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How Trill Williams and Nolan Cooney Fit with the New Orleans Saints

How realistic are their chances to make the Saints roster?
Mike McAllister|
How Trill Williams and Nolan Cooney Fit with the New Orleans Saints
How Trill Williams and Nolan Cooney Fit with the New Orleans Saints

Former Syracuse defensive back Trill Williams and punter Nolan Cooney signed with the New Orleans Saints. How do they fit with the Saints plans? Do they have a realistic shot to make the roster? We spoke to Saints News Network's Bob Rose to find out. 

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Q: How do you envision Trill Williams fitting into the New Orleans secondary?

Rose: "To me, Williams looks like he'll fit best as a safety in the NFL. What stood out to me when I watched his film leading up to the draft were his instincts and anticipation off the ball. He has a nice closing burst to the ball and has a playmaker's mentality. I really like his aggressiveness around the line of scrimmage and his ability to diagnose an offense. He'll struggle a little in man coverage against shifty receivers, but certainly has the coverage ability and versatility to step into slot coverage." 

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Q: What was the reaction from fans when Trill signed?

Rose: "I'll be honest, I was surprised that Trill Williams was not drafted. Many fans that follow the New Orleans Saints were just as excited about his free agent signing as they were some of the draft picks."

Q: What are Trill's chances of making the roster?

Rose: "The Saints absolutely love versatility in their defensive backs. I can see them using Trill Williams similar to the way they use Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. He'll have to stand out on special teams, but his off the ball skills and coverage versatility give him a great chance to make this team."

Q: What do you make of the Nolan Cooney signing and does he have a shot to make the roster?

Rose: "It's been a long time since the Saints had a legitimate competition at punter. With the departure of the beloved Thomas Morstead, Nolan Cooney has the ability to beat out last year's UDFA addition Blake Gillikin for the job. Cooney has a booming leg, but has also shown great improvement in his directional ability over the last year."

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Mike McAllister
MIKE MCALLISTER

Title: Publisher All Syracuse Education: Roberts Wesleyan College Location: Syracuse, New York Expertise: Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting.  EXPERIENCE Mike McAllister has been covering Syracuse basketball, football and recruiting for more than a decade. Mike's career started with his own free blog as a way to vent following sporting events. Shortly thereafter, a network of basketball sites called Coast 2 Coast Hoops asked him to run their Syracuse site. That site was called Nation of Orange, and Mike quickly established it as a go-to for Syracuse fans.  After running Nation of Orange for several months, a position with the Syracuse site on the Scout network became available. After one year as the recruiting expert with Cuse Nation, he was named the publisher. Mike oversaw the transition from Scout to 247Sports, and ran the site on that network for years.  Presented with the opportunity to join one of the biggest names in the sports journalism industry, Sports Illustrated, Mike jumped at the chance. All Syracuse was started from scratch by Mike and the Fan Nation team. It has now become a staple for Orange fans of various sports.  Mike has broken news on recruiting, Syracuse basketball and football team information and has established himself as the top recruiting inside in the market. He has appeared on local radio shows, television broadcasts, national radio shows and much more. Mr. McAllister has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and Information Management from Roberts Wesleyan College. 

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