Paulson Adebo - Pro Football Rumors

Saints Place CB Paulson Adebo On IR

October 22nd, 2024 at 9:03pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Saints officially placed cornerback Paulson Adebo on injured reserve, ending his 2024 season after breaking his femur last week, per New Orleans.Football’s Nick Underhill.

Adebo was carted off early in the second quarter of New Orleans’ Week 7 loss to the Broncos on Thursday night, requiring season-ending surgery. The former second-round pick is expected to recover in time for training camp in 2025, though his status in a contract year means a potential free agency navigation while rehabbing from his injury.

Adebo’s injury is yet another setback for a Saints team that has dropped their last five games after starting the year 2-0. Leading receiver Rashid Shaheed is out for the season after meniscus surgery, and Pro Bowl center Erik McCoy has yet to return from injured reserve after hurting his groin in September.

Adebo was on pace for career-highs in tackles, interceptions, and passes defended before his injury. That will assist his case in free agency as he attempts to capitalize on a significant jump in the cornerback market this offseason. This is also the first major injury of his career, as Adebo played in 52 of the Saints’ 58 games since he was drafted, with 51 starts.

Second-round pick Kool-Aid McKinstry took over for Adebo against the Broncos and is expected to replace him in the starting lineup opposite Marshon Lattimore moving forward. With Alontae Taylor starting in the slot, the Saints only have one more cornerback on their active roster: undrafted rookie Rico Payton. In the short-term, Shemar Jean-Charles will likely be in line for elevations from the practice squad, and potentially a promotion to the active roster. New Orleans will need to find more cornerback depth for the rest of the year, especially if they move Lattimore, a potential trade target, at the deadline.

Saints CB Paulson Adebo Undergoes Season-Ending Surgery

October 18th, 2024 at 9:45am CST by Adam La Rose

In addition to a lopsided loss, the Saints were dealt with a major blow on the injury front last night. Cornerback Paulson Adebo suffered a broken femur on Thursday, head coach Dennis Allen said.

Adebo had an air cast placed on his right leg before being carted off the field. Not long after, the 25-year-old was taken to a nearby hospital. Adebo has since undergone surgery which will end his season, something which is particularly notable given his status as a pending free agent.

A recovery timeline of four to five months should be expected in this case, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. That means Adebo should be fully recovered well in time for the 2025 campaign, by which point he will have a new deal in place. It will be interesting to see how his injury affects his market value on a second New Orleans pact or one sending him to another team. In any event, the Saints’ secondary will be notably shorthanded for the remainder of the campaign.

A former third-round pick, Adebo has started each of his 51 games and (until now) he had avoided lengthy absences due to injury. He was held without an interception in 2022 after recording three as a rookie and before rebounding with four last year; in less than seven full contests in 2024, he managed to post another three picks. Those totals have been accompanied by 43 pass deflections (including 28 since the start of last season), a sign of Adebo’s ball skills.

After surrendering 11 touchdowns as the nearest defender during his first two seasons, the Stanford product improved considerably in coverage. While penalties were an issue this season, Adebo should figure to have a number of suitors if he reaches the open market this spring. While his attention turns to recover, New Orleans will move forward without a key starter on defense. Fellow first-team corner Marshon Latitmore exited the contest with a hamstring injury, and it remains to be seen how much further time (if any) he will miss. The former first-rounder has been the subject of trade speculation, but Allen confirmed Lattimore will remain in place for at least 2024.

With the Saints now sitting at 2-5 after winning their first two games, interest could of course pick up again with respect to veterans like Lattimore being available. In any case, a team already hit hard by injuries will need to contend with another season-long absence while attempting to end an ongoing losing streak.

Saints CBs Alontae Taylor, Paulson Adebo Competing For Starting Role

June 26th, 2023 at 11:30am CST by Adam La Rose

The Saints already have one starting cornerback spot spoken for with four-time Pro Bowler Marshon Lattimore. The competition to determine who will line up opposite him will take place during training camp.

Alontae Taylor and Paulson Adebo are vying for a first-team role, as detailed by ESPN’s Katherine Terrell. The pair split reps with the starting defense during OTAs, allowing each to state their case as a full-time outside corner (although the former has also spent time practicing in the slot). Their performances in the summer will determine the pecking order behind Lattimore for New Orleans.

When addressing the situation, head coach Dennis Allen said, “the great thing about it, those two particular players… both of them are fully capable of being starters and playing at a high level for us, but we’re going to let that competition play out.”

Both Adebo and Taylor have already seen signficant playing time early in their respective careers. Adebo, a 2021 third-rounder, has started all but one of his 30 career appearances and logged a snap share of 94% last season, one in which Lattimore was limited to just seven contests. The latter’s injury allowed Taylor, a second-round pick, to start nine games in his rookie season.

Taylor registered 11 pass breakups and posted much better coverage statistics than Adebo during his first-team audition in 2022. Given the potential for growth both players have (each will be 24 at the start of the regular season), though, plenty remains to be determined heading into the 2023 campaign. Regardless of how the competition for the outside corner spot shakes out, each could see a notable workload since the Saints’ lone free agent CB addition was Lonnie Johnson and the team elected not to add further to the position during the draft.

Saints Sign Entire Draft Class, Restructure Marshon Lattimore

June 8th, 2021 at 3:53pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Saints just knocked out a big order of business. New Orleans has signed their entire draft class to their rookie deals, as Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football tweeted.

To create the cap space necessary for these deals, the team restructured cornerback Marshon Lattimore‘s contract, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweets. They converted his “$10.2M fifth year option to a $990K base salary and the rest in a roster bonus with voidable years,” he reports. Rapsheet adds that the team will “keep working on an extension” with Lattimore.

The six-man draft class includes defensive end Payton Turner (first-round; Houston), linebacker Pete Werner (second-round; Ohio State), cornerback Paulson Adebo (third-round; Stanford), quarterback Ian Book (fourth-round; Notre Dame), offensive tackle Landon Young (sixth-round; Kentucky), and wide receiver Kawaan Baker (seventh-round; South Alabama).

It’s great they got this out of the way as the offseason starts to heat up with mandatory minicamps. The Saints had been in a terrible cap situation at the end of 2020, but GM Mickey Loomis has always been able to work some magic.