Before signing the Washington Commanders, K'Lavon Chaisson had an offer on the table from the New Orleans Saints. The Saints were offering more years, but the per year average was pretty close. Saints Wire's John Sigler pointed out Chaisson's agent was trying to get the Saints to $13/year, but that wasn't agreed upon.
Hard to question Chaisson’s decision. If you believe in yourself, this was a smart bet. The deal with the Commanders was just one year. While it does give Chaisson less security, it gives him a chance to hit the market again earlier. Edge rushers get paid handsomely. So handsomely that $11 million is nothing compared to his peers.
Chaisson is coming off two strong years once getting out of Jacksonville. He totaled 5 sacks with the Raiders and 7.5 on New England's Super Bowl defense. The LSU product would hit double digit sacks with the same jump in 2026. That would likely result in him coming close to doubling his annual salary next year.
K’Lavon Chaisson would have completely changed the Saints offseason
Longevity of the deal wasn't the only motivating factor behind Chaisson turning the Saints down. He also just wasn't sure the Saints offense would build leads to maximize his pass rush opportunities. It's an important that even with the hype, not everyone is sold on the potential of Tyler Shough.
The Saints checked a lot of boxes this offseason to help build around Shough. They secured Travis Etienne, David Edwards and Noah Fant in free agent. That had already happened by the time Chaisson was making his decision. Since then, they've made the splash of drafting Jordyn Tyson.
You wonder what would Chaisson decide now. The Saints loaded up on offensive weaponry this offseason, and the duo of Chris Olave and Tyson could change a lot. The Saints now have a definitively more exciting set of skill players than the Commanders. The separating factor could be Jayden Daniels vs Shough. That isn't a battle Shough can win yet, so maybe none of the extra additions matter.
Missing out on Chaisson is huge because it would have solved the current biggest need on the team. It would have completely changed the way we looked at the offseason. The Saints already pulled in a great haul. Getting an ascending player at a premier position would have been the ultimate cherry on top.
Honestly, signing Chaisson likely would have expedited the Cam Jordan situation. While the Saints always needed multiple edge rushers with Jordan, Chaisson may have given you the comfort to rely on one younger, competent pass rusher rather than multiple lesser rushers. It also may have made Jordan want to go elsewhere for a bigger role.
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