As the New Orleans Saints prepare for their home opener on Sunday at 3:25 p.m. CT in the Superdome against the undefeated Las Vegas Raiders , the team made a number of moves on the roster.
As expected, offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jrwas placed on injured reserve after undergoing surgery for a severe high ankle spring in a freak play against Baltimore . The former #1 pick has a designated return, allowing him to come back with the team after four weeks. Because the surgery will recover a longer recovery timeline, sources tell us that it's more likely a 10-week recovery period. That would have Banks missing nine games, with the bye week coming in Week 8, placing him as an early-as-possible return of the November 29th game at Cincinnati .
Banks' replacement Asim Richards , played 28-snaps against Baltimore on Sunday. His grades were on the low end, as the former North Carolina Tar Heel scored an overall 49.4 on Pro Football Focus' (PFF) scale. His best grade was in pass blocking, with a 52.6. His run blocking was graded at 44.2 against the Ravens .
Looking at available players to take Banks' place on the roster, if they so desire, there are a trio of tackles on the Saints practice squad that could be moved up:
- Alan Herron, a 6' 3", 308-pound rookie out of Maryland
- Easton Kilty, 6' 6", 307-pound 1st year man from K-State (he had nice numbers from PFF during preseason games)
- Alex Wollschlaeger, 6' 7", 310 pound rookie from Kentucky (also decent numbers during preseason contests from PFF)
There are not a lot of free agent offensive tackles who are still available right now. However, a 1st round draft pick from ten years ago is available after leaving the only team he had ever played with.
- Taylor Decker
, age 32, originally a 1st round pick of Detroit
, spent all 10-seasons of his NFL career with the Lions. He requested his release from the team in the offseason and was granted it by the club on March 5.
Running back Audric Estim was waived by the Saints with an injury settlement amount. He suffered a thigh injury during the final preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys and was subsequently place on injured reserve. Estim is now free to sign with another team as soon as his agreed-upon recovery window closes.
Five year NFL veteran Cal Adomitis has been added to the active roster today. Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by Cincinnati after the NFL Draft in 2022, he appeared in 58 games with the Bengals and then the Eagles through 2025.The Pitt graduate played five season for the Panthers , hurling both long and short snaps in 64 consecutive games, the most in the school's history. He spent the offseason with three NFL teams in 2026: the Steelers , Packers , and Dolphins without sticking with any of them.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/saints/onsi as Saints Roster Moves: New Deep Snapper, Banks to IR, Popular RB Released .
