The NFL is back, and Sportsnet is breaking down everything you need to know about each of the 32 teams in the month leading up to kickoff on Thursday, Sept. 7. Today, the New Orleans Saints.
Head coach: Sean Payton
Last season’s record: 7-9
Playoff result: Did not qualify
Key free agent gains: Adrian Peterson was the most noteworthy addition the team made in the off-season. We’ll know soon enough whether or not it was the smartest one. Peterson will share the backfield with Mark Ingram. That duo, at least on paper, has the potential to be the best one-two RB combo in the NFC — not to mention there has been strong buzz surrounding the early-camp performance of rookie Alvin Kamara.
Ted Ginn is no Brandin Cooks but he gives Drew Brees a burner to target downfield. Ginn will fall behind Willie Snead and Michael Thomas on the depth chart.
Guard Larry Warford, formerly of the Detroit Lions, was added to a banged-up offensive line. Warford has developed a bond with veteran right tackle Zach Strief in training camp.
“Larry is so explosive I feel like I’m behind him half the time,” Strief said. “So that’s pushed me a lot to get going, get out of the stance and get moving because he’s gone quicker than [Jahri Evans] was.”
Adding Manti Te’o and A.J. Klein gives the linebacking corps some depth — Klein could be a sneaky-good add — but overall this is a group severely lacking in talent. Defensive end Alex Okafor could give a slight boost to a pass rush that ranked 27th in sacks in 2016.
Key free agent losses: Jahri Evans is now on the Green Bay Packers, but he hasn’t been his Pro Bowl self since 2014 so it’s not like they’ll miss him terribly this season. They also split from veteran safeties Jairus Byrd and Roman Harper.
A bigger blow, however, was losing Nick Fairley for the season due to a heart condition, and obviously the biggest loss of all was Cooks, though they did get two high draft picks for him.
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Key draft picks: They used the first-round pick they received from the New England Patriots in the Cooks trade to select Wisconsin offensive tackle Ryan Ramczyk then used the third-rounder they got to pick linebacker Trey Hendrickson out of Florida Atlantic University.
Cornerback Marshon Lattimore will in all likelihood be used sparingly early in the season as he acclimatizes to the NFL. The 11th-overall pick shone at Ohio State in 2016.
Marcus Williams was taken early in the second round. He is the type of big-play defensive back the Saints could use and the safety will have the likes of Kenny Vaccaro and Vonn Bell to learn from.
X-factor: The offensive line. We all know what a Brees-led Sean Payton offence is capable of and the Saints still have plenty of firepower. But if Brees has no time and the running backs have no lanes, this potentially potent offence could stagnate. Left tackle Terron Armstead and centre Max Unger are on the PUP list. That hurts.
2017 will be a success if: The front seven can put up a fight. The team’s secondary should be competitive, but this defence gets little push up front and the linebackers have under-performed in recent years, which contributed to three consecutive 7-9 finishes.
