Trey Palmer

Saints Activate Taysom Hill, Foster Moreau

Saints quarterback/tight end Taysom Hill and tight end Foster Moreau will make their 2025 debuts against the Giants on Sunday. The team announced that it has activated Hill and Moreau from the reserve/PUP list.

In corresponding moves, the Saints placed wide receiver Trey Palmer on injured reserve, waived tight end Moliki Matavao, and called up linebacker Eku Leota from the practice squad as a standard gameday elevation.

Hill suffered a season-ending ACL tear last December, limiting him to a career-low eight games in 2024 and shelving him for the first four contests this season. The ninth-year man returned to practice this week alongside Moreau, who’s also coming back from a late-2024 knee injury. Moreau hauled in 32 passes for 413 yards and five touchdowns in 17 games last year. In addition to the torn ACL, Hill informed Mike Triplett of NewOrleans.Football he tore all four ligaments in the posterolateral corner of his knee.

Without Hill and Moreau around, tight end Juwan Johnson has gotten almost 94 percent of offensive snaps early in the season. He leads the 0-4 Saints in receiving yards (204) and trails only No. 1 WR Chris Olave in catches (22).

In 2023, his most recent healthy season, Hill recorded personal bests in receptions (33), targets (40) and yards (291) over 16 games. Hill was featured more prominently in the running game, as he piled up 81 carries for 401 yards and four touchdowns. He was on an even better pace as a runner in 2024 (39 attempts, 278 yards, six TDs) before his season ended prematurely.

Known for his versatility, Hill is expected to function as the Saints’ backup quarterback behind Spencer Rattler on Sunday, Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com reports. That will relegate rookie Tyler Shough, a second-round pick, to the No. 3 role. The 35-year-old Hill has completed 193 of 302 passes for 2,369 yards, 11 touchdowns, and nine interceptions in the NFL.

Meanwhile, guard Cesar Ruiz – one of Rattler’s key protectors – has avoided the IR and is recovering well from the high ankle sprain he suffered in last week’s loss to the Bills, according to Triplett’s colleague Nick Underhill. Ruiz won’t play on Sunday, but it appears he’ll miss fewer than four games.

Wednesday NFL Transactions: NFC South

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These BuccaneersFalconsPanthers and Saints moves are noted below.

Atlanta Falcons

Signed to practice squad:

Carolina Panthers

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

New Orleans Saints

Claimed:

  • WR Trey Palmer (from Buccaneers), G Xavier Truss (from Broncos)

Signed to practice squad:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Signed to practice squad:

Buccaneers Make Roster Cuts

Here is how the Buccaneers trimmed their roster to the 53-man limit Tuesday:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Waived/Non-Football Illness:

Sanders, the son of NFL legend and Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, signed with Tampa Bay in May after he went undrafted. Shilo, who had been competing for a spot at the back of the Bucs’ safety depth chart, was ejected from the club’s preseason finale on Saturday for throwing a punch following heavy pushing and shoving with Bills TE Zach Davidson. He was also flagged for pass interference in the game.

Agents Drew Rosenhaus and Robert Bailey told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that Sanders was headed to the waiver wire, and they hope their client will get claimed on waivers. A fresh start would likely be welcomed by all parties, although it will be interesting to see if any outside suitors put in a claim given the manner in which his Tampa tenure came to an end.

Jarrett, who joined the Bucs as an undrafted free agent in 2023, has recorded 13 catches for 184 yards in his brief time with the team. He will now hit the waiver wire. Provided no claim is made, a spot on the practice squad could be in store given Jarrett’s familiarity with the organization. The Bucs will hold P-squad spots for Jackson and Bazelak, per ESPN’s Jenna Laine and Fox Sports’ Greg Auman. Bazelak staying on would provide finality for Kyle Trask, whom the Bucs released earlier this week. Teddy Bridgewater will be Tampa Bay’s backup, and it looks like Bazelak — a rookie UDFA from Bowling Green — will be the third-stringer.

Weight issues stalled Watson’s practice work, and the Tampa Bay Times’ Rick Stroud indicates he ballooned to 470 pounds entering the offseason program. Weight trouble hindered Watson, who did not see any preseason action due to the issue. The Bucs opted to cut Watson, who would have been the heaviest player in NFL history had he played in a regular-season game, rather than stash him on the reserve/Non-Football Illness list. They will not hold a practice squad spot for him, Stroud adds.

Sam Robinson contributed to this post.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 6/8/23

Today’s draft pick signings:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Buccaneers have taken their time signing their draft picks; these are the first reported signings out of Tampa Bay, and the team’s top-three picks (including first-round defensive tackle Calijah Kancey) remain unsigned.

Of the late-round grouping, SirVoceaDennis could have the best opportunity to carve out a role as an inside linebacker. The Pittsburgh product will compete with former fifth-round pick K.J. Britt for a key role playing behind starters Devin White and Lavonte David.

Payne Durham and Trey Palmer bring strong college resumes but will need some lucky breaks to see significant playing time in 2023. Durham finished his fourth season at Purdue with 56 catches for 560 yards and eight touchdowns, while Palmer had a breakout season at Nebraska after transferring from LSU, finishing the 2022 campaign with 1,043 receiving yards.