Something odd is going on with the New Orleans Saints. The team set its 53-man roster like every other outfit across the league at last week’s NFL-mandated deadline, and then continued tweaking things by assembling a 16-man practice squad, sending some rostered players to injured reserve, submitting a couple of semi-successful waiver claims, and briefly cutting running back Dwayne Washington before re-signing him to facilitate some of those other moves. Now they’re left with 16 guys on the practice squad, which is normal. But there’s a hole on the 53-man roster where another player should be.
If you check the official website’s public roster (as of 5 p.m. CT on Monday), you’ll find that only 52 of the 53 allotted roster spots are occupied, though all 16 practice squad vacancies are filled. Those opportunities come at a premium, so it’s curious to see the Saints operating at below capacity, even at this chaotic early stage in the offseason.
