It’s been a tough week for the New Orleans Saints. Like every other team around the league, they’ve had to cut dozens of players from their roster and choose who to bring back for their practice squad. And one of those roster cuts stood out from the others, raising the ire of many Saints fans: Jaylon Smith.
The veteran linebacker impressed in preseason and was clearly the third-best player at the position in New Orleans behind the established starters Demario Davis and Pete Werner. But he was still released at the roster cuts deadline, later returning to the practice squad.
Buy Saints TicketsSaints head coach Dennis Allen acknowledged Smith’s accomplishments and value to the team after the linebacker returned, but demurred when asked why Smith didn’t make the cut for the roster to begin with. Allen had earlier said Smith would need to play special teams to make the cut, and when he didn’t do that in the preseason games he wound up being released.
“You only get 53 spots,” Allen conceded, “We’ve got 53 puzzle pieces and we’re trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. And there’s a lot of manipulation that goes along with that. I think it was a factor of trying to get the right 53, and who could we get on the practice squad.”
One advantage to — temporarily — cutting Smith was that he didn’t test the waiver wire thanks to his veteran status. The Saints were able to release him outright and later re-sign him to their practice squad without a hitch. Sure, other teams had the opportunity to sign him themselves, but they had all summer to do that. Smith and the Saints evidently agreed that his best fit was in New Orleans even if it’s in a reduced role.
There are other players the Saints may have wanted to hold onto but who would have hit waivers had they been released — including other linebackers like Zack Baun, Nephi Sewell, and D’Marco Jackson. If all of them are in the team’s plans this season, even if they’re limited to covering punts and kickoffs, it wouldn’t make sense to risk losing them when Smith was a safe bet for stashing on the practice squad. Teams still need to activate 48 of their 53 rostered players on game days and it does make more sense to keep guys in that number who can help in multiple phases. If the Saints need Smith to fill in for Demario Davis or Pete Werner in the event of an injury, he’ll be available for promotion.
Still, it’s a tough look to see Smith outplay Baun and not make the cut, just like it’s difficult to accept Tre’Quan Smith keeping a roster spot over Shaquan Davis or Jontre Kirklin. Whether it’s draft status or steps in a process we can’t fully see yet, the Saints made some roster moves that didn’t quite sit well with the fanbase. But if Allen’s team can just win games this year and get back to the playoffs it’ll all be nothing more than a distant memory.
