Saints beat out Raiders to ink former Cowboys LB in free agency

New Orleans boosted its linebacker room by signing ex-Cowboy Jaylon Smith. Another era of gritty Saints defense is loading.

The Saints inked linebacker Jaylon Smith to a deal on Thursday in a savvy free agency move to shore up their defense.

Smith, a former Cowboys second-round pick, reportedly visited the Las Vegas Raiders earlier this month but left without a deal, which is exactly what happened with Anthony Barr and Kareem Hunt in NOLA recently.

The Smith signing makes the Saints forget all about the botched Barr and Hunt signings, however, as the team’s already stacked defense is gaining a valuable depth piece who can contribute in a limited rotational role.

Heading into 2023, the Saints already boast a supremely talented linebacker corps with Demario Davis, Pete Werner, and Zack Baun. At best, Smith slots into a backup role, but his consistent production is one of his highlighted hallmarks, and the team should be able to rely on him whenever his number is called this season.

The details of Smith’s deal were not yet made public.

Saints steal ex-Cowboys LB Jaylon Smith in free agency

In Smith’s eight-year career, he only has a 7.3 percent missed tackle rate, per PFF. Should youngsters Werner or Baun hit any sort of mid-season slump, Smith can immediately slide into the starting spot alongside Davis and keep the defense competitive week in and week out.

Following the Saints’ failed negotiations with Anthony Barr earlier this week, NOLA met up with the 28-year-old Smith and worked out a deal as first reported by the Score’s Jordan Schultz.

Smith last played with the New York Giants, recording 88 tackles in 13 games in 2022. The one-time Pro Bowler has managed to stay healthy for the majority of his career, and he comes to New Orleans with only a modest burden of expectations on his shoulders.

If last offseason marked the start of Jameis Winston’s redemption arc, this offseason marks the start of Derek Carr’s. Following the Carr signing, the Saints have opened their doors to a host of Raiders influences including Foster Moreau, Bryan Edwards, and most notably, ex-NFL coach Jon McGruden.

It would appear as though Dennis Allen, who spent some time on the Raiders coaching staff himself, is rubbing a tinge of silver into the black-and-gold as he enters what will hopefully be a much more successful second year of his reign. The Jaylon Smith signing looks good from all angles, but don’t give Allen too much credit yet: it’s really the offense that NOLA needs to worry about.