After being released by the New Orleans Saints earlier this week, running back Dwayne Washington said that he would not be gone for long. He was right. Per Thursday’s update to the NFL transaction wire, the sixth-year veteran has re-signed with New Orleans.
2022 will be Washington’s fifth season with the Saints, after he spent his first two years in the NFL with the Detroit Lions. He’s been a core special teamer throughout his time with the team but has pushed for a larger offensive role this offseason. Washington, along with Tony Jones Jr., Devine Ozigbo, Malcolm Brown and Abram Smith were a part of the hotly contested running back battle this offseason. It’ll be Washington and Jones backing up Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram II.
Washington has appeared in 71 career games totaling 554 rushing yards but scoring only one total touchdown. He’ll look to add to those numbers this year after an impressive opening preseason game. He’s told New Orleans media that he’s playing with more confidence than ever before, and the Saints are giving him the opportunity he’s earned to make good on it.
So why did the Saints release Washington in the first place? They needed both left tackle Trevor Penning and defensive tackle Malcolm Roach to spend at least one day on the initial 53-man roster before being sent to injured reserve in order to give them a shot at returning later this year, so briefly cutting Washington opened the space needed to carry both injured players for a day. As a vested veteran, Washington wasn’t eligible for waivers and could safely take on free agent status before quickly re-upping with the team. Procedural moves like this are common before the regular season starts, but it only happens when there’s plenty of trust between the player and the team.
