One of the New Orleans Saints free agents landed himself a big payday: defensive end Alex Okafor is set to sign a three-year, $18 million contract with the Kansas City Chiefs. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network first reported the agreement, and Terez Paylor of Yahoo! Sports reported that the deal can reach $24 million thanks to incentives. It’s quite a windfall for Okafor after his 2017 season ended with a serious Achilles injury, and he worked back from it patiently in 2018.
The Chiefs badly need pass rushers after releasing longtime starter Justin Houston and trading breakout sack artist Dee Ford to the San Francisco 49ers. Okafor will likely fit their scheme better than those talented players under first-year defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who prefers four-man fronts to the three-man looks Kansas City has traditionally run.
As for the Saints, they are left with bookends Cameron Jordan and Marcus Davenport penciled in to start. Third-year backup Trey Hendrickson is behind them, and then little else. The team is scheduled to meet with free agent pass rusher Ezekiel Ansah after he finishes a visit with the Buffalo Bills.
