New Orleans Saints finally make the bold move at cornerback they've been hinting at all offseason. They are currently in the process to trade for Houston Texans veteran Bradley Roby according to ESPN.
The terms of the deal, first reported by NFL Network on February 1, have not yet been revealed.
Roby was a 2014 first-round draft selection of the Denver Broncos. The past two years Roby was in Houston, where he played 49 games and had 10 interceptions.
Roby, 29, will be receiving $10 million in salary and bonus payments this season as part of a $31.5 million three-year extension he signed last year with the Texans. He will miss the first game of the season, however, as part of a six-game suspension that began in 2020 for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances.
Since March, when they released Janoris Jenkins, a former starter, as part of a huge salary-cap purge, the Saints have considered cornerback a "must fill" position. Patrick Robinson, a potential starting candidate, then unexpectedly retired from training camp early. To land top prospects Jaycee Horn and Pat Surtain II, they even tried to trade nearly 20 spots in their NFL draft draft.
On Monday, Desmond Trufant, a veteran from New Orleans was signed to compete against Ken Crawley or rookie Paulson Adebo in the No. Pro Bowler Marshon Lattimore is the No. 2 starting cornerback. Roby is now the front-runner for that job after his suspension.
Roby is 5-foot-11 and 194 pounds. He started his career as a Broncos rotation player for four seasons, before becoming a full-time starter in 2018. In 2019, Roby signed a $10 million, one-year contract with the Texans. This was described as a "prove it" deal. He resigned with them in 2020.
Roby has accumulated 10 interceptions, 75 passes defenced, eight forced turnovers, 4 sacks, and 311 tackles in his 99 career games.
Roby joins Lattimore and safety Malcolm Jenkins. Wide receiver Michael Thomas is also joining the Ohio State-to New Orleans pipeline, which has been active for the past decade.
Houston's No. 1 cornerback, Roby, was clear. Despite the suspension, Roby was the Texans' No. 1 cornerback going into the season. Six cornerbacks are now on the Texans' roster after Roby was traded: Desmond King (Terrance Mitchell), Vernon Hargreaves and Tremon Smith; Tavierre Thomas, Tremon Smith, Tremon Smith, TremonSmith, TremonSmith, Tremon Jennings, Tremon Smith, Tremon Scott, Tremon Jones, Tremon Reed, Tremon Woods, Tremon Smart, Tremon Johnson, Tremon Stewart, Tremon Thompson, Tremon McClureaves, Tremon Morgan, Tremon Smith; Jimmy Moreland has been acquired, Jimmy Moreland.
This report was contributed by Sarah Barshop, ESPN.
