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How do the New Orleans Saints stack up against the rest of the NFL? Their tough offseason has mostly been a series of hits to the depth chart, ranging from the retirement of Drew Brees to difficult salary cap cuts on both sides of the ball. According to Anthony Tresh at Pro Football Focus, the Saints are in a unique position, ranking them No. 16 among their peers ahead of the 2021 draft:
“The Saints will be one of the more interesting teams to watch in 2021 due to the roller coaster that is Jameis Winston taking over the offense following Drew Brees‘ retirement. He’ll have one of the best receiving backs and wide receivers in the NFL to throw to in Alvin Kamara and Michael Thomas, respectively, but there is a glaring lack of depth otherwise.
New Orleans’ next best receiver is perhaps Tre’Quan Smith, who owns a 64.1 receiving grade across his three NFL seasons. The Saints are also lacking in the cornerback department following Janoris Jenkins‘ release due to cap constraints. Patrick Robinson, who owns a 62.8 coverage grade across 342 coverage snaps over the past three years, is projected to start opposite Marshon Lattimore for now.”
However, PFF doesn’t expect the Saints to be big players in this year’s draft. Their draft capital has a cumulative value ranking sixth-worst across the league, owing to their late placements in each round and lack of a third round pick (for what it’s worth, New Orleans picked up a pair of third-round compensatory selections). While the Saints have shown a willingness to package future picks into current-year trades, that’s not a strategy PFF appears eager to endorse.
As for the rest of the NFC South: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are rated with the best roster, but place at No. 27 in draft capital. That’s a far cry from where the Atlanta Falcons slot in, with the fifth-most draft resources but the No. 24-rated roster. The Carolina Panthers rank even lower at No. 29 in roster strength, with the tenth-best draft capital to work with.
While a great draft class could catapult either of those two bottom feeders into contention, it’s shaping up for a two-horse race between the reigning NFC South champion Saints and Tom Brady’s Buccaneers, who got hot at the right time in January to cruise into a Super Bowl win. With aging rosters and limited draft picks, it’ll be fascinating to see how the Saints and Buccaneers reload on top of the division in this year’s draft.
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