The New Orleans Saints aren’t finished signing rookie free agents after the 2024 NFL draft. They’ve added former Arkansas and Missouri defensive end Trajan Jeffcoat, as first reported by NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill.
Jeffcoat, 24, started his career at Missouri before transferring to Arkansas (where he was voted a team captain) in 2023 after earning his degree. He’s a highly experienced prospect with 60 games behind him in the SEC. And he put up respectable numbers with 27.5 tackles for loss and 15.5 sacks in his career.
He also fits the athletic prototype the Saints look for at defensive end. Jeffcoat weighed in at 6-foot-4 and 266 pounds, with a solid 7.63 Relative Athletic Score. But he’s entering a crowded competition for roster spots. The Saints already have Cameron Jordan, Carl Granderson, and Chase Young on top of the depth chart with Tanoh Kpassagnon, Payton Turner, and Isaiah Foskey behind them. Jeffcoat enters the mix with Niko Lalos and Nathan Latu (another undrafted rookie, from Oklahoma State) to compete for a place on the practice squad. But maybe he surprises over the summer and climbs higher.
