3x Pro Bowler Larry Warford Released by New Orleans Saints

The 2020 NFL schedule is out and the new draft picks are starry-eyed ahead of their upcoming debuts, which will see them fulfill their lifelong dreams. However, the journey ahead is not so smooth with cuts being the norm in the offseason. Sometimes these are for no fault of the players themselves, but rather due to circumstances. Larry Warford learned this the hard way on Friday after being cut by New Orleans Saints.

New Orleans Saints release Larry Warford 

The right guard bears no ill will against his former team. He put out a tweet expressing his gratitude for 3 glorious seasons. 

The 28-year-old joined the franchise in 2017 as a free agent. At the time he signed a 4 season, $34 million contract. He had a stellar trio of seasons at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome which resulted in three Pro-Bowl appearances. 

However, eagle-eyed fans could have seen this coming as the Saints drafted Michigan center Cesar Ruiz with the 24th pick at the 2020 NFL draft. 

Sean Payton hinted at a switch to guard for either Ruiz or sophomore center Erik McCoy. At the time of the draft, he said, “We think one of them is going to be a guard, because we weren’t drafting someone that high to come in and be a backup.”

He also said Warford would face competition for his spot. However, the 2013 3rd round draft pick did not get the opportunity to compete as the team opted to free up cap space. 

They cleared up $7.75 million which will significantly add up to the $4 million cap space they started with on Friday. The deal saw them leave $5.125 million in dead money. 

The 28-year-old may not float around the free agency for too long though. Mere hours after the shocking release, Houston Chronicle’s John McClain reported that The Texans are looking at Warford as someone to bolster the team’s defensive line. 

Will Larry Warford find a new team quickly like quarterbacks Andy Dalton and Jameis Winston? Or will he enter free agency limbo akin to another quarterback in Cam Newton?

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