Did Nacua Do Enough To Make The New Orleans Saints Roster?

The New Orleans Saints preseason has come to an end, which means its time for one of the hardest things in pro sports...final cuts.

Over the last few seasons, NFL roster cuts have been galvanized in fans minds through shows like Hard Knocks, where you see the process in gritty detail. Although the show has gotten very soft over the last few years; letting the New York Jets ban the cut day footage and banning profanity during the Chicago Bears season, we will always have the evidence of the cut days before.

The best season of Hard Knocks might be the Detroit Lions series. The look at how Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell handled cut day might be the reason other teams don't want theirs shown. Campbell, a former player, knows the intimate details of cut day from the players side, and shows levels of compassion generally reserved for a therapy session when handling the players. He is able to be firm, yet motivating with the cuts.

There's a reason that the Jets didn't want to show their cuts, because there's only one Dan Campbell, and they know they couldn't compete.

Now, without the lights and cameras of Hard Knocks, the New Orleans Saints will have to make their roster cuts. One player this preseason has pushed to make the squad, and came a half-inch away from making it impossible to cut him.

Samson Nacua, the brother of Pro Bowl Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, has been working to impress coaches this preseason for the Saints. But no matter what impact he's made on the coaching staff up to yesterday's preseason finale against the Tennessee Titans, one play could be the thing that earns him a spot on the team.

At the end of the first half, the Titans lined up for a 58-yard field goal. The Saints weren't sure if he could hit it, so they placed Nacua at the back of the endzone, and told him to bring it out if the kick fell short...which it did...

Nacua nearly returned it 106 yards for a touchdown to end the half, but was just barely pushed out of bounds before he launched himself into the endzone.

Even though the touchdown didn't convert, the moves and speed during the return may have opened some eyes. While the Saints are very deep on the depth chart at receiver, Nacua may have just showed enough moves in the return game to find a spot as a return specialist.

In all honesty, his attitude and charisma should be enough to put him on the team. Let's just have Nacua do all of the media for the team:

Samson Nacua is actually Puka's older brother, even though this would be his technical rookie year. Samson was an offseason member of the Indianapolis Colts in 2022 as an undrafted free agent, but he never made the squad.

He eventually made his way to the United States Football League, where he was hauling in passes for the Michigan Panthers.

During his college career, he spent 4 seasons with Utah, bringing in 82 catches for over 1,000 yards and 11 touchdowns. He played his final college season with the BYU Cougars, where he scored 4 total touchdowns in his senior year.

His final college football game was actually played in Shreveport, in the 2021 Independence Bowl. During the game against UAB, Nacua scored a rushing touchdown and caught 3 passes for 41 yards...in the cold rain. BYU ended up losing the game to UAB, but Nacua was able to cap his college career with a solid game.

Now the hope is Nacua gets to play a few more games in the state of Louisiana, by making the Saints roster this season.