Get to know Keenan Lewis

Because there is nothing else going on, I did some research on one of our new free agent signees, Keenan Lewis.

6'1" 208 lbs CB
Lewis was born on May 17, 1986 in New Orleans, Louisiana and attended O. Perry Walker. He played for Oregon State where he was All American Academic first team in 2006, 2007 and 2008. Lewis was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round (96th overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft. Lewis signed a five-year, $26.3 million dollar contract, including $10.5 million guaranteed with the Saints this offseason.

He's known as a very physical corner. Something we haven't had since probably Mike McKenzie.

He missed some of the OTA's with a stomach issue, but is back and practicing now.

Recent Advocate Article

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San Diego, Oakland, Tennessee, Philadelphia and Atlanta — especially Atlanta — never had a chance.

Not when free agent cornerback Keenan Lewis was being peppered with texts from his mother, Muriel, to “Sign! Sign! Sign!” while he was at Saints headquarters.

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Muriel’s urgency was not just because the Saints were offering a plum deal, one that enabled her son to surprise her with a house for Mother’s Day. And it wasn’t just because the Lewis family is full of diehard Saints fans who couldn’t bear to see Keenan, who spent the first four years of his career with Pittsburgh, playing for anyone but his hometown team.

The real reason was that Kalise Genie Lewis — Keenan and wife Dannel’s 2-year-old daughter — would be close enough for Maw-Maw to see her whenever she wants.

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I’ve always wanted to play for the Saints, too. Before I was drafted, I said some things about it which were disrespectful to other teams. But that’s the way I felt then, and I still do.”

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“When Keenan was little, his grandfather would tell him, ‘If you play as hard as you can, one day you can play for the Saints,’ ”

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He’s also coming from perhaps the league’s most respected organization in Pittsburgh, where he was mentored by fellow New Orleanians Mike Wallace (an OPW teammate now with Miami), Ike Taylor and Ryan Clark, plus veterans such as Troy Polamalu and Hines Ward.

“Those guys showed me how you take care of your business on and off the field,” Lewis said. “They were great leaders, just like we’ve got here.”

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The Saints look on Lewis as their No. 1 cover corner, probably supplanting former first-round pick Patrick Robinson as a starter. All this for a player who has had only one season in that role under his belt.

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Lewis’ signing wasn’t just a hometown thing. He said he was heavily influenced by the presence of new defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, whom he considers a guru of the 3-4 the caliber of longtime Steelers assistant Dick LeBeau.

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FROM THE ESPN AFC NORTH BLOG:

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He played better than the Steelers' best corner, Ike Taylor, at times even though he was targeted frequently by quarterbacks. Now, after his first productive season, Lewis is going to the Saints while hitting the prime of his career.

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Lewis is the fifth Steelers starter who won't be coming back to Pittsburgh in 2013, joining wide receiver Wallace, running back Rashard Mendenhall (Arizona), Harrison (released) and guard Willie Colon (released).

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From his Saints bio:

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Over the course of his four-year professional career in Pittsburgh, Lewis has appeared in 45 games with 17 starts, registering 112 tackles (95 solo), one interception, 34 passes defensed and one forced fumble. In 2012, he stepped into the starting lineup for the first time for the NFL’s top-ranked defense both overall and against the pass, and posted 78 tackles (63 solo), an NFL-leading 28 passes defensed and one forced fumble.

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