When the Saints decide not to extend a contract to the wide receiver, Lynn Bowden will become a free agency.
Lynn Bowden is now a free agent after the New Orleans Saints apparently decided not to contract the wide receiver.
Despite the Saints having ownership of the wideout’s rights, ESPN said on Sunday that Bowden will enter the market. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Bowden was not an exclusive rights free agent; rather, he was a restricted free agent, which means that, given his experience, the cost of bringing him back would have been closer to $3 million than the league minimum.
Last season, Bowden signed a one-year, $870,000 contract with New Orleans.
While Bowden played in a career-high 15 games (2023), including three starts, he was only involved in 28% of the offensive plays. In addition to having five rushes for 32 yards, the 26-year-old collected 11 passes for 83 yards. Bowden was mostly used by New Orleans as a run blocker and on trick plays like end arounds and jet sweeps.
It was a fascinating journey for Bowden to get to New Orleans. Before his rookie season even started, Bowden—a former quarterback who switched to wide receiver in college—was traded to the Miami Dolphins by the Las Vegas Raiders, who had selected him to play running back. After suffering a season-ending injury the next year, Bowden was eventually released in 2022. He was a member of the New England Patriots practice squad during that season.
Whatever the case, the Saints’ wide receiver room will appear different in 2019–20. The team sacked wide receivers coach Kodi Burns earlier in the offseason and hired Keith Williams in his place.
Since Chris Olave, A.T. Perry, and Shaheed are the only players with contracts until 2024, New Orleans is also anticipated to recruit players. Though technically still on the roster, Michael Thomas is expected to be waived on Wednesday at the start of the league season due to the terms of his previous contract.
While Shaheed was just retained when the Saints presented him with a one-year, $985,000 contract, Olave and Perry are still in their rookie contracts.
