The New Orleans Saints are known for always churning the bottom of their roster to find the right combination of players, and here’s another move. Per Monday’s update to the daily NFL transactions wire, the Saints waived veteran cornerback Cameron Dantzler Sr., who had been inactive since being signed to the 53-man roster on Nov. 21.
There’s a good chance Dantzler will return to the practice squad if he clears waivers; that’s where he started out with the Saints, having been elevated for two games earlier this year. But there’s a chance they’re ready to move on altogether after better options emerged to round out the depth chart.
One of those players is Shemar Jean-Charles. To their credit, the Saints overlooked his size limitations (at 5-foot-10 and 184 pounds, he’s the lightest defensive back on their roster). He’s gotten on the field with half of the special teams units in the last two weeks, including kickoff coverage, punt coverage, and punt returns. Dantzler was limited to work with the punt returns team.
More roster moves are on the way. The Saints will have two open spots on the 53-man roster after waiving Dantzler and losing linebacker Nephi Sewell to a season-ending knee injury. They also have a vacancy on the practice squad. Stay tuned for updates as they finalize personnel for Week 18’s regular season finale with the Atlanta Falcons.