WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. -- The New Orleans Saints waived third-year defensive end Glenn Foster with a failed physical designation and signed undrafted rookie cornerback Travis Manning.
Foster, 25, earned a spot on the Saints’ roster as an undrafted free agent out of Illinois in 2013. But he suffered a season-ending knee injury last October and was never able to return to the field this summer. It’s unclear if he’s dealing with the same issue or if he had a setback.
The 6-foot-4, 285-pounder appeared in a total of 17 games with the Saints, with three sacks as a rookie.
The Saints will be counting on a new crop of young players to fill out their defensive rotation behind veteran starters Cameron Jordan, Akiem Hicks, John Jenkins and Kevin Williams. The good news is they seem to have a lot of impressive young candidates to choose from.
Fifth-round draft pick Tyeler Davison, undrafted rookie Bobby Richardson and second-year undrafted pro Lawrence Virgil all have shown flashes during camp, as have other roster hopefuls.
Manning, 24, signed with the Green Bay Packers earlier this year out of Northwest Missouri State, but he was released in June.
The 5-foot-11, 196-pounder was a full-time starter over the past two years. He had one interception as a senior, which he returned 28 yards for a touchdown.
The Saints are thin at corner because of a recent rash of injuries. They expect starter Keenan Lewis back as soon as Friday. But third-round draft pick P.J. Williams has been absent for most of the week with an undisclosed ailment, and fifth-round pick Damian Swann has been watching from the sideline during practice for the past few days.
Coach Sean Payton said the Saints brought in three cornerbacks for tryouts on Thursday. One of them was veteran Alfonzo Dennard. Manning presumably was one of the other two.
