Tag: Mickey Loomis

Trevor Penning not yet an option at guard for the Saints

Trevor Penning isn’t yet an option at guard for the Saints. Mickey Loomis says he’s still seen as an offensive tackle:

Trevor Penning’s NFL career has not gone as planned. The 2022 first-round pick only started one game in his rookie year, and the New Orleans Saints benched him after just six starts last season. Now he’s going into Year 3 without a spot guaranteed in the starting lineup. So what’s the plan for him? What can he do to ditch the dreaded “bust” label?

Will Penning move inside to guard in 2024, or is he still training to play at left tackle? Is he still seen as a tackle at all? How does Mickey Loomis answer that question?

“Yeah,” Loomis confirmed when asked exactly that during Tuesday’s pre-draft press conference. He continued, reflecting on the start to Penning’s offseason: “Yeah, it’s gone well. There’s a lot of offseason left here. We have a new offensive staff, new offensive line coaches, I think they’re anxious to get to work with him once we’re able to get on the field.”

Penning made gradual improvement last season in pass protection, but he didn’t improve quickly enough to stick in the starting lineup. What’s more concerning is that he never found his footing when blocking for run plays. That was supposed to be his strength coming out of college but the Saints struggled to run behind him.

But moving him to a new position isn’t the answer — at least not yet. If Penning can’t find his way in Klint Kubiak’s outside zone-heavy offense with tutelage from veteran coaches like John Benton and Rick Dennison, and Jahri Evans, then it’ll be time to try a different approach. At the same time, if there’s any chance he can develop into a reliable starter at left tackle, it’s worth pursuing. The Saints are in very rough shape at both tackle spots right now and Penning being able to put out one of those fires would do a lot to help. And as Loomis said, it all really starts when coaches and players kick off field work in just a few weeks.

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Mickey Loomis walks back response to Marshon Lattimore trade question

Mickey Loomis walked back his response to questions focusing on a possible Marshon Lattimore trade at Tuesday’s pre-draft press conference:

Just how confident is Mickey Loomis that Marshon Lattimore will be playing for the New Orleans Saints this year? The team’s general manager fielded questions from local media during his pre-2024 draft press conference on Tuesday, and the topic of Lattimore’s status came up.

So how did Loomis react when asked whether he was confident Lattimore would be on the roster this year?

“Yeah,” Loomis said, but when asked if he’d have responded with anything but a positive confirmation, he replied with “What do you think?”

When asked a follow-up question, Loomis tried to tamp it down, saying that he was “trying to avoid” the topic of player availability. But his next observation was a little more telling.

“Everybody is tradeable,” Loomis continued, “It depends on the offer you get. I don’t like trading players that have been contributors. There’s too many variables.”

That sure doesn’t make it sound like the Saints are open for business and shopping Lattimore around. They set the stage for this speculation back in January with a unique contract restructure that made Lattimore’s contract easier to trade, following reports of friction between the team and its star cornerback behind the scenes.

After he averaged 14.6 starts per year with four Pro Bowl appearances in his first five seasons, separate injuries have limited Lattimore to just 17 games over the last two years. Sources within the organization let it be known to the media that they were frustrated with a player they perceived as being injury-prone and slow to recover. Fair or not (we’re inclined to downplay it; a lacerated kidney and sprained ankle have nothing to do with each other), that’s how the relationship began to fray.

So it’s relieving to see that things have settled down now. The trade market for veteran corners is terrible right now and the Saints would be moving Lattimore at a big loss. It’s still possible they could trade him, as Loomis acknowledged, but it doesn’t appear to be as likely as it did a few months ago. We’ll see if that changes on draft day or in the summer months ahead.

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B/R writer argues Saints should trade down in 2024, stockpile draft picks for 2025

The Saints don’t typically trade down, but Bleacher Report argues they should break the mold to stockpile picks for next year’s draft:

As the New Orleans Saints finish preparing for the 2024 NFL draft, Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay argues the Saints should deviate from their norm and trade down to stockpile 2025 draft picks. Kay doesn’t believe the Saints are in a position to succeed this year, so they should prioritize the future and start padding out their war chest for 2025.

Here’s what Kay had to support the case for trading down and laying the groundwork to move on from Derek Carr:

The New Orleans Saints have been stuck in NFL purgatory since the retirement of Drew Brees following the 2020 season. The team has gone 25-26 in that span, never finishing worse than 7-10 and never better than 9-8—including last year when it posted that record and earned the No. 14 overall pick in the upcoming draft.

That draft position isn’t ideal for a team that is becoming desperate to find a proper heir to Brees’ throne. After striking out with the likes of Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill, the front office attempted to take another veteran shortcut by signing Derek Carr last year.

Carr is a four-time Pro Bowler, but he isn’t the right man to lead the Saints back to relevance. Even after a bounce-back 2023 season that saw him throw for 3,878 yards and 25 touchdowns with only eight interceptions, Carr still failed to take New Orleans to the playoffs. After a decade in the NFL, the 33-year-old has played in only two postseason games.

The Saints have to find a way to acquire a high-upside rookie who can eventually take over under center. It’s likely too pricy for the club to maneuver up the board this year—teams have been seeking a “historic haul” to trade out from the top spots—but it’s possible the Saints could put themselves in a better position to land the right prospect by trading back.

New Orleans’ brass shouldn’t shy away from a move down into the latter portion of the first round this year, a spot where it could try rolling the dice on Bo Nix or Michael Penix Jr. at a spot that makes more sense than No. 14.

The Saints would be wise to accept a package including 2025 picks as part of any trade back, giving the team a bigger influx of talent for a season in which their 2024 rookie prospect should be ready to usurp Carr as the starter.

This isn’t going to happen. For one, the Saints notoriously do not trade back under general manager Mickey Loomis, instead opting to be aggressors in the draft while looking to move higher. If they do trade down, it’ll likely be for compensation in this year’s draft. Also, New Orleans is unlikely to grab a replacement for Carr in the form of a high profile quarterback. Maybe they draft a guy on Day 3, or the right guy will have to fall in their lap.

The fundamental different between Kay and the Saints is the belief in Carr. They aren’t actively searching for the new franchise quarterback. Carr is believed to be that for at least the short term future. It would be surprising to see the Saints identify and select a player this year they know will set up an inevitable departure for Carr.

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What do Saints’ draft tendencies under Mickey Loomis look like?

What do the New Orleans Saints’ draft tendencies under Mickey Loomis look like? Lots of picks spent at defensive end and cornerback:

The New Orleans Saints have been known to take a similar approach to the NFL draft on a year-to-year basis, but does that match what the tendencies say on paper?

Arjun Menon, an NFL analyst, put together a spreadsheet to see which positions each NFL general manager has spent their top-100 draft picks on over the past 13 seasons. Here are that the results say for each of them, including Saints decision-maker Mickey Loomis:

The most commonly drafted position for Mickey Loomis over that time period was actually a tie between defensive end and cornerback.

Despite spending so much capital on the defensive end position over the past few years, it’s one that the Saints still need to spend more on to get better. Their investments at cornerback have paid off more often, though.

The only positions listed that the Saints haven’t spent a a 100 pick on is tight end and offensive guard. Cesar Ruiz was listed as a center when he was drafted, but has really only played guard in New Orleans though.

Wide receiver, offensive tackle, interior defensive linemen, and linebackers were all tied for second place. The draft capital is pretty evenly spread out, as none of the position groups were nearing a 30% number unlike some general managers on the list. But the stuff the Saints do spend the most on aren’t very surprising.

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Saints announce 2024 training camp will be held at UC-Irvine

Zot! The New Orleans Saints announced their 2024 training camp will be held at UC-Irvine in Southern California:

As had been previously reported, the New Orleans Saints will take their 2024 training camp on the road this summer. Construction on a new team cafeteria at their headquarters in Metairie will make it difficult for 90 players and a full coaching staff to work at the facility — not to mention all of the athletic trainers and support staff.

So, the Saints announced Friday, they’ll be holding training camp at UC-Irvine in Southern California through July and August. Here’s what general manager Mickey Loomis shared in a team statement:

Currently, Mrs. Benson and our organization have invested in the construction of a new cafeteria, that when completed, will be among the finest in the National Football League. The scope of this project makes it difficult to host training camp on-site in 2024, given the extensive needs for our team to prepare for the regular season. We appreciate the outstanding support we have received from our great fans at training camp. We are thankful to be able to come to an agreement with the University of California, Irvine to host training camp, providing us with exceptional fields and facilities that are critical to our football team receiving the necessary work in preparation for the 2024 season.

UC-Irvine has hosted the Los Angeles Rams for their training camp from 2016 to 2023 (except for the COVID-19 pandemic-afflicted 2020 offseason), so this is nothing new to the university’s athletics department. Their 12-acre facilities and practice fields are well-suited to hosting NFL teams.

Still, it’s disappointing to see the Saints moving so far away from their fanbase in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast at large. At a time when Loomis is facing increasing scrutiny for his decisions in hiring Dennis Allen and recruiting Derek Carr while playing fast and loose with important draft picks, choosing to move the largest free-to-attend event for fans across the country doesn’t send a positive message (intended or not).

Hopefully the Saints can make up for it with some open practices at the team facility once construction wraps up or inside the Caesars Superdome upon their return. The team’s training camp schedule will be announced at a later date, but it remains to be seen whether fans in California will be allowed to attend practices. The Rams welcomed their supporters when conducting camp at this same campus, so hopefully the Saints will do the same.

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2024 NFL draft: Saints sending top evaluators to LSU pro day

As always, the Saints are well-represented at LSU’s pro day. Will they pick any Tigers in the 2024 NFL draft?

As always seems to be the case, the New Orleans Saints were well-represented at LSU’s pro day on Wednesday. But will this be the year they pick any Tigers in the 2024 NFL draft? Few players have gone through Baton Rouge to New Orleans when turning pro, and many of them haven’t done so until they already impressed playing for other teams — guys like Tyrann Mathieu and Foster Moreau.

Since Mickey Loomis was hired as general manager back in 2002, the Saints have drafted just three players out of LSU: wide receiver Devery Henderson (second round, 2004), defensive tackle Al Woods (fourth round, 2010), and offensive lineman Will Clapp (seventh round, 2018). Having so few draft picks come out of a recruiting powerhouse in their own backyard has perplexed Saints fans, but Loomis has always explained it as being the luck of the draw.

Loomis was in attendance on Wednesday, per NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill, as were his top lieutenants: assistant general manager Jeff Ireland, the team’s college scouting department head; assistant general manager Khai Harley, who oversees football operations; and Michael Parenton, who leads the pro scouting department. So was head coach Dennis Allen, first-year offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, and quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko. Who could they be scouting?

LSU boasts a ton of top-100 talent this year. In addition to quarterback Jayden Daniels, a likely top-four pick, wide receivers Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. are seen as first-round talents. Defensive linemen Maason Smith and Mekhi Wingo might be picked on the second day of the draft, too, as second- or third-round picks. Three or four other Tigers could hear their names called during the event’s final rounds of selections. Maybe one of them ends up staying in Louisiana.

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Recent cornerback moves are proof Saints should not trade Marshon Lattimore

Poor returns on recent cornerback trades are proof the Saints shouldn’t deal Marshon Lattimore. It’s in their best interest to mend what’s broken:

NFL teams will tell you how they value a player by the contracts they hand out and what they’re willing to send in trades with one another. And while cornerback remains a premium position, players being swapped for draft picks are not bringing back very strong returns. Not even great ones like Jalen Ramsey. It means the New Orleans Saints shouldn’t expect a great haul of draft picks for trading Marshon Lattimore, either.

As noted by Nola.com’s Jeff Duncan, high-end corners like Ramsey, Carlton Davis, and Rasul Douglas have all been traded in the last 12 months. Here’s what those trades brought back:

  • Jalen Ramsey: Traded for a third-round pick and backup tight end
  • Carlton Davis: Traded with two sixth rounders for a third-round pick
  • Rasul Douglas: Traded with a fifth rounder for a third-round pick

That’s a sorry return for three players who are all healthier and/or more productive than Lattimore over the last two years. Lattimore has 12 passes broken up across 17 games with just a pair of interceptions, compared to Douglas (14 PBU’s and 5 interceptions in 16 games), Davis (21 PBU’s and 3 interceptions in 25 games), and Ramsey (23 PBU’s and 7 interceptions in 27 games).

Saints fans aren’t going to want to hear that, but it isn’t a diss at Lattimore. He’s played football at an incredibly high level even if his best work isn’t reflected on the stats sheet. He’s shut down DK Metcalf, DeAndre Hopkins and Mike Evans in recent games. But when you look at the impact plays where he’s breaking up passes or taking the ball away, there are players with better numbers being traded for inconsequential picks around the league.

And that’s what the Saints would be hearing if they started shopping Lattimore around. A third rounder and a late-round pick is the rumored price for Kansas City Chiefs franchise-tagged corner L’Jarius Sneed, too, and he’s someone else with more pass deflections (25), interceptions (5), and games played (33) than Lattimore the last two years. Saints fans are reasonably wanting a first-round pick and more for Lattimore, but teams aren’t going to offer that.

Which is why this situation shouldn’t get to that point anyway. If this is the best trade offer the Saints could expect then it’s worth more to them to mend whatever’s broken. They’ve let it known that their frustrations with Lattimore’s lengthy recovery from injuries has boiled over. At the same time, it hasn’t reached a point where Lattimore has requested a trade or been granted permission to seek one. The Saints haven’t made calls to see who might be interested in cutting a deal. They’re open to it, which is why they restructured his contract to facilitate a trade.

But there’s reason to think everyone can be adults here, including Dennis Allen and Mickey Loomis. To his credit, Allen was complimentary of Lattimore when asked about him at the NFL Scouting Combine. Loomis was more guarded when Lattimore’s unique restructure came up in his end-of-year press conference. Those two men are more responsible for the team’s success than anyone else in the building. They need to get on the same page with their four-time Pro Bowler.

This relationship isn’t too far gone. Lattimore showed up on the sideline to support his teammates in the regular season finale, unlike other injured players like Michael Thomas, who had already accepted he wouldn’t be back for 2024. He hasn’t been critical of anyone on social media. He’s taken the high road. It’s clear they won’t get a trade package back that would justify trading Lattimore. It’s time they put this speculation to rest and insure Lattimore will be making plays for New Orleans, not some other team, in 2024 and beyond.

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Saints have 18th-most draft capital in NFL this year

Will the Saints be big players in the 2024 NFL draft? Most of their picks are in the later rounds, which hurts their value, but don’t rule out Mickey Loomis:

Are the New Orleans Saints going to be big players in the 2024 NFL draft? You never know with Mickey Loomis, but other teams are better positioned to make a move early on. New Orleans owns a lot of draft picks but most of them are distributed in the later rounds, where they’re less valuable.

In addition to a first-round pick, the Saints have 8 other selections on Days 2 and 3. Five of those are compensatory selections, which were just handed out on Friday. Tankathon ranked every team based on its draft capital this year, applying point values to each selection, and the Saints have the 18th-most among the NFL’s 32 teams.

Their nine picks are worth 761.8 points, slightly ahead of the 19th-ranked Tennessee Titans (758.2). The Arizona Cardinals have the most capital in the NFL (1,468.9 points), followed by the Washington Commanders (1,236.6) and Chicago Bears (1,089.5). The Cleveland Browns have by far the least amount of capital with only five picks worth 377.8 points.

The Saints could use draft capital this year to move around the draft with some wheeling and dealing, but they also have a tendency to dip into future assets as well. Don’t expect Loomis to stand pat and let the board come to him on draft day, especially when he has a history of using compensatory picks as bartering chips to trade for higher picks.

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Little potential for compensatory draft picks in the Saints’ 2025 forecast

Experts see little potential for compensatory draft picks in the Saints’ 2025 forecast. Mickey Loomis must make the most of his choices in 2024:

It’s been good to see the New Orleans Saints changing their valuation of compensatory draft picks in recent years. Acquiring extra draft picks in exchange for losing free agents to other teams has worked out for them. Just look at their past history:

  • 2021: Comp picks in rounds three (Nos. 98 and 105) and six (218)
  • 2022: Comp picks in rounds three (Nos. 98 and 101)
  • 2023: Comp pick in round seven (No. 257)

And while the Saints expect to continue that trend in 2024 (they’re projected to receive three extra picks in the fifth round, per Over The Cap) the forecast for 2025 isn’t looking very favorable. Remember, teams are awarded comp picks in the following year’s draft based off the current year’s free agency results. And New Orleans simply lacks many players who are seen as desirable qualifiers.

OTC’s Nick Korte explains:

The Saints remain devoted to keeping core players on their roster, no matter how much they amortize the cap dollars associated with their contracts to do so. This regularly leaves them with few CFA worthy players hitting free agency. But on the other hand, filling up on incumbent players also tends to make them avoid free agency. In the past couple of seasons this has generated some comp picks for them, but typically they do not care much about them, and this could be one of those seasons where they revert to their mean.

Many of the Saints’ top players expected to become available will not qualify for the comp picks formula: guys like Jameis Winston, Michael Thomas, and Andrus Peat. It’s possible that backups on defense earn better opportunities and higher salaries elsewhere, but any signings the Saints make could balance out the losses (and possible comp picks) for defensive tackle Malcolm Roach, linebacker Zack Baun, or cornerback Isaac Yiadom.

So that means the Saints must make the most of their comp picks while they have them. And fans should expect them to be traded. The Saints have traded every comp pick they’ve received in the last three years:

  • Both third-round comp picks in 2021 were packaged in a trade to move up and pick cornerback Paulson Adebo
  • The seventh-round comp pick in 2021 was traded in a move up for offensive tackle Landon Young
  • Both third-round comp picks in 2022 were traded; No. 98 was used to move up for wide receiver Chris Olave, while No. 101 was traded in the package of picks used to get another first rounder, which became left tackle Trevor Penning
  • And the seventh-round comp pick in 2023 was packaged with tight end Adam Trautman in a trade up, targeting wide receiver A.T. Perry

So this tells us that Saints general manager Mickey Loomis tends to view comp picks as trade ammunition more than anything else. He’s known as an aggressive wheeler-and-dealer on draft day, and recent history lays out his go-to strategy very clearly. We’ll see if the trend continues in 2024, but the Saints may not have the promise of extra picks to lean on in 2025, depending on how free agency plays out this March.

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Dylan Sanders’ post-combine 7-round Saints mock draft

The NFL combine has shaken things up for the New Orleans Saints. Here’s who they picked in Dylan Sanders’ post-combine 7-round Saints mock draft:

The 2024 NFL Scouting Combine has come and gone, meaning it’s now time to take stock of how players performed and what this year’s draft might look like.

While the New Orleans Saints’ team needs didn’t magically change during the combine, where players might get drafted did. There will be some players the Saints were eyeing that will be out of range now and some that they might need to target earlier than previously expected. It was a great combine in terms of performances from the positions that the Saints need most, such as defensive end and offensive tackle.

Here’s a seven-round (six, really, after making a trade) mock draft for the Saints, taking the NFL combine results into consideration: