Latest On Contract Talks Between Saints, Drew Brees
The Saints and Drew Brees haven’t had contract extension talks in about a month and a half, the quarterback said Wednesday (Twitter link via Evan Woodbery of NFL.com). Brees added that he doesn’t like talking contract during the season, per Larry Holder of NOLA.com (on Twitter). That means the Saints’ hopes of extending the 37-year-old could be put on hold for a while if they don’t lock him up prior to their Sept. 11 opener. Brees is currently scheduled to count $30MM against New Orleans’ cap this year, the final season of his contract.
Saints Waive Chris Highland
- The Saints have waived long-snapper Chris Highland, who joined the team for his second stint earlier this month (Twitter link via Evan Woodbery of The Times Picayune).
Fitzgerald: Drew Brees Holds All Leverage In Saints Talks
- Drew Brees is capable of becoming the league’s highest-paid player even at age 37, writes Jason Fitzgerald of the Sporting News. Entering the final year of his deal, and playing under a $30MM cap hit in 2016, Brees holds all the leverage in talks with the Saints. Fitzgerald details exactly how Brees can use New Orleans’ poor salary management against them as he seeks one more mega-deal.
Saints To Sign Vincent Brown
The Saints are signing wide receiver Vincent Brown, a source tells Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Brown participated in a tryout for New Orleans last week along with a handful of other veteran wide receivers. Brown, ostensibly, was the best of the bunch. 
The New Orleans tryouts also included former Giants standout Hakeem Nicks and ex-Raiders speedster Denarius Moore. Brown, 27, first came into the league as a third-round pick of the Chargers in 2011. In 2013, he enjoyed a breakout season as he hauled in 41 catches (70 targets) for 472 yards and one touchdown. After his blip of fantasy football relevance, Brown wound up joining the rival Raiders in 2014 before returning to the Chargers for a one-game cameo in 2015.
As of this writing, the Saints have eleven wide receivers under contract, so it stands to reason that someone from that group could be receiving their release today. The Saints’ group of WRs is headlined by Brandin Cooks and second-round pick Michael Thomas along with Brandon Coleman and Willie Snead.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Triplett: Saints Cap Management Not A Death Knell
- The Saints are often maligned for their salary cap management, but Mike Triplett of ESPN.com takes a slightly different tack, arguing that New Orleans would be praised for its financial tactics had they spent their cash more wisely. As Triplett opines, the NFL salary cap continues to increase every year, and despite the Saints perpetually being in “salary cap hell,” the club always finds a way to clear space.
Saints To Sign Connor Barth
Free agent kicker Connor Barth is on his way to New Orleans to sign with the Saints, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). Barth will replace Josh Scobee, whom the Saints released Tuesday.
Barth was the most established among several kickers who tried out for the Saints at their rookie camp last week, and they’ll be 
his fourth NFL employer. Barth has spent the majority of his career with the NFC South rival Buccaneers, who released him earlier this month after using a second-round pick on Roberto Aguayo. Nonetheless, Barth is is coming off a solid season, having converted 23 of 28 field goals and a more impressive 25 of 26 extra points. Overall, the 30-year-old has made 139 of 164 career field goal tries, good for an 84.8 percent success rate.
Barth is now one of two veteran kicking options the Saints have, joining Kai Forbath, and it’s presumed that the duo will battle for a roster spot. Forbath has a similar career success rate (84.1) on 82 tries, but he converted just 10 of 15 field goals last season and finished with 10 fewer touchbacks on kickoffs than Barth – albeit in 12 fewer attempts.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Draft Signings: Dolphins, Raiders, Saints
We’ll keep track of today’s draft signings here:
- A second-round pick who is expected to play a key role for a Dolphins cornerback corps that lost most of its starters from 2015, Xavien Howard has signed his rookie deal, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald reports. He’s the fifth player in Miami’s eight-man draft class to sign. For Baylor last season, Howard snared five interceptions and broke up 15 passes en route to All-Big 12 acclaim. He’ll vie to join Byron Maxwell as the Fins’ starting corners.
- The Saints have now wrapped up their draft class’ contracts after signing fourth-round defensive lineman David Onyemata, according to the team’s website. The first University of Manitoba player to be drafted, the Nigeria native finished with 9.5 sacks in 37 games with the Bison. A 300-pound lineman who was selected No. 120 overall, Onyemata won the J.P. Metras Trophy, which is given to the best down lineman in Canadian Interuniversity Sport football.
- The Raiders announced the signing of second-round defensive lineman Jihad Ward. Ward, selected with the No. 44 overall pick, played for Illinois over the last two seasons. In his time for the Fighting Illini, Ward started all 25 games, totaling 104 tackles, 4.5 sacks, three passes defensed, three forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries. The 6’6″, 295-pound athlete climbed up draft boards in the weeks leading up to the draft, leading to his mid-second-round selection.
Saints Working Out Hakeem Nicks, Other WRs
2:49pm: Nathan Palmer is also amongst the wide receivers working out for New Orleans, as Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Palmer was waived by Chicago on Monday.
1:02pm: Along with Nicks, the Saints are also working out wide receivers Denarius Moore and Vincent Brown, Schefter tweets.
12:35pm: The Saints are working out a group of wide receivers today, including Hakeem Nicks, as Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. 
This isn’t the first time that the Saints have looked at the veteran. New Orleans auditioned Nicks last September, just after he was released by Titans. However, he went on to sign with the Giants in an effort to recapture the glory of his salad days. In his second stint with Big Blue, Nicks didn’t exactly return to stardom as he caught seven passes for 54 yards across six games.
Nicks, still only 28, spent the first five years of his career in New York with the Giants, enjoying the most productive stint of his career with the team. Posting consecutive seasons of 75+ receptions and 1,000+ receiving yards in 2010 and 2011, Nicks totaled 311 catches, 4,622 yards, and 27 TDs from 2009 to 2013.
However, prior to the 2014 season, the former first-round pick signed a one-year deal with the Colts, and struggled to get much going with Andrew Luck and company, establishing new career-lows in receptions (38) and yards (405).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Saints Release Josh Scobee
The Saints have released kicker Josh Scobee, tweets Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com. Additionally, they’ve cut offensive tackle Bryan Witzmann and made the previously reported signing of undrafted cornerback Jimmy Pruitt official.
It was a short stay in New Orleans for Scobee, who joined the club in early March. The 33-year-old spent his first 11 NFL seasons in Jacksonville before the Steelers acquired him prior to the 2015 campaign. Scobee’s time in Pittsburgh only lasted four regular-season games, during which he missed four field goals (all from between 40 to 49 yards) and an extra point while dealing with a hip flexor.
With Scobee out of the picture, the Saints’ only signed kicker is Kai Forbath, though they had several options – including veteran Connor Barth – try out at rookie camp last week.
Witzmann, who went undrafted out of South Dakota State in 2014 and joined the Saints’ practice squad last year, has never appeared in an NFL game. Pruitt, meanwhile, totaled four interceptions during his career as a four-year starter at San Jose State.
Saints Invite Chris Weatherd to Veteran Minicamp
- The Saints asked linebacker Chris Weatherd to participate in the team’s veteran’s minicamp in June, tweets Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com. The Tennessee product participated in the organization’s rookie minicamp this past weekend.
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