular-season games – mostly as a reserve. Tapp logged only one start with the Lions and recorded 2.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. Two of those sacks and a pair of forced fumbles came in 2015 for Tapp, whom Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked 78th out of 110 qualifying edge defenders – placing him ahead of Saints reserve DE Kasim Edebali (91st) but behind Obum Gwacham (58th). Tapp graded out well against the run, which – like everything else – was a major problem for the Saints’ porous defense last season.
Shaughnessy, like Meachem, has drawn past interest from the Saints, who auditioned him in October and last month. He also worked out for Arizona prior to its playoff game against Green Bay in January, but the Cardinals didn’t sign him. Shaughnessy played with the Cardinals from 2013-14 before sitting out last season. In 75 career games (48 starts), the 29-year-old has accumulated 18.5 sacks – a personal-best seven of which came with the Raiders in 2010.
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