No headlines were generated on Sunday afternoon, and the game itself was a miserable and forgettable loss for the franchise. But when the New Orleans Saints faced the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 17, it was notable for at least one player who made his 2024 debut in the process.
Running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire found himself taking official snaps for the first time in this NFL season on Sunday in a 25-10 losing effort to the visiting Raiders. Still, the home crowd at the Superdome was quite kind to Edwards-Helaire as he took his first carry and it's not hard to picture him sticking around longer than these last few weeks of 2024.
Edwards-Helaire had his first official carries of the season on Sunday.
Edwards-Helaire made his Saints' debut on Sunday after spending the majority of this season on the active roster of the Kansas City Chiefs as a healthy scratch. CEH began the year on the team's NFI list (non-football injury) list only to be activated after the first month of the season and left unused for every game thereafter.
Earlier this month, the Chiefs finally released Edwards-Helaire when the backfield was clearly back to full strength after Isiah Pacheco's return. That's when the veteran running back found a place to land back with his "home" team after growing up in Louisiana.
Welcome home, @Clydro_22 🤝 pic.twitter.com/4rH6moLQ4B
— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) December 29, 2024
Edwards-Helaire was promoted from the practice squad by the Saints earlier this week in order to help fill out the roster in the wake of Alvin Kamara's injury.
While he didn't get a ton of action, Edwards-Helaire earned 20 rushing yards on 4 carries including a nice 9-yard burst. He also caught 2 passes for 10 yards. Those modest gains earned him some nice praise on social media from fans who were glad to add him to the mix.
The Saints have a thing for former Chiefs since Edwards-Helaire joins pass rusher Tanoh Kpassagnon, defensive tackle Khalen Saunders, safety Tyrann Mathieu, and receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on the roster—all former Chiefs in the last couple of seasons.
Edwards-Helaire will hit free agency once again in 2025, but he has one more official week of the NFL season with the Saints to show what he can do. If he's fortunate, he'll use the late-season signing as a successful audition to stay near his hometown of Baton Rouge for a full season next year.