Team Needs: New Orleans Saints
Gridiron Experts is randomly picking NFL teams to evaluate their off-season acquisitions. We are predicting their game plan heading into the NFL Draft, using last year’s stats as a guide for improvement.


To say the New Orleans Saints have a good offense is an understatement. It’s never a matter of if the Saints are going to score, it’s when and how often. The New Orleans passing game led by gunslinger Drew Brees dismantled teams in 2008, and with the development of Reggie Bush year after year, it’s safe to say this offense will continue to rack up points. The Saints averaged 28.6 points per game along with a stunning 311 passing yards per game. With moving the ball through the air as first choice, New Orleans running game was still ranked surprisingly high in a few categories, despite the low number of rushing attempts per game. So why did this team with all of its firepower only win 8 games? Simple: defense.


The Saints could never seem to shut down their opponents, allowing teams to move the chains on many key plays of the game. The “bend don’t break” strategy often broke in the redzone, as the Saints ranked near the bottom in many categories on defense.


While this team has lots of potential on defense, the lack of a stand out leader needs to be addressed. With no movement in free agency, the Saints will try to fill in the missing pieces in the draft. Although the safety position stands out as an immediate need, the lack of talent in that category is obvious, and New Orleans will have to select carefully in the later rounds. However, the chance at pick 14 to draft an instant starter at cornerback is very do-able. The Saints allowed 50+ passing plays over 20 yards in 2008, so anything will be an improvement. Gridiron Experts thinks New Orleans is in a great position at 14 to draft Malcolm Jenkins from Ohio State. Jenkins would be an excellent compliment to last year’s rookie Tracy Porter, as he is a great tackler with good hand strength for press coverage and matches up well with big receivers. Some say Malcolm Jenkins would be best suited for the safety spot as his speed is a bit of an issue, but for New Orleans to need a player at both areas, the luxury of moving him to where he fits best would be perfect. Other options are for New Orleans to trade down, maybe adding an extra 2nd rounder to hog the board with secondary picks. If the New Orleans Saints draft an offensive player in the first two rounds, we will be very surprised.