Which positions look weakest on the New Orleans Saints’ depth chart? There’s still time to add reinforcements before training camp and the start of the 2024 season, but their options are limited with the biggest free agent signings and the NFL draft behind us.
According to Pro Football Network’s Dakota Randall, the Saints’ biggest remaining weakness is safety. Here’s why:
As we stand today, 2023 fifth-round pick Jordan Howden is in line to start alongside Tyrann Mathieu. That’s because the New Orleans Saints didn’t find any better players in free agency or during the draft.
They need to start planning for the future at this position.
It’s a little late to start planning for the future after the draft, and it’s not like the Saints haven’t signed anyone. They brought in veteran defensive back Will Harris while re-signing other experienced backups like Johnathan Abram (who started ahead of Howden to close out the 2023 season) and Ugo Amadi to round out the depth chart.
Sure, they don’t have many proven options who could confidently replace Marcus Maye next to Mathieu. It’s going to be Howden, Abram, or Harris filling that void in the fall. Hopefully Howden has learned enough after his rookie year to earn that job. But the Saints won games last year with both him and Abram starting in the secondary, so it’s not like this is a major priority.
At least not to the degree that the offensive line is a serious problem. The Saints don’t have a starting left guard right now. James Hurst retired and Andrus Peat signed with the Las Vegas Raiders, meaning their best options on the roster are Nick Saldiveri (a college right tackle who the coaches didn’t want to play as a rookie), Oli Udoh (a career right guard with some experience at left tackle, but not left guard), and a journeyman free agent in Shane Lemieux. A couple of rookie free agents are also in the mix.
And that’s not getting into the depth issues at left tackle. Trevor Penning is about to jump out of the plane without a parachute if the Saints can’t sign a free agent who could fill in for him in a pinch, if not push him during camp. He was benched after just six starts last season for poor performance. Maybe he’s turned it around with hard work this offseason, but the only players behind him are Landon Young and Justin Herron, with 18 combined NFL starts between the two of them. It’s a dicey situation. Hopefully the Saints can improve things along the line (and, sure, at safety) before training camp starts in July.
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