After turning in a quality season as a rotational rusher in 2024, New Orleans Saints fans have been patiently waiting for the 2025 debut of Chase Young.
Unfortunately, according to head coach Kellen Moore on Monday, that might take some time, as Young is currently dealing with a calf injury that could prove “tricky” over the course of the entire regular season.
“Sometimes those are tricky injuries … sometimes you've got to see how this thing progresses,” Moore told reporters via ESPN's Katherine Terrell. “He's doing everything he can … but we've got to do what's right for him, not just this week but from a season-long perspective.”
Initially drafted into the league as the second overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Young looked like a future Hall of Famer in his rookie season, being named to the Pro Bowl as the Defensive Rookie of the Year. But unfortunately for the Washington Commanders, he simply never reached those heights again, being traded to the San Francisco 49ers before his rookie contract ran its course.
From there, Young signed a one-year, $13 million deal with the Saints and played well enough to earn a longer look, recording 31 tackles, 21 QB hits, 5.5 sacks, and a forced fumble before signing a new three-year, $51 million extension to serve as a long-term answer off the edge.
Now, Young just has to get healthy enough to make good on that deal.
Sitting not-so-pretty at 0-3 with a trip to Buffalo for a September-ending battle royal with the Bills forthcoming, the Saints could really use a player like Young to put more pressure on opposing quarterbacks while easing up a bit of tension on Spencer Rattler. Unfortunately, as Moore noted, it's very up in the air when that will actually happen, as it sure sounds like Young will be a fixture of the Saints' injury report this fall, with his status in one game likely unrelated to whether he will or won't play the following week.
