- 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.
- The Saints waived LB Dominique Tovell, who signed with the team as a UDFA in May, according to Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com (Twitter link). New Orleans also placed defensive end Mitchell Loewen on the Reserve/NFI list today after he cleared waivers, Woodbery tweets.
Safety Roman Harper is re-signing with the Saints, according to his representatives at SportsTrust Advisors (Twitter link). Harper played for New Orleans from 2006-2013. 
Harper, whom the Saints took in the second round of the 2006 draft, spent his first eight seasons in New Orleans before signing with the division-rival Panthers in 2014. The 33-year-old proved to have a fair amount left in the tank last season for the NFC champions, starting all 19 of their games (playoffs included) while grading 53rd out of 89 qualifying safeties at Pro Football Focus.
While with the Saints, Harper earned two consecutive Pro Bowl nods in 2009 and 2010 and helped the team win the Super Bowl following the ’09 season. After appearing in just five regular season games in his rookie campaign, Harper started just about every game for the Saints from 2007 onwards. In February 2014, Harper and other notable Saints vets were released to help ease the team’s cap situation. Saints GM Mickey Loomis was quick to admit that the team was not wild about having to jettison some of its most beloved players.
“These were not easy decisions to make,” said Saints GM Mickey Loomis in a statement after waiving Harper and others. “Since we acquired them, Jabari [Greer], Roman, Will [Smith] and Jonathan [Vilma] have all been excellent players on the field for us. Each of them were integral parts in turning this program around and winning a Super Bowl…. However, a new NFL year is about to begin and, with the start of free agency in March, these difficult moves allow us to position our team under the salary cap to move forward for 2014.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- The Saints cut former Arkansas tight end Mitchell Loewen with a non-football injury designation and signed former Air Force tight end Garrett Griffin, reports Wilson (Twitter links).
Although negotiations between the Saints and Drew Brees haven’t taken place in more than a month, significant issues figure to crop up when the two sides do engage once again, as Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports details. The most important point in talks, unsurprisingly, will be guaranteed money, and two league sources tell Robinson that Brees could see in excess of $65MM in guarantees on a four-year contract worth between $95MM and $100MM in total.
[RELATED: Free agent safety Roman Harper an option for Saints]
That potential price tag is one reason that New Orleans and Brees’ agent Tom Condon haven’t dialogued in awhile, a source tells Robinson. Additionally, the Saints are more than willing to stomach Brees’ 2016 cap charge of $30MM, having already put in work during the offseason to ensure that they could fit that number into their budget. Letting Brees play out the 2016 season under that figure will ensure that New Orleans doesn’t lock up its veteran quarterback only to see his play fall off during the upcoming year.
Condon, for his part, could play a large role in talks (aside from his obvious contributions as Brees’ counsel). The longtime NFL agent negotiated two deals between Peyton Manning and the Colts, both of which were hammered out after Manning’s previous deal had expired — that experience could prove beneficial if Brees does in fact play out the 2016 season without reaching an extension. Moreover, per Robinson, the relationship between Condon and Saints general manager Mickey Loomis is strong, as the duo have already worked out two Brees contracts.
The other key factor in talks could be whether the Saints feel that they can find a suitable successor to Brees if the two sides can’t agree on a long-term deal. There were conflicting reports as to whether New Orleans attempted to trade for the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, as well as whether the club was interested in Paxton Lynch, but Robinson confirms that the Saints were indeed interested in selecting a quarterback this year.
2015 third-round pick Garrett Grayson could prove to be an option down the line, but sources tell Robinson that the former Colorado State Ram isn’t yet ready to direct an NFL offense. Brees and backup quarterback Luke McCown are such experts in the New Orleans offense that Grayson is often lost in QB meetings, stuck trying to master the basics of the scheme while the veterans are light years ahead.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Bears edge rusher Willie Young acknowledged Wednesday that there have been contract extension talks between him and the team, saying (via Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com), “Yeah, there has been some stuff mentioned here and there, but that’s something that will be left up to my agent so I don’t get caught in the middle of it.” As of earlier this month, Young was reportedly “50/50” on whether to accept a two-year offer from the Bears. Chicago is trying to keep the soon-to-be 31-year-old after he amassed a combined 16.5 sacks during his first two seasons in the Windy City, and he’s open to spending the rest of his career there. “I would like to finish my career up here in Chicago, but you know that’s not up to me; that’s up to my agent and management,” said Young, who will hit the open market next offseason if a deal isn’t reached by then.
More from the NFC:
- Free agent safeties Dashon Goldson and Donte Whitner remain “in play” for the Rams, tweets Vincent Bonsignore of the Los Angeles Daily News. If the Rams sign either, it won’t occur until after OTAs because the team wants to evaluate its in-house options, Bonsignore adds (Twitter link). Los Angeles hosted Whitner, a three-time Pro Bowler, in early April. Goldson, who has two Pro Bowl selections under his belt, met with the club earlier this month. PFR’s Dallas Robinson ranks Whitner as the best defensive free agent on the market.
- Fellow free agent safety Roman Harper could rejoin the Saints, per FOX Sports’ Alex Marvez (via Twitter). Harper, whom the Saints took in the second round of the 2006 draft, spent his first eight seasons in New Orleans before signing with the division-rival Panthers in 2014. The 33-year-old proved to have a fair amount left in the tank last season for the NFC champions, starting all 19 of their games (playoffs included) while grading 53rd out of 89 qualifying safeties at Pro Football Focus.
- Ex-Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, who coached Harper in 2013, spoke negatively last week of his time on New Orleans’ staff. One of Ryan’s former pupils, now-Bears defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, backed Ryan’s claim that the coordinator wasn’t running his own scheme during his final two years with the Saints. “Not to talk about New Orleans for the rest of this interview, but as a player in that system, you can see when power is taken away from a guy,” Hicks said Wednesday, per Mike Triplett of ESPN.com. “It was evident in that situation and you saw what the turnout was because of it.” Hicks also praised Ryan as a person, stating, “I didn’t see the interview, but I do know this, I’ll forever and always have a lot of love for Rob Ryan, just because there’s nobody that’s going to shoot you straighter.”
- The Seahawks’ Brandon Browner spent 2015 as a member of the Saints, with whom he rated as Pro Football Focus’ worst qualifying corner (113th overall) and set the league’s single-season penalty record. Browner’s on-field troubles led the Saints to release him earlier this offseason, and now the 31-year-old has offered some choice words regarding the organization. Browner called the team “weak” on Instagram, and the defender said he took New Orleans’ $5MM and “ran with it” (per Christopher Dabe of NOLA.com). Browner, by the way, will return to the Big Easy this fall for an Oct. 30 matchup between the Seahawks and Saints.
- The Saints have hired Steve Malin and C.J. Leak as area scouts, tweets Mike Stratton of Inside The League. Malin was previously with the Giants for 15 seasons, while Leak worked for the Bills for eight years (via Katherine Terrell of NOLA.com).
- The Saints made a surprising change during OTAs when they shifted second-year defensive tackle Kaleb Eulls to the other side of the ball, as ESPN.com’s Mike Triplett writes. Eulls is currently slotted in as the team’s backup left guard behind Senio Kelemete. “We think he’s got a lot of the attributes that you need,” Payton said of the UDFA out of Mississippi State. “He’s smart, he’s tough, he’s got the size that you’re looking for. … We spent some time in the offseason talking with him and going through that decision. Obviously it’s a big learning curve for him, but I think he’ll handle it.“
Jenny Vrentas of The MMQB.com had a rather entertaining interview with Bills head coach Rex Ryan and brother Rob Ryan, who’s in his first year as the team’s assistant head coach/defense. Their discussion is certainly worth a full read, but we’ll round up some of the highlights from the braggadocious bros.
Rex Ryan on Rob Ryan:
“Nobody grinds the way Rob does. Bill Belichick hired Rob for one reason: He knew he was a freaking great football coach, and he could grind. That’s it. If you are going to be with Bill Belichick, you better be a grinder.”
“He sleeps here half the week, in his office, in the offseason. Honest to God.”
“I brought in a real football coach. Not a 9-to-5er, a real football coach whose life and passion is the NFL. The name Ryan means something. If you are a fan of the Buffalo Bills, thank your lucky stars he is here, and myself. To me, that’s what we added to this team. When we talk about “all in,” we’re going to do everything we can in our power to help our players succeed. And that’s why we made some of the changes that we made.”
Rob Ryan on why he joined the Bills’ staff:
“I am used to picking my spots, but this time, I had one choice. When I was fired by the Saints, I came here to look at it. Rex loves this team, he brags about this team, so I wanted to be around it. After I did that, for one week, I was like, Damn, I’ve got 
to be here. I don’t care who was going to offer me a job. I wanted to be a part of this. Rex brought me in, because of nepotism … (pause) … and I’m glad he did.”
“To be the best defensive coach in football, I’ve got to learn from the best, so I came here. It’s been how many years since we’ve been together? He’s not learning anything, but I am. Look at some of his protégés. Bob Sutton is doing a fantastic job in Kansas City. Chuck Pagano was with Rex. He spun off a ton of great coaches, and it is going to be fun to be a part of that.”
Rob Ryan on his nearly three-year tenure as the Saints’ defensive coordinator:
“I need to be in a multiple system. I was hired to be in a multiple system in New Orleans, and I did a damn good job and got fired for it.”
“I have coordinated in college and in the pros. And the biggest history of improvement ever in the league, I coordinated that defense [the 2013 Saints]. The defenses I have taken over were ranked, like, 31st. Oh, “my numbers aren’t too good.” You take over the 31st group and see how you do. And you’re given about two years to do it. There are two years that don’t have my signature on them, and it’s the last two years in New Orleans. And that’s just the truth.”
[Note: Saints head coach Sean Payton responded by shooting down the notion that the team’s defense didn’t have Ryan’s fingerprints on it.]
“All of a sudden, we let some good players go; we changed the system after we finished fourth in the league in defense.”
“The biggest mistake I think I made in New Orleans was sitting on my hands and collecting a paycheck, instead of going in, knowing it was wrong and fixing it. When we wanted to change the philosophy of the defense, I should have.”
“They signed players; they signed a free-agent free safety [Jairus Byrd in 2014], and said, we are going to keep him in the middle of the field like the goalpost. Well, that’s great. He’s not going to make one play back there, and now we have changed the entire defense for one signing, and it ruined us. He’s a great kid. But the truth of the matter is, you let an All-Pro safety walk, Malcolm Jenkins, and lost your two best leaders on the team, him and Roman Harper. We changed the entire style of play. It was strange. But hey, I did the best job I could. And it wasn’t good enough. They should have fired me. They probably should have fired everybody that made that decision to go in that direction. Now I’m going to move my whole family over here to Buffalo for a reason: to go kick everybody’s ass, including theirs.”
“But at the end of the day, the last two years in New Orleans were a waste of time for me.”
Rex Ryan on the Bills’ 2015 defense, which dropped to 19th from fourth under Jim Schwartz the previous season, and whether a rebound is on the way:
“I screwed up, and that’s totally on me. So if people lost a little faith in it, or whatever, I can understand. I should be doubted, because I made a mistake in judgment. But just go back and look at the history. You are going to get the real deal this year, and we’ll see how it goes. I know how it has gone my whole career.”
“This was the first time in my life I have ever come into a situation where the defense got worse. And so that was odd. That was different. No excuses. But I’ll stand by my record; I’ll stand by everything I have ever done in this league statistically. Put the numbers up. Do you want to look at one year, or a 15-year window? I specifically said I probably shouldn’t have tried to combine systems last year. I should have just gone for it, this is it, blunt-force trauma, and bring in some players that knew the system and can help run it.”
Rex Ryan on defensive end Mario Williams, who was unhappy in Ryan’s scheme last season and got his release in March:
“Now look, with some of the comments [he made], do I wish him well? Not really. But, he’s on Miami. If he would have gone somewhere else, maybe. He’s a good kid, but I am used to some mean motherf—ers that play out there. The Terrell Suggs, Jarrett Johnsons of the world. I screwed them, too; I had them drop [into coverage], too. Not one of them bitched. Von Miller [dropped into coverage] in the Super Bowl. Why? Because that’s what’s asked of him; that’s what his job is. Your job is to play. Coaches spend a hell of a lot more time studying tape and everything else. They are trying to put the team in the best position to be successful, not an individual.”
Rob Ryan on the AFC East rival Patriots:
“But I know one thing, we are going to beat them. We are together, we’re going to beat the best. It’s two against one. [Belichick] one on one against any coach in the league, that guy is pretty damn good. And he’s also got his best buddy Tom Brady with him. He trained him, and he single-handedly made him great as well.”
“Bring Belichick on. We got him.”
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
- Former Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan claims that he he did not have a full say in how their defense was run, but coach Sean Payton dismissed that notion in an interview on Thursday night. “We tried to implement some schemes we thought would help our defense,” Payton said (link via The Times-Picayune). “But the idea that it wasn’t his defense, or that he wasn’t, you know, in charge of it, is silly.”