Wednesday’s update to the daily NFL transactions wire reports that the New Orleans Saints were awarded former Green Bay Packers offensive lineman Chuck Filiaga after claiming him on the waiver wire — a move that reunites Cesar Ruiz with one of his old teammates.
Filiaga signed with Green Bay as a rookie free agent after the 2023 NFL draft, having transferred to Minnesota after beginning his college career at Michigan. He played both guard spots in Ann Arbor on either side of Ruiz, the Wolverines’ former center, but Minnesota started him at right guard for 13 games last season. Pro Football Focus credited Filiaga with allowing just 2 sacks on 682 snaps in pass protection while drawing 7 penalty flags on his 1,525 career reps at the college level.
The 25-year-old from Aledo, Texas enters a suddenly-crowded competition in New Orleans, but there are plenty of snaps to go around while starting left guard Andrus Peat continues to recover from a strained quadriceps muscle. Filiaga joins Tommy Kraemer and Koda Martin as recent additions to the depth chart at guard, along with Max Garcia (who is also pushing rookie center Alex Pihlstrom to back up Erik McCoy), Mark Evans II, Lewis Kidd, and Calvin Throckmorton. They’re all competing for one or two roster spots up for grabs behind Peat, Ruiz, and rookie fourth-round draft pick Nick Saldiveri.
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