Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 68

Saints Countdown To NFL Kickoff With The History Of Number 68 originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

July 1st also marks 68 days until the first game of the 2025 season for the New Orleans Saints. 

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Entering their 59th year in the NFL, the Saints will host the Arizona Cardinals to start a season where they hope to improve on their 5-12 record from 2024. They’ll do it under a new head coach in Kellen Moore and with several other new players.

Potentially one new player is offensive lineman Torricelli Simpkins III, an undrafted rookie from South Carolina who currently wears number 68. Simpkins is looking to become the 18th player in franchise history to wear 68 during a regular season game.

Saints History of 68

Former New Orleans Saints offensive lineman Kyle Turley (68). Credit: Saints Wire and Da Boot Sports

• Richard Winther, C (1972)

• Terry Stieve, OG (1976-77)

• Richard Neal, DE (1978)

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• Fred Sturt, OG (1978-81)

• Kelvin Clark, OG (1984-85)

• Pat Saindon, OG (1986)

• Walt Housman, OT (1987)

• Jeff Walker, OG (1988)

• Paul Jetton, C (1992)

• Alan Kline, OT (1995)

• Kyle Turley, OT (1998-2001)• Victor Riley, OT (2003-04)

• Matt Lehr, OG (2008)

• William Robinson, OT (2012)

• Tim Lelito, OG (2013-16)

• Derrick Kelly, OT (2020)

• Josh Andrews, OG (2022)

• Torricelli Simpkins III, C/G (present)

Oct 12, 2024; South Carolina Gamecocks offensive lineman Torricelli Simpkins III (76) lines up against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Mandatory Credit: Butch Dill-Imagn Images

A fourth round choice by the Saints in 1971, Winther was the first New Orleans player to suit up in 68. He played five games without a start in 1972. Stieve was the first to play more than one year in 68, appearing in 28 games with 16 starts over two seasons.

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Richard Neal was the first and only defensive player to wear 68 for New Orleans. Neal actually played five years with the Saints, wearing numbers 80 and 87 in his first four years from 1969 to 1972. He only wore 68 when he returned to New Orleans for two games in 1978.

Fred Sturt arrived to the Saints early in the 1978 campaign. He played four years for the team, appearing in 59 games with 40 starts. Sturt’s 59 games are the third most for any New Orleans player wearing 68, with his 40 starts being the second highest.

Between 1982 and 1998, six different players wore the number 68 for the Saints. Only Kelvin Clark, who did it for 17 starts in the last two of his four years with the team, wore it for more than one year. The others were in No. 68 for a combined 16 contests.

New Orleans Saints offensive tackle Kyle Turley (68) blocks Simeon Rice (97) of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Credit: SB Nation

With the seventh overall choice in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft, New Orleans selected offensive tackle Kyle Turley from the San Diego State Aztecs. A starting guard for 15 games as a rookie, Turley moved to tackle in his second season.

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Turley was one of the NFL’s best right tackles during his stretch in New Orleans, also playing one year at left tackle. He was with the Saints for five years, starting 79 contests and missing only one start over that span.

Turley’s 79 games and starts remain the most by a Saints player to wear 68. He is also the highest drafted New Orleans player to wear that jersey number.

Dec 18, 2016; New Orleans Saints guard Tim Lelito (68) against the Arizona Cardinals. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Victor Riley spent three seasons with the Saints, with the last two of those in a 68 jersey. Over those two years, he started 31 of his 32 game appearances. He was one of only two of the six players who wore 68 since Turley’s departure in 2003 to wear the number for more than one year.

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The other of those players was Tim Lelito, who was a Saint for four years. Lelito played in 63 games and made 24 starts, providing quality depth along the offensive line. Those 63 contests trail only Turley for the most by any Saints player in a number 68 uniform.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 1, 2025, where it first appeared.