Well ladies and gentlemen of the Who Dat Nation, there is your answer. The New Orleans Saints - under the scouting leadership of Jeff Ireland - are wholeheartedly committed to drafting the best player available. If the news that they were the absence of a Marshon Lattimore away from using the 11th pick to select a back-up quarterback for a defensive deficient team wasn't proof of that...
...then the direction they went with their wealth of picks on day two certainly was. After Sean Payton spent months talking about improving the pass rush, the Saints did all that they could to poke and prod a fanbase that would have been happy taking seven straight DE/OLB's and praying one of them panned out. I'm certainly glad they didn't do that. Not only because that would mean the front office is no smarter or any less emotional than the mob mentality of the internet, but also because - by all accounts - they filled a bunch of secondary holes in their roster with players that were more valuable than their draft slot. However, with the complete avoidance of adding an offensive guard last year and the painstaking wait for someone (i.e. anyone) that can bend the edge this year, you can argue that Mickey Loomis uses the draft as a way to ready the fans for the season by pandering to their "sky is falling" mindset. Regardless - outside the lens of outside linebacker - it's impossible to be disappointed with what the Saints were able to do. Securing their defensive backfield with an instinctive, ballhawking safety that could mature into the actualization of the type of player whose name shall remain unspoken as he counts the millions of dollars he essentially stole from the franchise? Getting the gadget back whose comparison to Reggie Bush and/or Darren Sproles is based on merit and performance instead of some incessant need for fans to recreate the glory years? That seems worth the (hopefully late) 2nd rounder they used to jump in and get him. I suppose I could have done without taking a flyer on a linebacker who probably already has a surgery scheduled for the shoulder he hasn't even re-re-re-seperated yet, but even he could hold massive value relative to draft position is he stays healthy. Ultimately, they did get their situational pass rusher with a high motor and a knack for turfing the quarterback. Of course he doesn't come without flaws considering he lasted until the end of round three. However, those are flaws that apparently aren't present in the New Orleans Saints overall draft grade*, and that's really all you can ask out of a weekend long crapshoot. The selections of Marcus Williams, Alvin Kamara, Alex Anzalone, and Trey Hendrickson may not have satisfied some fans, but they certainly satisfied a bunch of draft geeks and a host of roster needs that the Saints clearly weren't about to reach for. *Immediate draft grades are stupid, meaningless, and premature...unless your team resides at the top of them. Everyone knows that.
1 Comment
10/26/2023 11:34:03 am
I wanted to express my gratitude for your insightful and engaging article. Your writing is clear and easy to follow, and I appreciated the way you presented your ideas in a thoughtful and organized manner. Your analysis was both thought-provoking and well-researched, and I enjoyed the real-life examples you used to illustrate your points. Your article has provided me with a fresh perspective on the subject matter and has inspired me to think more deeply about this topic. Leave a Reply. |
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