The New Orleans Saints have added a wide receiver/running back. The team is signing Velus Jones Jr., according to a Saturday evening report by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
Jones was originally a third-round pick of the Chicago Bears in 2022, going 71st overall in the draft. He'd spend two full seasons there and a little bit of the 2024 season with the team before getting released on Oct. 24. He'd get picked up by the Jacksonville Jaguars several days later, joining their practice squad. In early December, Jones got signed to the Carolina Panthers active roster.
The Saints have been in the market for a wide receiver, even being in the running for Cooper Kupp. While Jones is certainly not Kupp, he does bring some versatility to New Orleans. Jones can return kicks, catch passes and was actually transitioning to running back with the Bears. It'll be interesting to see how Kellen Moore envisions Jones' role, and you just never know.
New Orleans has roughly $18.6 million of salary cap space to work with and has glaring needs to address. They could use a left guard and have been in the market for another cornerback. They have been able to bring back some of their own while retaining veterans and then adding with a few new players, mainly Davon Godchaux and Justin Reid on defense.
Free agency is ongoing, and right now everything salary cap related is in Top-51 mode. There's still a lot of top talent out there, and the Saints will continue to build out a roster that can compete in 2025 under Kellen Moore.
