Report: Saints clear Ellerbe from foot injury, still plan to release him

#Saints LB Dannell Ellerbe (foot) was just cleared by Dr. Anderson & his release from IR is imminent, per @EnterSportsMgmt. Intriguing FA.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 25, 2017

The Saints placed Ellerbe on IR last month with the intent of releasing him once he was able to play again. That time appears to have come.

Acquired by New Orleans from Miami in the trade that sent wide receiver Kenny Stills to the Dolphins, Ellerbe played well in his two seasons with the Saints. The problem was, he was not healthy often enough to stay on the field consistently. After playing just one game in his final season with the Miami (2014), Ellerbe played in just 15 of 32 possible games for the Black & Gold.

“There were far too many games where he wasn’t available,” said Saints head coach Sean Payton when the team decided to part ways with Ellerbe, the eight-year veteran who started his career with the Baltimore Ravens for four seasons.

Now set to be a starting-caliber linebacker available on the open market, Ellerbe will seek his next NFL opportunity but likely at a low price tag. He took a pay cut during the 2016 offseason with the Saints to provide cap relief for the team.