Chase Young

Young's one-year contract with the Saints gives New Orleans protection in the event he struggles to recover from his upcoming neck surgery or otherwise misses time, with 61 percent of the money in the deal coming from per-game roster bonuses, Matthew Paras of The New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. Young has a $5.01 million base salary and can earn an additional $7.99 million in per-game roster bonuses, with the former guaranteed at signing and the latter only guaranteed if he's released. In other words, he'll miss out on around $470,000 for each game he's on the roster but inactive. Albert Breer of SI.com reports that scans on Young's neck led to reduced interest in free agency, due to a condition that was first discovered last summer after he suffered a stinger in the preseason. He ended up playing seven games for the Commanders, and then 12 post-trade for the 49ers (including playoffs), recording 7.5 sacks in the regular season and an additional sack during the postseason. Young was the No. 2 overall pick and Defensive Rookie of the Year back in 2020, but he suffered a severe knee injury the following season and managed only 1.5 sacks in 12 appearances between 2021 and 2022. He's scheduled for surgery Thursday and expected to be healthy for training camp, at which point the Saints likely will use him off the bench behind starting defensive ends Cameron Jordan and Carl Granderson.