Don’t look now, but some familiar names are making noise around the NFL. A couple of former New Orleans Saints wide receivers have endeared themselves to New England Patriots fans after traveling up north in free agency, with receiver-running hybrid Ty Montgomery earning rare praise from Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.
Belichick spoke highly of Montgomery at practice this week, telling Patriots.com’s Mike Dussault that, “Ty’s been a wonderful kid to have around. He’s a very smart, multi-skilled, multi-talented player. Looking forward to working with him throughout the course of the year on the team in multiple roles. I think there’s a lot of different things he can do, we’ll have to figure out how to combine him with other players on the field. It’s nice to be able to work with him.”
Montgomery played the most snaps on special teams in his career to hang on with New Orleans last season (totaling 180 reps in the kicking game), eventually working his way into the largest workload he’d seen on offense since the 2017 season (playing 300 snaps as a runner and receiver). Putting all of his skills on tape helped him secure a free agent contract with the New England Patriots, where he’s established a quick rapport with second-year quarterback Mac Jones while elbowing his way into New England’s running backs rotation.
But Montgomery isn’t the only former Saints receiver showing out in New England. His former teammate Lil’Jordan Humphrey also signed with the Patriots over the summer and made the most of his opportunity in their first preseason game, bagging 6 receptions (off of 8 targets) to gain 62 yards with a 20-yard touchdown catch to his credit. He’s got more work to do before securing a roster spot, but that’s as good a start as anyone could hope for.
And like Montgomery, Humphrey was a big part of the Saints’ depth at receiver. They kept him on the practice squad for several years and dressed him for 10 games last season. But after adding so much talent to the top of the roster, they’ve positioned themselves to look elsewhere for backups while these guys try their hand with new teams.
It’s still happening. Easop Winston Jr. was a surprise release during the first wave of roster cuts this week, and he immediately landed with the Cleveland Browns as a waiver wire pickup. Like Humphrey, Winston spent time on the Saints practice squad in recent years, and like Montgomery he had been playing on special teams to help his case for a roster spot. And just like them, the numbers game pushed him out of the picture, but he’s landed on his feet. He’ll have a chance to impress the Browns through their next two preseason games.
So look for this trend to keep up in the weeks ahead, with more roster cuts deadlines and exhibition games to navigate. The Saints won’t be able to keep everyone. It’s a safe bet that Michael Thomas, Jarvis Landry, Chris Olave, and Deonte Harty are each locks to make the Week 1 squad, but things look dicey even for established receivers like Tre’Quan Smith and Marquez Callaway after that — to say nothing of players on the roster bubble like Kirk Merritt, Kevin White, Kawaan Baker, and undrafted rookies Dai’Jean Dixon (Nicholls) and Rashid Shaheed (Weber State). After a few years in the wilderness, the Saints are finally running so deep at receiver that other teams envy them.
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