(Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
The New Orleans Saints are adding some help along the defensive line before the start of the NFL regular season.
They are acquiring John Ridgeway III in a trade with the Washington Commanders, according to NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport.
“A fresh start for a player brought in by the previous regime,” Rapoport wrote on X.
The #Commanders are trading DT John Ridgeway III to the #Saints, sources tell me, @MikeGarafolo and @TomPelissero.
A fresh start for a player brought in by the previous regime. pic.twitter.com/7gj0aEUs1N
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 28, 2024
A fifth-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys in the 2022 NFL Draft, Ridgeway played in 32 games over the past two seasons for Washington.
He has recorded 55 total tackles, no sacks and a forced fumble.
Standing at 6-foot-5 and weighing 321 pounds, Ridgeway could provide some depth for head coach Dennis Allen’s defense in New Orleans.
With starters Khalen Saunders and Nathan Shepherd manning the middle of the line, Ridgeway will join Bryan Bresee and Khristian Boyd as the backups.
With longtime Pro Bowl edge rusher Cameron Jordan, All-Pro linebacker Demario Davis, former Defensive Rookie of the Year Chase Young and Pro Bowl cornerback Marshon Lattimore all in the fold, the Saints defense has the potential to be one of the better units in the league.
New Orleans was a top-10 defense in many categories last season, and adding some more beef in the middle in the form of Ridgeway should only help moving forward.
If the Saints hope to make the playoffs, the defense has to be the focal point, along with quarterback Derek Carr staying healthy.
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