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Senio Kelemete was an underrated piece to several great New Orleans Saints offensive lines, and now there’s a chance he could come save the day one more time. The Houston Texans recently cut him to save $1.725 million against the salary cap, and Kelemete was gracious in thanking Houston for the opportunity to join them. He signed with the Texans back in 2018.
Initially picked up from the Arizona Cardinals, Kelemete took on heavier responsibilities with the Saints as a do-it-all backup in his four years with New Orleans: after playing just 6 snaps in 2014, his snaps count climbed to 424 in 2015, 664 in 2016, and 748 in 2017, making him a virtual starter as the constant next-man-up. He split time between both guard spots as well as right tackle, with one memorable start at left tackle on a moment’s notice and with no prep time (a 20-17 road win over the Atlanta Falcons in 2015).
But how has he performed in Houston? Kelemete started the 2018 season at left guard but a 2019 wrist injury ended his year early, and he returned to compete for the job in 2020 but couldn’t displace second-year pro Max Scharping. He ultimately started 20 of the 30 games he played for the Texans.
Could Kelemete return to New Orleans? He turns 31 in May but would probably be a welcome addition to the interior line, where only Andrus Peat is locked in to start at left guard; Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz have a training camp battle ahead of them to see who lines up at center and who lines up at right guard. Adding Kelemete to the mix as a versatile band-aid who can play all over the line makes sense, and he should be affordable — which will be a factor given New Orleans’ salary cap concerns.
The Saints reportedly want to re-sign guard/center Nick Easton after recently releasing him, but money might be a bigger issue to him given his injury history (three concussions in 2020). Easton is said to be in no rush to make a decision and he has options outside of New Orleans. Kelemete being available is just another thing to keep in mind as the Saints rebuild and retool their roster for 2021.
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