The New Orleans Saints are entering a new era with first-time head coach Kellen Moore leading the team, but a serious roster overhaul is likely upcoming.
The Saints are dead last in the NFL in projected 2025 salary cap space, coming in at more than $52.5 million over the expected number. Part of the issue is quarterback Derek Carr, who’s not only set to have the league’s fourth-highest cap hit, but may not be in Moore’s long-term plans at the position anyway.
New Orleans also has some key pending free agents on defense, including 2021 draft picks Payton Turner and Paulson Adebo, and star EDGE Chase Young. The Saints signed Young to a one-year deal last offseason looking to get over the hump, but the former No. 2 overall pick (among others) could be looking to ditch the New Orleans rebuild to join a contender this offseason.
Jacob Camenker of USA TODAY predicts Young will leave New Orleans to chase a ring with the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. Here was his take on what Spotrac projects to be a four-year contract in the neighborhood $70.1 million:
If the Eagles lose Josh Sweat in free agency, they may take a swing on a high-upside player like Young, who will only be 26 during the 2025 NFL season. Young hasn’t yet developed into a double-digit sack artist as many expected after his Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign in 2020, but he had 66 pressures with the Saints last season (seventh-most at his position, per PFF).
Young will turn 26 in April, and we probably haven’t seen his best football yet. When you combine his 66 pressures with just 740 total defensive snaps in 2024, you get a player that appears poised for a long-awaited breakout year.
The Eagles are an obvious fit, as Young would enjoy the fruits of having Jalen Carter on the defensive interior and budding superstar Nolan Smith on the opposite end. If any team can get the most out of Young, it’s Philadelphia.
The sticking point in this hypothetical would be the contract. If the Eagles are open to committing multiple years at $17 million to $20 million per for an EDGE rusher this offseason, why not bring back Sweat, whose extension could create some 2025 salary cap relief (due to void years on his expiring deal)? Young could be a slightly better value, but Sweat’s the known commodity coming off a torrid playoff run.
Keeping Sweat figures to be the priority for Philly, but it’s far from a guarantee that he comes back with All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun, rising star DT Milton Williams and others up for new deals as well. If Sweat does move on, adding Young would be the type of consolation prize for Philadelphia that no one in the NFL wants to see.
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