The Saints have re-signed 31-year old RB Ladell Betts and they have released RB DeShawn Wynn.  Betts played in 10 games (2 starts) for the Redskins last season in which he carried the ball 56 times for 210 yards (3.8 ypc) with 2 TD runs and he also caught 17 passes for 179 yards (10.5 avg).  Betts has now played in 103 games (13 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 776 times for 3,176 yards (4.1 ypc) with 13 TD runs.  He has also caught 165 passes for 1,505 yards (9.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs in his career.  This was a good move for the Saints because Betts is a better RB than Wynn and with Reggie Bush out for a while, the Saints needed a back they can trust to give Pierre Thomas a break once in a while.

UPDATE:  The Saints have re-signed Wynn to the practice squad.

The Saints have released 28-year old cornerback Leigh Torrence.  Torrence played in 5 games for the Saints last year and he had 10 tackles and 1/2 a sack.  He played in 12 games (0 starts) in his two years with the Saints and he had 19 tackles, 1/2 a sack and 2 passes defensed.  The Saints won’t miss Torrence too much as they are set up pretty well in the secondary.

UPDATE:  (9/15/2010) – The Saints have re-signed Leigh Torrence.

The Saints have released 32-year old linebacker Troy Evans and 28-year old WR Mark Bradley.  Evans was the special teams captain of the Saints so it’s a little bit of a surprise to see them let him go.  He played in both pre-season games for the Saints and he had 6 tackles.  Evans played in 16 games (2 starts) for the Saints last season and he had 29 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  He played in 3 years for the Saints appearing in 47 games (2 starts) in which he had 59 tackles and 1 pass defensed.  Mark Bradley didn’t catch any passes in the first two pre-season games for the Saints and he was buried on the depth chart.

The Saints have released Larry Beavers who was one of the stars of the first pre-season game against the Patriots.  Beavers returned 2 punts for 2 yards (1.0 avg) but he also returned 2 kickoffs for 125 yards (62.5 avg) including one that was good for a 97-yard TD.  The thing that hurt Beavers in the Saints’ eyes is that the undrafted rookie was a return man only as he wasn’t good enough to help the team in the passing game.  So with that in mind the Saints decided to let the rookie WR go.

38-year old WR Joe Horn signed a 1-day contract with the Saints so he could retire from them.  Horn played in 102 games (100 starts) in seven years for the Saints and he caught 523 passes for 7,622 yards (14.6 avg) with 50 TD grabs.  Horn made 4 Pro Bowls for the Saints and he is the all time leader in franchise history in TD grabs (50).  Horn is also #2 in receptions and receiving yards behind Eric Martin in Saints’ history.  Horn played in 163 games overall in his NFL career and he caught 603 passes for 8,744 yards (14.5 avg) with 58 TD grabs.  Joe Horn retires as one of the best Saints’ players in team history.

The Saints have released 28-year old DE Bobby McCray.  McCray played in all 16 games for the Saints last season in which he had 12 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks and 1 pass defensed.  He played in 32 games in his two years with the Saints and he had 41 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 1 pass defensed and he forced 1 fumble.  McCray was a decent player for the Saints but they have other players on the roster that they like more than him making him expendable.

UPDATE:  (7/22/2010) – The Saints have re-signed Bobby McCray to a 1-year, $1.5 million dollar deal with an exta $1 million bucks in incentives.  The only reason the Saints released McCray in the first place was because they didn’t want to pay him a $1.25 million dollar roster bonus.

The Saints have traded 29-year old OT Jammal Brown to the Washington Redskins.  Brown missed all of last season due to injuries.  He played in 58 games (all starts) in his five years with the Saints.  The Saints will also send a conditional late round pick to the Redskins as part of this deal.  The Saints will get a 4th round pick if the Redskins win 9 or more games OR Donovan McNabb makes the Pro Bowl.  If neither of those things happen the Saints will get a third round pick from the Redskins.  The Redskins will also send the Saints a future 6th round pick if Brown plays in 90% or more of the offensive snaps in 2010 or he makes the Pro Bowl.  That’s not bad compensation for a player who missed the whole 2010 NFL season.

The Saints have released 31-year old DE Charles Grant.  He played all 16 games for the Saints last season and he made 44 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, he had 5.5 sacks, forced 1 fumble and he defensed 2 passes.  Grant played in 118 games in his 8 years with the Saints and he finished up with 424 tackles, 47 sacks, 31 passes defensed, 16 forced fumbles and 1 sack.  Despite Grant getting older the Saints will miss him because he’s a playmaker.

The Saints have released 33-year old linebacker Mark Simoneau.  Simoneau has not played in either of the last two seasons due to injury.  Simoneau played in 32 games in his time with the Saints in which he made 131 tackles, defensed 2 passes, he had 3 sacks and 1 interception.  The Saints won’t miss Simoneau much as he hasn’t played in a couple of years.

The Saints have released 33-year old offensive guard Justin Nesbit.  Nesbit played in 13 games (0 starts) for the Saints last season.  In six years with the Saints, Nesbit played in 84 games (43 starts).  The Saints will likely find a young and cheaper replacement for Nesbit in either free agency or the draft.