New Orleans Saints News & Rumors

Latest On Saints’ Offer To Teddy Bridgewater

Teddy Bridgewater will reportedly meet with the Dolphins today, but he has a firm offer in hand. The Saints are willing to pay him a base value of around $7MM, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL.com.

With the Saints, Bridgewater would serve as the backup for and heir apparent to Drew Brees. However, the Dolphins have a starting job available and Bridgewater is from Miami. There’s reason to believe that Bridgewater would be interested, but there’s no word yet on whether he would entertain the idea of leaving the Saints.

Meanwhile, if Bridgewater does depart for Miami, the Saints will likely be interested in the man he’s replacing. New Orleans is expected to target Ryan Tannehill as Brees’ backup if Bridgewater leaves, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). There’s a connection in place for Tannehill, as he was originally drafted by now-Saints assistant general manager Jeff Ireland.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/19

Here is the latest news involving restricted free agents and exclusive-rights free agents, with updates coming throughout the day:

ERFA

Tendered:

Non-tendered:

RFA

Tendered at second-round level: 

Tendered at original-round level:

Non-tendered: 

Dolphins Meeting With Teddy Bridgewater

Teddy Bridgewater has agreed to a new deal with the Saints, but it might not be in the books just yet. The Dolphins are making a late push to sign the quarterback, according to Dianna Russini of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Indeed, Bridgewater is meeting with the Dolphins today, tweets Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, who notes reports of Bridgewater’s contract with New Orleans may have been premature.

With the Saints, Bridgewater would serve as the backup for and heir apparent to Drew Brees. However, the Dolphins have a starting job available and Bridgewater is from Miami. There’s reason to believe that Bridgewater would be interested, but there’s no word yet on whether he would entertain the idea of backing out of his Saints pact.

The Dolphins were believed to be eyeing former Browns quarterback Tyrod Taylor for a starting role, but Taylor signed a two-year deal to become Philip Rivers‘ backup with the Chargers. Miami is fully expected to move on from Ryan Tannehill this offseason, either via trade or release, and embark on a “tanking” strategy for at least the next year or so. The club will still need someone under center, however, and the 26-year-old Bridgewater would give the Dolphins a youthful option with experience.

Bridgewater, of course, suffered a gruesome leg injury in 2016 that knocked him out of action for the following two seasons. He inked a one-year deal with the Jets last offseason, but was eventually dealt to the Saints for a third-round pick. Bridgewater started New Orleans’ final regular season game, completing 14-of-22 passes for 118 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.

Bridgewater started 28 games for the Vikings from 2014-15, averaging 3,075 yards, 14 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions during that time. Among the 30 quarterbacks who attempted at least 500 passes in those two seasons, Bridgewater ranked 22nd in passer rating, 25th in adjusted net yards per attempt, and 29th in touchdown percentage

Contract Details: Smith, James, Wake

The latest details on deals from around the NFL:

Saints Sign K Wil Lutz To Extension

Saints kicker Wil Lutz has inked a new five-year deal with the team, according to a team press release. Lutz was a restricted free agent, but he’s now signed through the 2023 campaign.

The total value of Lutz’s new five-year deal will make him the highest-paid kicker in NFL history, ESPN.com’s Mike Triplett tweets. Full terms of the deal are not yet known, but, for reference, the league’s top kickers make north of $4MM per year.

Lutz has been solid for the Saints since joining the club in 2016. He has connected on 87% of his field goal tries, including 93.3% accuracy in 2018. And, out of his 153 extra point attempts, he’s missed only five.

Lutz originally signed with the Ravens as a UDFA in 2016, but he never had a chance to beat out Justin Tucker and was cut before camp. One week later, he hooked on with the Saints and became their go-to guy.

Saints Interested In Dez Bryant Return

Dez Bryant‘s Saints run did not produce any game action, the former All-Pro’s New Orleans tenure including brief practice work before a torn Achilles’ tendon sent him to IR.

But the Saints are curious about what Bryant has left. They would like Bryant to return, according to NFL.com’s Jane Slater (via Pro Football Talk).

Now 30, Bryant has not played since the 2017 season. He notoriously sat out much of last season, declining multiple offers, and wanted to re-enter free agency in 2019. Although Bryant is back in free agency, his Achilles injury scuttled his plan. Another one-year deal is almost certain for the former Cowboys standout.

New Orleans has go-to wideout Michael Thomas, who is entering a contract year, but none of its other receivers solidified themselves as a reliable option last season. The Saints’ lack of an upper-echelon tight end affected their passing game as well, but the Drew Brees-led offense obviously was one of the league’s best. Bryant, if he’s healthy, could fit as a possession-based auxiliary target, however.

Bills, Saints To Host Ziggy Ansah

The pass rusher market has begun to move rapidly, with the Packers doing much of the heavy lifting on this front Tuesday. One of the biggest names left unsigned will enter the picture now.

Ziggy Ansah has visits scheduled with the Bills and Saints, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The Bills will get the first visit, per Rapoport.

While free agent peers Trey Flowers, Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith agreed to deals without visits, teams obviously want to examine Ansah given his recent struggles with injuries. The former top-five overall pick missed most of last season due to injury, and the Lions’ Flowers addition signals they are indeed moving on from their six-year defensive end.

Ansah, who is recovering from shoulder surgery, played in just seven Lions games last season. This came after Detroit franchise-tagged its top pass rusher. Ansah, who is set to turn 30 in May, has two 12-plus-sack seasons — the most recent coming in 2017. But he has battled injuries for a while now.

Buffalo could obviously outbid New Orleans for Ansah, given the cap space disparity between these franchises, but Ansah’s recent history might not point to a high-end deal.

Saints To Sign Latavius Murray

Alvin Kamara has a new understudy. The Saints have agreed to sign former Vikings running back Latavius Murray, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links). It’s a four-year, $14.4MM deal, Schefter adds. 

Murray, 29, averaged 4.1 yards per carry last season, his best average since his rookie season with the Raiders. He no longer profiles as a top-end starter, but he could be a phenomenal fit as Kamara’s safety net and change of pace complement.

This time last year, Murray reworked his contract in order to stay with the Vikings. Initially, Murray was set to play out a three-year, $15MM deal through the 2019 season. But, in exchange for accepting a reduced base salary, the Vikings eliminated the ’19 season from his contract.

The unexpected signing likely means that Mark Ingram will not return to New Orleans. The Saints wanted to retain the veteran, but they were also unwilling to give him much more than the $4MM they paid him in 2018. Ingram became a two-time Pro Bowler and enjoyed his best season in 2017 when he amassed 1,540 yards from scrimmage and scored 12 touchdowns. Last year, he only rushed for 645 yards, but he averaged 4.7 per carry.

Saints To Re-Sign Teddy Bridgewater

The Saints are expected to re-sign quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, according to Jane Slater of NFL.com (on Twitter). Bridgewater had a better offer from the Dolphins, Slater hears, but Bridgewater re-upped with New Orleans because he values the club’s locker room culture and the prospect of one day becoming the Saints’ starting QB.

While Slater says the Dolphins made a better offer, a source told Armando Salguero of The Miami Herald that the Dolphins “were not big players” for Bridgewater’s services (Twitter link).Bridgewater was widely considered to be the second-best quarterback available in free agency this year, behind Nick Foles.

The former first-round pick somehow managed to come back from a gruesome leg injury in 2016, return to full health, and reestablish himself as a promising talent. His last significant action came with the Vikings in 2015, his second NFL season, and he spent last season as Drew Brees‘ clipboard holder. Still, the Saints have been extremely impressed by Bridgewater’s maturity, leadership, and talent displayed on the practice field.

Bridgewater got the start for New Orleans in Week 17 last year with Brees resting for the playoffs. The results were mixed, but Bridgewater was playing without most of the starters on offense. Bridgewater signed with the Jets last offseason, and after New York drafted Sam Darnold, they decided to trade him. Bridgewater looked impressive during the preseason, and the Saints then traded for him. 

They gave up a third round pick for him, so they clearly believe in his potential. Still only 26, the Saints have plenty of time to wait and develop him. With Bridgewater off the market, the free agent quarterback market is now very thin. Tyrod Taylor and Ryan Fitzpatrick are now the two biggest names available, and they may have to settle for backup roles somewhere. Taylor has been linked to Miami recently as well.

Saints Won't Overpay For Ingram

  • The Saints are “still hoping” to retain Mark Ingram, but they aren’t going to break the bank to do it, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com. Graziano writes the Saints won’t be willing to pay much more than the $4MM they gave Ingram last season. A split could make sense for both sides if Ingram is looking for a raise and New Orleans is looking to give Alvin Kamara even more touches.