Tag: Jalen Dalton

Saints Wire Staff Picks: Training camp superlatives

Saints Wire Staff Picks: New Orleans Saints training camp superlatives

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New Orleans Saints training camp is in full swing, so our staff at Saints Wire have made our picks for the trendy superlatives flying around the Twittersphere. We chose players who fit our interpretation of various categories like Breakout Guy, Comeback Kid, and Under the Radar, occasionally coming into agreement. It’s a fun exercise, but who would you pick? Compare to our selections:

Report: Saints DT Jalen Dalton suffers season-ending injury

The New Orleans Saints reportedly lost backup defensive tackle Jalen Dalton to a season-ending triceps injury during training camp practice.

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Injuries are a tough part of football, and the New Orleans Saints aren’t immune to it. Per a report from Nick Underhill of NewOrelans.Football, defensive lineman Jalen Dalton went down with a serious triceps injury during training camp and is expected to miss the 2020 season.

Dalton was competing for a backup job with teammates like Shy Tuttle, Mario Edwards Jr., Margus Hunt, and Malcolm Roach. Listed at 6-foot-6 and 300 pounds, Dalton was a versatile prospect with experience lining up all across the formation, though his best shot to making the team would have come as a backup for nose tackle Malcom Brown.

While he didn’t crack our latest 53-man roster projection, Dalton was having a solid week of practices. He’s also someone the Saints were invested in; Dalton was one of just four players to return from the 2019 practice squad for the 2020 training camp, having first signed with New Orleans in mid-December. The other remaining members of last year’s practice squad include wide receiver Emmanuel Butler, linebacker Andrew Dowell, and right tackle Derrick Kelly.

Hopefully Dalton can bounce back from this and return to compete with the Saints next summer. He’s just entering his second year in the NFL after splitting time on a couple of different practice squads as an undrafted rookie out of North Carolina, and showed enough potential in practice to warrant another opportunity. Here’s to a smooth recovery for him.

As for the Saints: Dalton’s loss puts them back at 78 roster spots filled out of 80. They recently signed cornerback Kemon Hall to replace veteran corner Johnson Bademosi, whose year ended on injured reserve, and also released linebacker Nigel Bradham, who was outplayed in practice by younger options. With just a few weeks of practice left before the season opener, the Saints may need to move in a hurry to get their roster back to capacity.

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Saints fill two practice squad vacancies, sign D.J. Swearinger after tryouts

The New Orleans Saints held free agent tryouts and signed S D.J. Swearinger. DT Jalen Dalton and DB Chris Johnson joined the practice squad.

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The New Orleans Saints called up two players form their practice squad for Monday night’s game with the Indianapolis Colts, promoting defensive tackle Taylor Stallworth and safety T.J. Green. Green was waived on Wednesday to open up a roster spot for veteran safety D.J. Swearinger, who took part in a group workout at the Saints practice facility. Per a report from Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, that list included:

  • DB Kentrell Brice, Louisiana Tech
  • DL Jalen Dalton, North Carolina
  • DL Mike Hughes, UNLV
  • DB Chris Johnson, North Alabama
  • DB Derrick Kindred, TCU
  • DL Tomasi Laulile, BYU
  • DB Deshawn Shead, Portland State
  • DB Tre Sullivan, Shepherd
  • DB D.J. Swearinger, South Carolina

While Swearinger signed with the Saints as a member of the 53-man active roster, New Orleans filled their two vacancies on the practice squad by signing Dalton and Johnson.

Dalton (6-foot-6, 300 pounds) is a rookie defensive tackle/end hybrid who can line up almost anywhere up front. He initially signed with the Chicago Bears after the 2019 NFL Draft, but was released during September roster cuts and hadn’t yet caught on with another team. With Sheldon Rankins ending his year on injured reserve and Stallworth called up to the active roster, the Saints needed someone to fill out snaps in practice.

Johnson (6-foot-3, 200 pounds) is also a rookie, though the small-school safety spent his summer with the Houston Texans before joining their practice squad after annual roster cuts. He was briefly a member of the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad before they released him as part of other personnel changes. Players signed onto NFL practice squads around this time of the year typically agree to futures contracts with those teams, but it’s unclear whether that’s the case with these two additions for the Saints.

All told, these signings bring the Saints practice squad back up to its 10-man capacity. Dalton and Johnson will join wide receivers Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Emmanuel Butler, running back/wide receiver Taquan Mizzell, offensive linemen Derrick Kelly and John Leglue, linebacker Andrew Dowell, tight end Jerrell Adams, and tight end/defensive lineman Mitchell Loewen.

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