Highlighting a player to watch at each Saints position group in their preseason finale against the Chargers:
The New Orleans Saints preseason will close out on Friday night when the Los Angeles Chargers visit for this summer’s only exhibition game at the Caesars Superdome. It’s the last opportunity for many players to make their case for a roster spot – New Orleans must whittle the depth down from 80 players to just 53 after this preseason game, and probably 40 or more of those roster spots are already spoken for. Many guys will just be hoping to earn a practice squad contract. The Saints have built a highly competitive team.
So there will be plenty to tune in for when they kick off with the Chargers. We’re highlighting one player from each position group who deserves some attention. Some of them are guys on the roster bubble who can change their fortunes with a big night, others are recent high draft picks who need to show more progress before the regular season begins. Others could be on their way out if they don’t meet expectations. Let’s run through the list:
Backup quarterback Andy Dalton initially assigned bizarre jersey number with the Saints:
We now know which jersey numbers some newly-signed New Orleans Saints players will be wearing during the 2021 season, though of course they’re subject to change at this early point in the year. All but one of the Saints free agent pickups have been assigned their initial jersey number — their biggest addition, veteran safety Marcus Maye, is still listed without a number online on the roster from the team’s official website. But let’s start with the strangest choice from the bunch, which currently has backup quarterback wearing the number of a defensive lineman:
Another New Orleans Saints free agent is staying in black and gold. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the Saints are re-signing veteran defensive back P.J. Williams to another one-year contract; Williams has played on one-year deals in each of the last three seasons. Initially drafted out of Florida State in 2015 as a cornerback, Williams converted to safety later in his Saints career and has found some success as an experienced role player in head coach Dennis Allen’s defense. He’s suited up for 85 games in his Saints career, including the playoffs.
Bringing him back is critical after New Orleans lost both of their starting safeties in the same offseason. Free safety Marcus Williams left on a nice free agency contract with the Baltimore Ravens, while strong safety Malcolm Jenkins chose to retire after 13 successful seasons in the NFL. The Saints were able to bring in free agents Marcus Maye and Daniel Sorensen to help replenish the depth chart, but Williams knows the system better than both of them and should be able to ease the learning curve on the back end.
The Saints are signing former Chiefs free agent safety Daniel Sorensen to a one-year contract at the veteran’s minimum salary, with just $500K guaranteed:
Here’s some much-needed clarity on the one-year contract between the New Orleans Saints and free agent safety Daniel Sorensen. NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill first reported that the Saints signed Sorensen to a one-year deal valued at $1.27 million, guaranteeing him only $500,000. Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson adds that Sorensen received a base salary at the veteran’s minimum for someone of his experience, $1.12 million, along with a $152,500 signing bonus.
From a financial perspective, this is about as low-stakes a signing as it gets. Because this contract carries such a low value it displaces another minimum deal for a less-seasoned player, ultimately costing the Saints just a couple hundred dollars against the salary cap (remember, at this stage in the offseason only the top 51 contracts are weighed against the cap). That’s good value for someone with eight NFL seasons behind them, having averaged a modest $2.6 million per-year with Kansas City.
And the Saints won’t be expecting Sorensen to start. He said that he and the team envision a role playing special teams and some defense during his introductory press conference, which is a role New Orleans has asked other veteran safeties to fill in recent years. Jeff Heath did it last season — totaling 318 snaps in the kicking game and just 73 snaps on defense. A year earlier, D.J. Swearing had a more-balanced workload with 90 snaps on special teams but 124 reps with the defense. But that was the plan with Marcus Williams playing every down.
Maybe the plan is different with Marcus Maye in the mix. He’s still recovering from Nov. 2021 Achilles surgery and could be suspended early in 2022 following a Feb. 2021 DUI charge. The Saints haven’t re-signed P.J. Williams yet, and it’s possible he leaves in free agency. Bringing Sorensen into the fold does add some veteran depth behind Malcolm Jenkins, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and J.T. Gray, but the Saints look a lot shakier at the position than they did just a few months ago.
Longtime Kansas City Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen has agreed to a deal with the New Orleans Saints, the team announced on Friday. Sorensen told New Orleans media that his deal is a one-year agreement, though no figures have been reported. The eight-year veteran was signed by the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent out of BYU, where he was a college teammate of Taysom Hill. This is the third defensive player the Saints have added in free agency along with defensive lineman Kentavius Street and fellow safety Macrus Maye.
Unlike Maye, who was signed to replenish the secondary after losing outgoing free agent Marcus Williams, Sorensen’s role is yet to be completely define. Sorensen told media that he expects a role on special teams and defense.
The former Chief took 210 special teams snaps in 2021 and as many as 350 in 2019, totaling fewer than 141 snaps in the kicking game just once (during his injury-shortened 2018 season). He has also contributed on defense with a lot of experience from both the slot and box. It may take time for Sorensen’s role to become fully apparent, but its safe to assume for now that he’ll be an experience piece of the secondary rotation while contributing in the kicking game.
New #Chiefs S Deon Bush’s second introductory tweet showcased impeccable timing once again.
Kansas City Chiefs S Deon Bush has shown a knack for great (and comedic) timing in his first week with his new team.
Bush won the day on social media on Wednesday, March 23, sending out an introductory tweet when Chiefs fans were just finding out the news that Tyreek Hill was set to be traded to the Miami Dolphins. Bush had signed with the team earlier that day and wanted to reach out to the fans, but little did he know about the chaos set to ensue. Some of the responses he received from Chiefs Kingdom weren’t the most welcoming, prompting a follow-up tweet.
My bad y’all, I’ll hit y’all back later 🚶🏾♂️🚶🏾♂️
A longtime member of the #Chiefs is set to sign with the #Saints per a new report.
A longtime Kansas City Chief is heading to the New Orleans Saints.
After spending the past eight years with the Chiefs, Daniel Sorensen is signing with the Saints according to NewOrleans.Football beat writer Nick Underhill.
Affectionately nicknamed “Dirty Dan”, Sorensen first signed with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent out of BYU following the 2014 NFL draft. He was the longest-tenured member of the team as of the 2021 NFL season. He worked his way up from special teamer, becoming a key contributor on defense over the years, playing numerous roles such as dime linebacker and safety.
There was some clear drop-off to Sorensen’s play in 2021, so much so that the veteran was eventually benched in favor of Juan Thornhill. Still, Sorensen had a knack for making some big plays when it counted the most throughout his career. From game-clinching interceptions against AFC West opponents to sniffing out the fake punt by the Texans in the AFC divisional round game in the 2019-20 playoffs, he was the ultimate clutch performer on defense in Kansas City.
Sorensen will finish his career with the Chiefs having appeared in 111 games with 39 starts. During that span he recorded 407 total tackles, 19 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 12 interceptions, 33 passes defended, four forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.
The Chiefs went from having one of the NFL’s worst defenses to one of the NFL’s best literally overnight. How on earth did this happen?
Before 2021, the last team to hold its opponents to less than 10 points per game in four of five games was the 2014 Seahawks, in their third of four years leading the NFL in scoring defense — something no other team has done in the Super Bowl era.
Last Sunday, after holding the Raiders in a vise in a 48-9 beatdown, the 2021 Chiefs became the first team to accomplish that four-in-five stretch since the Legion of Boom pulled it off. Steve Spagnuolo’s defense held the Packers to seven points in Week 9, the Raiders to 14 points in Week 10, the Cowboys to nine points in Week 11, the Broncos to nine points in Week 13, and the Raiders to nine points in Week 14. Outside of the Broncos, that’s a bunch of generally high-powered offenses that turn very normal when they meet this defense.
Interestingly enough, the Chiefs’ defense bottomed out in the second half of the 2020 season, dropping from 14th to 29th in Defensive DVOA, and the uptick wasn’t nearly as significant in 2019, the team’s Super Bowl-winning season, when the defense moved from 16th to 11th. This season? The Chiefs ranked 28th in Defensive DVOA in Weeks 1-9, and only the Patriots have a better Defensive DVOA since Week 10. They’re third in Defensive DVOA behind the Patriots and Cowboys since Week 6, so this isn’t an in-season blip that can be ignored.
This is a new level of greatness for a defense that has been able to take risks because the Chiefs’ offense was so explosive. Which makes this turnaround even more impressive, because for the most part, the Chiefs’ offense has been anything but. That offense has seen a nice uptick from 11th to fourth in the second half of the 2021 season, but the second half of the season also includes a two-game stretch against the Cowboys and Broncos in which Patrick Mahomes failed to throw a touchdown pass. If the second half of the season didn’t also include a two-game roll against the Raiders in which Mahomes threw seven touchdown passes and no interceptions, it’s hard to say where the 9-4 Chiefs would be.
(Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports)
Where the 9-4 Chiefs are right now is at the top of the AFC West, one game ahead of the Chargers, who they face this Thursday night. The Chargers beat the Chiefs, 30-24, in Week 3, but Justin Herbert and friends will face an entirely different threat this time around. That defense is the key to the team’s six-game winning streak after a 3-4 start, and it’s worth investigating what changed, and why this is no flash in the pan.
The Kansas City Chiefs are now led by their defense, as if 2021 wasn’t already weird enough.
#Chiefs S Daniel Sorensen helped seal the game with a 75-yard interception returned for a touchdown against the #Broncos. | from @TheJohnDillon
A tumultuous season for Kansas City Chiefs safety Daniel Sorenson has started to turn around for the veteran safety in recent weeks, with a huge pick-six against Denver proving he’s still a defensive threat. He was benched earlier this year in favor of Juan Thornhill after a bad start left Sorenson the scapegoat of the Chiefs’ defensive struggles.
Their bad start ended up being just that; a bad start. The defense has rebounded in a big way to become an asset for the team when they’ve needed it the most. It turns out that Sorenson’s involvement in the defense wasn’t cause to get rid of him as some Twitter users have suggested, but was only an issue insofar as the regularity of his use.
Check out this highlight-reel pick-six that sealed the game against the Broncos in primetime on Sunday night:
The Chiefs played with their food for the better part of this meeting against Denver, but Sorenson put the game away with that effort in the middle of the fourth quarter. After all of the grief he’s been given over the course of his struggles and tribulations earlier this year, the play is sure to instill some confidence in the veteran safety ahead of the most important part of Kansas City’s schedule.
At 31 years old, Sorenson is one of the most experienced players on the Chiefs’ defense and has been known as a leader in the locker room. An undrafted gem from Brigham Young University, he joined Kansas City in 2014 and was a member of the team’s championship roster in 2020.
If he can find hit his stride in the back end of 2021, Sorenson could be a huge playoff contributor, and make more plays like this one for the Chiefs’ in crucial moments. He’ll still have some work to do before fans forget how he looked earlier this year, but a play like this goes a long way towards their confidence in his abilities.
Changes on both offense and defense are coming for a 2-3 #Chiefs team looking to get back on track.
The Kansas City Chiefs are set to make some changes to their starting lineup during the Week 6 game against the Washington Football Team.
After some abysmal play through the first five weeks of the season, the Chiefs have finally decided to bench Daniel Sorensen for Juan Thornhill. That’s not the only move on the defensive side of the ball that the team is set to make, though.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Chiefs are intent on getting more speed on the field on defense this week. Willie Gay Jr., who played his first game of 2021 last week after a short stay on injured reserve, is set to get more playtime alongside rookie LB Nick Bolton.
Chiefs know they need more speed on the field on defense. That will mean more Juan Thornhill at safety and possibly more Nick Bolton and Willie Gay together at linebacker.
There were times during training camp where Gay looked like the best defensive player on the field. Getting him involved with more frequency is a smart choice for Kansas City, especially if he’s feeling more like himself after his return from injury.
The changes coming on Sunday don’t just extend to the defense either. According to our friend Pete Sweeney at Arrowhead Pride, the Chiefs intend to start Mike Remmers at right tackle over Lucas Niang. Earlier in the week, Remmers was spotted in a team photo from practice, taking snaps with the starting offensive line.
Amidst the reports about #Chiefs defensive changes, it is looking as though Mike Remmers will get the start at right tackle. Last year’s starter should get an opportunity to get his job back.
Fans who watched Remmers’ performance at left tackle in Super Bowl LV are probably seething with rage over this move. But if you watched No. 75 all year long, you’ll recognize that he did a fantastic job during the regular season at right tackle. With Patrick Mahomes struggling in the pocket, and Niang coming off a game where he surrendered eight pressures, it makes sense to make the switch and add a steady veteran presence to the right side of the line. Niang still has great long-term upside, but this could be a short-term move to help stabilize the offensive line.
Another move on the offensive side of the ball this week is to ensure that Josh Gordon receives more playtime. Andy Reid said as much earlier in the week, but former Chiefs OL Jeff Allen confirmed it.
I’ve been hearing there’s more moves but I can’t confirm them. I do know Gordon will get a lot more PT today
Last week, the Chiefs had planned around 20 snaps for Gordon, but they switched into a hurry-up type of offense once they started playing from behind. That took Gordon out of the game plan, but this week he’s more prepared for any in-game situation the team may be faced with.
It remains to be seen whether these moves will help, but it’s hard to imagine that they could make things any worse after Kansas City’s rough start to the 2021 NFL season.
