Report: Khalen Saunders Signing With New Orleans Saints
The Kansas City Chiefs' defensive line entered the 2023 NFL free agent period with the potential to undergo a fair amount of change, and that's exactly how things are unfolding as things progress. Along Steve Spagnuolo's defensive line, there's a four-year player leaving town on a new deal.
Per Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, defensive tackle Khalen Saunders is signing with the New Orleans Saints:
A (literally) big addition for the #Saints: DT Khalen Saunders is expected to sign with New Orleans, sources tell me and @RapSheet.
Saunders is coming off his best season with the Super Bowl champion #Chiefs, recording 3.5 sacks. - Tom Pelissero @TomPelissero on Wednesday, March 15, 2023 at 10:19 a.m. CT
Pelissero reports that the contract from the Saints is a three-year pact worth a maximum of $14.5 million. Saunders, who hit the free agent market for the first time after his rookie deal expired at the end of the 2022-23 campaign, was projected by Spotrac to be worth an average annual value of $6.4M on his next contract.
In four years as a Chief after being drafted in the third round back in 2019, Saunders played in 38 games and recorded 81 tackles (three for loss), 4.5 sacks and a pair of passes broken up. The veteran has 10 quarterback hits in his career, including eight that came in just this past season alone. The most recent campaign was easily Saunders's best, as he played in 16 games and saw a career-high 39% snap share on defense (421 total). According to Pro Football Focus, Saunders had 15 pressures on the year after combining for 10 in the previous three seasons.
On Tuesday, Saunders took to Twitter to provide a "transparent moment" where he thanked the Chiefs' fans for supporting him since he arrived in Kansas City. Below is the second portion of that thread, one in which he described an "emotional as hell" free agency process:
"Jesus Christ, I’m not built for free agency lol, my whole life at any level I’ve been the unifier in the locker room. So my relationships with my dawgs be different, be personal. This shit feel like transferring schools from my best friends 😭 my big ass been emotional as hell 😂" - Saunders (via Twitter @khalenNOTkaylen) on Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at 12:21 p.m. CT
