The New Orleans Saints announced today that they have agreed to terms with unrestricted free agent defensive end Taco Charlton and free agent defensive back Justin Evans. The announcements were made by Saints’ Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis.
Charlton, 6-6, 270, was originally selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the first round (28th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft out of Michigan. Charlton has appeared in 55 games with 13 starts for the Cowboys (2017-18), Miami Dolphins (2019), Kansas City Chiefs (2020) and Pittsburgh Steelers (2021), posting career totals of 92 tackles ( 53 solo), 12 stops for loss, 11.5 sacks for a loss of 69 yards, three passes defensed, four forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
In 2021, Charlton appeared in 11 games with one start for the Steelers and finished the season with 18 tackles (seven solo), a split sack and a pass defense. In 2019, Charlton recorded a career-high and team-best five sacks for the Miami Dolphins to go with two forced fumbles.
During his college career at Ann Arbor, the Pickerington, Ohio native played in 46 games with 15 starts and posted 93 tackles, 19 sacks, two passes defensed and one forced fumble. As a senior in 2016, Charlton posted 42 tackles, ten sacks and two passes defensed as he was a first-team All-Big Ten selection.
Evans, 6-0, 199, was originally selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second round (50th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M. Evans has played in 24 career games with 21 starts from 2017-18 and posted 124 tackles (92 solo), four interceptions, eight passes defensed, one 34-yard fumble return for a touchdown and one special teams stop.
As a rookie in 2017, the Wiggins, Miss. native played in 14 games with 11 starts and tied for fourth among rookies with three interceptions, adding 65 tackles (49 solo) and six passes defensed. In his second season, Evans started all ten games he played in and made 59 tackles, one interception, two passes defensed, as well as the 34-yard fumble return for a score in the season opening win over New Orleans.
Evans spent two seasons at Texas A&M (2015-16) after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College), totaling 165 tackles, 14 passes defensed and five interceptions. As a senior in 2016, he was a second-team All-SEC selection and a semifinalist for the Thorpe Award after registering 87 tackles (five for loss), 10 passes defensed and a team-leading four interceptions.
(Release via The New Orleans Saints)