Who Should I Start? James Hurst or Tanner Hudson

Monday, March 4, 10:44 PM

The Athletic's Larry Holder lists New Orleans Saints offensive guard/tackle James Hurst as a potential salary cap casualty this offseason. At the start of the offseason, the Saints sat around $83 million in the red, according to Over the Cap. Hurst and linebacker Demario Davis are the only two players who would give the Saints 2024 salary cap relief of more than $3 million each on their entire roster. Releasing Hurst would free up around $4.2 million, so he's one of the most obvious salary cap casualties for the team. The 32-year-old veteran missed two games in 2023 due to an ankle injury but was New Orleans' starting left tackle when healthy. The 10-year NFL veteran has been with the Saints for the last four seasons after spending the first six years of his career with the Baltimore Ravens.

Friday, March 15, 12:20 PM

Free-agent tight end Tanner Hudson is re-signing with the Cincinnati Bengals on Friday on an undisclosed one-year deal, according to a source. In his first year in Cincinnati last season, Hudson caught a career-high 39 passes for 352 yards and one touchdown on 50 targets in 12 games played (one start). His previous career-high in receptions came the previous season with the New York Giants, when he had just 10 catches. The 29-year-old ended up being the team's top pass-catching tight end a season ago due to the struggles of Irv Smith Jr., who has since moved on to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bengals signed Mike Gesicki in free agency and also brought back Drew Sample, so it will be an uphill battle for Hudson to lead the Bengals in receiving for a second year in a row at the position in 2024.