Saints sign three draft picks

New Orleans Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis announced today that the club has agreed to terms with rookie LB Nate Bussey, the Saints' second selection in the seventh round of 2011 NFL Draft (243rd overall). The Saints obtained the pick as a compensatory draft pick in 2011.

The 6-2, 220-pound Bussey joins Martez Wilson as the second Illini linebacker selected by the Saints in the 2011 NFL Draft. He moved into the starting lineup midway through his junior year and excelled as a senior, when he finished with 83 tackles and tied for the Big Ten Conference lead with three fumble recoveries. He posted 156 stops (96 solo), 1.5 sacks, one interception, five pass defenses, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and one blocked punt in four years, starting the final 18 games of his career.

Bussey played QB and S at Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C., as well as serving as a primary return man on special teams. He earned first-team All-Met by The Washington Post in 2006 and honorable mention in 2005. As a signal-caller he totaled over 8,000 passing yards for his career and 102.7 passer rating. Defensively he recorded six interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. Bussey was high school teammate of former Illini teammates and current NFL players Arrelious Benn (WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Vontae Davis (CB, Miami Dolphins). Bussey majored in communications while at Illinois.

New Orleans Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis announced today that the club has agreed to terms with rookie defensive end Greg Romeus, the Saints' first selection in the seventh round of 2011 NFL Draft (226th overall).  

The 6-5, 267-pound product of the University of Pittsburgh, was one of the Big East Conference's top defensive playmakers his sophomore and junior seasons before back and knee injuries derailed his senior campaign.  He played in 40 games with 28 starts for Pittsburgh and finished with 142 tackles (77 solo), 19.5 sacks for -129 yards, 38.5 stops for losses, five forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, one interception, 12 passes defensed and four blocked kicks.

Romeus is a native of Coral Springs, Florida, where he attended Coral Glades High School. On the prep level Romeus lettered four times in basketball before playing football as a senior at tight end and defensive end.

The New Orleans Saints' Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis announced today the team has agreed to terms with the rookie free agent placekicker Jacob Rogers.

Rogers, a 6-3, 195-pound product of the University of Cincinnati, played in 52 career games for the Bearcats and converted 51-of-75 (68%) of his field goal attempts and 186-of-194 extra points for 339 points.  He is the Bearcats' all-time leading scorer, having surpassed former professional kicker Jonathan Ruffin (315) in that category.  He also handled the punting duties during his senior season (2010) with 43 punts for 1,788 yards for a 41.6 average.  Rogers also handled kickoffs at Cincinnati, where he recorded 64 career touchbacks on 308 kickoffs. Rogers booted a career-long 55-yard field goal as a freshman (2007) and also had a 54-yarder as a sophomore.

The former walk-on at Cincinnati hails from Warsaw, Indiana where he played soccer and handled the football kicking duties as a senior.