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BREAKING: Injury-plagued Saints Poach Veteran Center Off Jets Practice Squad

The Saints have a new center in the building after poaching him off the Jets practice squad.

John Hendrix

Oct 2, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson (2) and center Connor McGovern (60) take the field to warm up before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Oct 2, 2022; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson (2) and center Connor McGovern (60) take the field to warm up before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
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The Saints have signed veteran offensive lineman Conner McGovern off the Jets practice squad, according to NewOrleans.Football's Mike Triplett. He was spotted at practice on Friday wearing No. 61.

The Saints are dealing with several injuries on their offensive line, mainly Erik McCoy being out for several weeks due to groin surgery. The team's backup option in-game after McCoy went down, Lucas Patrick, was not practicing on Friday, and their starter from last week, Shane Lemieux, missed a second straight day with an ankle injury. Cesar Ruiz is currently out with a knee injury.

McGovern has been in the league since 2016 and is a fifth-round pick from Missouri. He was with the Broncos from 2016-2019 before joining the Jets in 2020 and has been there ever since. McGovern was the team's starting center for their first seven games last year before landing on injured reserve, and was added to their practice squad on Sep. 11.

There's clear familiarity with the player there in offensive line coach John Benton. We'll see if he can get game ready for the Chiefs on Monday night, but him being poached off New York's practice squad means he's on the active roster for the next several weeks.

New Orleans waived wide receiver A.T. Perry, which would be the corresponding move to adding the veteran offensive lineman.

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John Hendrix
JOHN HENDRIX

I officially started covering the New Orleans Saints & other NFL topics in 2011. My work has been featured on various outlets over the years. I worked closely with Skyhorse Publishing in Fall 2018 to update the book, Tales From the New Orleans Saints Sidelines, which filled in all Saints material from the 2013-2017 seasons. Prior to joining Saints News Network, I served as the Managing Editor of SB Nation's Canal Street Chronicles for 3.5 years, and before that with FanSided's Who Dat Dish as the Managing Editor for several years. I have also had experiences of being a freelance Saints reporter for The Sun Herald in Biloxi, MS and a contributing writer for WDSU, a local NBC TV station in New Orleans. I have appeared on a vast amount of TV and Radio shows, both nationally and locally. For tips, comments, or suggestions, please contact me at johnhendrix@saintsnews.net

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