New Orleans Saints

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton says the team's cap situation will make it "impossible" to claim Odell Beckham Jr. on waivers.

“The claiming deadline is today. No, it’s impossible for us to put a claim in on the player. You just have to look at the salary cap space,” Payton told reporters. “And if we were going to put in a claim, it wouldn’t be something we discuss. I know it makes hit-worthy news.”

The Browns waived Beckham on Monday, putting him on waivers through 4 p.m. ET Tuesday. He is owed $7.5 million for the remainder of the 2021 season if he's claimed.

The Saints currently have just $710,136 in cap space. While they could restructure some deals to get additional space in the event Beckham becomes a free agent, reaching $7.5 million is a nearly impossible task.

New Orleans has been seen as a natural fit for Beckham given the team's dearth of talent at receiver. Michael Thomas is set to miss the entire season, and no New Orleans receiver has stepped into the void. Deonte Harris leads the team with just 323 receiving yards.

It's possible Beckham goes unclaimed on waivers, and the Saints have a chance. However, there are enough teams around the league that could see an opportunity to buy low on the talented-but-enigmatic receiver. 

We'll find out in around 24 hours. 

The New Orleans Saints reportedly considered bringing Teddy Bridgewater back.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported the Saints were among the teams that reached out to the Denver Broncos about a potential trade involving Bridgewater prior to Tuesday's trade deadline. However, Denver did not consider trading its starting quarterback, especially since it is still in playoff contention in the AFC.

Von Miller wasn’t the only #Broncos veteran who drew interest before last week’s trade deadline. They also had inquiries about Teddy Bridgewater — including from the #Saints — but never considered dealing their starting QB. @NFLGameDay @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/KBVUEHLcom

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 7, 2021

It is not particularly surprising that New Orleans was interested in a quarterback.

After all, Jameis Winston is out with an ACL injury, and Taysom Hill has not played since Oct. 3 because of concussion protocol. However, Hill is expected to play during Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons even though Trevor Siemian will start under center.

Siemian entered last Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after Winston exited with the injury and went 16-of-29 passing for 159 yards, one touchdown and zero interceptions. The Northwestern product has also played for the Broncos and New York Jets in his career and threw for 3,401 yards in Denver during the 2016 campaign.

A trade for Bridgewater would have brought the Louisville product back to New Orleans.

The 2015 Pro Bowler played for the Saints in 2018 and 2019 and went 5-0 as a starter while filling in for Drew Brees during that latter campaign. The 2014 first-round pick completed 67.9 percent of his passes for 1,384 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions that year.

Still, the Broncos are 4-4 and just a half-game behind the Los Angeles Chargers in the race for the seventh and final playoff spot in the AFC.

Trading Bridgewater, who turns 29 on Wednesday, might have signaled a focus on the future, but the Broncos decided they are eyeing a postseason run.          

Fresh off leading the New Orleans Saints to a win after replacing Jameis Winston last week, Trevor Siemian will likely get a chance to start on Sunday. 

Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, Siemian is expected to be under center for the Saints against the Atlanta Falcons. 

Siemian made his season debut in the second quarter against the Bucs after Winston injured his knee. The 29-year-old finished 16-of-29 for 155 yards and one touchdown in New Orleans' 36-27 win. 

Saints head coach Sean Payton told reporters on Monday that Winston suffered a torn ACL and damage to his MCL. The injury will keep Winston out for the rest of the season. 

Taysom Hill did return to practice this week after missing the past two games because of a concussion. He was a full participant in Thursday's practice after being limited on Wednesday. 

Hill appeared in each of the Saints' first five games, including four starts. The 31-year-old has primarily been used as a runner and pass-catcher with 114 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns on 19 touches. 

Assuming he gets the nod on Sunday, Siemian will be making his first start since Week 2 of the 2019 season when he was a member of the New York Jets. He has a 13-12 career record as a starting quarterback in the NFL. 

The Saints (5-2) enter Week 9 as the No. 6 seed in the NFC playoff standings.    

The New Orleans Saints have looked like contenders this season with a strong defense and running game behind a great offensive line. It also seemed their championship credentials would eventually be boosted by the return of star receiver Michael Thomas. 

But now Thomas isn't coming back at all, and the Saints' success without him opens the door for the team to move on from him this offseason as they shift in a new direction in the post-Drew Brees era.

The palpable tension between superstar player and team has been there for years. Thomas was suspended one game by the Saints in 2020 for punching a teammate in practice and reported altercations with coaches.

Reports then surfaced this offseason that the Saints were open to moving Thomas after miscommunications on the handling of his ankle injury caused him to miss the start of this season. That injury and a different ankle issue he suffered during rehab will now cost Thomas the season.

The Saints have been fine without the 2019 Offensive Player of the Year dating back further than this season. Thomas only made it into seven games in 2020, totaling 438 yards and no touchdowns. That didn't stop Brees from leading the Saints to a 12-4 record and a playoff win while he threw for 24 touchdowns and six interceptions, and it didn't stop the team from being one of five in the league to average 30-plus points.

Thomas' absence didn't have a major impact on the Saints' ability to win over the 5-2 start guided by Jameis Winston this season before his year-ending knee injury, either. Winston threw for 14 touchdowns and three picks over seven appearances, albeit while the offense mustered just 180.9 passing yards per game (31st in the NFL).

Michael Thomas says he won’t be able to make it back onto the field this season.

“Will do everything in my power to get back to the player I have always been” 🙏 pic.twitter.com/I90du4K8no

— B/R Gridiron (@brgridiron) November 3, 2021

Along the way, the defense let up just 18.3 points per game (fourth in the NFL) and picked off 11 passes, while receivers Marquez Callaway and Deonte Harris stepped up by averaging north of 14 yards per catch with five total receiving touchdowns.

Simply put, the Saints were always going to move away from the high-flying offensive identity once Brees left because there was no guarantee they'd have another quarterback who could pick up where Brees left off.

None of this is to say Thomas wouldn't provide a boon for the Saints on the field when he eventually returns. But by the time that rolls around, he'll be 29 years old, and there's no telling how this tricky ankle injury impacts the rest of his years as a pro. The Saints have to judge whether that potential upside is worth the cost—and the gains to be made if they move on from him.

Cutting or trading Thomas post-June 1 would save the Saints $15.8 million against the cap in 2022. He's due $52.1 million through 2024. The Saints are projected to be more than $50 million over the cap in 2022 as they try to dig out of a hole they put themselves in while going all-in for a championship over Brees' final years.

Shedding the Thomas contract is one way to speed things along. Besides the cap hole, major names like left tackle Terron Armstead and safety Marcus Williams headline the team's 2022 free-agent class. Those are core guys slated for major roles in the post-Brees era.

It's impossible to gauge what the Saints would get back in a trade for Thomas. On one hand, he's performed like one of the league's best players at his peak. On the other, his inability to stay on the field lately, the ankle injury, the contract and the fact that it seems obvious the Saints want to move on might encourage less-than-stellar offers.

But it only takes one team to make something happen. It's hard to ignore a possibility like Thomas' college coach, Urban Meyer, being more than happy to add him in an effort to help first overall pick Trevor Lawrence in Jacksonville, to throw out one hypothetical.

Maybe the compensation doesn't end up being great. But shedding the contract and gaining some sort of long-term asset to help the rebuild makes more sense than rostering a near-30-year-old player owed north of $50 million on a team that might not make a serious push for a few years while it resets the financial balances. There's always an outside chance Thomas' value is never this high again if he gets back on the field next year and isn't the same player or can't reliably get in games.

One thing about the Saints, though, is that they always manage to pull some cap wizardry to escape predicaments. Despite the cap situation and the likelihood Thomas would've failed a physical if he was part of a deal, Kimberley A. Martin of ESPN reported the team had conversations about wideout Odell Beckham Jr. with the Cleveland Browns before the trade deadline.

The Saints will find a way at the position regardless. And if they want to move Thomas, he'll move (this is the team that traded guys in their primes like Brandin Cooks, Kenny Stills and Jimmy Graham).

Had Winston kept the Saints in the playoff hunt, maybe there would have been reason for the team to make it work with Thomas. But unless one of Trevor Siemian or Taysom Hill pulls off a stunner, the Saints figure to regress over the season's second half.

If the team fails to hit the playoffs for the first time since 2016, moving Thomas is a pretty good way to accelerate the ripping off of the Band-Aid that is the impending rebuild.

It doesn't feel like the Thomas-Saints relationship is unsalvageable. But from a team-building perspective, shipping Thomas to a willing trade partner next offseason might be the painfully smart move to improve the team's long-term outlook.

          

Salary-cap information courtesy of Over The Cap.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas, who has spent the 2021 season on the physically unable to perform list, announced he will not return this season.

pic.twitter.com/cwok7uP1cd

— Michael Thomas (@Cantguardmike) November 3, 2021

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday that Thomas saw a specialist recently:

FROM @GMFB: #Saints WR Michael Thomas has a new issue with his ankle that necessitated an appointment with a specialist recently, sources say. His return date off the PUP list is unpredictable. This is why New Orleans tried to trade for a WR yesterday. pic.twitter.com/dJNXlr3YH3

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 3, 2021

Durability has been a concern of late for Thomas. He appeared in just seven games during the 2020 campaign and then started the 2021 season on the PUP list as he recovered from ankle surgery.

The Saints also placed him on the reserve/COVID-19 list in September.

When healthy, Thomas is one of the best wide receivers in the league.

The Ohio State product is a three-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro who won the Offensive Player of the Year in 2019 behind 149 catches, 1,725 yards and nine touchdowns. It was his second straight season leading the NFL in receptions.

The Saints have struggled to replace his production at wide receiver this season, and Rapoport noted that New Orleans held trade talks focused on wideouts before Tuesday's trade deadline.

No deals were consummated, meaning the Saints will move forward with a receiving corps of Marquez Callaway, Deonte Harris and Tre'Quan Smith.

Running back Alvin Kamara is the Saints' leader in receptions (28) and receiving touchdowns (four), while Callaway leads all wide receivers on the team with 19 grabs for 284 yards and three touchdowns in seven games.

The Saints will also be without starting quarterback Jameis Winston for the remainder of the season after he suffered a torn ACL last week, meaning Taysom Hill is likely the new starter when he recovers from a concussion.

Despite the Saints' issues at wide receiver, they are firmly in a playoff spot in the NFC at 5-2 after a huge upset win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week.

The New Orleans Saints engaged in negotiations with the Cleveland Browns for wideout Odell Beckham Jr. but could not come to an agreement before Tuesday's 4 p.m. trade deadline.

Kimberley A. Martin of ESPN provided more information on Beckham, who is reportedly looking to move on from Cleveland:

I’m told there were discussions re: Odell going to the #Saints — but both sides couldn’t agree on a workable deal, given how much OBJ is owed the rest of the year.

Plus, there still is optimism in the #Browns building that OBJ can be a big part of their second-half playoff push

— Kimberley A. Martin (@ByKimberleyA) November 2, 2021

Beckham, who turns 29 years old on Friday, has caught 17 passes for 232 yards in six games for the Browns. He's in his eighth NFL season and third with Cleveland after five campaigns with the New York Giants.

Beckham's Browns tenure, particularly this season, has not gone well.

Of note, he had just one catch for six yards in a 15-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.

Per ESPN's Jake Trotter, Beckham ranks just 151st in the NFL in receptions per target and 139th in receptions per route run.

Injuries have taken a toll.

Beckham told reporters in October that he's played through a torn labrum in his left shoulder for 10 years.

He's notably appeared on the Browns' injury report in every week this season but Week 6. Beckham missed the first two games of the year as he recovered from a torn ACL suffered in October 2020 against the Dallas Cowboys.

The Louisiana native appeared on the injury report with a shoulder injury beginning in Week 4.

Beckham made the Pro Bowl in each of his first three seasons with the New York Giants, with a 16-game average of 107 receptions, 1,534 yards and 13 touchdowns per game, according to Pro Football Reference.

Retired NFL quarterback Philip Rivers said he would listen if the New Orleans Saints called about adding him to their roster, according to Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times.

The Saints suddenly have an opening under center after starter Jameis Winston suffered a torn ACL during Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, although the team has not contacted Rivers.

"We're satisfied with the quarterback room," Saints coach Sean Payton told reporters Monday. 

New Orleans also has Taysom Hill, Trevor Siemian and rookie fourth-round pick Ian Book on the roster.

Hill was the team's starter last season when Drew Brees suffered a rib injury, leading the team to a 3-1 record in four starts. He totaled 834 passing yards and four touchdowns along with 209 rushing yards and four more scores during his four full games as a quarterback.

Rivers could be an upgrade if he joins the team.

The 39-year-old was effective last year in his lone season with the Indianapolis Colts, finishing with 4,169 passing yards, 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. His 97.0 quarterback rating was the sixth-highest of his 15 seasons as a starter in the NFL.

He retired after the season, but told Bob Kravitz of The Athletic in August that he thought he could have remained the Colts' starter if he wanted.

Rivers' recent success showed he can still be productive, especially in a Payton-led offense that allowed Brees to thrive. New Orleans should explore all options as it tries to remain a contender after a 5-2 start to the season. 

New Orleans Saints quarterback Jameis Winston reportedly suffered a torn left ACL and damage to his MCL in Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and will miss the remainder of the season.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported the news after Winston underwent an MRI on Monday.

The 27-year-old was helped off the field during the second quarter of the Week 8 matchup after twisting his knee when Bucs linebacker Devin White made a horse-collar tackle on a three-yard scramble.

Jameis Winston has been carted to the locker room.

🙏 @Saints 🙏 pic.twitter.com/CFLzdEEKzS

— NFL UK & Ireland (@NFLUKIRE) October 31, 2021

Jameis Winston in serious trouble to finish this game after the Devin White tackle. #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/Jumkvk9FmE

— Evan Closky (@ECloskyWTSP) October 31, 2021

Trevor Siemian replaced Winston and completed 16 of 29 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown.

The Saints also have Swiss Army knife Taysom Hill, who started several games last season when Drew Brees went down with an injury. He completed 72.7 percent of his passes for 928 yards and four touchdowns against two interceptions.

However, Hill has been out since suffering a concussion in Week 5. On Sunday, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported Hill is expected to clear concussion protocol ahead of a Week 9 matchup with the Atlanta Falcons (h/t John Sigler of SaintsWire).

Siemian may get his first opportunity to start since 2019 for the New York Jets. He was also under center for 24 starts with the Denver Broncos from 2015 to 2017, going 13-11.

Siemian has thrown for 5,848 yards, 31 touchdowns and 24 interceptions in 28 career games.

Winston's injury ends what had been a bounce-back year. He entered Week 8 completing 58.9 percent of his passes for 1,114 yards and 13 touchdowns against three interceptions.

Sean Payton has won a Super Bowl and seven division championships with the New Orleans Saints, but Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ranks among his best moments.

The Saints navigated the potential season-ending loss of quarterback Jameis Winston to earn a 36-27 win over the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, prompting a certain coaching legend to reach out. 

“Got a text from Mike Krzyzewski tonight,” Payton told Peter King of NBC Sports. “All about adversity, and winning the games you’re not supposed to win, and when coaching really matters. I’ll save it forever.”

Krzyzewski is heading into his final season at Duke, closing one of the most legendary coaching careers in all of sports. It's unclear what his text to Payton said, but there may be no better person on the planet to receive a complimentary text from when it comes to coaching acumen.

Payton will now likely have to continue navigating without Winston, potentially changing his offense on the fly to accommodate Taysom Hill's running skills. 

If he's able to keep the Saints in playoff contention, Coach K might be sending a few more texts before the season's over. 

The New Orleans Saints reportedly have no plans to pursue Cam Newton after Jameis Winston suffered a serious knee injury in Sunday's win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported Newton is not in the Saints' plans. The Saints fear Winston suffered a torn ACL after leaving the game on a cart in the second quarter. 

Trevor Siemian replaced Winston and led the Saints to a 36-27 win over their division rivals.

It's unclear if Siemian will continue to start in Winston's absence or if the team will turn over the reins to Taysom Hill. Siemian has a 13-12 record as an NFL starter, throwing for 5,848 yards and 31 touchdowns against 24 interceptions over his career. While few would call him anything more than a solid backup, he's arguably a lower-variance choice than Hill, who has returned to his gadget role this season.

Hill went 3-1 as a starting quarterback last season in place of an injured Drew Brees, throwing for 928 yards and four touchdowns against two interceptions. The Saints' downfield passing attack was greatly limited with Hill in the game, but he's a dynamic rusher at the position who could give the Saints an element they'd miss with Siemian in the lineup.

Hill competed with Winston in training camp for the starting quarterback position. However, it's unclear if he'll be able to immediately take over as the starter after missing the last few weeks with a concussion.

Newton has been a free agent since being cut by the New England Patriots ahead of the regular season. He lost a quarterback competition to rookie Mac Jones after spending most of camp as the presumed starter.

The 2015 NFL MVP says he wants to continue to play and has been vaccinated against COVID-19. A misunderstanding of the NFL's COVID protocols cost him time in the preseason and arguably led to Jones overtaking the starting job.