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Saints Sign Former Pro Bowl Linebacker to One-Year Deal
0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. The New Orleans Saints lost All-Pro linebacker Demario Davis to the New York Jets this offseason and subsequently replaced him by bringing back Kaden Elliss, who had spent the three years prior with division rivals, the Atlanta Falcons.
With another move on Friday, the Saints are adding another former Falcon in former Pro Bowl linebacker Deion Jones.
"The Saints are signing veteran linebacker Deion Jones to a one-year deal. Jones now will have played for every team in the NFC South, but this might be the most meaningful. Jones was born in New Orleans, grew up there, and played high school football there before attending LSU." ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Friday.
This is somewhat of a homecoming for Jones, who as Schefter mentions is from and went to school in Louisiana.
And the fit is fairly ideal; the Saints are fairly thin at linebacker, with the room looking fairly meager behind Elliss, Pete Werner and current primary backup and 2025 fourth round pick Danny Stutsman.
Jones had a fantastic start to his pro career as a second-round pick coming out of LSU in 2016. The now-31-year-old made the Pro Bowl in 2017 and was handed a four year, $57 million extension 18 months later in July 2019. Jones remained the starter in Atlanta over the following three years before ultimately being traded to the Cleveland Browns in 2022.
Since then, Jones has bounced around multiple teams and has started just three games over the past three seasons, most recently spending time on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' practice squad.
This new signing gives both the Saints the chance to add more solid veteran depth to one of their shallower rooms on defense, whilst simultaneously giving Jones a possible pathway to making a 53-man roster in the twilight of his career.
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