Minneapolis - Linebacker Adam Bighillwill make his NFL regular-season debut against the Vikings in the Saints' season-opener Monday night at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Bighill, a fan favorite during preseason and former CFL star, was activated from the practice squad (the contract of offensive tackle Bryce Harriswas terminated to create a spot) for the linebacker-thin Saints, who entered the game with two linebackers inactive (Nate Stuparand Stephone Anthony). He will bolster the special teams units and also has shown he can play effective snaps at linebacker, if necessary.
Bighill gives the Saints five active linebackers against the Vikings.
A somewhat surprising inactive for the Saints was cornerback Ken Crawley, who spent a lot of time working with the No. 1 defense in training camp. That left the Saints with four active cornerbacks (Marshon Lattimore, P.J. Williams, De'Vante Harrisand Sterling Moore), and with five safeties. But given that defensive coordinator Dennis Allenroutinely employs three-safety packages defensively, the Saints should be in good shape in the secondary.
The remaining inactives were quarterback Taysom Hill, offensive tackle Terron Armstead, receiver Austin Carr and defensive end Trey Hendrickson.