As recent UFL players are emerging on the workout radar, NFL teams also use minicamp to occasionally audition veteran free agents. The Saints are doing so, bringing in a former Falcons regular looking to rebound.
Russell Gage‘s three-year, $30MM Buccaneers pact did not go well, and he missed all of last season with an injury. Gage excelled on his Falcons rookie contract, however, and the Saints will take a look at the NFC South lifer. The veteran slot receiver joins veteran safety Roderic Teamer as players working out at Saints minicamp, New Orleans.football’s Nick Underhill tweets.
A ruptured patellar tendon sustained last August knocked Gage out for the 2023 season. Brought in to complement Mike Evans and Chris Godwin after the Antonio Brown addition predictably ended poorly, Gage did not justify his contract in 2022, either. While Gage did make some contributions by posting a 426-yard, five-touchdown season in Tom Brady‘s finale, he did not match his best Falcons showings while attached to an eight-figure-per-year contract.
Gage’s 2022 numbers, however, came in 13 games; the former sixth-round pick missed time due to a hamstring injury. The Bucs still gave Gage a slight pay cut during the 2023 offseason, though the team increased his guarantee figure in the process. The team declined a 2024 Gage option this offseason, sending him to free agency.
With an Atlanta team that had seen extended Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley unavailability stretches during the early 2020s, Gage stepped in as a key Matt Ryan target. The LSU alum posted 786 yards and four touchdowns in 2020, teaming with Ridley while Jones battled a chronic hamstring issue, and added 770 yards and four scores in 2021 — as Ridley left the team midway through the season. The Saints will evaluate Gage’s form ahead of his age-28 season.
New Orleans released Michael Thomas after a spate of injuries and did not make a major addition to their wideout group this offseason. The team did add Equanimeous St. Brown and use a fifth-round pick on Bub Means, but the Chris Olave–Rashid Shaheed duo still leads the way in New Orleans. A.T. Perry also flashed during his rookie season. As the team shifts to a Klint Kubiak-run offense, more receiving help is on the radar.
Teamer, 27, has made 11 career starts. The former Chargers UDFA found a role with the Raiders, but the team moved on following a November DUI arrest. Teamer’s arrest came years after he incurred a four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. Teamer, however, is a New Orleans native who attended college at Tulane. His local team will see about a second chance.
The Saints roster a more acclaimed New Orleans native (Tyrann Mathieu) but released Marcus Maye this offseason. Jordan Howden, a 2023 fifth-round pick, operated as Maye’s primary replacement last season. A Teamer addition would undoubtedly be for depth purposes.
I’ve been wondering when we’d hear something about Gage.