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There are a lot of moving pieces on the New Orleans Saints depth chart right now between players who are injured and those being shuffled to and from the practice squad. Two veterans who were recently released from the 53-man roster cleared waivers and are now unrestricted free agents: wide receiver Kevin White and fullback Alex Armah Jr.
They’ve both been here before, having been waived and bumped down to the practice squad, with White already meeting the two-game limit for game-day elevations, while Armah still has his two-week eligibility should he be signed to the practice squad. But the Saints replaced him last week with rookie Adam Prentice (who was promoted for the Buffalo Bills game before returning to the practice squad) and they could stick with that change.
Beyond their middling performances, though, the Saints needed the roster spots to help manage a number of injury situations this week. They’re down three starters along the offensive line against the Dallas Cowboys, including All-Pro tackles Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk as well as Pro Bowler Andrus Peat (who is out for the season).
James Hurst and Jordan Mills can fill in for the two tackles, but if either of them goes down the Saints would probably move Calvin Throckmorton from left guard to that opening given his experience playing tackle in college. That would require Will Clapp to step in at left guard, so the Saints may want to sign Caleb Benenoch to the 53-man roster as an emergency option (like White, he’s already exhausted his practice squad eligibility). Former Los Angeles Chargers starter Forrest Lamp is another option to come up from the practice squad, though he can simply be elevated rather than signed.
So where else could the Saints need help? They’ve been depleted at defensive end between injuries to Marcus Davenport, Tanoh Kpassagnon, and Payton Turner, leaving only three healthy true ends available: Cameron Jordan, Carl Granderson, and Jalyn Holmes. Maybe an interior lineman like David Onyemata gets snaps out on the edge to make up for the absence, prompting the Saints to sign Albert Huggins back to the 53-man roster from the practice squad to maintain that rotation inside. Malcolm Roach also went on injured reserve recently so their options inside include Onyemata, Shy Tuttle, Christian Ringo, and Josiah Bronson.
Another possibility is at linebacker. Kaden Elliss will miss the Cowboys game with a hamstring injury, so Chase Hansen could be signed from the practice squad to fill in for his snaps on special teams. Other available linebackers on the active roster are Demario Davis, Kwon Alexander, Pete Werner, Zack Baun, and Andrew Dowell. Free agent Sharif Finch was also signed to the practice squad recently, and he has some NFL experience in the kicking game.
Whatever the Saints choose to do, we should learn sooner rather than later. Expect some last-minute roster moves to be announced in the hours leading up to Thursday night’s Cowboys kickoff. New Orleans needs all the help it can get.
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