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Saints Rank 26th or Worse at Tackle, and Dylan Cook Could Start on Either Side After a Trade
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- Saints Rank 26th or Worse at Tackle, and Dylan Cook Could Start on Either Side After a Trade
The New Orleans Saints used two first-round picks on tackles, and four games in, the position is a problem. Tyler Shough has been sacked 12 times, Kelvin Banks Jr. is on injured reserve and left tackle replacement Asim Richards committed a false start one snap before a sack in the 45-24 loss to Atlanta. PFF's Bradley Locker lists the Saints among four possible fits for Pittsburgh Steelers tackle Dylan Cook, one of his 15 trade candidates before the Nov. 10 deadline.
Locker wrote that the Packers, Texans and Saints "all rank 26th or worse in overall grade at the position, either due to injury or underperformance," and called Cook "a possible starter at either tackle spot." Cook, 28, played quarterback at Butte High School, started 23 games at tackle for Montana and went undrafted in 2022.
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Cook covers both Saints tackle spots cheaply
Aug 13, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Dylan Cook (60) blocks Green Bay Packers defensive end Brenton Cox Jr. (57) during the first half at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images
Injury and underperformance both apply in New Orleans. Banks was expected to have surgery on a severe high ankle sprain from Week 2, and NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reported any return would likely come late in the season. According to PFF, Richards has a 46.1 overall grade on 176 snaps since taking over for Banks , and right tackle Taliese Fuaga, who has played all 306 offensive snaps, has a 48.5 pass-blocking grade.
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Cook has graded well above that on each side. He made his NFL debut in Week 14 last season and closed the year at left tackle with a 77.4 overall grade, per PFF, a stretch that included four regular-season starts . He opened 2026 at right tackle with a 76.4 grade and five pressures allowed on 94 pass-blocking snaps, per PFF, before first-round pick Max Iheanachor replaced him ahead of Week 3. That grade rests on 135 snaps across two games, according to PFF, a small sample.
He would cost little. Cook is in the final year of a two-year, $2.035 million contract with a $1.075 million salary, according to Over the Cap, and New Orleans has about $4.8 million in 2026 cap space plus a pick in each of the first six rounds in 2027.
The obstacle is Pittsburgh, which traded Broderick Jones to Dallas in August and lists Cook behind Iheanachor on its depth chart. Locker wrote the Steelers "very well may elect to retain Cook," and a 2-2 team starting a rookie at right tackle has little reason to move a reserve who has started on both sides.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Oct 7, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
