The New Orleans Saints gave an unfortunate update involving offensive lineman Nick Saldiveri. Kellen Moore announced the guard is headed to injured reserve after suffering a knee injury in training camp. The announcement comes a day after the Saints signed Shane Lemieux.
For Saldiveri, this is the second year in a row he has suffered a long-term injury during training camp. Last year an injury took him out of training camp and dashed his hopes of winning the starting guard competition. The stakes weren’t as high for the guard this year, but the ramifications of this injury are much worse.
Saldiveri returned from injury last season. He won't be as lucky this year. Because Saldiveri was placed on injured reserve during training camp, his season is officially over.
Saints signing Shane Lemieux makes a little more sense now
The decision to bring Lemieux back to the Saints was interesting on the surface. There was no expectation for him to step back into the starting lineup, but he was a part of the interior offensive line that struggled in 2024. Lemieux wasn't the silver lining either.
The Saints made a concerted effort to bolster the interior this offseason. They moved Trevor Penning to guard in hopes of playing on the inside maximizing his strengths. The Penning move completed the starting lineup, but New Orleans also brought in Dillon Radunz and Will Clapp.
Radunz is a former starter, and Clapp started 11 games for Moore with the Los Angeles Chargers. By all accounts, it seemed like the Saints were secure on the interior from a starting and depth standpoint.
Now that Sadiveri is out for the season, it makes sense to replace him with another guard to fill out the room. Lemieux doesn't come back to New Orleans as anything more than a player who may not even be active on game day. You did need to replace Saldiveri, however, so that explains the signing.