Tag: Khalen Saunders

25 most important Saints of 2023: No. 21 Khalen Saunders

25 most important Saints of 2023: Khalen Saunders is a big addition at the top of the defensive tackles depth chart | @DillySanders

The 2023 NFL offseason is in full swing, and with that, training camps edge ever closer to starting. We have seen a new wave of players enter the team both via the draft and free agency, but there is also a large group of returning players from last season as well. This has led to some debates to be had regarding which players will have the largest impact on the roster for the 2023 season.

Each day we will be counting down the 25 most important Saints for the 2023 season. This will be split up into the following categories:

  • Recap of their 2022 season
  • Projecting their 2023 success
  • What is the biggest question mark for them in 2023?

The 21st-ranked player by the Saints Wire staff is a newcomer to the team, defensive tackle Khalen Saunders. He’s coming off of four years of being a rotational defensive lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs with a bigger role looming in New Orleans:

Khalen Saunders visits White House with his former Chiefs teammates

Khalen Saunders missed Saints practice on Tuesday to visit the White House with his former Chiefs teammates. Let’s hope he returns with the Saints next year:

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While his New Orleans Saints teammates were enjoying a productive day of practice back home, Khalen Saunders was catching up with old friends and glad handing dignitaries at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. He and many of his former Kansas City Chiefs teammates accepted an invitation to visit the White House as reigning Super Bowl champions, where they were recognized for their achievements by President Joe Biden.

Saunders shared photos and anecdotes from the visit on his social media profiles, including an impressive selfie taken in front of a portrait of former President John Tyler (Saunders noted that, “To be completely honest I had no idea who that is,”) and a shot of his old teammate Frank Clark dozing in a viewing gallery facing the Washington Monument.

It’s unclear if Ugo Amadi also was in attendance; the Saints safety ended the 2022 season on the Chiefs practice squad and won a championship ring just like everyone else on their team, and he enjoyed himself at a celebratory parade in Kansas City after the Super Bowl. Like Saunders, he also wasn’t in attendance for Saints practice this week, so maybe he made the trip to Washington, D.C., as well. Let’s hope they’re both returning with the Saints this time next year as back-to-back Super Bowl champs.

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Meet the Team: Who is Saints DT Khalen Saunders, and what’s expected of him in 2023?

Meet the Team: Who is Saints nose tackle Khalen Saunders, and what’s expected of him in 2023? The two-time Super Bowl champ is just hitting his stride:

The New Orleans Saints made some splashy free agent signings this year, and one player who quickly became a fan-favorite was Khalen Saunders. Active on social media and plenty charismatic, it didn’t take long for Saunders to connect with the fanbase — even if some supporters are putting lofty expectations on the two-time Super Bowl champ.

But Saunders is just hitting his stride as he reaches the peak of his athletic career. Let’s get to know him a little better now that he’ll be wearing black and gold on Sundays:

New Orleans Saints defensive line ranked among most-improved units in NFL

The New Orleans defensive line was ranked among the most-improved units around the NFL, but are the Saints finished adding players up front?

Few teams committed as many resources to a single position group as the New Orleans Saints have used to revamp their defensive line, and all that activity has caught the attention from some analysts covering the league.

With the 2023 NFL draft behind us, Pro Football Focus’ Gordon McGuinness ranked the Saints defensive line among the most-improved units in the NFL, writing:

The Saints used their first two selections in the draft on defensive linemen, and while both were slight reaches against the PFF big board, both players do fit the type of players they like on their defensive line.

Clemson’s Bryan Bresee produced a career-high 82.0 pass-rushing grade in 2022 and can play multiple spots across the unit.

Notre Dame’s Isaiah Foskey has the size and speed that the Saints seem to love on the edge and can dominate tight ends from the alignment. He racked up 23 sacks, seven hits and 35 hurries across 595 pass-rush snaps over the past two seasons.

Take those two highly-drafted rookies with the veteran free agents the Saints have brought in — including former New York Jets standout Nathan Shepherd and nose tackle Khalen Saunders, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Kansas City Chiefs — and New Orleans is close completing the overhaul they started up front. Gone are David Onyemata, Marcus Davenport, Shy Tuttle, and Kentavius Street. We’ll see if Bresee, Foskey, Shepherd, and Saunders are up to the task of replacing them, but it’s a good start.

Should the Saints call it a day and pivot to other positions of need? Or would it be worth looking into more help? Activity is picking up in the free agent market and there are some appealing players still out there looking for work. Defensive tackles like Matt Ioannidis and Shelby Harris could help push depth players like Malcolm Roach, Prince Emili, and Jerron Cage (undrafted out of Ohio State).

You have to think the edge-rush rotation is set, but it wouldn’t hurt to add a player like Al-Quadin Muhammad or Dawuane Smoot to the mix, putting more pressure on Payton Turner, assuming New Orleans isn’t in on the undersized sack artists like Leonard Floyd and Yannick Ngakoue.

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LOOK: This creative Saints fan has already fashioned a Bryan Bresee jersey

At least one creative New Orleans Saints fan has already fashioned a Bryan Bresee jersey — with a little help from a Saints legend:

At least one creative New Orleans Saints fan has already fashioned a Bryan Bresee jersey — with a little help from a Saints legend. Saints fan Ryan Berger took some duct tape to his old Drew Brees “Color Rush” variant jersey to modify Brees’ last name to, well, Bresee. He probably isn’t the last enterprising fan to think of it, but he does deserve the distinction of being the first.

This does raise an interesting question, though: which jersey number will Bresee wear? He used No. 11 in college at Clemson after waring No. 44 in high school, but neither of those are options for him in the NFL (defensive linemen are ineligible for both numbers). He’s a fan of symmetry, apparently, so maybe he can buy No. 99 off of Khalen Saunders.

If that’s a no-go, Cameron Jordan probably isn’t giving up his No. 94 jersey, but one option Bresee may consider is No. 91. That jersey was used by Kentavius Street last season and opened up when he left on a free agent deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. It has the added bonus of being easy to modify from an old Brees jersey with a little more duct tape and some creative thinking.

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Dennis Allen compares Khalen Saunders to a former fan-favorite Saints DT

Dennis Allen has a smart player comparison for Khalen Saunders, offering a throwback to his early days in New Orleans: Hollis Thomas

What are the New Orleans Saints getting in Khalen Saunders? The big defensive tackle was one of their first free agent signings this offseason, and head coach Dennis Allen has a smart comparison in mind. When asked for his thoughts on the team’s pickup, he offered a throwback to his early days in New Orleans.

“Khalen Saunders reminds me a lot of Hollis Thomas,” Allen said at NFL owners meetings in Phoenix this week. “Kind of a big square body, athletic, can move. Good run stopper but yet some sneaky pass-rush ability. The ability to push the pocket inside. I think he can help us in that regard. Maybe slightly more athletic than what we saw with Shy.”

“Tank” Thomas wasn’t quite as big as Saunders — the Saints listed him at 6-flat and 306 pounds; Saunders tips the scales at 324 — but it’s a good comparison. He joined the Saints as a veteran in 2006 and started 30 of the 38 games he played in black and gold, ultimately seeing 1,259 snaps across his three-year run in New Orleans. He averaged about 33 snaps per game and was active defending the run as well as the pass. Pro Football Focus charting found he generated 32 pressures in that time, with the NFL officially crediting him with 6.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss. If Saunders can return similar production, Allen and the team probably feel great about the move.

And like Saunders, Hollis had a big personality. He was known as an always-positive, charismatic face in the locker room. A former undrafted free agent who got his first break in the NFL by sending his highlight tape to all 30 teams at the time (his career began in 1996, before the league expanded to 32 franchises in 2003) while a student at Northern Illinois.

Thomas recounted the story to PhiladelphiaEagles.com’s Jim Gehman in 2021: “I got the audio-visual department to make me one. It wasn’t too long and it wasn’t too short. I was just trying to give them pretty much a highlight of what I do in games. … I talked to (former Eagles head coach) Ray Rhodes before I committed to come here. And one of the things that Ray told me was if I came and did the things that I did in college, that I will make the team. No ifs, ands, or buts.”

Saunders is arriving in New Orleans with a little more fanfare. The Kansas City Chiefs’ former third-round draft pick signed a three-year contract with the Saints valued at up to $12.3 million, with half of it guaranteed. He’s expected to start next to Nathan Shepherd in the middle of Allen’s defense and set the tone early.

Like Thomas was before him, he’s going to be a key piece of the New Orleans defensive line at a pivotal moment in franchise history. After working hard to recruit free agent quarterback Derek Carr and coming off their first losing season in seven years, it’s vital that Saunders helps the Saints shake back and chase an NFC South title. We’ll see if he has it in him.

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New Orleans Saints announce new jersey numbers for many players after free agency

The New Orleans Saints announced new jersey numbers for many players after two weeks of free agency, including a couple of changes from last year:

Here’s the hard-hitting analysis and journalism you’re looking for. The New Orleans Saints announced a series of jersey number changes after the first few weeks of free agency brought a small crowd of new players to the roster.

And some players returning from the 2022 squad are planning to wear new numbers in 2023, though that’s subject to change this far out from training camp and the start of the regular season. We’re still waiting on new numbers for wider receiver Bryan Edwards and kicker Alex Quevedo.

So don’t go placing any jersey preorders just yet (remember how long it took Tyrann Mathieu to settle on No. 32 last offseason?), but here’s a glance at each of the new number assignments listed on the team’s online roster:

Predicting the Saints’ 2023 starting defense after first wave of free agency

There have been plenty of changes to the strength of the New Orleans Saints’ team. Predicting the 2023 starting defense after the first wave of free agency:

The New Orleans Saints built their team on the strength of their defense, so seeing it be steadily eroded in free agency has been kind of alarming. They’ve lost multiple starters along the defensive line — David Onyemata and Shy Tuttle at defensive tackle, plus Marcus Davenport at the right end spot — and several key backups in linebacker Kaden Elliss and defensive back Justin Evans.

But the Saints have been active in searching for help on this side of the ball, too. Let’s take a quick look at their projected starting defense and top backups for each position group in the wake of the first wave of free agency signings:

5 takeaways from Saints DT Khalen Saunders’ introductory press conference

New Orleans #Saints DT Khalen Saunders is a unifier in the locker room. All that and 4 more takeaways from his introductory press conference, via @RossJacksonNOLA:

There has been a clear through-line across the New Orleans Saints newest free agent signees. Culture. Well, okay two through-lines: culture and leadership. New defensive tackle Khalen Saunders was the epitome  of both qualities when introduced on Friday.

The four-year interior defender entered the NFL from a small school and was immediately a part of two Super Bowl-winning rosters with the Kansas City Chiefs. So, not only did the Saints find a leader in Saunders, they found themselves a winner as well.

Saunders impressed in his introductory press conference at the end of last week. Both in his understanding of self and the opportunity ahead of him. Here are some of the biggest takeaways from his time visiting with New Orleans media.

Khalen Saunders proud of his front flip, downplays comparisons to infamous Saints UDFA

Big-time DT Khalen Saunders is proud of his front flip, but he downplays comparisons to an infamous New Orleans Saints free agent bust:

Khalen Saunders can move. The New Orleans Saints’ latest free agent acquisition has gone viral for his agility training before, having shared videos of him backflipping his way across the practice field while training for the 2019 NFL draft. It’s really impressive to see someone listed at 324 pounds move around as easily as he does (and throwing in a front flip, to mix it up).

But it’s prompted some unfortunate comparisons to one of the Saints’ past flops of yesteryear. Walter Thomas was a fan-favorite way back in 2007, having been signed as an undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma State and Northwest Mississippi Community College — and the big defensive tackle could front-flip, too. But he was let go after just a single practice in New Orleans’ rookie minicamp.

Credit to Saunders for laughing off the comparison on Twitter. He says this was the first he’s heard of Thomas, asking fans “with all due respect” to “stop mentioning bro in the same sentence as me.”

For what it’s worth, Thomas has enjoyed a successful career in the Indoor Football League, most recently signing up to play for the Carolina Cobras in 2022. Good on him for finding a way to keep playing professionally and chase his dreams. But as Saunders pointed out, the comparison doesn’t stretch very far. He’s preparing to be a big player for New Orleans this year.

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