The first roster position that desperately needs to be addressed in the offseason is the wide receiver group. We all watched the New Orleans Saints out there this past season and let’s face it, nobody was really changing the game for them after Jameis Winston went down. Frankly, nobody was really consistently getting open even with Winston at quarterback which is really saying something.
Without a doubt, the return of Michael Thomas will be phenomenal for this roster. He has already proven to be a big bodied wideout that can catch pretty much anything thrown his way, as made apparent by his record breaking seasons in the NFL so far. He hasn’t been out there for like two years at this point and is yet to play with Winston or whoever steps in at quarterback next year. However, I don’t expect the transition to be that difficult and believe it will make the Saints offense that much deadlier.
I think that Marquez Callaway deserves to stay on the team after this past season. The undrafted wideout led the team in receiving yards with just 698. He made some incredible catches throughout the year and came down with a lot of touchdowns. The only downside was that he wasn’t really getting open that much and had a few bad drops that can’t happen. Deonte Harris was also really good. Yes, he was suspended for three games due to a DUI, but when active he was a great deep threat and really took the top off of defenses. With Winston in at quarterback, Harris was hauling in one big touchdown a game it felt like, which is what helped them start the year off so strong. Outside of those guys, there wasn’t much depth. Kenny Stills did practically nothing, same goes for Kevin White. Tre’Quan Smith had his moments but there is just so much inconsistency that has happened with him for years that it’s hard to imagine him taking that next step soon.
The Saints won’t be very active in the free agent market. Chances are they are in Salary Cap Hell all over again this year. Not that it’s too much to worry about, it’s just that they won’t be signing any free agents to this roster. They draft with pick number 18 in the first round. A spot that could get them a couple of big playmakers that may still be available. Guys like Garrett Wilson and Jameson Williams are likely to be off the board at this point but stranger things have happened in the past. Plus, we could see other receivers like Chris Olave and Drake London make a serious impact on this squad as well.
The Saints offense has to get better, no questions about it. I would imagine that Winston is retained as the starting quarterback next season. If they want to get better, playmakers in the passing game have to be there. We can’t always rely upon Alvin Kamara to take over games with no other threats on the field. Hopefully this organization is able to snag a playmaker in the draft.