Former Vikings WR Gets a Look with Saints
The Super Bowl champ needs a new team.
Former Vikings WR Gets a Look with Saints
He’s Ihmir Smith-Marsette, and he couldn’t quite find new NFL employment this offseason, at least not for the long haul.
Now, with the regular season just two days away, Smith-Marsette, a former Minnesota Viking, could end up with the New Orleans Saints. KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweeted Monday, “The Saint worked out Phillip Dorsett, Trenton Gill, Jahcour Pearson, John Ross, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Corliss Waitman, David Wallis.”
Back in 2021, Smith-Marsette was labeled by fans as a possible breakout candidate. He fired up flashes of promise in his rookie season, and many tabbed the young wideout as the club’s presumptive WR4 for 2022.
But then general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell took over that year, spelling the end of Smith-Marsette’s brief purple career. He’s bounced around since.
If signed by New Orleans, Smith-Marsette would join this WR room in New Orleans:
- Chris Olave
- Rashid Shaheed
- A.T. Perry
- Cedrick Wilson
- Bub Means
- Mason Tipton
- Equanimeous St. Brown (Practice Squad)
- Kevin Austin Jr. (Practice Squad)
Smith-Marsette joined the Panthers late last summer via trade from the Kansas City Chiefs after winning a Super Bowl in 2022.
The Vikings released Smith-Marsette on the same day in August of 2022 that Jalen Reagor joined the club via trade. The news was stunning for Vikings fans, as most held him in high regard and penciled him in for a 53-man roster spot.
But that forecast was fan-driven, as Smith-Marsette struggled mightily in his next adventure with the Chicago Bears. His tenure in Chicago lasted about seven weeks in 2022. The Bears said sayonara to the 23-year-old in October after a series of bloopers, as Smith-Marsette encountered drops, penalties, fumbles, and generalized futility with the Bears, so the relationship was short-lived.
He signed with the aforementioned Chiefs soon after and won the Super Bowl for his troubles, although he participated in just 13 plays as a Chief. Kansas City didn’t keep him on the roster beyond 2022, sending him to Carolina via the aforementioned trade. Here’s Smith-Marsette’s career resume to date:
- Minnesota Vikings (2021)
- Chicago Bears (2022)
- Kansas City Chiefs (2022)
- Carolina Panthers (2023)
Minnesota selected Smith-Marsette in the 5th Round of the 2021 NFL Draft, but like much of that draft class, he was chopped by Minnesota’s new leadership regime in 2022. Sixty-three percent of the Vikings 2021 draft class now plays elsewhere.
In 2021 as a rookie, Smith-Marsette caught 5 passes for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns. His career seemed trending upward in Minnesota but served as a cautionary tale that sometimes fans just get it wrong, especially when a new front office takes over.
The Saints also employ former Vikings offensive tackle Oli Udoh, along with offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.