Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis recently called wide receiver Brandon Coleman the “heir apparent” to Marques Colston in the Saints offense and it appears Coleman is going to get his chance to prove Loomis right pretty soon.
Mike Triplett of ESPN.com reports that the Saints are expected to release Colston “in the coming days.” The move would clear $3.2 million from the Saints’ salary cap, although there would be $2.7 million in dead money left behind.
That money left on the cap stood as a reason to think that the Saints might try to get Colston to stick around at a lower salary, but Colston’s 2015 season provided reason to move on. He caught 45 passes for 520 yards in 13 games and has gradually slipped away from being the dangerous target he was early in his Saints career.
Colston opened that career by catching at least 70 passes for more that 1,000 yards in six of his first seven seasons while adding 58 touchdown catches. He helped New Orleans win a Super Bowl along with guard Jahri Evans, who has already been released by the Saints as they move further away from the most successful days in franchise history.