Some New Orleans Saints players helped themselves more than others against the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday night. This was a huge opportunity to set themselves apart from their competition as roster battles heat up, and several guys rose to the occasion. So we've updated our 53-man roster projection after their first preseason game.

Let's break it down, position-by-position, and consider who's making us (and, maybe, the coaches) change our minds. It's still early with two more preseason games and several weeks of practice ahead of roster cuts on Aug. 27. But if the Saints had to trim down from 90 players to just 53 tomorrow, these would be our picks:

Quarterbacks (3)

On the roster: Derek Carr, Jake Haener, Spencer Rattler

On the outs: N/A

No change. Both Rattler and Haener did some good things in Arizona, let's see them keep it up before declaring a winner.

Running backs (4)

On the roster: Alvin Kamara, Jamaal Williams, Jordan Mims, Kendre Miller

On the outs: James Robinson, Jacob Kibodi

We can't rule out Robinson entirely, but his fumble couldn't have been more poorly timed against the Cardinals. Thankfully it rolled out of bounds. Mims doesn't have game-breaking speed but he does so many things well that it's hard to see him not making the cut. Miller needs to get healthy.

Fullbacks (2)

On the roster: Taysom Hill, Adam Prentice

On the outs: Zander Horvath

Hill figures to take most of the snaps at fullback this year but the Saints want to roster someone at that position to spell him (and block for him), and right now Prentice appears to be in the lead.

Tight ends (3)

On the roster: Juwan Johnson, Foster Moreau, Dallin Holker

On the outs: Michael Jacobson, Kevin Rader

Holker is coming on strong and he might have a real role in this offense. He's got nice hands and movement skills in space. Let's see him do it against better competition next week. Jacobson looks like a good player to stash on the practice squad in case Johnson misses time to start the regular season.

Offensive line (8)

On the roster: Taliese Fuaga (tackle), Lucas Patrick (guard/center), Erik McCoy (center), Cesar Ruiz (guard), Trevor Penning (tackle), Nick Saldiveri (guard), Olisaemeka Udoh (guard/tackle), Kyle Hergel (guard)

On the outs: Landon Young (tackle), Josiah Ezirim (tackle), Shane Lemieux (guard), Mark Evans II (guard), Sincere Haynesworth (center/guard), Tremayne Anchrum Jr. (guard/tackle), Jesse Davis (tackle)

This position group looks just as much like a problem in August as we thought it might in March. Patrick has been a pleasant surprise but is he effective enough to start at left guard? Can Udoh be trusted as a replacement for Penning if he continues to struggle? They need another player or two in this group, and we have some suggestions.

Wide receivers (6)

On the roster: Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, Cedrick Wilson Jr., A.T. Perry, Bub Means, Mason Tipton

On the outs: Equanimeous St. Brown, Stanley Morgan, Samson Nacua, Kevin Austin Jr., Marquez Callaway

No change in this group, for now, but Means and Tipton both have injuries worth monitoring. One of them (maybe Means, who hasn't practiced since July 30) could end up redshirting this season. Nacua and Austin both capitalized on their opportunities against the Cardinals. Hopefully Tipton can play this week so he can try out in a live game situation.

Special teams (3)

On the roster: Lou Hedley (punter), Blake Grupe (kicker), Zach Wood (long snapper)

On the outs: Matt Hayball (punter), Charlie Smyth (kicker)

Hayball had a punt bounce into the end zone for a touchback, but Smyth's game-winning field goal was encouraging. Neither of them have done enough to unseat the players ahead of them just yet.

Defensive line (9)

On the roster: Cameron Jordan (end), Carl Granderson (end), Chase Young (end), Isaiah Foskey (end), Payton Turner (end), Nathan Shepherd (tackle), Bryan Bresee (tackle), Khalen Saunders (tackle), Khristian Boyd (tackle)

On the outs: Niko Lalos (end), Trajan Jeffcoat (end), Jack Heflin (tackle), Kendal Vickers (tackle), Kyler Baugh (tackle)

Foskey needs to show something soon. It's unclear if he won a single pass rush snap in Arizona. At some point he needs to live up to his draft status. At least the Granderson-Young duo is as-advertised, and both Bresee and Boyd made some plays in this game. They need to keep it up if they're going to climb the depth chart. Tanoh Kpassagnon (Achilles) is probably starting the season on PUP.

Linebackers (6)

On the roster: Demario Davis, Pete Werner, Willie Gay, D’Marco Jackson, Jaylan Ford, Khaleke Hudson

On the outs: Monty Rice, Anfernee Orji, Isaiah Stalbird, Mike Ford

It's going to be tough to keep Jackson, Hudson, and Ford off this roster. All three of them move well and had some nice moments. Hudson was all over the field when he took over for Gay in the second half. For now we'll make room by running a little lighter at safety. Look for Nephi Sewell to start the season on PUP, too.

Safeties (5)

On the roster: Tyrann Mathieu, Johnathan Abram, Jordan Howden, J.T. Gray, Will Harris

On the outs: Ugo Amadi, Roderic Teamer, Lawrence Johnson, Millard Bradford

Amadi has missed a couple of days (and this Cardinals game) with an injury, so we're pushing him down to thee practiice squad in favor of an extra linebacker. Justin Simmons would be a great pickup to elevate this group. Howden still hasn't separated himself from Abram in the competition for that starting job.

Cornerbacks (4)

On the roster: Marshon Lattimore, Paulson Adebo, Alontae Taylor, Kool-Aid McKinstry

On the outs: Rejzohn Wright, Shemar Jean-Charles, Rico Payton, Mac McCain

It felt like each of the backup corners had a great play in this game, but Payton stood out the most with three pass breakups. He's exactly the type of player you'd like to sneak onto the practice squad and develop. McKinstry enjoyed a strong debut with some great tackling and a pass deflection of his own.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Updated Saints 53-man roster projection after first preseason game