Saints roster moves hint at Chase Young’s return

By Ross Jackson

It can be easy to read too much into roster moves, timing and other indicators when it comes to NFL teams, but this is one worth rolling the dice over. 

On Tuesday, the New Orleans Saints announced a flurry of roster moves that were headlined by the signing of veteran cornerback Michael Davis. 

But one of the other transactions might have a more substantial impact on the roster. The Saints terminated the practice squad contract of linebacker and pass rusher Garrett Nelson. While that alone isn’t necessarily a “say it ain’t so” move, coupled with the team’s hopeful return of defensive end Chase Young, it could be one of the most consequential indicators on the team’s health progress. 

Nelson was signed to the practice squad after Young experienced a calf injury during the first regular season practice. That injury has now sidelined Young for five weeks. However, the termination of Nelson’s deal could preempt a return on the way. 

New Orleans had three defensive ends on its active roster while Young has been out with injury: veterans Cameron Jordan, Carl Granderson and Chris Rumph II. To navigate the injury and have their desired numbers at the position on game day, the team had been elevating ends Fadil Diggs and Eku Leota from the practice squad. 

However, Diggs is all out of standard elevations (teams are limited to three per player, per year), and now Nelson is out. 

That leaves the team with just two more elevations for Leota. A player that has impressed teammates, but is unlikely to see much run even when elevated. 

So with the diminishing options on the practice squad, it seems logical to assume that Young’s return could be within the next few weeks. Otherwise, New Orleans will exhaust all of Leota’s elevations and then will have to go out and pursue another option.