| News |
|---|
|
Rashid Shaheed Rashid Shaheed Set up nicely for WR2 role
Mon, Apr 29, 2024, 2:23 PM
Shaheed is in an excellent position for a starting job after the Saints waited until the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft to select a wide receiver, taking Bub Means at No. 170 overall.
Analysis: Shaheed worked his way into a starting role as an undrafted rookie in the second half of 2022, and he then entered 2023 as the Saints' No. 3 receiver behind Chris Olave and Michael Thomas. While Thomas missed the final seven games of last season with an injury, Shaheed dealt with an injury of his own during that stretch and never really progressed to a full starter's workload. With Thomas gone and not replaced, Shaheed is in better position than ever before to pile up snaps/routes/targets, though his value on special teams as both a kick and punt returner could offer part of the explanation for New Orleans limiting his workload on offense even when the other WR options have been lacking. A.T. Perry and Cedrick Wilson look like the top candidates for wideout snaps after Olave and Shaheed this year. |
|
Equanimeous St. Brown Equanimeous St. Brown Lands with New Orleans
Fri, Apr 12, 2024, 10:46 AM
The Saints signed St. Brown on Friday.
Analysis: After spending his first three seasons with the Packers, St. Brown was with the Bears the last two years and has 63 career catches for 928 yards and two touchdowns on 110 targets. In 2023, St. Brown missed 10 games with hamstring and pectoral injuries. In New Orleans, St. Brown will slot in on the depth chart and compete for a job behind Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, Cedrick Wilson and A.T. Perry. |
|
Stanley Morgan Stanley Morgan Signing with New Orleans
Fri, Mar 15, 2024, 1:27 PM
The Saints have agreed to terms with Morgan, Mike Triplett of NewOrleans.Football reports.
Analysis: Over the course of 51 regular-season games (all with the Bengals) Morgan has caught just five passes for 29 yards. This coming season, the 27-year-old, who was born in New Orleans, will provide the Saints with some needed depth at wideout and on special teams. |
|
Cedrick Wilson Cedrick Wilson Headed to New Orleans
Thu, Mar 14, 2024, 8:25 PM
Wilson signed a two-year contract with the Saints on Thursday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Analysis: Wilson played the last two seasons in Miami but was something of an afterthought in the offense while playing behind Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle. He could potentially see an increased role with the Saints, who have a returning wide receiver corps of only Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed and A.T. Perry. Wilson will likely fight for playing time throughout training camp, but he has a realistic chance to surpass his previous high of 521 offensive snaps in a season in the upcoming campaign. |
|
Nathan Peterman Nathan Peterman Gets chance in New Orleans
Thu, Mar 14, 2024, 12:06 PM
The Saints are signing Peterman to a contract Thursday, Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reports.
Analysis: Peterman played four snaps as the Bears' third-string quarterback last season but didn't attempt a pass. Now, he'll get an opportunity to compete for a similar spot, if not potentially the top backup role, behind Derek Carr in New Orleans. Peterman previously backed up Carr during their time together with the Raiders. |
|
Adam Prentice Adam Prentice Staying with Saints
Wed, Mar 13, 2024, 3:22 PM
Prentice is re-signing with the Saints on a one-year contract, Matthew Paras of The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.
Analysis: Prentice spent the previous three seasons in New Orleans, appearing in 31 games and producing 63 scrimmage yards on nine rushing attempts and eight receptions. The fullback will likely continue to be used primarily in a blocking capacity in 2024. |
|
Jameis Winston Jameis Winston Could land in Cleveland
Tue, Mar 12, 2024, 11:44 AM
The Browns are reportedly closing in on a deal to acquire Winston, Jake Trotter of ESPN reports.
Analysis: Winston, who is still technically under contract with the Saints, would be in line to replace Joe Flacco as Cleveland's No. 2 quarterback behind Deshaun Watson. The Browns also roster Dorian Thompson-Robinson, but Winston -- the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft -- has ample starting experience, and Watson is coming off an injury-shortened 2023 campaign. |
|
Rashid Shaheed Rashid Shaheed Under contract for 2024
Sun, Mar 10, 2024, 1:44 PM
The Saints recently tendered Shaheed a one-year, $985,000 contract, Matthew Paras of The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.
Analysis: The decision to bring Shaheed back at less than $1 million for the upcoming season was a no-brainer for the Saints after the Weber State product proved to be a dependable deep-ball complement to No. 1 wideout Chris Olave in 2023. Shaheed appeared in 15 games this past season, accruing 46 catches for 719 yards and five touchdowns on 75 targets while also carrying seven times for 37 yards. The 25-year-old also was a dynamic weapon on special teams, bringing back 25 punts for 339 yards and a touchdown and 18 kickoffs for 384 yards. |
|
Zander Horvath Zander Horvath Back with New Orleans
Thu, Mar 7, 2024, 4:08 PM
The Saints signed Horvath on Thursday, Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com reports.
Analysis: After the Saints cut Horvath from their practice squad almost five months ago, the team has decided to bring him back. Horvath most recently appeared in an NFL game with the Chargers back in 2022, when he talled 16 total yards on nine touches through 15 regular-season contests. The fullback is expected to compete for a depth/special teams role with New Orleans ahead of the coming campaign. |
|
Michael Thomas Michael Thomas Will be cut soon
Thu, Mar 7, 2024, 11:32 AM
The Saints plan to release Thomas (knee) soon, Jeff Duncan of The Athletic reports.
Analysis: The structure of Thomas' contract all but guarantees he'll be released before March 13 when the new league year starts. He turned 31 a few days ago and has been with the Saints since they took him in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft, but he's played just 20 games in four years since setting a league record with 149 receptions in 2019. Thomas averaged 117.5 catches for 1,378 yards and eight touchdowns over the first four seasons of his career, before an ankle injury Week 1 of 2020 started his run of misfortune. A knee injury cost him the final seven games of 2023, but there hasn't been any report of Thomas needing surgery. |
|
Derek Carr Derek Carr Set to re-work deal
Fri, Feb 23, 2024, 9:31 AM
The Saints are slated to restructure Carr's contract for salary cap purposes, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.
Analysis: Per the report, the looming move -- which entails converting a portion of Carr's base salary for 2024 into a signing bonus -- is expected to garner the team in the neighborhood of $23 million in terms of cap relief. In his first campaign with the Saints, the veteran QB -- who remains under contract through the 2026 season -- logged 17 starts while throwing for 3,878 yards and compiling a 25:8 TD:INT ratio. Though Carr is set to reprise his starting role in 2024, the composition of New Orleans' wideout corps this coming season has yet to be solidified, with Katherine Terrell of ESPN having previously suggested that Michael Thomas could potentially be released this offseason. |
|
Keith Kirkwood Keith Kirkwood Makes minor impact again in 2023
Mon, Jan 15, 2024, 10:03 PM
Kirkwood caught five of nine targets for 37 yards and one touchdown across 13 games during the 2023 regular season.
Analysis: Kirkwood played in a career-high 13 games, and his 225 offensive snaps tied his previous career high from his 2018 rookie campaign. The 30-year-old also caught a touchdown for the first time since 2018; but, he still failed to log more than five receptions for the fifth year in a row, totaling just 11 catches in 23 games during this span. Kirkwood signed a one-year, $1.01 million contract with the Saints in February of 2023, and he was released before re-signing with the team shortly thereafter in mid-November. He should be set to hit free agency this coming offseason. |
|
Jimmy Graham Jimmy Graham Quiet end to comeback season
Mon, Jan 15, 2024, 9:58 PM
Graham finished the 2023 regular season with six receptions (on seven targets) for 39 yards and four touchdowns in 13 appearances.
Analysis: Graham was never expected to make much of an impact for the Saints this season after coming out of retirement to sign a one-year, $1.32 million contract in late July. The 37-year-old caught just one pass over the first seven weeks of the campaign while filling an extremely limited role behind tight ends Juwan Johnson and Foster Moreau. Graham temporarily fell out of this rotation when he missed four games in a row either with illness or as a healthy scratch. But, he got a chance again when the Saints' wide receiver corps was shorthanded with numerous injuries. Graham went on to catch one touchdown pass in three consecutive games from Week 13 to Week 15 while almost exclusively working as a target in the red zone. Graham then went without a target over the final three contests of the year, and it appears unlikely that he'll be re-signed by New Orleans this coming offseason. |
|
Michael Thomas Michael Thomas Tallies 39 catches in 10 games
Sun, Jan 14, 2024, 2:43 PM
Thomas (knee) caught 39 of 64 targets for 448 yards and one touchdown in 10 games during the 2023 season.
Analysis: For the fourth consecutive season, Thomas struggled to stay on the field due to injuries. The 30-year-old wideout appeared in double-digit games for the first time since his record-setting 2019 season, but he still missed the final seven contests of the year while on IR with a right knee injury. Thomas continued to put up similar numbers on a per-reception basis compared to the majority of his career, averaging 11.5 yards per catch. However, his overall production was curbed by the presence of Chris Olave, who has taken on a role as the Saints' No. 1 receiver since being selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Thomas finished with one fewer reception despite seeing nine more targets than his seven-game 2020 season, and he fell short of 500 receiving yards for the fourth straight season. He will enter the final season of his five-year, $96.25 million contract, and he is currently set to cost about $12.4 million against the Saints' cap in 2024. |
|
Jake Haener Jake Haener Never plays as rookie
Sun, Jan 14, 2024, 2:20 PM
Haener did not appear in a game during his 2023 rookie season.
Analysis: Haener was suspended for the first six games of the season and never appeared in any games as a rookie. The fourth-round pick likely never would have seen the field even if he was not suspended, as veteran Jameis Winston appeared firmly planted as the Saints' primary backup quarterback behind Derek Carr heading into the regular season. The starting signal-caller was knocked out of three games due to injuries this season, and Winston handled the remainder of quarterback reps in his absence. Haener will likely get an opportunity to compete with Winston for the No. 2 quarterback spot heading into the 2024 campaign. |
|
Jameis Winston Jameis Winston Appears in seven games as backup
Sun, Jan 14, 2024, 1:31 PM
Winston completed 25 of 47 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns to three interceptions across seven appearances.
Analysis: Winston was firmly planted as the Saints' No. 2 quarterback behind Derek Carr this season. The veteran backup saw meaningful playing time in three of his seven appearances when Carr was forced out with injuries. While the latter quarterback was plagued by injury for much of the season, he still managed to start all 17 games for the Saints. As a result, Winston had his least productive season since 2020 when he first joined the Saints. While on a small sample size, his completion percentage (53) and yards per attempt (5.6) fell short of his averages from the past two seasons, though his overall play didn't seem to take a significant hit. Winston has one season remaining on his current two-year, $28 million contract with the Saints, and he'll likely compete with Jake Haener for the team's No. 2 QB job heading into the 2024 campaign. |
|
Alvin Kamara Alvin Kamara Second in catches among RBs
Fri, Jan 12, 2024, 11:24 AM
Kamara (ankle) finished the 2023 season with 694 yards and five touchdowns on 180 rushing attempts, as well as 75 catches (on 86 targets) for 466 yards and one touchdown.
Analysis: Despite sitting out the first three games of the season due to a suspension and missing the Saints' finale with an ankle injury, Kamara finished just one catch shy of Breece Hall's league-leading total among running backs. Kamara's 6.2 yards per catch were a career low, though, and he posted the second-lowest YPC mark of his seven-year career at 3.9, suggesting that the 28-year-old running back is starting to slow down. There's a potential out in his contract this offseason, and the Saints will probably try to rework Kamara's deal rather than take on a nearly $19 million cap hit in 2024. Any change in situation would likely negatively impact Kamara's fantasy value, as his volume's more likely to go down than up, even with his ankle injury expected to be healed well before the 2024 campaign. |
|
Tommy Hudson Tommy Hudson Stays with New Orleans
Mon, Jan 8, 2024, 7:39 PM
The Saints signed Hudson to a reserve/future contract Monday, John Hendrix of SI.com reports.
Analysis: Hudson was cut by the Broncos following training camp before joining the Saints' practice squad Sept. 4. He did not appear in a game this season, but he will spend the offseason in New Orleans and work towards sticking on the team's roster for 2024. |
|
James Robinson James Robinson Gets reserve/future deal with NO
Mon, Jan 8, 2024, 6:20 PM
The Saints signed Robinson due to a reserve/future contract Monday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Analysis: Robinson is a four-year veteran with 2,264 career regular-season rushing yards to his name, though nearly half of those came in his rookie season in 2020. An Achilles tear suffered in Week 16 of 2021 derailed his once-promising career, and the Illinois State product has played in only 12 games over the past two seasons, spending almost all of 2023 on Green Bay's practice squad. Robinson joined New Orleans' practice squad in mid-December, and the organization apparently liked what they saw from him enough to want to give him a shot at making the roster next year, though it remains to be seen how much Robinson has left in the tank. |
|
Foster Moreau Foster Moreau Grabs pass late in win
Sun, Jan 7, 2024, 8:19 PM
Moreau gathered in his only target for three yards during Sunday's 48-17 win versus Atlanta.
Analysis: Moreau caught one pass for the third week in a row, though he totaled his fewest receiving yards of any game in which he caught at least one pass this season. The 26-year-old finishes his first campaign in New Orleans with 21 receptions (on 25 targets) for 193 yards and one touchdown across 15 games. |
Connect With Us:
