The New Orleans Saints trimmed down their roster a bit on Thursday by discarding two players who were dealt injuries late in the preseason.
Devin Neal caught all the headlines as a talented running back who was let go, but he wasn’t the only one.
In addition to Neal being released with an injury settlement, the Saints also cut Michael Heldman by the same means, an injury settlement.
Heldman, pictured above, showed flashes during the summer but was hurt when New Orleans took on the Cowboys and was initially placed on injured reserve.
It’s a usual mechanism for teams to first send a guy to IR and then to waive him with an injury settlement, and that’s what happened here with both Neal and Heldman.
It’s particularly tough timing for an undrafted rookie like Heldman, because he doesn’t yet have any NFL tape to fall back on besides a tiny bit of the preseason.
Neal can make a case to a new team once he’s healthy based on what he’s shown before in the NFL.
Heldman will have to hope there are other believers in him out there in the NFL so that once he’s healthy, he can get another chance.
Who Is Michael Heldman?
Heldman is a 6-foot-2 defensive end who the Saints signed as an undrafted free agent earlier this year.
He’s originally from Romeo, Michigan, and he stayed near home to play college football at Central Michigan.
He spent five seasons on campus and blossomed into a big-time defensive playmaker by the end of his college career.
In 2025, Heldman made 48 tackles for the Chippewas, with 16.5 of those being tackles for loss.
Heldman also tallied 10.5 sacks in his final college season and forced a pair of fumbles.
While a bit undersized for an NFL pass rusher, Heldman clearly found his way to be productive in college.
The concern would always be the fact that in college, he played in the Mid-American Conference, which is a long step from the NFL. The MAC has produced a number of solid professional contributors in recent years, though, so Heldman might still deserve another chance once he’s healthy.
How Injury Settlement Works
An NFL injury settlement, which is what Heldman got, is designed to keep a player propped up while hurt.
It’s essentially a deal where a team releases a player but pays them a portion of their salary based on the expected time they were supposed to miss with injury.
The actual payment depends on the rate the player would’ve been paid if still on the roster and healthy, so it varies from guy to guy.
It means that Heldman isn’t walking away totally empty-handed here. Still, he’ll be hoping to heal up and get another chance in the NFL sooner rather than later.
Saints Part Ways With Injured Rookie