After eight NFL seasons, Will Clapp has announced he will be calling it a career.
The former LSU standout and Metairie native who was a 7th round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2018 announced on Wednesday via social media that he would be retiring from the NFL.
"From the first to the last and all the ones in between," Clapp posted on Instagram with a image of he and his now wife, Lizzie, at all of his football destinations, "thank you for being my rock! Grateful for an amazing career and excited for our next chapter."
Clapp, most recently spotted on a Mardi Gras float alongside a host of his Saints teammates, appeared in 66 games across his NFL career (22 starts) split between the Saints, L.A. Chargers and Buffalo Bills. Clapp rejoined Kellen Moore, his OC with the Chargers, with the Saints in 2025 and appeared in line to be the team's backup center, but he suffered a season-ending foot injury in the preseason opener.
Clapp remained around the team despite being out for the year and appeared served in an unofficial assistant role, which Moore confirmed during the second half of the season. Clapp assisted OL coach Brendan Nugent in the OL room and could be seen with a headset and a play sheet on the sidelines during games.
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“Will is phenomenal. ... He’s an important part of our experience here with the offensive line," Moore said at the time. "We have some younger guys playing. Will has got a ton of experience in this league. He’s been an awesome asset for, you know, Brendan and the rest of the O-line coaches, so he’s helped those guys in a lot of different ways as he’s gone through his rehab process.”
That leads one to ponder whether Clapp's next chapter could be as an assistant OL coach for the Saints, a role that just so happens to be available with Jahri Evans departing for a coaching role with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Such a move would also be a familiar one for Moore, who himself went from being an active player to a QB coach for the Cowboys in one offseason.
Outside of Evans' departure the Saints look like they'll have coaching consistency, with no other coaches departing and the team opting not to move on from any of the current staff.