The New Orleans Saints reached an agreement on a free-agent contract with former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Anthony Chickillo, as announced by his representatives at Rosenhaus Sports and ESPN’s Adam Schefter. While the terms of the deal have not yet been clarified, it is reported to be a one-year deal.
Chickillo appeared in 65 games over five years in Pittsburgh (along with four playoffs appearances), though he started just nine times. He played as more of an edge rusher than a true coverage linebacker, logging 7.5 sacks and 15 quarterback hits in his time with the Steelers, as well as 11 tackles for loss.
His addition is probably going to push the Saints backups to compete for a role on special teams. Chickillo has played 1,190 snaps in the game’s third phase compared to 1,045 snaps on defense in his career. Last year, he played just 13% of the Steelers snaps on defense while playing 51% of their special teams snaps.
His special teams experience should be welcome in New Orleans, considering the Saints cycled through a group including Kaden Elliss, Stephone Anthony, Josh Martin, and Will Compton last year behind their starting trio and Craig Robertson. If nothing else, adding another veteran with an NFL resume should help training camp flow a little more smoothly.
The corresponding move to this addition isn’t known just yet, as are the financials on Chickillo’s contract. The Saints were at their full 90-man roster capacity and had nearly $10 million to work with, so keep an eye out for updates.
