Tag: James Hurst

Former Saints player details the beginning of the end for Dennis Allen

Dennis Allen’s actions in the 2023 season finale vs. the Falcons was a tough pill for fans to swallow. James Hurst says many players felt the same:

James Hurst retired this offseason, but he saw the separation between Dennis Allen and the New Orleans Saints locker room last year. He even went as far as to say some players wondered if Mickey Loomis would fire Allen at the end of the 2023 season.

Hurst reflects on the aftermath of players going against Allen’s wishes to kneel the ball out against the Atlanta Falcons in the season finale. Hurst was among the crew that opted to get Jamaal Williams his first touchdown of the season. He admits they were wrong but players were disappointed Allen apologized to Arthur Smith instead of having their back publicly.

“Many of the players felt he missed an opportunity there to have our backs, to defend us, even though what we did was wrong, admittedly,” Hurst relayed. Fans were upset Allen didn’t embody what they believed was Saints culture, but players were upset he hung them out to dry. Their preference was a public backing to show a unified front and being reprimanded in private.

Those emotions continued into the next day as players talked negatively among themselves. It was to the point to that when Loomis called a rare post season meeting, players thought it was to announce Allen’s departure.

Hurst capped off his statement by saying, “maybe that was the beginning of the end. That was definitely tough for the players to swallow and something surely some of the guys hadn’t quite gotten over.”

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James Hurst on why Erik McCoy is almost impossible to replace mid-game

Losing Erik McCoy early against the Eagles was almost a worst-case scenario. Former Saints offensive lineman James Hurst explains why:

The New Orleans Saints lost Erik McCoy shortly into their game with the Philadelphia Eagles, and the impact of his absence was felt early and often. His injury forced Lucas Patrick to move from left guard to center, with Olisaemeka Udoh stepping in. The entirety of the interior offensive line struggled, including right guard Cesar Ruiz. Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter proved too much for them to handle.

But the ramifications of McCoy’s absence went beyond those battles at the point of attack. Former Saints offensive lineman and current WDSU analyst James Hurst explained why this was the case. Hurst was a member of the team just last year, so he saw McCoy’s abilities first hand. And he says the Saints’ struggles go deeper than McCoy’s skills.

McCoy’s position is as important as his talent. Hurst relayed the importance of a quality center: “It’s really tough to lose a center in the middle of the game. He does so much with identifying the defense, communicating with the quarterback, setting the blocking schemes for the offensive line and tight ends.”

Losing McCoy in the midst of a game amplifies the impact because the player who fills in hasn’t gone through any of the week’s preparation. He’ll naturally be behind on much that contributes to the success of the offensive line. Patrick being a guard means he didn’t even get many second-team reps doing this.

So many other players are dependent on the center (both guards next to him, the quarterback receiving the snap, and everyone else he’s protecting in the backfield), which is why the position impacts the entire offensive line. This gives hope that some of the issues can be smoothed over with practice reps.

It’s like Hurst said at the end of his explanation, though. He added, “(McCoy is) a very, very good football player on top of that.” Those talents are just hard to replace. Hopefully McCoy can get back in the lineup sooner rather than later.

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Nick Saldiveri taking all first-team reps in Saints left guard competition

Nick Saldiveri was viewed as a future starter at guard when the Saints drafted him last year. He’s taking charge of the competition early at OTAs:

Nick Saldiveri seems to be in the lead in the New Orleans Saints left guard battle, for now. James Hurst retiring before the NFL draft and Andrus Peat leaving in free agency meant the Saints would need a new starting left guard. But this would have been a move the Saints should have considered even if Hurst didn’t retire. The new scheme requires more mobility than Hurst has shown. Insert Saldiveri.

In the second day of organized team activities open to local media, the second-year pro took all the first team snaps at left guard, per Locked On Saints host Ross Jackson. This was a departure from the approach seen the week prior. Last week, Saldiveri and Shane Lemieux split time in the starting lineup. Saldiveri taking all first team reps suggests he’s ahead of Lemieux, at least for the moment.

The Saints haven’t made it to training camp just yet so the battle is far from over. New Orleans could also be alternating days in the starting lineup. That won’t be known until media is allowed to watch consecutive practices. Saldiveri was viewed as a future starter when they traded up to draft him last year, with the first pick in the fourth round, so him taking over at left guard would be the intended outcome. Saldiveri played right tackle almost exclusively at Old Dominion so he’ll need every rep he can get. He’s off to a good start in 2024.

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James Hurst retiring exacerbates Saints’ woeful offensive line

The Saints offensive line was already in rough shape before James Hurst called it a career. His absence exacerbates a bad situation:

It’s tough to think of a setup worse than the New Orleans Saints’ offensive line right now. Of last year’s five starters, only two are locks to return in their spots for 2024: Pro Bowl center Erik McCoy and right guard Cesar Ruiz.

Left tackle is undecided with the Saints expected to draft competition for Trevor Penning this weekend. Right tackle is an open wound with Ryan Ramczyk facing the very real possibility of a medical retirement. And left guard is now looking worse with James Hurst retiring from pro football.

The Saints need more reinforcements than they can afford with their current draft picks (just two selections inside this year’s top 100) and salary cap space (a little over $8 million). They need to find at least two starting-quality linemen, but three would do a lot to help build confidence in the group.

Look further into their depth chart and you’ll see names like Olisaemeka Udoh (who has played both tackle and guard under new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak), Nick Saldiveri, Landon Young, Mark Evans II, and Tommy Kraemer. No disrespect to those guys but this group isn’t ready to handle 17 games and a playoff run.

Drafting a first-round offensive lineman isn’t enough to get them there, either. Picking a new starting right tackle (like, say, Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga) won’t cure what’s ailing them at left tackle or left guard. The Saints should continue to explore their options later in the draft and in free agency. There are starting-quality linemen still available with experience in the system New Orleans wants to run like Mekhi Becton (who has started at both left and right tackle) and Dalton Risner (a career left guard). They should really look at bringing back Andrus Peat at some point, too, if nothing else than to reinforce the depth chart.

They can patch some holes in the hull, but it feels like a certainty that the Saints will have to set sail with some concerning vulnerabilities and hope for the best. We’ll see how far hope takes them.

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Salary cap impact of James Hurst retiring with the Saints

What is the salary cap impact of James Hurst retiring with the New Orleans Saints? Previous moves set up a pretty clean break:

An already-difficult New Orleans Saints offensive line outlook got a little more complicated on Wednesday. Veteran left guard James Hurst announced his retirement after a decade in the NFL, opening a void next to an already-open spot at left tackle. But the Saints weren’t exactly caught by surprise, and the salary cap impact will be minimal.

This may have been broadcast earlier this offseason. Hurst agreed to a pay cut in March that lowered his cap hit from $6.5 million to just $2.97 million, giving up most of his base salary as well as some bonuses. Hurst told NewOrleans.Football’s Mike Triplett that he previously told the team about his intentions to retire, so that was all part of the plan. But what happens next now that he’s retiring?

It depends on how the Saints want to handle it. If they process Hurst’s retirement now, it’ll leave behind more than $2.2 million in dead money while saving just $688,000 against the cap. But if they wait until after June 1 to process his retirement then they’ll defer some of those dead money charges into 2025 while saving up to $1.21 million this year. That’s the same tactic they’ve taken with previous retirements for Drew Brees and Malcolm Jenkins.

Getting another $1.21 million in June would be helpful; the Saints are already expecting some returns for releasing Michael Thomas and Jameis Winston as post-June 1 cuts, and those salary cap resources can be used to sign rookie draft picks or bring in veteran free agents. It’s all part of the puzzle that Mickey Loomis and Khai Harley are putting together in the front office.

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Saints OL James Hurst retires after 10 seasons in the NFL

After 10 seasons in the NFL and four years with the New Orleans Saints, offensive lineman James Hurst has announced retirement:

https://www.instagram.com/p/C6Jx-rhROzO/?igsh=MTczNWdqZ2pqNGg0NA%3D%3D&img_index=1

The New Orleans Saints now have their first retirement of the offseason, with offensive lineman James Hurst announcing early Wednesday afternoon he will be ending his career in the NFL.

In a lengthy Instagram post, Hurst thanked many people for their support throughout his career.  He ended the thread with a thank-you to the sport itself, saying that it gave him the opportunity to compete with and against some of the best athletes on the planet, and allowed him to accomplish a childhood dream.

Hurst spent 10 seasons in the NFL, six of which were spent with the Baltimore Ravens (who signed him as an undrafted rookie out of North Carolina), and the last four with the Saints. He signed with New Orleans back in 2020, playing in 12 games before receiving a three-year extension the next offseason. He did also take a pay cut earlier this offseason, reducing his salary cap hit down to $2.97 million and making his retirement easier for the Saints’ accountants to manage.

This retirement leaves the Saints in a difficult situation on the eve of the 2024 draft, as they were already pretty weak along the offensive line. With Ryan Ramczyk dealing with a potential long-term recovery after knee surgery, the Saints are going to need to focus heavily on restocking the position in the draft. With Trevor Penning’s development seemingly not going as planned, Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz remain as the two starters with three gaps alongside them at this point. We will see how the Saints handle this, but as of right now it is certainly a tough spot to be in.

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ESPN says the Saints still have a major roster hole ahead of 2024 draft

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell says the Saints have yet to address a major team need going into the 2024 NFL draft. It’s obvious they need more help at offensive tackle:

It’s hardly a surprise to see someone suggesting the New Orleans Saints aren’t good enough at offensive tackle — watching any of their games from last season will give them all the proof they need to back that statement up. Still, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell took a deeper dive than most in exploring why this is such a problem, and how the Saints can clean it up.

The good news is that the Saints have just one outgoing free agent at the position, and it shouldn’t be hard to re-sign them; the question is whether Andrus Peat will agree to return to New Orleans at a price point that makes sense for the team, or if he’ll try to find a better offer in free agency. Barnwell says that’s the easiest solution for their problem at left tackle, where Trevor Penning hasn’t met expectations.

But James Hurst had a rough year at left guard and Ryan Ramczyk’s degenerative knee condition makes leaning on him tricky. So far, the team has only added Oli Udoh, one of first-year offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak’s former players on the Minnesota Vikings. Here’s how Barnwell laid it out:

Hurst and Ramczyk took pay cuts to stay as opposed to the sort of classic contract restructures the Saints use in which they pay a player in full but spread the money over five seasons. The only addition they have made on the edge is Udoh, who had served as a utility lineman for the Vikings before tearing his quadriceps muscle in September and missing most of the 2023 season. He’s more likely a replacement for Hurst as the swing lineman (with Hurst penciled in as the full-time left guard) than a potential starting tackle. Landon Young, who took over for Ramczyk in December before getting injured himself, is also on the roster.

Young was less-than-impressive when stepping in for Ramczyk, and he suffered his own injury that sidelined him for the last two weeks of the season; veteran backup Cameron Erving (an unsigned free agent, at the moment) came up from the practice squad to take his place. If nothing else, the Saints need more depth than they worked with a year ago. Signing Peat could achieve that but the Saints could have already brought him back if they viewed him as a priority. Head coach Dennis Allen has left the door open for a reunion but it doesn’t sound very likely.

So what’s the best path forward? Again, Barnwell argues, re-signing Peat could make the most sense. But it’s not the only option. Here’s what he proposes with the 2024 NFL draft on the horizon:

It would have made sense to agree to a deal with Peat before the start of the new league year to mitigate the dead money on his deal, but the Saints might have been more optimistic then about Ramczyk’s chances of being healthy. Peat’s market hasn’t developed, and there aren’t many other players left in free agency with a track record of playing left tackle. David Bakhtiari and Mekhi Becton have significant injury histories, and Peat might have been better than Charles Leno and Donovan Smith a year ago. Reuniting with Peat would also afford New Orleans the flexibility of moving Hurst to left tackle and bumping Peat back inside to guard.

The Saints also have the 14th overall pick and could use that on a tackle prospect, but would there be any hesitation on their end after seemingly swinging and missing on Penning? This organization has used five first- or second-round picks on offensive linemen going back to Peat’s selection in 2015, and while that’s a perfectly reasonable way to build a football team, they have needs elsewhere that they can’t fill with high-end veterans in free agency. At the same time, if they’ve given up on Penning and Ramczyk can’t play, they might need to re-sign Peat and use their top pick on an offensive lineman.

The Saints have invested a ton of draft capital into their offensive line over the years and going back to that well might be their best path forward. We’ll have to see if they make any more additions in free agency over the next month, or if they’re counting on one of their early-round picks (at Nos. 14 and 45 overall) to cure what ails them.

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4 potential Saints salary cap casualties in 2024

The Saints boxed themselves into a corner with so many contract restructures. They don’t have many possible cap casualties in 2024:

The New Orleans Saints are dealing with another challenging salary cap situation in 2024, but they’ve boxed themselves into a corner in at least one way: there aren’t many contracts they can tear up and save much money against the cap. Years of restructures and heavy guarantees have caught up to them and some players who aren’t meeting expectations don’t necessarily fit the description of a cap casualty. There just aren’t many players the Saints can let go and recoup many savings.

That’s not say everyone’s safe. There are some players who could be moved ahead of free agency and the 2024 NFL draft when salary cap resources matter most. With that in mind, here’s a look at some players who are in a precarious position:

Saints’ 10 worst offensive players in 2023, per PFF

These were the Saints’ 10 lowest-rated offensive players in 2023, per Pro Football Focus grading, including Cesar Ruiz and Trevor Penning:

The New Orleans Saints was out of sorts again in 2023, though they rallied late — managing to put some bandages over weaknesses and vulnerabilities at various position groups. But they must go into 2024 with a better plan for using the talent on this roster.

So where to start? The offensive line graded poorly across the board at Pro Football Focus, but here are the 10 players on offense (minimum 100 snaps) who received the lowest player grades from PFF:

Saints aren’t eager to explain in-game squabble between Derek Carr, Erik McCoy

The Saints are brushing off a squabble between Derek Carr and Erik McCoy. Dennis Allen says he ‘wouldn’t read too much into’ the heated altercation:

A lot happened in the New Orleans Saints’ win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday — both good and bad. But nothing caught fans’ attention more than the late-game altercation between quarterback Derek Carr and center Erik McCoy.

Carr picked himself up off the ground in a fury after being sacked by Panthers linebacker Frankie Luvu, who beat right guard Cesar Ruiz to bowl Carr over as he dropped back to pass. Carr took aim at McCoy after the play, who responded in kind, and the pair had to be separated. Left guard James Hurst walled off McCoy as they returned to the sideline where backup quarterback Jameis Winston corralled Carr.

Other veterans on the team like running back Alvin Kamara and wide receiver Lynn Bowden Jr. bridged the gap, and the pair eventually hashed things out together on the bench. The offense rallied to close out a 28-6 win. But there were few people in the locker room willing to discuss the incident after the game, including head coach Dennis Allen.

“These kinds of things happen on the field. I’m glad that both of them had the balls to stand up and fight,” Allen said after the game. “Guys, they get pissed. Sometimes things get emotional. I wouldn’t read too much into it. We addressed it. Let’s move on.”

Dustups do happen in pro football, but it’s unusual to see a franchise quarterback going back and forth like this with his center. The two players who touch the football on every single play should be in sync, and they clearly weren’t. Whether Carr misidentified the middle linebacker to set protection before the snap or McCoy failed to help Ruiz pick up the blitz is unclear, and they’re all more interested in moving forward than dwelling on it.

Both McCoy and Carr brushed over the issue after the game, reiterating Allen’s point that these things happen, they’re good now, and there are no divisions splitting the locker room apart (WWL Radio’s Jeff Nowak shared transcripts from their postgame media availability here if you’d like to read full comments). So we aren’t likely to get any real resolution on the record any time soon.

Still: it’s near-impossible to watch this team each week, pay attention when guys are speaking on camera and into microphones, and not come away feeling that something isn’t right. Players and coaches and front office executives are not in lockstep and that discord is reflected in their losing record. Hopefully they can mend fences, build on this win, and work towards a run at the NFC South crown. There’s too much invested in these players and this coaching staff to settle for less.

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