According the New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis, the team will make an announcement on Thursday about releasing eight-year veteran defensive end Charles Grant, who was a starter most of the last season and has spent all his eight season only with the Saints.
At age 31, Grant was released along with reserve offensive lineman Jamar Nesbit and linebacker Mark Simoneau. All of the three are over 30 years old- Nesbit is 34 and Simoneau is 33 and the latter has missed the past two seasons because of injuries.
Putting on Saints jersey as one of the team’s two first-round picks in 2002, Grant has been the eighth on the Saints’ career sack list with 47 and started 106 games. He also started all the 16 regular-season games in 2009 with 53 tackles and 5 1/2 sacks but was placed on injured reserve with torn triceps in the postseason. That was the second straight season that Grant ended on injured reserve for a torn triceps and a much more important one than last as the Saints advanced and won their first Super Bowl.
And injury could be just one of the reasons for the Saints to release the veteran. Money could be another one. Grant would have been due about $4 million in base salary for the 2010 season. Plus he is also due a four-game suspension that he received in 2008 for testing positive for the banned diuretic bumetanide. The suspension has not yet been enforced because of an appeal involving another two players of the Minnesota Vikings. Taking off Saints jersey, thus Grant will join the free-agent market but it’s really hard to predict what kind of offers he could receive.
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