NEW ORLEANS — Kaden Elliss takes the extra time to greet any and every stranger who seeks an autograph, conversation or some of both.
Watch the way he moves up and down the line of fans for an hour after practice in the midday sun. See the connection the New Orleans Saints rookie linebacker makes with people who he might never encounter again, but who might come away from the moment with something to hold onto beyond a signature. Listen to him speak in his relentlessly upbeat aw-shucks way.
Wonder where that all comes from? Talk to the father and get an answer.
“Be grateful for what you have, be grateful for the people in your lives and give back more than you take,” said Luther Elliss, succinctly narrating the family’s belief system in one sentence.
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The younger Elliss is no lock to make the Saints' roster. New Orleans used the 244th pick to select him in the 2019 draft, which makes him both an affordable and expendable investment. This training camp has been about proving to the organization why he belongs, but proving it in his own way.
The Elliss family is a football family. Kaden Elliss is a second-generation NFL player, following the footsteps of Luther,a first-round pick of the Detroit Lions back in 1995 who is now an assistant coach at the University of Idaho.
But when Luther brings up DNA, he does so in reference to these golden rules of gratefulness, not in the genetic ability to execute the X's and O's.
Kaden Elliss is one of Luther and Rebecca Elliss’ 12 children. They are all their own people with their own distinct personalities, but they were brought up in the same family culture.
“My wife and I raised them to love life, live life to the fullest, only worry about things you can control, let it run offyour back if you can’t do anything about it,” Luther said. “Control your attitude in who you are and what you are.”
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So, Kaden Elliss goes to work grateful for what he has. Right now, that means he is appreciative of the opportunity and for the people who are serving as mentors.
The Saints dropped him into a linebacker group with a clear-cut hierarchy. Demario Davis, A.J. Klein and Alex Anzalone are established starters, Craig Robertson is the vocal leader. All have pulled the rookie under their wing both on and off the field, teaching him how to be a professional and encouraging him to embrace being paid to play a game.
“I’m thankful for being on a team that has amazing leaders,” Kaden Elliss said. “Craig (Robertson) reminds us every day to have fun. If this isn’t fun, you shouldn’t be doing it. Even if you’re a little tired, a little sore, it’s still fun. It’s a blast, it’s a blessing to be out here.”
He brings a thirst for knowledge that the veterans and coaches alike appreciate.
“I think that’s why you see people try to gravitate to him a little bit because he does have such a high level of love for the game,” said defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
Davis added, “You get somebody like that who is hungry to learn and loves the game of football, the sky is really the limit. It’s really on him at that point, how good he can be.”
The Saints have seen enough at this point to be comfortable giving Elliss some first-team practice reps at MIKE linebacker while Anzalone recovers from an injury. They are also seeing what he can do on special teams — an area that could be crucial to his chances of making the roster — by putting him on every special teams unit except the field goal team.
Elliss makes sure to show he’s grateful for the people in his life when he’s away from the field. This was made a bit easier with a bit of a nudge from Davis.
NFL training camp, especially for a rookie experiencing it for the first time, is a physical and mental grind. It can be tough to pull oneself away from the game when fighting for a roster spot and that can lead to an unhealthy imbalance.
Davis taught Elliss to let the game breathe.
“Being able to go after practice and let your brain breathe, get in the tub, shower, relax a little bit, call back home and talk to your people, then come back to it — it’s probably most important for a young guy,” Davis said. “Because they’ll go from the practice field, watch film, back to the practice field, back watching film then look at their playbook all night.
“Their mind is trying to take in so much information, and it’s kind of like mental overload and they actually become a worse player.”
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So Elliss will allow himself time to not think about football. He gets Bible study in every day — “If I don’t, I’ll be ornery all day,” Ellis said. He uses FaceTime to keep the important people in his life close, talking with his wife, parents and siblings.
“Having that little source to both lean on, talk to and have encouragement from, then also to relax and get away from the football world for a little bit,” Elliss said.
Finally, Elliss does what he can to give back more than he takes.
He’s amazed when he arrives to the Saints’ facility at 6 a.m. for practice and already sees fans lining up to watch a training camp practice. He watches quarterback Drew Brees, whom he describes as “one of the busiest men in the world,” taking time after practices to sign autographs.
“If he can, I think I can too,” Elliss said.
“That’s who he is,” Luther Elliss said. “That’s how he came out, that’s his DNA and that’s his makeup.”
It hasn’t taken long for the Saints to figure that part out.
Sometime after a recent practice, when Elliss was off in some corner meeting new people and signing autographs, Allen was asked for the best way to describe Elliss’ demeanor.
“I don’t know if he’s ever had a bad day,” Allen said.
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