It hurts to see a beloved player succeed elsewhere, even if it's just in training camp. Former New Orleans Saints' cornerback Paulson Adebo is already making plays with his new team, the New York Giants.
With the Saints' depth at cornerback looking shaky, this might have fans wishing Adebo were still around.Unfortunately, Adebo's rise made him too expensive for the Saints to keep around. He left for the New York Giants in free agency, signing a three-year, $54 million deal.
Adebo suffered a season ending leg injury in 2024, but he's already back on the field for the beginning of Giants training camp. It's still early, but the cornerback is already back to making plays on the football, a regular occurrence when he was in New Orleans.
Former Saints CB Paulson Adebo makes highlight play in training camp
Does anybody wish we could go back to the Saints' secondary from a few years ago? Marshon Lattimore, Tyrann Mathieu, and Adebo headlined one of the best units in the league. Now, with all three players gone, Saints fans are stuck reminiscing about the glorious past.
The Saints took Adebo in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Adebo was a promising prospect coming out of Stanford, but he still had some room to grow.
It took Adebo a couple of years to develop into the player he is today. As a rookie, he struggled to keep up with NFL wide receivers. But as his career progressed, Adebo became a rising star. In four years with New Orleans, Adebo posted ten interceptions and 29 pass deflections. In each of his last two seasons, he allowed an opposing passer rating lower than 70.
The Giants just started training camp, but Adebo is already making plays.
Paulson Adebo PBU 🔐 pic.twitter.com/KJ1Ert3d8x
— New York Giants (@Giants) July 23, 2025
Early in camp, Adebo broke up a pass to Giants' receiver Darius Slayton in the end zone. It's a play that Saints fans are familiar with him making, but it just doesn't feel right to see him make it in a different uniform.
Without Adebo around, the Saints' secondary looks much less solid than it has in years past. Kool-Aid McKinstry is set to start at one of the outside cornerback spots. McKinstry was good as a rookie, but his play was inconsistent.
To fill the other cornerback position, the Saints signed former 49er Isaac Yiadom in free agency. Yiadom has been decent throughout his career, including a brief stint in New Orleans, but he's never had to be a full-time starter.
The depth behind those two is a serious cause for concern.
If Adebo were still in New Orleans, the secondary would feel much more secure. Let's hope that McKinstry and Yiadom can step up in his absence.