The New Orleans Saints acquired their first piece of the roster new head coach Kellen Moore is trying to build, agreeing in principle on a trade for former LSU defensive tackle Davon Godchaux.
ESPN was the first to report the news of the trade, in which the Saints will send a seventh-round pick to the Patriots for the 30-year-old Godchaux.
Godchaux, a Plaquemine native, was originally a fifth-round pick of the Miami Dolphins in 2017. But he made his name as a professional football player in New England.
In four seasons with the Patriots, Godchaux did not miss a game because of injury and started all but one of the 68 games he apppeared in. While he did not put up gaudy numbers as a pass rusher, he anchored the Patriots' run defense as its nose tackle — a position New Orleans needed to address in new defensive coordinator Brandon Staley's scheme.
New Orleans allowed 141.4 yards per game on the and 4.92 yards per carry last year on the ground, giving them the NFL's second worst run defense on both fronts.