Countdown to New Orleans Saints Kickoff: A History of No. 13

The New Orleans Saints are less than two weeks away from the official start of their 2017 regular season. On September 11, just 13 days from now, the Saints will play the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night football. Canal Street Chronicles continues our countdown to kickoff series today by looking at every player that has worn the No. 13 in a regular season game for the New Orleans Saints.

Larry Cipa (QB, 1974-1975)

Cipa was a 15th round draft choice by New Orleans in 1974, and played the only two years of his career as a backup quarterback for the Saints. He did start 3 games in his career, finishing with a record of 1-2, while appearing in a total of 8 games. He threw for 424 yards with 1 touchdown and 3 interceptions, and added a rushing score during his career.

Doug Nussmeier (QB, 1996-1997)

Nussmeier was selected in the 4th round of the 1994 draft by New Orleans, but saw no regular season action until the 1996 season. He played in a total of five games through the '96 and '97 seasons, starting 2. Nussmeier's passing statistics included 455 yards, with 1 touchdown and 4 interceptions. Nussmeier is currently an offensive coach at the University of Florida.

Kerry Collins (QB, 1998)

Collins was originally a 1st round draft pick of the expansion Carolina Panthers in 1995, making the Pro Bowl in '96 as he led the young franchise to the NFC championship game. Released by Carolina just 4 games into the 1998 regular season due to personal difficulties, Collins was signed by New Orleans for the last half of the season. He was one of 4 quarterbacks to start a game for the 1998 Saints, along with the "Billy Joes" (Hobert and Tolliver) and Danny Wuerffel. Collins started 7 games, the most of any of the quarterbacks, but could only produce a 2-5 record as a starter. He completed less than 50% of his passes, for 1,202 yards with 4 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions.

The Saints did not offer Collins a contract at season's end, and he went on to play with the New York Giants, Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Titans, and Indianapolis Colts through the remaining 13 years of his 17-year NFL career.

Joe Morgan (WR, 2012-2014)

Morgan was signed by the Saints as an undrafted free agent in the summer of 2011. He likely would have made the team that season after a productive preseason, but suffered an injury before the opener that caused the team to place him on injured reserve. He returned in 2012 to provide a big play threat for the Saints and quarterback Drew Brees. Morgan had only 10 receptions on the year, but averaged an eye-popping 37.9 yards per catch, for 379 yards and 3 scores, including a team best 80-yard touchdown reception.

Morgan suffered another knee injury in the preseason of 2013, once again causing him to miss the entire year. Early into the 2014 season, Morgan was suspended by the team for the remainder of that year for undisclosed reasons. He had averaged 23 yards per reception and had added a 67 yard run at the time of suspension. Morgan returned to the team in 2015, but was eventually released after just two games of action. He has been in the Canadian Football League for most of the last two years.

Michael Thomas enters his second season with the Saints in 2017. The former 2nd round pick from Ohio State enjoyed a record rookie season in the New Orleans offense, and getting voted onto the NFL All-Rookie team. His stat line for the year included 92 receptions for 1,137 yards and 9 touchdowns. All three marks were franchise rookie records, the top marks for all NFL rookies in 2016, and among the top 10 of all receivers in the NFL a year ago.

With the trade of Brandin Cooks this past offseason, Thomas is firmly entrenched as the No. 1 receiving target in quarterback Drew Brees' arsenal. With his combination of size, athletic ability, precision route running, knack for spectacular catches, and work ethic, Thomas seems on the verge of superstardom. It should be an exciting season in New Orleans for this number 13.