Reunion: Former #Saints LB Kiko Alonso worked out for New Orleans this morning and is expected to sign, source said. He hasn’t played since 2019, but is in shape and the Saints will take a shot given his familiarity.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 4, 2022
Here’s a surprise reunion. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the New Orleans Saints are expected to re-sign Kiko Alonso after a group tryout on Thursday that included free agent linebackers Anthony Hitchens, Jon Bostic, and Chase Hansen, who also previously suited up for the Saints, per the daily NFL transactions wire. His signing was confirmed by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. Alonso, who turns 32 in a few weeks, last played for the Saints in 2019 before being traded to the San Francisco 49ers (where he never played a down while recovering from a knee injury). A couple of years later he’s back in better health and looking for a comeback.
Alonso does bring a lot of NFL experience, which the Saints depth chart has been lacking. While Demario Davis is entrenched in the starting lineup, second-year pro Pete Werner is poised to start next to him with career backups Kaden Elliss and Zack Baun slotted in behind them. New Orleans must have wanted someone with more meaningful reps on the depth chart in case Davis or Werner miss time during the regular season, though it remains to be seen whether Alonso has anything left in the tank after three years out of pro football. Still, good for him to work hard and earn this opportunity.
With that said, this looks rough in light of Kwon Alexander’s signing with the New York Jets on the eve of training camp. The Saints traded Alonso to San Francisco in the first place as a salary-dumping move to acquire Alexander, who put together a very solid two-year run for New Orleans. But he and the team weren’t able to reach an agreement on a contract that would have led to a third year together, so he’ll be suiting up for his old coach Robert Saleh with the Jets this season. If the Saints had acted more aggressively to re-up Alexander, maybe they could have avoided this situation altogether.
