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New Orleans Saints History: 42 Players Selected in 1967 NFL Expansion Draft

On this day in Saints history, February 9th, 1967, the team took a huge step in stocking their inaugural roster by selecting 42 players in the NFL expansion draft.

Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Prior to their first season of play in the NFL, the New Orleans Saints needed to quickly assemble a team and stock their initial roster. They did so by selecting 42 players in the NFL expansion draft on February 9th, 1967.

Below is a list of those 42 players, taken from Wikipedia. I have not been able to find a second source confirming this information so it's accuracy is not known.

Obviously, most or all of the players made available to the Saints in the expansion draft were old, injured, or simply undesirable by the other NFL teams. But included in that expansion draft class for the Saints were players like Billy Kilmer, Dave Whitsell, Jake Kupp, and hall of fame running back Paul Hornung, who ended up retiring with a neck injury during preseason before ever playing a down for the team.

Player Position College Team Original NFL Team
Tom Barrington Fullback Ohio State Washington Redskins
Jim Battles Offensive Tackle Cleveland Browns
Charlie Bradshaw Offensive Tackle Baylor Pittsburgh Steelers
Jackie Burkett Linebacker Auburn Baltimore Colts
Dave Cahill Defensive Tackle Northern Arizona Philadelphia Eagles
Bill Cody Linebacker Auburn Detroit Lions
Don Croftcheck Offensive Guard Indiana Washington Redskins
Bill Curry Center Georgia Tech Green Bay Packers
Ted Davis Linebacker Georgia Tech Baltimore Colts
Jim Garcia Defensive End Purdue New York Giants
Tom Hall Wide Receiver Minnesota Minnesota Vikings
Steve Heckard Wide Receiver Davidson, USC Los Angeles Rams
Jimmy Heidel Defensive Back St. Louis Cardinals
Paul Hornung Running back Notre Dame Green Bay Packers
Billy Kilmer Quarterback UCLA San Francisco 49ers
Elbert Kimbrough Defensive Back Northwestern San Francisco 49ers
Kent Kramer Tight End Minnesota San Francisco 49ers
Jake Kupp Offensive Guard Washington Washington Redskins
Earl Leggett Defensive Tackle Louisiana State Los Angeles Rams
Obert Logan Defensive Back Trinity Dallas Cowboys
Riley Mattson Offensive Tackle Oregon Chicago Bears
John Morrow Center Michigan Cleveland Browns
Ray Ogden Tight End Alabama St. Louis Cardinals
Ray Rissmiller Offensive Tackle Georgia Philadelphia Eagles
Walt Roberts Wide Receiver San José State Cleveland Browns
George Rose Defensive Back Auburn Minnesota Vikings
Bill Sandeman Offensive Tackle Pacific Dallas Cowboys
Bob Scholtz Offensive Tackle Notre Dame New York Giants
Brian Schweda Defensive End Kansas Chicago Bears
Dave Simmons Linebacker Georgia Tech St. Louis Cardinals
Jerry Simmons Wide Receiver Bethune-Cookman Pittsburgh Steelers
Bobby Smith Defensive Back UCLA Detroit Lions
Bobby Smith Running back North Texas Pittsburgh Steelers
Larry Stephens Defensive Tackle Texas Dallas Cowboys
Steve Stonebreaker Linebacker Detroit Baltimore Colts
Mike Tilleman Defensive Tackle Montana Minnesota Vikings
Phil Vandersea Linebacker Massachusetts Green Bay Packers
Willie Walker Wide Receiver Tennessee State Detroit Lions
Joe Wendryhoski Offensive Guard Illinois Los Angeles Rams
Dave Whitsell Defensive Back Indiana Chicago Bears
Fred Whittingham Linebacker Cal Poly, BYU Philadelphia Eagles
Gary Wood Quarterback Cornell New York Giants