The preseason is about to come to a close for the New Orleans Saints when they take on the Dallas Cowboys Friday night. The contest will offer a final chance for players to put up performances that could be the difference between remaining in New Orleans on the active roster or practice squad and could give them the boost they need to potentially land with another franchise after putting up promising tape.
Here are three players looking to showcase their abilities one more time with a chance to extend their time in New Orleans or elsewhere across the NFL.
RB Zamir White
After being acquired by a trade with the San Francisco 49ers, running back Zamir White has only had a limited amount of time to put his talents on display for New Orleans. But it’s clear the team liked something about the back enough to make the move for him even in this late stage.
With that, he has a chance to potentially convince New Orleans that he should not only stick around on the practice squad, but could deserve consideration on the active roster.
White’s downhill ability is paired with 4.4-second 40-yard dash speed, patience and vision. He can be an important asset for the team as a depth player at the position with NFL experience. A strong game against the Cowboys, the only preseason game in which he’ll appear with his new team, could change the Saints’ thinking about how they address the running back room.
EDGE Mike Heldman
Billed as one of the players with the most to gain with a strong preseason finale, edge rusher Mike Heldman is a player that’s sure to be a target for other teams beyond New Orleans. A convincing performance against the Cowboys could create intrigue with how the Saints build out their edge rusher group going into the season.
Heldman had two sacks and a tackle for a loss in the first preseason game. With a repeat of that showing, and a rebound from the second week against the Los Angeles Rams, Heldman could generate some interesting conversation.
OL Easton Kilty
Hype has been building around the development of versatile offensive lineman Easton Kilty since the preseason games began. He’s consistently been one of the top performers across the offensive line, and his versatility has been eye-catching.
Kilty came into the NFL after a year at Kansas State working with some of the best offensive line coaching minds in college. That’s shown in New Orleans with his growth since spending a year on the practice squad last season. Continuing to show that trajectory could be the difference between the Saints keeping nine or 10 offensive linemen headed into 2026.
