Saints place Banks on IR, reach injury settlement with Estime and sign long snapper Adomitis

METAIRIE, La. (AP) — New Orleans Saints starting left tackle and 2025 top draft choice Kelvin Banks Jr. has been placed on injured reserve following a procedure to repair a high ankle sprain, the club announced on Wednesday.

The Saints also reached an injury settlement with Audric Estime, a move which gives the third-year NFL running back a chance to return later this season with another team.

Banks, drafted ninth overall out of Texas, has started since the beginning of his rookie season. He was injured Sunday by Baltimore edge rusher Mike Green, who landed on his lower leg while diving to sack the Saints' Tyler Shough.

Banks was replaced by Asim Richards during New Orleans' 24-17 comeback victory over the Ravens.

Richards, a Dallas Cowboys fifth-round draft choice out of North Carolina in 2023, is in his second season with New Orleans after spending his first two with the Cowboys and is scheduled to start in Banks' place against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Shough said Wednesday that he has the “utmost confidence” in Richards, adding, “There is no flinch whatsoever from him. He’s a pro. He’s a veteran.”

While Banks will be eligible to return from the injured reserve list after missing four games, his recovery timeline is expected to stretch into early December.

Estime's preseason got off to a promising start when he ran for a 9-yard touchdown to cap the Saints' first possession of their preseason opener against Jacksonville. But Estime injured his thigh later in that same game and was place on injured reserve when the regular season began.

Meanwhile, the Saints signed long snapper Cal Adomitis, a fifth-year NFL veteran, to fill in while Zach Wood, the Saints long snapper for the previous nine seasons, is out with a calf injury.

Adomitis played in nine games with Philadelphia last season. He began his NFL career as an undrafted rookie with Cincinnati in 2022.

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