METAIRIE, La. (WGNO) — When opening up Monday’s press conference, first-year Saints head coach Dennis Allen was admittedly excited about the season-opener in Atlanta.
However one of the first questions Allen faced regarded the status of safety Marcus Maye against the Falcons on Sunday. Maye, who is already facing DUI charges while under contract with the Jets in 2021, is now accused of pointing gun at car containing teenage girls during an alleged road-rage incident last week.
“We are getting into a bunch of hypotheticals,” explained Allen. “We’ll have all the healthy bodies that we have ready to go, and then we will make that decision as we continue throughout the week.”
Maye’s attorney released a statement immediately following the incident in which he stated: “Marcus vehemently denies the allegation from a motor vehicle incident, and looks forward to defending himself when all the facts come out.”
Coach Allen was optimistic about Trevor Penning’s prognosis following surgery to repair torn ligaments in his big toe, and that the rookie first-round offensive tackle for Northern Iowa was placed on injured reserve, but may be back before season’s end.
“There’s some hope that he will be back at some point and certainly he’s gonna work extremely hard to get back out here,” he said. “Hopefully, it’s sooner rather than later, but we’ll just have to see.”
In regard to the status of Michael Thomas, Allen said mid-August the All-Pro wide receiver, who missed all of last season due to a left ankle injury and out most of the preseason due to a hamstring issue, would be ready Week 1 by saying “When the ball kicks off for real, Mike Thomas is going to be ready to go, and we’re excited about that.”
Saints All-Pro linebacker Demario Davis and defensive back Tyrann Mathieu also spoke to media on the day, as seen in the WGNO Sports media players below:
Kickoff for Saints-Falcons is set for noon, Sunday, Sept. 11.
