Last season, the New Orleans Saints finished 11-5 and ended up being second in the NFC South. They ended up making the playoffs and winning a close game against the Philadelphia Eagles but losing in the following match up versus the eventual Super Bowl champs, the Seattle Seahawks. This offseason has been highly clouded by the contract negotiations between Jimmy Graham and the Saints but they have still made some more moves, some controversial and others very beneficial. The bad news first is long time Saints, Darren Sproles and Lance Moore, were cut and are on new teams (Sproles to Eagles & Moore to Steelers). The good news is that the Saints did add to their very poor secondary with the signing of safety Jairus Byrd and cornerback Champ Bailey. With that said, their secondary needs a lot of help if they’re going to take pressure off of Drew Brees to score on every drive.
Draft Needs: CB, OT, WR, and K
Cornerback: Although Keenan Lewis is a beast at this position for the Saints, they still need someone lining up opposite to him. I understand the signing of Bailey adds a veteran leader with some talent but he’s getting older and there’s a reason the Broncos, who emphasized improving their defense this offseason, didn’t bring him back. The Saints need a cornerback, especially since their corners are usually left in one-on-one coverage.
Offensive Tackle: Mainly the center position is the struggle in this case. With New Orleans not resigning their center, they are in the hunt to get one, likely in this draft. Depending on who is available by the time their first pick comes around, I expect them to get Marcus Martin or Weston Richburg as they are the top prospect centers in this draft class.
Wide Receiver: With the loss of Lance Moore and Darren Sproles, plus the depth in this year’s wide receiver class, I highly expect the Saints to bring in another receiver. Yes, they still have Marques Colston and Kenny Stills but both of those receivers have their downside. Colston is getting older and is still injury prone, while Kenny Stills is a very young talent who might have just been successful only due to the amount of attention other pieces were receiving. Taking a chance on a guy like Jordan Matthews or Cody Latimer can pay off big time.
Kicker: After being forced to cut Hartley, who helped the Saints win a Super Bowl, they signed Shayne Graham, a veteran kicker. Although he did decent for the Saints, he is merely a placeholder until they find a true dependable kicker. In the NFL today, a lot of extra points and field goals seem automatic for teams but it’s an area the Saints have struggled in.
