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Former Idaho star linebacker Kaden Elliss returns to the New Orleans Saints

Atlanta inside linebacker Kaden Elliss speaks to members of the media following the Falcons OTAs on May 27 at the team’s training facility in Flowery Branch, Ga. Elliss is reportedly signing a three-year deal to return to the New Orleans Saints. (Tribune News Service)
From staff reports

Kaden Elliss is returning to the NFL franchise that drafted him out of Idaho in 2019.

The veteran linebacker and Vandals legend reportedly agreed to a three-year, $33 million deal with New Orleans on Tuesday, with $23 million guaranteed and a maximum value of nearly $39 million, according to ESPN. Elliss played his first four seasons with the Saints, who drafted him in the seventh round.

Elliss, 30, was a special-teams player and a reserve defender during his first three years in New Orleans, appearing in 31 games but just three as a rookie due to an injury. He earned an expanded role for the Saints’ defense in 2022, starting 11 games and tallying a career-high seven sacks before signing with the Atlanta Falcons in free agency after that season.

He developed into a versatile defender and one of the league’s underrated stars with the Falcons, totaling more than 100 tackles in three straight seasons and leading the team in that category in each of the last two years – Elliss tied for sixth in the NFL in total tackles with 151 in 2024. He also recorded 12.5 sacks and two interceptions and never missed a game during his three-year Falcons stint.

Named a Falcons team captain before the 2025 season, Elliss finished with 107 total tackles, including 10 for loss and 3.5 sacks last year. He added one interception and six passes defended. A frequent blitzer, Elliss ranked fifth in the league in quarterback pressure rate (17.6%) among players with at least 150 pass-rush snaps, according to ESPN.

Elliss appears poised to take over the Saints’ inside linebacker role previously held by longtime New Orleans captain Demario Davis, who reportedly agreed to a deal with the New York Jets on Monday.

Elliss was a four-year standout at Idaho (2015-18). He landed on the All-Big Sky first team as a senior and was a second-team All-Sun Belt linebacker as a junior.