Credit: Jeff Blake-Imagn Images
By Ross Jackson
One of the most competitive position groups on the New Orleans Saints’ roster throughout the summer will be the team’s cornerback room.
Battles could be had for starting positions after the addition of free agent corner Martin Emerson Jr., which will garner much of the attention. However, there will be intriguing competition for depth at the position, as well.
One of the players to watch in the depth battle will be undrafted free agent acquisition DaShawn Jones from Alabama.
Jones has experience playing both in the slot and on the boundary as a corner with Wake Forest and the Crimson Tide.
Over his collegiate career, he compiled 104 tackles, 5.5 for a loss, a half-sack, four interceptions, and 11 passes defended. In 2025, he returned his lone interception for an 18-yard touchdown.
Jones’ size, 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds could be tuned well for slot play at the next level. That’s an area where the Saints don’t presently have a presumed starter, at least outside of the building.
That could be his path to landing on the practice squad, providing depth and development at a key position for coordinator Brandon Staley’s defense.
With his most productive season coming in 2023, where he took the most snaps as a boundary corner, and recent experience in the slot with Alabama under his belt, there’s promise for Jones and how he might be able to develop in competition with other cornerbacks like Dalys Beanum and fellow 2026 undrafted free agent Jeremiah McClendon.
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