Tag: saiints

Saints safety Will Harris (hamstring) ruled OUT vs. Chiefs

Saints safety Will Harris suffered a hamstring injury in the second quarter and has been ruled out for the rest of the Chiefs game:

The New Orleans Saints have ruled Will Harris out for the rest of the game versus the Kansas City Chiefs. Coming into the game, Harris was the only player on the Saints defense to have played every snap this season. This obviously won’t be the case any longer.

Harris suffered a hamstring injury trying to catch Xavier Worthy after a catch. Harris pulled up and went down on the Chiefs sideline. After staying down for a bit, he was able to get up and walk across the field under his own power.

The Saints brought Jonathan Abram up from the practice squad for this matchup. Since Harris’ injury, it has been Abram who has stepped up in his place instead of Jordan Howden.

There was an expectation that Abram would see the field over Howden. Harris injury expedited his snaps and enlarged his role. Abram started next to Tyrann Mathieu last year so the duo already have chemistry together.

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B/R says the best case for the NFC South is a division-wide surge

The NFC South has four new offensive play callers entering this season. B/R says the best-case scenario is all teams trend upward in 2024:

The New Orleans Saints aren’t the only NFC South team to make a significant change on their staff. The Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers all did the same. Bleacher Report’s David Kenyon said the best-case scenario for the division is for all of these new hires to spark a surge of success.

There isn’t a team who comes in with the same offensive coordinator, and the Falcons and Panthers bring in new head coaches. Atlanta brings Raheem Morris back to the Falcons and Carolina stole Dave Canales from a divisional rival. Here’s Kenyon’s take:

Last season, the 9-8 Tampa Bay Buccaneers edged the New Orleans Saints on a tiebreaker to win the division. Atlanta mustered a 7-10 mark, while Carolina stunk up the joint at 2-15. Don’t expect a Super Bowl surprise, but improved coaching could make a major difference.

Canales could have the biggest ripple effects. The first-time head coach was Tampa Bay’s offensive coordinator in 2023. It’ll be interesting to see how much of Baker Mayfield’s improvement is connected to Canales’ presence. He did the same thing with Geno Smith in Seattle in 2022. Smith struggled the following year after Canales left for the Buccaneers.

Attention then turns to whether Canales can apply his Midas Touch to Bryce Young. The New Orleans Saints are also hoping their offensive coordinator has a Midas Touch effect as well. Kubiak has been commonly discussed for New Orleans and was recently called the best addition of the offseason. We’ll see the impact it has on Derek Carr, and whether it keeps No. 4 under center beyond 2024.

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Countdown to Kickoff: Kyler Baugh is the Saints Player of Day 69

Countdown to Kickoff: Kyler Baugh is the New Orleans Saints Player of Day 69. The undrafted rookie has a tough road ahead, but he wouldn’t be the first to beat expectations

We’ve got 69 days to go until the New Orleans Saints open up their 2024 regular season, which makes the current owner of the No. 69 jersey our Saints Player of the Day. That’s rookie defensive lineman Kyler Baugh, so let’s get to know him better before diving into realistic goals for him in 2024:

  • Name (Age): Kyler Baugh (22)
  • Position: Defensive tackle
  • Height, weight: 6-foot-2, 305 pounds
  • Relative Athletic Score: 8.56
  • 2024 salary cap hit: $798,333
  • College: Minnesota
  • Drafted: Undrafted in 2024 (New Orleans Saints)
  • NFL experience: Rookie

The Saints signed Baugh as an undrafted free agent out of Minnesota, guaranteeing just $25,000 in his rookie contract. For perspective, former Colorado tight end Dallin Holker led the team with $235,000 in guarantees. Baugh was a solid starter at Minnesota the last two years (where he was teammates with safety Jordan Howden, who the Saints drafted last year) but he’s facing a tough road to making the cut in New Orleans. He mainly ran with the second- and third-team defenses at spring practices. Linemen won’t be highlighted until full-contact practices in pads kick off at training camp later this summer.

So how can he make the team? The Saints lost Malcolm Roach in free agency and didn’t make a great effort at replacing him, signing former Las Vegas Raiders backup Kendal Vickers while drafting Khristian Boyd in the sixth round out of Northern Iowa. Jack Heflin is also in the mix after returning from the Saints’ 2023 practice squad. Baugh must prove he’s a better option to round out the Saints’ four-man rotation than any of those guys.

If he can hold up well in run defense while making the most of his opportunities on passing downs, Baugh could make a compelling case for a roster spot. The Saints have a great track record in recruiting and developing undrafted defensive tackles like Roach (2020), Shy Tuttle and Devaroe Lawrence (2019). Maybe Baugh can follow in their footsteps.

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