Under the new roster cut rules that force teams to reduce their total number of players from 90 to 53, the Saints have made a flurry of moves over the past two days. Among the cuts so far, for me, linebacker Michael Mauti’s stands out most.
A native of Mandeville, Mauti was in attendance as a fan the night Steve Gleason blocked the Falcon’s punt in their Superdome debut following Hurricane Katrina. Last year, Mauti made an eerily similar play by blocking a Falcon punt, recovering it, and scoring a touchdown.
In fact, Mauti functioned as Special Teams Captain in 2016 and filled in at strong-side linebacker before going on injured reserve while battling a complicated and debilitating case of ulcerative colitis.