The Saints are scheduled to work out veteran defensive back Tharold Simon on Friday, reports Nick Underhill of the Advocate (Twitter link).
Simon, 26, was once a five-game starter with Seattle’s Legion of Boom back in 2014, but he’s mostly been a bit part over the past two seasons. The former fifth-round draft selection played in just one contest with the Seahawks during the 2015 campaign, and then saw only 143 totals snaps with the Cardinals a season ago. Nearly half of those snaps were on special teams, which would be Simon’s area of focus with the Saints.
New Orleans was extremely poor on special teams in 2016 (27th in DVOA), and have since replaced their special teams coordinator, hiring Brad Banta to replace Greg McMahon. Per Football Outsiders, the Saints’ was particularly lacking on kick returns, as the club lost eight points of field position on such plays (30th in the NFL).
Of course, given New Orleans’ woes in the secondary, there’s always a chance Simon could earn playing time as a cornerback. First-round pick Marshon Lattimore and veterans Delvin Breaux and Sterling Moore are the only New Orleans corners with any sort of roster hold, so if injuries were to strike, Simon’s (admittedly limited) starting experience may appear comforting to defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.