Saints announce deal with Christen Miller, signing 2026 draft class

Well that didn't take long. One day after signing seven of their eight picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints completed the set by inking second-round rookie Christen Miller to his four-year contract. The former Georgia Bulldogs defensive tackle was held out of the first day of rookie minicamp practices due to a minor injury, with head coach Kellen Moore saying the team wanted to ramp him up responsibly. Miller's signing was announced by the team on Saturday morning.

It's good that the Saints were able to get this deal done quickly. Recent collective bargaining agreements have set up negotiating conflicts for second rounders with agents wanting more guaranteed money and teams wanting to protect themselves if the pick turns out to be a bust. But many players picked around Miller's spot have received fully-guaranteed deals, so it's an easy guess that he was fully guaranteed his money, too. Stay tuned on that front.

So does this mean Miller will be practicing with the other rookies on Saturday? Not so fast. Moore said Friday that he was dealing with a minor injury and they don't want to rush him onto the practice field before he's ready. The last thing they need to do is aggravate something minor in May that turns into something major in September. These practices aren't full-speed padded sessions, anyway, so it's not like Miller is missing too much from being a spectator.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 2026 NFL Draft: Saints sign DT Christen Miller, completing draft class