New Orleans Saints

The New Orleans Saints and offensive lineman James Hurst, who received a four-game suspension for a violation of the NFL's performance-enhancing substance policy in February, reached an agreement on a one-year contract for the 2020 season.

Jack Bechta, Hurst's agent, announced the deal Wednesday. Financial terms weren't immediately released.

The 28-year-old UNC product signed with the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2014. He went on to make 90 appearances, including 44 starts, across six years with the organization.

Hurst was a jack-of-all-trades in Baltimore. He can play anywhere along the line and also received snaps as a blocking tight end and on special teams.

He discussed his versatility in a December 2018 interview with Ryan Mink of the Ravens' official website:

"I take a great deal of pride in that. It's mostly just knowing that I can be relied upon. If the team needs me to be somewhere, I can get the job done and play at a high level. I take pride in that. It's tough [to switch positions]. Every position is different, every stance is different, the footwork and the players going against you are going to vary. But I enjoy that I can be counted on to get the job done, and that the coaches trust me to move me and shift around to fill in the gaps we may have week to week."

The Saints were in the market for offensive line depth after releasing veteran guard Larry Warford, who'd earned three straight Pro Bowl selections, in early May.

Hurst could compete for a starting spot at guard opposite Andrus Peat. His main competition will be Cesar Ruiz, the team's first-round pick in the 2020 draft, with Cameron Tom, Derrick Kelly and Adrian Magee among the other contenders on the roster.

Terron Armstead and Ryan Ramczyk are penciled in as the starters at tackle, and Erik McCoy is set to return at center after a strong rookie season in 2019.

Hurst's ability to fill in at any position should give him the inside track on a reserve job as part of the Saints' final 53-man roster, even if he doesn't win a starting spot.  

New Orleans Saints defensive end Noah Spence reportedly suffered a torn ACL while working out on his own amid the coronavirus pandemic.

ESPN's Mike Triplett reported the Saints have placed Spence on the reserve/non-football injury list. Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network provided further details, including the team's signing of linebacker Anthony Chickillo to take the roster spot:

The 26-year-old Philadelphia native was a 5-star prospect in the 2012 college football recruiting class before signing with Ohio State.

He's struggled to reach those sky-high expectations both in college, which included a stop at Eastern Kentucky, and at the NFL level because of injuries and off-field problems.

Spence enjoyed a solid rookie season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, tallying 22 total tackles, 5.5 sacks and three forced fumbles across 16 appearances in 2016. However, he's registered just two sacks and appeared in only 25 games since the start of the 2017 season. He made seven appearances for the Washington Redskins last season before getting waived in November.

The 2016 second-round pick joined the Saints in December, and he re-signed in March on a one-year, $910,000 contract.

"Sometimes when you are younger and going through things in the NFL off the field (and) stuff like that, you lose your focus," Spence told reporters after signing the new deal. "I just have to get back to being locked in all the way on my goals, and that's going to help me to win."

New Orleans isn't required to pay Spence's salary since his injury didn't occur during an official team activity, but Triplett noted the team could provide him with an injury settlement or place him on injured reserve after final rosters are set given the unique COVID-19 circumstances.

The typical one-year timetable for an ACL tear would put the defensive end on track to return in time for training camp in 2021.

Chauncey Gardner-Johnson earned All-Rookie honors with the New Orleans Saints in 2019 and is ready to take his game to the next level in 2020—regardless of who he's guarding. 

The defensive back told ESPN's Jordan Schultz on Instagram he's ready to line up against whoever in the league has to throw at him and would gladly take on the challenge of covering new Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski. 

"You better realize," Gardner-Johnson said. "I don't shy away from competition." 

In his first season in the league, the fourth-round pick out of Florida played in all 16 games (seven starts), recording 49 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble and eight pass deflections. 

Gronkowski spent last year in retirement, but the 31-year-old still carries the pedigree of a four-time first-team All-Pro and three-time Super Bowl champion. 

"[Gronk] strap up like I strap up," Gardner-Johnson said. "He put on cleats like I put on cleats; he just wears a bigger size."

With the 6'6", 268-pound Gronkowski now in the NFC South, the 5'11", 210-pound Gardner-Johnson will get the opportunity to face him twice a year and attempt to prove his point. 

First, it was former Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware pouring cold water on LeBron James' NFL dreams, and now, New Orleans Saints star Cameron Jordan has offered his own view on the NBA superstar's football potential.

James' recent admission on UNINTERRUPTED that he started training his body to play football as the 2011 NBA lockout dragged on has led to a number of NFL personalities explaining why the NBA legend wouldn't cut it as a tight end. 

While speaking to Colin Cowherd on Thursday, Jordan laughed at the idea of James trying to catch a pass over the middle of the field. 

"I've got four guys that are going to take out the body you care so much about," Jordan said. "I don't know if you've been banged up on the basketball court like you're going to get banged up in 16 games of football."

On Wednesday, Ware also laughed at the idea of James maintaining his elite level in the NFL but didn't rule out the possibility that he could add to a team's offense.

"No way in hell LeBron would have blocked me," Ware told NFL Network's Andrew Siciliano. "But I think he would've made a really good tight end, especially because of his athleticism."

Jordan left that door open as well, telling Cowherd there were some ways in with James would be useful, especially standing 6'9", 250 pounds.

"As long as he spaces out and doesn't catch anything over the middle—maybe he's just a streak guy," Jordan said. "If you send him on [go routes] that'd be your best bet. Make him a red-zone tight end."

James' former high school quarterback previously told B/R the Lakers star could catch anything in a 10-to-15-yard radius. Of course, James hasn't played football since his junior year at St. Vincent-St. Mary in Akron. 

A lifelong Dallas Cowboys fan, James reportedly has a framed contract offer from Jerry Jones sitting in his office, but that's about as close as he's gotten to playing football again.

Jordan thinks that's for the best, noting James would be in trouble if he lined up across from him.

"As a tight end?" Jordan said. "It's probably over for him." 

New Orleans Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan isn't sweating the arrivals of Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"They're officially 'Tompa Bradys,'" Jordan said Thursday on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. "Then he did the magic conch shell and Gronk appeared out of nowhere, and I was like, yeah I understand what they're trying to do here. They gotta go from bottom of the NFC South to second place of the NFC South. That's great for them. We'll still be here."

Jordan isn't the only one who still sees the Saints as the superior squad.

New Orleans sat fourth in Bleacher Report's power rankings after the 2020 NFL draft, with Tampa Bay in 13th. Caesars Palace also lists the Saints as the favorites to claim the NFC South at -105, with the Bucs trailing closely behind at +150.

It's easy to see why some would view the Buccaneers as a Super Bowl contender. They finished fifth in defensive efficiency, per Football Outsiders, and swapping out Jameis Winston for Brady addressed their most glaring issue.

Brady is coming off one of the worst seasons in his legendary career. His completion percentage fell from 65.8 in 2018 to 60.8 in 2019, while his QBR has declined over each of the last three years.

Gronkowski, meanwhile, is a season removed from the NFL and hasn't played a full 16-game slate since 2011. Although the 31-year-old is one of the greatest tight ends ever, what he can deliver on the field in 2020 remains unclear.

The Saints are the three-time reigning NFC South champions, and they retained most of their key pieces this offseason.

The race for the division title should be tight, but Jordan is right to think New Orleans deserves to be positioned ahead of Tampa Bay.

As the New Orleans Saints' agreement with Mercedes-Benz ends next year, one adult website placed a lucrative bid to become the team's new naming-rights partner for the Superdome. 

Per Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News, Stripchat.com put in a $15 million naming-rights bid for the Superdome on Thursday.

"We have been looking into penetrating the sports world, and this is a wonderful opportunity. ... I'd like to think that we here at Stripchat embody some of New Orleans' character and flair," Stripchat communication director Max Bennett said. 

A number of adult websites have tried to get naming rights on sports arenas in recent years. BangBros announced a $10 million bid in Sept. 2019 for the naming rights to the Miami Heat's arena. 

The Heat have retained the AmericanAirlines Arena name, despite not renewing their deal with the company that expired at the end of the calendar year in 2019. 

The Saints announced Wednesday that their partnership with Mercedes-Benz will end when their agreement expires after the 2021 season. Mercedes-Benz is also the rights-holder for the Atlanta Falcons' stadium, which opened in 2017.   

When the New Orleans Saints signed Taysom Hill to a two-year extension last month, it was an indication the team believes he can be an option at quarterback if Drew Brees retires after 2020. 

Per The Athletic's Jay Glazer, head coach Sean Payton believes in Hill's ability to lead the offense when Brees decides to hang up his cleats:

"No smokescreen, he's the guy. Sean Payton loves him but it's not just him, the whole team loves him, not just Sean Payton. Watch a Saints game. When he's in the game, watch the other players on the sideline, watch their reaction. They all get up and stand on the sidelines to watch him. I think Sean was always hoping to unleash him on the league without anyone seeing him before but now we've seen it with Lamar Jackson. He's a bigger Lamar Jackson. No, it's not a smokescreen. He likes him that much, he'll be the guy. He's with the perfect coach for that."

Payton has been effusively praising Hill for some time, even comparing his skill set to former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young. 

"If you look back through Steve's career, people don't remember his time before he came into the NFL," Payton told reporters in August 2019. "You had a very athletic player that I think advanced when he got to San Francisco and he always had great ability with his legs."

The Saints solidified how highly they regarded Hill this offseason when they put a first-round tender on him as a restricted free agent, meaning any team that wanted to sign him would have to sacrifice their first-round draft pick. 

Brees, who signed a two-year deal worth $50 million in March to remain with New Orleans, has plotted out his post-playing career. Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reported last month the 13-time Pro Bowler will be an NBC analyst on Sunday Night Football after retiring from the NFL.

Hill, 29, has only attempted 13 passes during the regular season in three seasons. He set a career-high with 390 yards from scrimmage and seven total touchdowns on 46 touches in 2019.  

There are few more iconic names than the Superdome when it comes to the NFL, but the New Orleans Saints' home will reportedly have a new moniker in 2021. 

Christopher Dodson of Forbes reported the Saints' naming rights agreement with Mercedes-Benz is not scheduled to be renewed after it expires next year. Saints senior vice president of communications Greg Bensel said the NFC South club is looking for a new partner that will change the name from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Mercedes-Benz was the first company to put its name on the Superdome, doing so in 2011 for the building that opened its doors in 1975.

Mike Triplett of ESPN noted the deal with Mercedes-Benz was worth approximately $50 million-$60 million, but this change "seemed likely" since the automaker signed a naming rights deal with the NFC South rival Atlanta Falcons for their new stadium in 2017.

"The Mercedes-Benz Superdome is a globally iconic building that brings a tremendous valuable future for a naming rights partner," Bensel said, per Jeff Adelson of NOLA.com. "As with the philosophy of the Saints organization and the stature of the building, it will serve to represent our city, state and region as a leader to better our community, to be a more than just a naming rights opportunity, but a real partner, just as Mercedes-Benz was. And in that partnership, the goal will be to bring positive change to our region, our city and state, through a number of initiatives."

While the famous building is best known for hosting the NFL's Saints, it has served as the home for a number of college football bowl games and national championships, including the most recent one, as well as concerts, political events, a visit from the Pope and more.

Muhammad Ali won a heavyweight title inside the Superdome, and Michael Jordan famously announced his presence to the basketball world with a championship-winning jumper as a freshman at North Carolina.

It was also used as a shelter following Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The naming rights won't be the only change in the coming years, as Triplett noted the building is scheduled to receive $450 million worth of renovations by 2024.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas is providing support for front-line workers.

On Tuesday, Thomas announced a donation of 3,000 meals to employees at Ochsner Health system facilities throughout the New Orleans area.

The meals will be donated in partnership with Raising Cane's, a restaurant chain based in Baton Rouge that specializes in chicken fingers.

"I wanted to do my part and support our front-line health care workers who are caring for so many in our community," Thomas said. "I thought they would enjoy having some Cane's during their shift. And I'm grateful to my friend, Todd Graves, for joining me in letting our health care workers know how much they are appreciated."

Amid the coronavirus pandemic, Raising Cane's employees who don't work at a drive-thru establishment have been making protective facemasks for donation.

Thomas has become a key player for the Saints since they drafted him in the second round in 2016. He set an NFL record with 149 receptions last season and led the league with 1,725 receiving yards.

The All In Challenge has brought in $55,000 more for charities devoted to COVID-19 relief after one person won an auction for a package that includes a signed jersey from New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and pregame sideline passes to the team's NFL game against the Las Vegas Raiders next season.

The winning bidder and four guests will travel on the Saints team's charter plane to and from Vegas and also take part in the "Team Snack" the night before.

The Saints-at-Raiders contest will take place Sept. 21 in the regular-season debut of Allegiant Stadium, the new home of the Silver and Black following their move from Oakland, California.

The package began with a $2,500 starting bid before 30 more offers drove the price up to its final number.

Fanatics founder and Philadelphia 76ers limited partner Michael Rubin created the All In Challenge, which consists of celebrities and athletes putting items and experiences up for auction with all proceeds going to Feeding America, Meals on Wheels, World Central Kitchen and No Kid Hungry.

As of Saturday, 386 celebrities and athletes who have contributed to the cause, which has raised nearly $43,000,000.