New Orleans Saints Undrafted Rookie Profile: Kaleb Eulls

The New Orleans Saints, like always, made quite a big splash in the undrafted free agent market, racking up on some promising young talent for life at the next level. Draft picks aside, an additional 13 rookies were signed to contracts to help add to the positional competition.

As we all know, the Black and Gold struggled mightily on the defensive side of the ball a season ago. Whether it was the secondary, the linebacker unit, or the defensive line, which we’ll be focused on today, the struggle was apparent.

One name we better get used to this summer is Kaleb Eulls, a defensive tackle with a fair shot at making the team. The Mississippi State product was part of an aggressive SEC defense, and his four years of experience as a true starter in the powerhouse conference could make for an interesting camp with the Saints.

The 2011 All-SEC freshman is no expert pass rusher, but he was able to generate a respectable career with the Bulldogs. With a strong lower body, commendable upper-body strength, desirable pursuit and a consistency that lasted four consecutive years, Kaleb Eulls could certainly put up a fight. However, he’ll need time to develop, specifically in the hand usage department.

From NFL.com:

"Has the athletic ability and motor to be effective against the run and was good enough to start for four years in the challenging SEC West. Eulls needs a great deal of improvement as a pass rusher and some of that improvement can come with better hand usage. Has the look of a competent NFL backup."

From HailState.com:

"A rock solid starter and leader on the defensive line for four seasons … Started all 52 games of his career acquiring 118 tackles, 8.5 tackles for a loss of 34 yards, four sacks, one pass breakup and a fumble recovery … Named to the 2011 All-SEC Freshman Team in a vote by the league’s coaches . . . Was the only defensive freshman (true or redshirt) to start all 13 games in the SEC in 2011 . . . Saw time at both defensive tackle and defensive end during developmental season but played predominantly at defensive tackle his final three seasons … Selected to the Senior Bowl following his final season."

Kaleb Eulls pro-day measurables:

Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 295 LBS
40-yard dash: 5.20 and 5.26 secs
Vertical jump: 28 inches
Broad jump: 8 feet, 8 inches
20-yard shuttle: 4.59 secs
3-cone drill: 7.31 secs
Bench press (225 LBS): 26 reps

Check out this video of Eulls’ heroism from 2009. It may have been six years ago, but it’s still something that should continue to be honored. It shows his true character, which supposedly hasn’t changed since this incident. Coach Sean Payton, of course, looks for guys like this.

New Orleans’ current defensive tackle, nose tackle — whatever you want to call it — situation is far below mediocre. Brodrick Bunkley, once a solid NFL talent, has been beyond disappointing since taking his talents over to the Big Easy in 2012.

John Jenkins was an admirable third-round draft pick two years ago, however, he hasn’t been the most consistent producer on defense either. Then we have Lawrence Virgil, an undrafted free agent last season and likely Kaleb Eulls’ biggest competition alongside Tyeler Davison (2015 fifth-round pick) and Bobby Richardson (2015 UDFA).

We’re looking at what may be the most heated positional battle on the bayou this summer. Kaleb Eulls will need to bring his A-game if he has plans of playing for the New Orleans Saints in 2015, but this is a guy who could develop into something solid under the proper care of a solid coaching staff.

Next: Saints scheduled to report to training camp July 29

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