When the Saints’ veteran players reported to training camp last week, the team announced that safety Tyrann Mathieu would not be among them because he was dealing with a family matter.
Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com reported that there was some hope that Mathieu would be back to kick off the seond week of camp on Monday, but that did not come to pass. Head coach Dennis Allen spoke to reporters from camp and said there’s no timetable on Mathieu’s return at this point. He also said that the team will reach a point when they need Mathieu back, but that they have not gotten to that point yet.
“There is a point where that is the case,” Allen said. “I don’t think we’re there. We’re kind of allowing him the space to handle what he needs to handle and we’ll be sitting here with open arms when he’s ready to come back.”
Mathieu signed with the Saints as a free agent this offseason and his return to his Louisiana roots was a selling point in that decision. For now, though, the Saints will continue to wait to fully integrate Mathieu into their defense.