This Sunday, Zack Baun returns to the Caesars Superdome for the second time as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles. The first matchup was to face his former team, the New Orleans Saints. This go-around, the stakes are much higher.
As Baun prepares for Super Bowl LIX, he reminisced on his time in New Orleans. It’s hard not to when he’s stepping on a field he called home where “even the smells have brought me back to certain periods of time.”
It wasn’t all good in New Orleans. His first year in Philadelphia has been surprising because of his lack of production through four years with New Orleans. Baun was stuck on the bench with the Saints but has earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro attention with the Eagles. He just might be the Defensive Player of the Year, too.
The Saints have earned a lot of criticism for their mishandling of Baun. He spent most of his time on special teams or being placed at the seldom-used SAM linebacker. They clearly didn’t know how to use him, and Baun was equally as lost.
“I think when I was here, I didn’t know what I was. I didn’t know if I was an off-ball linebacker, on-ball backer,” Baun said in hindsight. The only thing he was truly sure of was that, “it didn’t necessarily feel right.”
His move to the Eagles was clearly the right decision and showed he is an off-ball linebacker. Being able to work with Vic Fangio, has paid dividends.
Baun nearly doubled his career totals in tackles, sacks and tackles for a loss. Now he’ll have a chance to be an integral part of a Super Bowl winning team.
When he played the Saints in New Orleans in Week 3, Baun had 13 tackles in a victory. He’ll be looking for similar output and outcome on Sunday.
