There are 18 days to go until the New Orleans Saints kick off their 2024 regular season, so here's the best play that Jalen Saunders made in the No. 18 jersey. Saunders returned the opening kickoff against the Atlanta Falcons for 99 yards back in 2014, which you can watch here.

Good blocking created a lot of room for Saunders to work with, and he dashed past a couple of too-slow Falcons defenders in the open field. But he slowed down too soon and was cut off at the goal line, losing the football on his way to the ground. Fortunately he was ruled down by contact and his teammate Mark Ingram punched in a touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage.

It was still a great moment for Saunders to start his pro career. He had a tough go of it while spending time with several different teams after turning pro out of Oklahoma, and the Saints actually traded him to the New England Patriots a few months later. But highlights like this are what everyone looks back on most fondly, and Saunders deserves some credit for all the good things he did in this big play in a big-time rivalry game.

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This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Jalen Saunders' 99-yard kick return is the Saints Play of the Day