Countdown to Kickoff: Torricelli Simpkins III is the Player of Day 68
Article excerpt
After a rookie year that flashed promise, Torricelli Simpkins III will be among the competitors for a key backup role on the Saints offensive line.
It is down to 68 days before the New Orleans Saints kick off their 2026 regular season. New Orleans will travel north to start their year with a game at the Detroit Lions on Sunday, Sept. 13. Offensive lineman Torricelli Simpkins is wearing No. 68 for the Saints as they near the start of training camp.
Entering his second season, Simpkins made the Saints as an undrafted rookie. He'll face even stiffer competition this time around on an offensive line that had a few key offseason additions. Our Saints Player of the Day features continue by looking at Simpkins and his career to date.
Name (age): Torricelli Simpkins III (24)
Hometown: Charlotte, N.C.
Position: Guard
Height, weight: 6-foot-5, 312 pounds
College: South Carolina Gamecocks
Relative Athletic Score: 5.53
Drafted: Undrafted in 2025 (Saints)
NFL experience: 1 year
2026 salary cap hit: $1.02 million
From Olympic High School in North Carolina, Simpkins' initial college choice was North Carolina Central, an HBCU in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The Eagles canceled Simpkins' freshman year of 2020 because of Covid. He'd go on to start all of next 35 games at North Carolina Central over the next three years, earning first team All-MEAC honors twice. In 2023, Simpkins was voted an HBCU All-American and the MEAC Offensive Lineman of the Year. He'd transfer to South Carolina at that year's conclusion. Moving from center to right guard, Simpkins, started every contest for the Gamecocks last season and would earn third-team All-SEC recognition.
Simpkins made the active roster coming out of preseason. Injuries to Trevor Penning and Dillon Radunz gave him his first NFL start in Week 3. When Cesar Ruiz went down with injury in Week 4, Simpkins relieved him and got another start the following week. He played reasonably well in all three outings, especially as a run blocker but also showing growth in pass protection duties.
After 178 offensive snaps between Week 3 and 5, Simpkins would see only one offensive play the remainder of the year. This was somewhat bewildering, considering he'd played fairly well and the fact that both Ruiz and Radunz were notable weaknesses. However, Simpkins did see regular offensive line reps for the kicking and punting units, getting 64 snaps in those duties.
Torricelli Simpkins didn't necessarily outplay Cesar Ruiz and Dillon Radunz. With Ruiz and Radunz each limiting the offense greatly, however, it is surprising that coach Kellen Moore didn't give more reps to the undrafted rookie. With his ability to step in at both guard and centet, Simpkins should certainly be in the mix for a roster spot when New Orleans takes the field for training camp in late July.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Countdown to Kickoff: Torricelli Simpkins III is the Player of Day 68