Well, one of the first dominos of the Saints' offseason has already fallen. With free agency set to open in just less than a week, cornerback Alontae Taylor said his goodbye to the New Orleans Saints on social media.
"New Orleans - thank you for letting me shine in “The Big Easy," Taylor said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
It's his second message to the city in as many weeks and all but confirms what's been suspected for the past few months. Taylor, one of the more versatile cornerbacks in the league, is going to leave the Saints for greener pastures, quite literally. He's expected to be priced out of New Orleans, with Spotrac setting his average annual value at $11.2 million before the negotiation period even starts.
The Saints could lose more than Alontae Taylor this offseason
Alontae Taylor could be just the first of several significant players to leave the Saints. Taysom Hill, who will be 35 if he plays in 2026, has a decent chance of retiring, by the way things look right now. Injuries might finally have caught up to the human Swiss Army Knife, as he's missed 13 games over the past two seasons due to injury. A staple of the Saints offense for the past nine years, Hill could be the next guy to go.
Then there's linebacker Demario Davis. One of the greatest free agent signings in recent memory, the 2018 signee might make his departure from the Crescent City. In an interview on the Up and Adams show earlier this year, the two-time Pro-Bowler and five-time All-Pro said that he's "returning to the NFL," and not specifically the Saints.
Longtime Saint Cam Jordan is also expected to hit the open market. Reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter as recently as Thursday, it's only if the Saints and their franchise sack leader can't agree to a deal before March 11, which is less than a week away. If that is the case, as Schefter's recent report suggests, it will be the first time in Jordan's 15-year NFL career that he tests free agency.
Schefter concludes the report by stating that Jordan is open to moving from New Orleans to another city. Mickey Loomis would be a fool to let the eight-time Pro-Bowler and the two-time All-Pro walk. The loss to the locker room would be substantial, let alone how weird it would be to see Jordan in another uniform. It's hard to tell how this could turn out, but if the team captain does leave, that would be bad news for the Saints.