Updated Saints salary cap space after extending Tyrann Mathieu

How did extending Tyrann Mathieu and tendering Rashid Shaheed impact the Saints’ salary cap? Here’s an update on how much more space New Orleans must clear:

It isn’t really accurate to say we’re updating the New Orleans Saints’ salary cap space situation — the team doesn’t have any space under the cap right now because they’re still over the cap by about $10.7 million. But a couple of recent moves have changed the situation, so let’s take stock of where things currently stand.

Per Over The Cap’s experts, the Saints are currently in the red by an estimated $10,602,3364. Now that only reflects the information and roster moves which have been made publicly available. It’s very possible that the Saints have already checked all their boxes and reached cap compliance without leaking anything to the media. It’s not like they’re frantically working to beat the deadline (next Wednesday at 3 p.m. CT).

And two recent moves changed that projection. The Saints signed starting safety Tyrann Mathieu to a new two-year contract valued at $13.5 million, with a salary cap hit of just $5,567,000 for 2024. That pushed them down to a nearly-level $10.5 million level over the spending limit.

But another shoe dropped when the Saints tendered Pro Bowl returns specialist Rashid Shaheed, an exclusive rights free agent. That costs $985,000 against the cap. Because only the top 51 cap hits count on the books at this time of the year, Shaheed pushed a lesser-valued contract of $795,000 (there’s six different players all carrying that number) beneath the threshold. So the true cost to the cap was only $190,000, meaning the Saints are in the red by $10,792,634.

At least at the time of writing. More moves are on the way. Obvious dominoes yet to fall include cap hits for right tackle Ryan Ramczyk ($27 million), running back Alvin Kamara ($18.7 million), linebacker Demario Davis ($18.1 million) and do-it-all weapon Taysom Hill ($15.7 million). There are other levers the Saints can pull if they really want to max out their cap resources, but those are the big ones to watch.

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Report: Saints ‘played it safe’ with Michael Thomas knee injury

Report: Saints ‘played it safe’ with Michael Thomas, wide receiver avoided serious knee injury vs. Vikings

Here’s some good news: New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas avoided a serious knee injury in Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Vikings, per NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill, who adds that the Saints chose to “play it safe” with Thomas and keep him on the sidelines after evaluating him. That makes sense given his injury history, the state of the game, and a bye week promising extra rest coming up next.

And fewer snaps for Thomas meant more opportunities for rookie wideout A.T. Perry, who responded appropriately. Perry’s first NFL reception gained 23 yards and converted a first down. His second catch scored a 13-yard touchdown. He’s doing everything he can to earn the trust of his quarterbacks and coaches, even if he’s got room to improve; Perry dropped a pass late in the game when a Vikings defender hit him at the catch point.

But let’s keep the focus on Thomas. He lost years of his prime to a series of complicated ankle injuries, but he’s already played his most snaps (490) since his record-setting 2019 campaign (942). He may not be the superstar receiver he once was, but he’s been an important player for the Saints this season and the offense is better with him in the lineup. It’s early but signs point to Thomas being available when the Saints regroup after their bye week.

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Justin Jefferson unlikely to return in time for Saints vs. VIkings

Justin Jefferson was elevated from injured reserve on Wednesday, but it is unlikely he will make his return vs. the Saints.

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson was designated to return from the injured reserve list ahead of the Vikings’ game with the New Orleans Saints, and Saints fans know just how challenging an opponent he can be. Jefferson set new records for receptions (128) and receiving yards (1,809) last season, going off against the Saints in London to the tune of 10 catches for 147 yards. And that’s after his impressive college career at LSU.

Jefferson was sidelined four weeks ago with a hamstring injury. He now has 21 days to to play in a game. According to head coach Kevin O’Connell, it is unlikely Jefferson returns this week.

“I think that would be a little aggressive,” O’Connell said after Jefferson was cleared to return to practice. “He can’t wait to get back out there.”

Minnesota shouldn’t be overlooked due to Jefferson’s absence. Matter of fact, the Vikings have won all four of the games he’s missed. Rookie first-round pick Jordan Addison has began to have more success in recent weeks with seven touchdown catches in his first nine games. Joshua Dobbs will be an interesting player to watch at quarterback, but do not release a sigh of relief just yet. Jefferson or no Jefferson, the Vikings are interesting matchup for the Saints.

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Saints say 9 players are questionable vs. Colts on final Week 8 injury report

Saints say 9 players are questionable vs. Colts on final Week 8 injury report

The final New Orleans Saints injury report ahead of Week 8’s game with the Indianapolis Colts doesn’t look great, but we’ll take a positive spin on it. Nine players are questionable for Sunday’s game at Lucas Oil Stadium, but just one player has been preemptively ruled out due to injury. Three others received treatment this week but are expected to play.

So it’s looking like a good number of players listed as questionable will ultimately be able to suit up on Sunday. We just shouldn’t assume that everyone receiving that designation will get the nod.

What’s concerning is who the injuries are impacting. Left tackle James Hurst (ankle) has already been ruled out for the game, but his immediate replacement Andrus Peat (ankle) was a late addition to the injury report on Friday, and he’s one of those listed as questionable to play. If Peat can’t go, the Saints would likely start Landon Young (hip), who was limited earlier this week but upgraded to full practice reps on Friday.

Another positive is that right tackle Ryan Ramczyk practiced fully again and is likely to start this week after he missed time in the concussion protocol. The Saints want to send Trevor Penning in games as a reserve coming in for overloaded sets rather than expose him to mismatches in a starting role.

Several safeties are questionable: J.T. Gray (hamstring), Tyrann Mathieu (foot), and Marcus Maye (hamstring/illness); Maye was limited earlier in the week with his hamstring injury but missed practice Friday with an illness that’s been going around. Mathieu was upgraded to full reps on Friday after also being limited.

Other Saints players who are questionable Sunday include linebacker Demario Davis (knee), quarterback Taysom Hill (chest), and cornerback Alontae Taylor (hip), plus offensive guard Max Garcia and tight end Jimmy Graham (both illnesses). We’ll monitor the inactive list closely on Sunday morning to see who can’t go. Here is the full injury report from both teams going into Week 8:

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Saints designate RB Jamaal Williams to return from injured reserve

The Saints designated running back Jamaal Williams to return from injured reserve, potentially giving their offense a much-needed boost:

Here’s some good news: the New Orleans Saints designated running back Jamaal Williams to return from injured reserve on Tuesday, potentially bringing a much-needed boost to their struggling offense. Williams went down in Week 2’s close win over the Carolina Panthers with an injured hamstring and has been on the mend ever since.

That means we still haven’t seen the Saints offense with all three running backs in the rotation. Alvin Kamara was sidelined for the first three games with a suspension. Rookie running back Kendre Miller needed some time to get up to speed after suffering his own hamstring injury late in the summer. If all goes well, we could see the three-headed rushing attack the Saints envisioned on Thursday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars. We’ll keep an eye out for updates on his progress.

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NFL power rankings Week 7: No more unbeatens, new No. 1 stakes claim

The last of the unbeatens were defeated on Sunday, reshuffling the top five yet again.

The NFC’s last two teams standing in the 2022 season had maintained that excellence through the first five weeks of the season. The Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers seem destined for an NFC Championship game rematch as both started their years with five straight wins. On Sunday, both fell from the ranks of the undefeated when facing two of the AFC’s top defenses.

Losses to the Jets and Browns, respectively, paved the way for a new No. 1 to emerge, the fourth different team to hold the pole position in the 2023 season. There’s a crowd at the top, with five different teams now sporting similar 5-1 records. Who sits atop the rankings? Scroll to find out.

Saints will start Derek Carr vs. Bucs; QB ‘had no pain’ in injured shoulder

Multiple outlets report the Saints will start Derek Carr on Sunday. NOF’s Nick Underhill says Carr ‘had no pain’ in his injured shoulder leading up to the game:

There it is: NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill both reported Sunday morning that the Saints will start Derek Carr at quarterback against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Underhill adds that Carr “had no pain” in his injured throwing shoulder after participating in Friday’s final practice session, and he’s feeling well enough to play during Sunday’s pregame warmups.

So it’ll be Carr under center at the Caesars Superdome, not his backup Jameis Winston. This all lines up with what the team said throughout the week: so long as Carr could manage the pain in his shoulder while throwing without mechanical limitations, he’ll be good to go. That’s the case in the final hours leading up to the game, so he’s going to play.

Hopefully he can help the team. The Saints go into Week 4 tied with the Bucs on top of the NFC South, with the Atlanta Falcons facing a 10-point deficit to the Jacksonville Jaguars overseas in England. If that lead holds and the Falcons fall to 2-2, Carr and the Saints could take an early lead on the division by knocking the Bucs down a peg.

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Saints, Buccaneers list a combined 13 absentees on first injury report

The Saints and Buccaneers listed a combined 13 absentees on the initial Week 4 injury report. Both teams are resting a lot of players:

The New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers listed a combined 13 absentees on the initial Week 4 injury report. Both teams are resting a lot of players with the Bucs coming off a tough loss on a short week (having hosted the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night) and the Saints recuperating from a road trip to see the Green Bay Packers. New Orleans quarterback Derek Carr was held out on Wednesday while resting his injured throwing shoulder.

We’ll check back on Thursday to see who was able to participate in practice after being given the day off. For now, here’s what we learned on Wednesday:

Saints open another practice squad spot by releasing RB Kirk Merritt

The New Orleans Saints opened another practice squad spot by releasing running back Kirk Merritt. Are they making room for new additions?

Should we start a transactions counter for Kirk Merritt like we’ve done for J.T. Barrett and Will Clapp? The New Orleans Saints released the running back from their practice squad on Tuesday just a week after they re-signed him upon clearing waivers, having been let go from the 53-man roster before Week 3’s road game with the Green Bay Packers.

Maybe this is just another procedural move. But you can’t help but wonder if the Saints are going to add some new faces. We’ve seen a lot of movement up and down the depth chart over the last 24 hours with:

Got all that? Expect more movement. The Saints are now at capacity on the 53-man roster with two vacancies open on their practice squad. They have an obvious need for improvement along the offensive line but it’s tough to see many free agents signing with the practice squad and upgrading the starting lineup in a matter of days (not even La’el Collins, a fan-favorite pick online). Stay tuned.

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Saints say starting right guard Cesar Ruiz still in concussion protocol

Saints head coach Dennis Allen was short on updates for starting right guard Cesar Ruiz, only saying that he is still in concussion protocol:

New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen shared a positive update on injured quarterback Derek Carr, but he was short on updates for the team’s other significant loss on Sunday: starting right guard Cesar Ruiz.

Ruiz left the game after logging just 18 snaps and entered the NFL’s concussion protocol, and Allen said that the team will be monitoring his progress throughout the days ahead.

“He’s in the protocol,” Allen responded when asked about Ruiz’s status, repeating, “He’s in the protocol. So we’ll see how he does this week.”

His absence required some big changes up front. The Saints moved starting left guard James Hurst to Ruiz’s spot on the right side, with former starter Andrus Peat returning to his place on the left side. Both of them allowed pressure in this loss to the Green Bay Packers. The entire Saints offensive line has been a problem this year, but Ruiz has arguably been their most reliable player up front. Losing him is an obvious challenge for a unit that’s already underperforming.

Concussions are worrisome injuries for all football players, but especially offensive linemen. There’s good reasons for them wearing specialized helmets into games and pioneering the padded Guardian caps at training camp: they experience more head trauma more often than any other position group. Ruiz got into the lineup during his 2020 rookie year when veteran guard Nick Easton was sidelined by a series of concussions which ultimately cut his career short.

You hope he doesn’t miss much time, but at the same time Ruiz needs to take all the time he needs to recover even if the team is missing him. His long-term health is what’s most important here. He just signed a four-year contract extension with the Saints and both sides should have every intention of him playing it all the way through.

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