--Running back Deuce McAllister was released by the Saints. McAllister, the franchise's all-time leading rusher with 6,069 yards, said he will test the market and hopes to keep playing. The move will save the Saints more than $7 million against next year's salary cap. McAllister said he's not ruling out a return to the Saints, but GM Mickey Loomis said, "I wouldn't call it likely." McAllister rushed for just 418 yards on 107 yards last season and has had reconstructive surgery on both knees.
--The Saints on Thursday terminated the contract of veteran wide receiver David Patten, who will be 35 years old when the 2009 season starts.
Patten had a huge season for the Saints in 2007 after joining the team as an unrestricted free agent, catching 54 passes for 792 yards and three touchdowns. That earned him a new two-year contract last off-season.
His receiving yardage in 2007 was the second-best on the team and he tied for the club-lead with 14 catches of 20 yards or more, including a 58-yarder from Drew Brees that was the team's longest play from scrimmage all season.
But Patten was hampered by a groin injury early in the 2008 season and had just 11 receptions for 162 yards and a TD in five games. Patten missed games five through eight with the groin problem, then returned to play in just one game at Atlanta. He was inactive for the final seven games of the season.
--Former Carolina Panthers middle linebacker Dan Morgan, who retired last spring after signing with the Saints, has been reinstated by the NFL.
Morgan joined the Saints last spring after he was released by the Panthers following several concussions and an Achilles' tendon injury that limited him to a total of four games in 2006 and 2007.
Morgan's time with the Saints was short-lived, however, as he wasn't fully recovered from the Achilles' tendon problem and walked away from the game after just a few weeks of the team's off-season strength and conditioning program.
Morgan now is on the active roster and he could be a fallback for the Saints if middle linebacker Jonathan Vilma, who could become an unrestricted free agent on Feb. 27, decides to sign elsewhere.
The Saints, however, have said that re-signing Vilma is one of their top off-season priorities.
--The Saints have signed four players who were with them in some capacity last season to reserve/futures contracts for the 2009 season.
Signed were veteran fullback Darian Barnes as well as defensive end Josh Savage, guard Tim Duckworth and tight end Kolo Kapanui.
Barnes was on the active roster for four games late in the season, while Savage, Duckworth and Kapanui all finished the season on the team's practice squad.
--Also signing with the Saints last month was wide receiver Biren Ealy, a product of the University of Houston.
A 6-foot-3, 207-pounder, Ealy spent the past two years with the Tennessee Titans, mostly on the practice squad. He has one career reception for 6 yards.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "There's a lot of people I've worked with and players that I've coached that have been with him. I think he's a very thorough guy and extremely prepared. He'll try to take away some of the things you do on a consistent basis and force you to really play a little bit away from your strengths." -- Saints coach Sean Payton, on what attracted him to new defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.
