Story by
Saints waive Devin Neal and Mike Heldman from injured reserve
- Story by
- Saints waive Devin Neal and Mike Heldman from injured reserve
On Thursday, the New Orleans Saints waived running back Devin Neal and edge rusher Michael Heldman from injured reserve with injury settlements. This was first reported by Mike Triplett of neworleans.football on Thursday afternoon. Both Neal (hamstring) and Heldman (undisclosed) were placed on injured reserve before final roster cutdowns last weekend, meaning that they would miss the entire 2026 season. Now, each will go onto waivers with an opportunity to be picked up by another team with an opportunity to play this year.
New Orleans could also re-sign Neal and/or Heldman. However, Triplett reports that they wouldn't be eligible to do so until the time of their injury settlements expire, plus an additional three-week penalty imposed by the NFL. The latter was put in place by the league to prevent teams from taking advantage of the injured reserve with a destination to return list. The Saints had already used their allowable two players from training camp for that list with wide receiver Jordyn Tyson and linebacker Jaylan Ford . However, this would allow the possibility of Neal or Heldman returning to New Orleans to play in 2026 if not picked up by another team.
Advertisement
Neal was a sixth-round pick by the Saints out of Kansas in the 2025 NFL Draft. He showed encouraging traits as a rookie, picking up 300 yards from scrimmage over a seven-week stretch around mid-season before being lost for the year with an ankle injury. Neal injured a hamstring in training camp this summer. Upon his return, he aggravated the same hamstring a week later to sideline him again.
Heldman is an undrafted rookie from the Central Michigan Chippewas. Heldman made a good impression early in camp. He also had a major impact in the preseason opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars , recording two sacks and was in on a few tackles for loss. Heldman cooled off a little in the final two preseason games before leaving the finale against the Dallas Cowboys with an undisclosed injury.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints waive Devin Neal and Mike Heldman from injured reserve
