Former Montana State offensive lineman Lewis Kidd was the only undrafted rookie to make the New Orleans Saints’ initial 53-man roster on Tuesday, but time will tell if he hangs on. The Saints will continue to churn its roster over the next week and assemble their practice squad, with some players moving on and off the team in procedural moves. A couple of players will also go on injured reserve, where they can return to the active roster after being sidelined for at least four weeks (up to eight players can do this in 2022).
But Kidd is in a good spot. He impressed as a run blocker in preseason but needs to work on his pass protection reps, and he has time to improve behind Ryan Ramczyk and Landon Young at right tackle. With injuries thinning out the position group — backup left tackle Trevor Penning is one of those players who will miss time with an injury, while the starter, James Hurst, as well as Young have also been on the mend — retaining Kidd was an easy decision.
Hopefully he can continue to do his part to stick around. Kidd has held his own at right tackle after converting from left tackle in college (he has some experience lining up at right guard, which may have helped with the transition), and it speaks more to the strengths of the team than the quality of this year’s undrafted rookie class that he’s the last man standing. It’s possible the team ends up waiving him to try and sneak him on the practice squad after other squads are established around the league, but he’s passed the first test. It’s on Kidd to keep it up in the days and weeks ahead.
