Dennis Allen said he was expected to be hearing about Foster Moreau's breakfast with Mickey Loomis when his phone rang earlier this month.
He was driving into the facility and it was Saints Director of Pro Personnel Michael Parenton on the other line to deliver the news: The prospective Saints TE was diagnosed with cancer after a physical with team doctors.
"First thing is you’re shocked," Allen said, speaking at the NFL's annual owner meetings this week, "and then the second thing I think of is I think of our medical people and the lives that they’ve saved."
Yes, that's plural.
The New Orleans native and former LSU Tigers was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma, and will be stepping away from football as he battles the disease. But he's just the latest potentially life-saving diagnosis delivered by John Amoss and the Saints medical staff. It's actually happened four times since 2017.
Allen referenced two that were made public at the time, with DT Nick Fairley and long snapper Jon Dorenbos diagnosed with heart conditions in the 2017 season.
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But one more was revealed on Tuesday, as Allen explained, offering insight into a name that only lingered on the Saints roster for a matter of days. The Saints claimed offensive lineman Tanner Owen from the Bills following cutdowns ahead of the 2022 season. He was waived days later with an injury designation, due to another heart condition discovered by the Saints medical staff. Owen is currently a free agent. The careers of both Fairley and Dorenbos effectively ended after the 2017 season.
“Look, you don’t like to find these things … but yet, our medical people being able to find these things and really save peoples lives is amazing," Allen said, "and I think our medical people do a hell of a job.”
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