Tag: cuts

Wil Lutz’s agent rips Saints after trade to Broncos: ‘He didn’t lose his job’

Wil Lutz’s agent rips New Orleans Saints after trade to Denver Broncos: ‘The better player is not the one who is left on the Saints’ roster’

The New Orleans Saints made a surprise trade ahead of Tuesday’s NFL roster cuts by trading former Pro Bowl kicker Wil Lutz to Sean Payton’s Denver Broncos. It’s a move that Lutz’s agent John Perla isn’t quick to embrace, telling the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson “He didn’t lose his job. The Saints just made a poor decision.”

Lutz and Grupe were neck-and-neck throughout the summer, with things coming to a peak in their final Saints preseason game. Grupe nailed a 50-yard field goal early on and had enough distance on a 60-yard try later, but the ball drifted too far to the right and swung wide of the uprights.

That didn’t dissuade the Saints from giving Grupe the starting nod and shipping Lutz off to Denver. But Perla still isn’t happy to see his client cast aside.

“The better player is not the one who is left on the Saints’ roster, I’ll tell you that,” Perla added to Tomasson.

We’ll see how things play out for both kickers when the regular season kicks off in a few weeks. Lutz will be playing for a coach he knows well at high elevation, where kickers have performed well before. Grupe will be working indoors for much of the season under a coach who has expressed a ton of confidence in him. Both guys are in good situations, but it’s pretty clear that Lutz didn’t leave New Orleans because he wanted to.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Saints release LB Jaylon Smith, but fans shouldn’t say goodbye just yet

The Saints released veteran linebacker Jaylon Smith, but fans shouldn’t say goodbye just yet:

This won’t make many New Orleans Saints fans happy, but don’t go picking up the torches and pitchforks just yet. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill reports that the Saints are releasing veteran linebacker Jaylon Smith, a late pickup in training camp who played really well for them in practice and at their preseason games.

But there’s a catch. Because Smith was been released, not waived, he won’t hit the waiver wire like many other players being let go at the roster cuts deadline. He’s free to choose his next team — or return to New Orleans. The Saints could have a handshake agreement in place to release him on Tuesday so they can place an injured player like Tre’Quan Smith, Landon Young, or Ryan Connelly on injured reserve on Wednesday, at which point they could re-sign Smith.

Maybe. They could also be looking to stash Smith on their practice squad at a significantly lower cost. It’s also possible he’ll choose to pursue other NFL opportunities at this point. We’ll just have to wait and see. But it feels like a safe bet that he’ll be on the roster when they kick off the season with the Tennessee Titans in a few weeks.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Saints release CB Bradley Roby, a projected starter in the slot

Here’s a surprise roster cut: the Saints released cornerback Bradley Roby, a projected starter in the slot

This is a bit of a surprise. It was previously reported that the New Orleans Saints were fielding trade offers for veteran cornerback Bradley Roby, who was projected to start in the slot — but the team is releasing him outright, as reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter and NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Roby played just 22 snaps in the preseason while taking a lot of time off with the rest of the starting lineup, so the reverse course at the last minute like this is strange. He had to have had some trade value. Releasing him does allow him to choose his next team but both sides may have been better off finding a way to compromise and keep him in New Orleans.

Oh well. The decision to let him go for nothing is painful for a Saints team that’s short on draft capital. At least they’ll save some salary cap space — Roby was set to carry a salary cap hit north of $4 million, and releasing him now saves the team more than $3.3 million. But they were already in the clear by about $11.4 million, so that’s not going to really change things for them one way or another.

Another factor in moving on from Roby: his departure opens a starting role in the slot for Alontae Taylor. The second-year cornerback was very impressive as a rookie but he has struggled mightily in transitioning to a role guarding the slot. If the Saints are determined to get their former second-round draft pick on the field at all costs, adopting a sink-or-swim mentality, at least they have a competent veteran backup to lean on on Ugo Amadi.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Report: Saints release veteran cornerback Troy Pride Jr.

Report: Saints release veteran cornerback Troy Pride Jr., former Panthers draft pick

The New Orleans Saints are continuing to thin out their secondary ahead of NFL roster cuts by releasing veteran cornerback Troy Pride Jr., per TheScore’s Jordan Schultz. Pride was a former mid-round draft pick by the Carolina Panthers whose career was derailed by an injury. He could be a smart pick to keep on the practice squad, but it sounds like Pride is looking for opportunities to play on Sundays.

Every cornerback outside the top four players faced an uphill battle this summer in competing for roster spots. Having established starters in way like Marshon Lattimore, Bradley Roby, Paulson Adebo and Alontae Taylor makes for a really tough blockade to get through. The Saints do like to stock up on defensive backs, though, so we should expect some of their roster cuts to stay in town and sign with the practice squad later this week.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Saints waiving rookie cornerback Adrian Frye, who could return to their practice squad

Report: The Saints are waiving rookie cornerback Adrian Frye, an athletic young pro who could return to their practice squad

The New Orleans Saints are waiving rookie cornerback Adrian Frye, per Mike Triplett of NewOrleans.Football. Frye arrived in New Orleans as an undrafted free agent out of Texas Tech, and he’s a good pick to return to their practice squad should he clear waivers.

Frye played a lot of snaps on special teams in preseason to try and help his case — his 41 reps in the kicking game covering punts and kickoffs tied second-year safety Smoke Monday for the sixth-most on the team.

He has everything the team looks for in a cornerback from an athletic standpoint, standing 6-foot-0 and weighing in at 205 pounds, so he could be someone who returns to be coached up on the scout team. He just had too many lapses in coverage and mental mistakes, which are common for rookies. Hopefully he lands on his feet whether that’s in New Orleans or a new NFL city.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Full waiver wire order for all 32 teams at NFL roster cuts deadline

Full waiver wire for all 32 teams at NFL roster cuts deadline: Where do the New Orleans Saints stand in waiver priority?

More than 1,000 NFL players will be released, waived, or traded ahead of Tuesday afternoon’s annual deadline, with many of them (but not all) eligible for claiming on the waiver wire. That’s an opportunity for the New Orleans Saints and many other teams to get better by acquiring players who either weren’t good fits in their last spot or who were pushed off the depth chart by offseason upgrades.

But where are the Saints picking? At this point on the NFL calendar waiver wire priority is determined by the 2023 draft order, without any trades, meaning the Saints clock in at No. 10 overall. It will change once games are played and teams begin racking up wins or suffering losses. For now, here is where New Orleans slots in:

Report: RB Elijah Dotson makes Chargers’ 53-man roster

The Chargers’ undrafted free agent running back has secured a spot on the 53-man roster post cutdowns.

Chargers’ undrafted free agent running back Elijah Dotson has secured a spot on the 53-man roster post-cutdowns, per Aaron Wilson.

Dotson put up 146 yards in the preseason on 18 carries, averaging eight yards per attempt. A lot of those yards did come from his two explosive touchdown runs in the Rams game. That seems to be what initially caught the coaching staff’s attention anyway.

Dotson becomes the first undrafted free agent running back to make the roster since Austin Ekeler in 2017.

But Dotson was no slouch in the other preseason games. While there were no big highlight runs, Dotson averaged 4.5 yards per carry and contributed on special teams.

Of course, the roster is still in flux. As seen with Breiden Fehoko last offseason, plenty of moves can still be made after the finalization of the roster. Nothing is set in stone. Jalen Guyton and Otito Ogbonnia will also still have to come off of the PUP list at some point after Week 4. Two roster spots will need to be cleared at some point for them.

That said, making the initial 53-man is a huge win for an undrafted player like Dotson. It certainly signifies the Chargers felt he was too valuable to leave to chance on post-cut waivers.

We’ll have to see how the season plays out, but Dotson could certainly play himself into a special teams promotional role this year like Larry Rountree did previously. With Joshua Kelley and Austin Ekeler likely departing after this year, the Chargers probably don’t want to shed too much future running back talent.

Chargers waive rookie QB Max Duggan

The roster cuts continue to roll in for the Chargers.

The roster cuts continue to roll in for the Chargers on Monday. 2023 draft selection, Max Duggan was released in favor of Los Angeles keeping two quarterbacks for now.

The Chargers spent most of the preseason and training camp process giving reps to Easton Stick at QB2. Unlike last offseason, there was never a competition between QB2 and QB3. Duggan was a distant third throughout the process. It was only a matter of whether the Chargers would keep two or three quarterbacks.

Considering the draft investment, the Chargers are most likely hoping that Duggan isn’t claimed on waivers so he can be placed on the practice squad. As Tom Pelissero indicated in his original tweet, though, Duggan isn’t necessarily a lock to clear waivers given his national status. He was a Heisman finalist amid TCU’s run through the College Football Playoff last season.

Barring another move or waiver claim, the Chargers are preparing to keep two quarterbacks on the main roster. 2018 was the last time there were just two signal callers on the final roster. Philip Rivers and Geno Smith made up the main quarterback room that year.

Duggan was a mixed bag this preseason. While he showed off his athletic ability as a scrambler, his processor was still as delayed as on the TCU tape. Several passes, even completions, were left relatively short of their initial targets. Hopefully, if he does return to the practice squad, Duggan can start developing his NFL repertoire for next preseason.

Saints waive wide receiver Kawaan Baker, their former 2021 draft pick

Report: The Saints are waiving wide receiver Kawaan Baker, their former 2021 draft pick. He’s spent time on their practice squad before and could return in that capacity

The hits keep coming: the New Orleans Saints waived third-year wide receiver Kawaan Baker, as first reported by NewOrleans.Football’s Mike Triplett. Baker was a seventh-round pick out of South Alabama in the 2021 NFL draft, and this isn’t a new experience for him. He’s been let go by the Saints and returned to their practice squad before while experiencing brief stops with teams like the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles.

Still, it’s tough to see his efforts go unrewarded. Baker put in a lot of work to develop into an asset on special teams, and he was one of the Saints’ most-consistent players covering punts and kickoffs in the preseason. His punt recovery deep inside enemy territory in the first exhibition matchup stands out as a big positive in his favor. Maybe that will help him draw more attention on the waiver wire and as teams build their practice squads later this week.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Saints waive backup DT Prince Emili, who returned from 2022 practice squad

Report: Saints waive backup defensive tackle Prince Emili, who returned from their 2022 practice squad to compete for a roster spot

The New Orleans Saints are continuing to whittle down their roster ahead of Tuesday’s cuts deadline, this time parting ways with backup defensive tackle Prince Emili. Emili returned to New Orleans after joining their practice squad in 2022 and had some nice moments over the summer, but improved depth pushed him off the depth chart. NewOrleans.Football’s Mike Triplett first reported news of his release.

Emili initially signed with the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent last year (out of Penn), though he wound up on the Saints practice squad by midseason and even got into a few games late in the year. He was brought back to compete for a roster spot in 2023 but the Saints made too many additions to the top of the depth chart to keep a spot open for him.

With Malcolm Roach developing into a better option as the fourth defensive tackle behind Khalen Saunders, Nathan Shepherd, and Bryan Bresee it made more sense to waive Emili and possibly bring him back to the practice squad again. We’ll see if he gets a call back later this week.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]