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New Orleans Saints News & Rumors

Saints Place Jamarca Sanford On Injured Reserve

June 18th, 2016 at 12:14pm CST by Ben Levine

Jamarca Sanford may have signed an extension with the Saints this past offseason, but the veteran’s tenure in New Orleans might be over. Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com reports (via Twitter) that the team has placed the veteran safety on the injured reserve. To take his roster spot, the Saints have signed nose tackle Lawrence Virgil.

The 30-year-old played in all 16 games for the Saints last season, compiling 14 tackles and one interception in 105 total defensive snaps. The former seventh-round pick has settled into a back-up/special teams role over the past several years, but the Saints thought enough of him to offer a one-year contract this past offseason. Before joining the Saints in 2014, Sanford played for the Redskins and Vikings, where he started 44 games in five seasons.

The Saints signed veteran defensive back Roman Harper earlier this month, but Woodbery isn’t sure if that addition was related to the Sanford move. Either way, the writer notes that Sanford’s roster spot was certainly in question following the acquisition of Harper.

As Woodbery tweets, Lawrence Virgil was originally signed by the Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2014. After compiling a pair of tackles as a rookie, the Valdosta State product spent 2015 on the injured reserve.

Settlement Reached In Saints Ownership Spat

June 17th, 2016 at 5:54pm CST by Zachary Links

5:54pm: The settlement still requires NFL approval, tweets CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora. That means at least 24 owners must sign off on it.

2:45pm: The Saints announced that a settlement has been reached in the dispute between owner Tom Benson and his estranged heirs. Terms of the settlement are confidential and therefore unknown at this time. Tom Benson (vertical)

The agreement means that it will be “business as usual” for the Saints as well as other key Benson properties, including the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans, a local television station, and a cluster of car dealerships. The settlement comes on the heels of a court decision in June which ruled that Benson, despite the protests of the heirs he was feuding with, is mentally competent and fit to run his businesses.

Years ago, the Saints owner designated granddaughter Rita Benson LeBlanc as his handpicked successor. Then, in January 2016, he announced that he decided to instead transfer ownership of the city’s two major pro sports franchises to his wife, Gayle, when he dies. Meanwhile, LeBlanc’s offices at the teams’ Metairie headquarters were vacated and her company-issued Mercedes-Benz and cell phone was seized. LeBlanc, who was less than thrilled by all of this, filed a lawsuit claiming Benson is mentally incompetent and being manipulated by his wife.

Now, the 88-year-old will presumably remain at the helm of his sports franchises and, down the line, they will be owned and operated by his current spouse.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Saints Have Several Difficult Roster Decisions

June 17th, 2016 at 11:23am CST by Ben Levine

The Saints will ultimately have to choose between kickers Kai Forbath and Connor Barth. Unfortunately, as Evan Woodbury of NOLA.com notes, making that decision is easier said than done.

[SOURCE LINK]

Saints Audition 3 Notable Veterans

June 16th, 2016 at 11:12am CST by Connor J. Byrne

THURSDAY: 11:12am: Meachem is back out on the field today and continuing to audition for the Saints, Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune tweets.

WEDNESDAY, 3:54pm: Meachem didn’t practice today because of a foot injury, writes Katherine Terrell of NOLA.com. He remains in the running for a contract.

12:02pm: There’s no sign of Meachem at Saints practice, but the other tryout guys are back today, Christopher Dabe of The Times-Picayune tweets. That could be an indication that Meachem is not in the team’s plans, but we’ll have to wait for further developments.

TUESDAY, 4:58pm: The Saints tried out nearly a dozen players on the first day of their minicamp Tuesday, according to Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com. Notably, receiver Robert Meachem and a pair of veteran defensive ends – Darryl Tapp and Matt Shaughnessy – were among those who auditioned.

Robert Meachem

Meachem previously worked out in April for the Saints, and if he signs with them, it would be his third tenure with the club. New Orleans used its first-round pick (27th overall) in 2007 on Meachem, who went on to catch 141 passes and 23 touchdowns there before signing with the Chargers in 2012. After an uninspiring season in San Diego, Meachem rejoined the Saints, picked up just 23 receptions and two scores in 26 games from 2013-14, and hasn’t played since. The Saints aren’t exactly loaded at wideout beyond Brandin Cooks, Willie Snead and second-rounder Michael Thomas, however, so it seems the soon-to-be 32-year-old Meachem will have a legitimate chance to crack the roster if the team signs him.

Tapp, meanwhile, is a 10-year veteran who spent the previous two campaigns in Detroit and appeared in all 32 of its regular-season games – mostly as a reserve. Tapp logged only one start with the Lions and recorded 2.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. Two of those sacks and a pair of forced fumbles came in 2015 for Tapp, whom Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked 78th out of 110 qualifying edge defenders – placing him ahead of Saints reserve DE Kasim Edebali (91st) but behind Obum Gwacham (58th). Tapp graded out well against the run, which – like everything else – was a major problem for the Saints’ porous defense last season.

Shaughnessy, like Meachem, has drawn past interest from the Saints, who auditioned him in October and last month. He also worked out for Arizona prior to its playoff game against Green Bay in January, but the Cardinals didn’t sign him. Shaughnessy played with the Cardinals from 2013-14 before sitting out last season. In 75 career games (48 starts), the 29-year-old has accumulated 18.5 sacks – a personal-best seven of which came with the Raiders in 2010.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NFC Notes: Panthers, Vikings, Saints, Falcons

June 15th, 2016 at 11:20am CST by Zachary Links

Panthers coach Ron Rivera admits that Fletcher Cox‘s massive new deal with the Eagles doesn’t help the Panthers’ cause in trying to lock up Kawann Short, Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review writes.

“This is the hard part right now is what’s going on in the league,” Rivera said. “I think some of these contracts are unbelievable as far as what I’m seeing and hearing.”

Word is that the Panthers may not be willing to go above $15MM/year for their standout defensive tackle. Cox, meanwhile, will average nearly $17.2MM per season on his new deal with a great deal in the way of guarantees early on in the pact.

Here’s more from the NFC:

  • The Vikings can’t seem to find the right counterpart for Harrison Smith at safety, writes Ben Goessling of ESPN.com, who lists Michael Griffin, Andrew Sendejo, Anthony Harris, Antone Exum, and Jayron Kearse as contenders for the job. Right now, there’s no word as to whether the Vikings could look out-of-house to help bolster the group. Griffin, 31, is the most experienced of the bunch by far, and given that he excels in coverage, he might be the favorite to line up opposite Smith. “One thing I try not to do, especially in OTAs where we’re not in pads, is try to jump to some kind of conclusion of who should be the starter,” said head coach Mike Zimmer of the competition. “I’ll kind of let that play out in camp.”
  • Veteran defensive end Darryl Tapp tried out for the Saints on Tuesday, as Evan Woodbery of The Times Picayune tweets.
  • The Falcons are trying out wide receiver Donatella Luckett, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
  • UDFA tight end Ben Braunecker has a real good shot to make the Bears‘ roster, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Braunecker was seen working with Chicago’s second-team offense during OTAs.
  • The Bears are trying out tight end Ryan Taylor and defensive lineman Marquise Jackson, according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link).

Saints DE Hau’oli Kikaha Suffers Torn ACL

June 14th, 2016 at 6:35pm CST by Zachary Links

JUNE 14: Unsurprisingly, Saints head coach Sean Payton said today that 2016 is likely lost for Kikaha. As of now, it remains unknown what type of procedure Kikaha will have to undergo to repair his knee, per Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. In better news, Payton doesn’t see this as a career-threatening injury.

JUNE 9: Awful news for Saints defensive end Hau’oli Kikaha as he has suffered a torn ACL in his left knee (Twitter link via Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports). Given the severity of the injury, Kikaha is likely done for the season.Hau'oli Kikaha (vertical)

[RELATED: Saints Sign Roman Harper]

Unfortunately, this is not new territory for Kikaha as he also suffered two ACL tears in college. The 2015 second-round pick was able to come back strong from both of those ACL tears, but he is surely frustrated with this latest setback.

In his final season at Washington, Kikaha led the nation with 19 sacks and had at least one sack in 13 of his 14 games. The strong performance in his final year marked a tremendous comeback for Kikaha, who torn his ACL as a frosh in 2011 and again as a medical redshirt freshman in 2012.

Last year, the 23-year-old (24 in July) appeared in 15 games and made 11 starts for New Orleans. In that time, he racked up 4 sacks, 50 total tackles, two passes defended, four forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Saints Trying Out Two UDFAs

June 14th, 2016 at 11:55am CST by Zachary Links

Running back C.J. Spiller says he’s ready to live up to the billing he received when he inked a four-year, $16MM deal with the Saints last March, Joel A. Erickson of The Advocate writes.

  • The Saints are trying out a pair of UDFAs today in outside linebacker Royce LaFrance (Tulane) and linebacker Chris Weatherd (Tennessee), as Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune tweets. Defensive tackle Lawrence Virgil is also in the house as a tryout invitee (link).

Saints' Drew Brees In Line For Big Contract

June 10th, 2016 at 11:30am CST by Zachary Links
  • Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com took a stab at projecting the NFL’s next big-money contracts, including that of Saints quarterback Drew Brees. Brees, who turned 37 in January, would cost the team a whopping $43.09MM if they were to use the franchise tag on him next offseason. Unless the Saints want to move on from the veteran in 2017, they have to do a multiyear extension. The two sides have been discussing a deal for some time and recently, two league sources told Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports that Brees could see in excess of $65MM in guarantees on a four-year contract worth between $95MM and $100MM in total.

Roman Harper Likely To Make Saints

June 9th, 2016 at 7:13pm CST by Connor J. Byrne
  • Earlier today, Saints coach Sean Payton seemed to hint that Roman Harper will make the team when he spoke about the newly signed safety, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Rapoport notes that the veteran’s contract supports that notion, as he has a signing bonus worth $80K and $150K more in the way of guarantees.
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