This isn’t how you want to start the offseason. The New Orleans Saints announced that veteran defensive end Tanoh Kpassagnon suffered a torn Achilles tendon in the spring that will sideline him through the summer, and likely into the 2024 seaosn.
“Tanoh tore his Achilles in the offseason,” head coach Dennis Allen said Tuesady. “So he’s going to be out for a little while.”
Kpassagnon won’t be able to participate in training camp this summer while recovering from this injury, and it remains to be seen whether he’ll be cleared to play during the regular season. For some context, former Saints linebacker Kwon Alexander suffered the same injury in late December, during the 2020 season, but was able to practice in August before the start of the 2021 season. So we’re looking at probably a seven-month recovery timeline for Kpassagnon, though every situation is different. He may be able to return a little sooner or require more time to fully heal. It’s too soon to say.
Either way, this is a big loss for New Orleans. Kpassagnon has become an important part of the team’s rotation at defensive end; his 34 quarterback pressures last season were third-most on the team, and his 3.5 sacks tied defensive tackle Nathan Shepherd for fourth-most. This means that three of the Saints’ top four defensive ends are dealing with injuries before training camp: Cameron Jordan (ankle), Chase Young (neck), and Kpassagnon (Achilles).
How the depth chart shakes out from here is anyone’s guess. Payton Turner has played ahead of Isaiah Foskey when healthy, but he missed most of the 2023 season after a Week 1 injury of his own; Foskey was also sidelined extensively while managing a quadricep injury. Other players in the mix include Niko Lalos (returning from last year’s practice squad) as well as undrafted rookies Nathan Latu and Trajan Jeffcoat.