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Don’t get it twisted, Taylor Stallworth is as big a fan of now former New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Tyeler Davison as anybody, but that is not why he made the switch.

Yes, that is Davison’s old No. 95 jersey Stallworth is lugging around on the Saints practice fields, but it wasn’t his first choice when he made the switch from the No. 76 uniform he wore as an undrafted rookie out of South Carolina last season.


After a strong debut season as a rotational piece on the New Orleans defensive interior, Stallworth wanted to call back to those college days by switching to the number he wore with the Gamecocks. At least, that was the plan until Malcom Brown signed.

“What number is he going to get? Well, he had 90 with the Patriots,” Stallworth said. “Then they let Tyeler go to the Falcons. What number’s available now? I don’t want to get 95, Tyeler’s my dog.”

He asked for the available numbers. He was told 96 and 97 weren’t taken.

“I’ll go 95,” Stallworth said.

The switch has caused a little confusion in the early days. Davison spent four years with the Saints in that number. He and Stallworth both play defensive tackle and both play with long hair coming out of the back of their helmet.

After one play in minicamp, linebacker Craig Robertson called out, ‘Nice play, Tye!’

“I was like, ‘It’s Taylor!’” Stallworth said.



If everything goes according to plan, nobody will have a hard time remembering his name.

Stallworth made the Saints out of training camp last season as the Saints’ fourth defensive tackle behind Davison, Sheldon Rankins and David Onyemata, and was active for 14 regular-season games and both postseason games.

All of his energy last season was directed toward making the team, then sticking on it. Now that he knows he belongs, he plans to take the next step.

“This year my whole mindset is through the roof,” Stallworth said. “How do I want to play, how do I want to better myself as a player? I made a couple plays last year, but I want to make three, four times as many plays this year.”

Saints coach Sean Payton described Stallworth as “a player who’s been here now, a player who has developed in the weight room and a player who’s gotten to taste it,” then described him as someone he was looking forward to seeing in training camp.

When he was active, Stallworth saw the field for roughly a third of the Saints defensive plays, with Davison edging him by about 100 plays in the rotation.

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Saints rookie DT Taylor Stallworth making the most of his chance

Rugby Saint II

He's a vet now albeit a new one, and it's time that he understands the NFL concept. I always pull for the underdog and for an UDFA he's been fun to watch in his first year. He had better get ready for more playing time and live in the film and weight room.

foreverfan

K Major

Stallworth went from a UDFA, to practice squad and ended the year (injuries to Rankins) as a starter. I expect him to be a essential piece on our D again in 2019.

"It's not about how you get to a place, it's what you do with the opportunity" - Brian Dawkins.

jeanpierre

May end up being the most important piece to the success of the defense in 2019...