The New Orleans Saints have made their annual maneuvers to free up enough salary-cap space to add more talent and depth to the roster.
Focusing mostly on the defensive side of the ball during the early portion of free agency, the Saints lost cornerback Paulson Adebo, who signed a three-year deal with the New York Giants. However, they added safety Justin Reid as the running mate for Tyrann Mathieu, and they made a subtle move to reunite with cornerback Isaac Yiadom.
But more additions to the cornerback room could be in the works as free agency enters its second week. If New Orleans is looking to add more competition to the room, they could target Asante Samuel Jr., who was listed as a possible target by Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report.
“New Orleans could use a quality cover corner after trading Marshon Lattimore at last year’s trade deadline. The Saints also employ Kellen Moore as their head coach and Brandon Staley as their defensive coordinator,” Knox wrote. “Staley was L.A.’s head coach for most of Samuel’s first three seasons—he was fired partway through the 2023 campaign. Moore was the Chargers offensive coordinator in 2023.”
Samuel, 25, was a second-round pick with the Los Angeles Chargers during the 2021 NFL Draft, and he’s been a starter ever since he arrived. He entered the 2024 season with exactly two receptions in all three of his campaigns but was limited to just four games in 2024 due to a shoulder injury.
The Florida State product has been solid in coverage throughout his career, allowing a 92.3 passer rating and 7.8 yards per target in his four seasons, per Pro Football Reference. He’s been particularly better over his last two seasons, though, allowing an 87.8 passer rating on 114 targets.
Spotrac is currently projecting Samuel to land a four-year deal worth $45.9 million in free agency, which comes out to just over $11.5 million per season.
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