Former New Orleans Saints running back Zach Zenner didn’t have to wait long after the team released him Tuesday afternoon. The Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans’ next opponent, announced Wednesday that they signed both Zenner and free agent running back Alfred Morris.
Zenner was with the Saints for just a week, having been picked up to help shoulder the load while Alvin Kamara sat out with an injury against the Chicago Bears. Like Kamara, he had played his best as a passing downs specialist with the Detroit Lions in a similar system run by then-offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi, now the Saints’ quarterbacks coach. However, backup runner Latavius Murray was a standout performer in that game; his outing convinced the Saints to thin out the depth chart, making Zenner available for Arizona.
While Zenner probably won’t have any inside info to share with the Cardinals that they can’t already see on game tape, it’s even less likely that he’ll get much playing time against the Saints next Sunday. He’s buried on Arizona’s depth chart with Morris behind emergent second-year pro Chase Edmonds (who is vying with Murray for FedEx Air & Ground Awards recognition this week) and injured starter David Johnson. If Zenner does get on the field, don’t expect him to be in much of a position to hurt New Orleans.
