The Saints could be in the market for a young quarterback despite drafting Spencer Rattler in the fifth round in 2024 and still having Derek Carr as their starter.
Representatives of the Saints have been scouting all the top quarterback prospects.
The latest to get an up-close look is Syracuse quarterback Kyle McCord, who worked out for the Saints on Thursday, NFL Media reports. Quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien was among those from the Saints watching the quarterback throw in a private session.
McCord is considered a top-five prospect at the position.
He transferred to the Orange after three seasons at Ohio State and led the nation in passing yards in 2024 with 4,779, an ACC single-season record. McCord threw 34 touchdowns.
He went 22-4 as a starting quarterback at both Syracuse and Ohio State.
The Saints have Carr, Rattler, Jake Haener and Ben DiNucci on their roster at the position.
Brandin Cooks has signed for his second stint with the Saints, but this time he’s in a very different role, a veteran leadership role that he embraces.
Cooks, who was the Saints’ first-round draft pick in 2014 and played three years in New Orleans, said after signing a free agent contract yesterday that he looks forward to teaching the rest of the receivers what they need to know to have a long and successful career.
“Learning how to approach the game from my younger years to now, approaching the game is totally different,” Cooks said. “You know more, you got more knowledge, you got more wisdom, your process of taking care of your body, doing the things that keep you on the field.”
Only one Saints player, defensive end Cameron Jordan, is still on the team from Cooks’ previous stint in New Orleans, but Cooks said he’s looking forward to working with wide receivers Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed and Cedrick Wilson.
“I think we’ve got a great room,” Cooks said. “CO and Sheed are blazing, CO can run any route, and Ced, I think we got a great room. A lot of unselfishness and I think that’s important to start off with. Guys just want to win, take care of business and let everything else handle itself.”
The 31-year-old Cooks hopes to show he still has something left, in the place where he first showed he belonged in the NFL.
The Saints have agreed to terms with free agent offensive lineman Dillon Radunz, the team announced Monday.
Radunz recently visited with the team after also taking a trip to Seattle.
He saw time at both tackle and guard the past four seasons with the Titans but primarily played on the interior of Tennessee’s offensive line. He started 15 games at right guard during the 2024 season and made another 16 starts in the other 37 games he played with the team.
The Titans made him a second-round pick in 2021.
The Saints signed Will Clapp and re-signed Landon Young last week as they add depth to their offensive line.
The Saints have brought back one of their defensive free agents.
New Orleans announced on Monday that the club has agreed to terms with defensive back Ugo Amadi on a one-year deal.
Amadi, 27, has been with the Saints for the last two seasons. While he primarily played special teams in 2023, he became more of a defensive contributor in his 11 games with five starts in 2024. He finished last season with 65 total tackles, six tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, and seven passes defensed.
A fourth-round pick in 2019, Amadi has appeared in 78 career games for the Seahawks, Titans, Chiefs, and Saints.
He’s registered 22 passes defensed, one interception, two forced fumbles, and 2.0 sacks.
Brandin Cooks is officially back with the Saints after signing his two-year contract on Monday.
A lot has changed since Cooks departed the franchise via trade in 2016 — including the team’s quarterback.
Speaking to the media on Monday, Cooks noted that he and Derek Carr came into the league in the same year and have known each other for a long time. While it’s not 2014 anymore, Cooks expressed his confidence that Carr can still get it done.
“He can throw any ball,” Cooks said, via John DerShazier of the team’s website. “A tough cat and a great leader.
“You talk about a guy who does so much for his team, and off the field in the community. Another believer. Just a great human being but also a guy that can play at the highest level and has been doing that throughout his career.”
Cooks played 10 games last season with Dallas — the fewest he’d suited up for since his rookie year with New Orleans. Cooks ended the season with 26 catches for 259 yards with three touchdowns. In 2023, Cooks caught 54 passes for 657 yards with eight TDs in 16 games.
The Bengals signed free agent offensive guard Lucas Patrick to a one-year contract, the team announced Friday.
Patrick recently visited Cincinnati.
A year ago, Patrick signed a one-year deal with the Saints and started 10 games for the team before landing on injured reserve. He has appeared in 107 career regular-season games with 64 starts for the Packers (2017-21), Bears (2022-23) and Saints (2024).
Patrick has seen action in five postseason games with three starts for Green Bay.
The Bengals released Alex Cappa and re-signed Cody Ford earlier in the offseason. They also have Cordell Volson on hand at guard while Ted Karras remains in place at center.
Wide receiver Brandin Cooks is headed back to where his NFL career got underway.
Cooks was a 2014 first-round pick of the Saints and, according to multiple reports, the veteran wideout has agreed to terms on a contract that will bring him back to New Orleans.
The return to town comes after Cooks spent the last two seasons with the Cowboys. Saints head coach Kellen Moore also spent time in Dallas, but he left after the 2022 season so he never coached Cooks when he was running the Cowboys offense.
Cooks was limited to 10 games last season because of a knee injury and he had 26 catches for 259 yards and three touchdowns. He had 215 catches for 2,861 yards and 20 touchdowns in his three-year run with the Saints to kick off his career. That ended when he was traded to the Patriots ahead of the 2017 season and Cooks went on to play for the Rams and Texans before making the move to Dallas.
Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed are the top returning wideouts in New Orleans. They also have Bub Means, Cedrick Wilson, Dante Pettis, and Velus Jones.
Free agent offensive lineman Dillon Radunz is set for another visit with a potential employer for the 2025 season.
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports that Radunz is set to visit with the Saints. He visited with the Seahawks earlier this week.
Radunz saw time at both tackle and guard over four seasons with the Titans, but was primarily on the interior of Tennessee’s offensive line. He started 15 games during the 2024 season and 16 of the other 37 games he played with the team.
The Saints signed Will Clapp and re-signed Landon Young this week, so they’re moving in several directions on the offensive line as the offseason unfolds.
The Bengals are scheduled to meet with a potential addition to the interior of their offensive line.
Jordan Schultz of Fox Sports reports that guard Lucas Patrick is set to arrive in Cincinnati on Thursday night and to meet with the Bengals on Friday.
Patrick signed a one-year deal with the Saints last offseason and started 10 games for the team before landing on injured reserve. He also started 54 games for the Packers and Bears over the first seven years of his career.
The Bengals released Alex Cappa and re-signed Cody Ford earlier in the offseason. They also have Cordell Volson on hand at guard while Ted Karras remains in place at center.
Veteran linebacker Willie Gay has found a new home.
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports that Gay has agreed to terms with the Dolphins. It will be a one-year deal for Gay with the AFC East club.
Gay spent his first four seasons with the Chiefs before moving on to the Saints as a free agent last year. The 2020 second-round pick had 28 tackles, two sacks, three passes defensed, a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries in 15 games for New Orleans.
Gay started 47 of the 57 regular season games and all nine postseason games he played in Kansas City. The two-time Super Bowl winner had 290 tackles, 5.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries during his time with the Chiefs.
