Veteran defensive end Cameron Jordan is expected to become a free agent when the new NFL league year begins next week, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The longtime star has spent his entire career with the New Orleans Saints and now faces an uncertain future with the franchise.
Jordan, 36, has played 15 seasons in New Orleans and became the team’s all-time sack leader at the end of the 2022 season. He has recorded 132 career sacks, all with the Saints, cementing his place as one of the most productive defensive players in franchise history.
His current contract will automatically void if a new agreement is not reached before the start of the league year at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday. If that happens, the Saints would absorb $18.76 million in dead money against their 2026 salary cap. Should the team re-sign him after that deadline, both the dead money from his previous deal and the value of a new contract would count toward the cap.
Jordan already adjusted his contract once last year, agreeing to lower his base salary while adding incentives tied to sacks and playing time. The move paid off, as he reached the maximum $2 million in incentives and finished the season with 10.5 sacks—his highest total since 2021. However, he indicated in January that he was not interested in accepting a similar pay structure again.
“The Saints have done nothing but show that they want me to be here. Now, at what price? Some would say half off this last year,” Jordan said in January. “Can’t do that again.”
Despite the uncertainty, Jordan has repeatedly said he hopes to finish his career in New Orleans. He has long expressed a deep connection to the franchise and its colors. “The moment I got drafted black and gold, I figured I’d die in gold and black,” Jordan said. “Cam Jordan and black and gold have been synonymous, and I’ve always worked to keep it that way.”
The Saints originally selected Jordan in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft. Over 15 seasons, he has started 242 of a possible 243 games, missing only one due to injury after suffering a fractured orbital bone in 2022—an example of the durability that has defined his career.
