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Join Big Q & The Great Saints Think Tank as we cover the New Orleans Saints Draft and UDFA’s signed.
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– Full list of UDFA: RB SaRodorick Thompson Jr.
OL Alex Pihlstrom
OL Mark Evans II
TE Joel Wilson
P Lou Hedley
DB Anthony Johnson
LB Anfernee Orji
LB Nick Anderson
K Blake Grupe
WR Shaq Davis
WR Sy Barnett
– & MORE…
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7 Comments
Get some rest Q. Great work bro🙏 We will see what happens when they get those pads on 👍
CB Anthony Johnson is a solid player. I had him comped to Ken Crawley in pre draft. He and Keidron Smith from KY were the two highest graded cover CBs in college last year if I remember correctly. He was in play for 5th round but ran a slower 40 so dropped. As far as on-field ability, he's physical with good instincts. Might actually translate well to the slot. Anthony Johnson, Mark Evans II (a run blocking OG), & Joel Wilson (TE) look like the best UDFA pickups. Joel Wilson can beat out Krull if healthy. I'm glad we got a solid punter too. I saw miami fans joke that he was their best player.
With the exception of Jake Haener, I am extremely pleased with the draft and udfa class.
Steal of the draft is Shaq Davis from South Carolina State!
Anfernee Orji LB from Vanderbilt. 💪🏿💪🏿
WHO DAT GOOD DRAFT I THINK
Drafts can only be evaluated after the players have shown their worth on the field, often times several years after their name was called. I like the offseason moves that the New Orleans Saints have put in this offseason and overall I think the roster is a championship roster; I said the same thing last year because man-for-man they were as good as any roster in the league last year. The QB situation is a great upgrade but Andy Dalton wasn't responsible for their below average performance last season, he was steady and sound for the most part, though nothing about his performance was sexy. While Carr is a much more stable QB who has thrived in a similar system that Carmichael runs the issues that hindered the saints last year still exist…Coaching! I have to question their draft because they went against the grain this season, drafting for need instead of picking the best available player. The Saints have a definite "profile" that they like at the end, and Foskey is a rerun of the Davenport and Payton Turner which accounted for 5 1st round draft picks in recent years and none of the above have proven that they belong in this league. Foskey fits that profile, long and lean. The Saints have continued to "hard line" this philosophy with Foskey..Foskey is the All Time leader in sacks at ND BUT he doesn't have a single move (technique) in his arsenal, just like Davenport. Watch his highlight reel and you will not see a single rip, a single spin or a single swim. In college, against low level competition he racked up sacks but in the league you need to come in equipped with those skill, and the reality is that he's not. Davenport's stature and combine grades are "cookie cutter". Looking around the league it's easy to see that speed to power DE's are having much more success than the 6'6", long lengthy DE's. This is especially concerning because Cam will be 34 this season and he's the only DE on the roster that has been productive; Grandson is a productive pass rusher in spot duty (but not an every down player).
I hope that I'm wrong regarding this pick but history tells us that the quick DE's with good body learn (speed to power) are much more productive in the NFL than the "old" DE profile which the Saints continue to waste picks on,….high picks. I like the rest of the draft, giving the Saints a C+ in this draft and trying to remain optimistic…but the coaching staff needs to show me that they are much better at making decisions, putting the right personal groupings on the field in the appropriate situations and playing complimentary football.
Carmichael was absolutely atrocious and predictable last season; time will tell how much of that was a product of the overall philosophy of Allen or just poor play calling by Pete. One thing that has been missing from our offense in recent years is the screen . This was likely a combination of the lack of athleticism on the O-line and our QB's inability to master the art of the screen; Jaimeis can throw the ball country mile but doesn't have the timing or touch to throw the short screen pass…which isn't simple….Dalton wasn't very good at this either and it showed. Brees was a master of the short ball. Armstead's athleticism was missed last year and only added to the Saints inability to keep defenses off balance and honest. Penning is a liability in pass blocking and injuries have set his development back..He's great on running downs but hasn't had the time-on-task to properly develop his pass blocking skills. I wouldn't trust or rely on Penning to be a full time starter in '23, perhaps he should be used in Heavy packages much like Stief was in his early years during his developmental stage (especially since the saints don't possess a TE that is a true inline blocker; Juan is a true Flex TE, i.e., big bodied WR).
The Defensive line has basically been retooled with a lot of new tools. How they gel, acclimate to a new system and produce on the field is likely going to take a bit of time to get them all on the same page; last year the defense didn't hit it's stride until midseason and with all of the new faces it will likely take some time to come together in 2023 as well.
It's easy to look at this roster with optimism, particularly at this stage of the offseason, but the entire season will hinge on the coaching staff. The roster is talented, but only 1696 people on the planet are skilled enough to wear an NFL jersey so it's less about the roster and more about the X's and O's. Dennis and Pete have had success in previous roles with an Alpha leader who left no stone unturned. Dennis and Pete need to prove that they can grow into the roles that they are in..last season they got the benefit of the doubt and an honest assessment is that they underachieved. Last offseason was a complete debacle…letting CJ go for a bag of peanuts, a weak training camp and poor play calling throughout the season, not addressing the QB position were costly. The roster is solid, the division is up for grabs so if Dennis doesn't achieve playoff success this season then the Saints need to look elsewhere next offseason….they can not continue to destroy a winning culture that was in place when Dennis took over. If they do then the "sacks" will come back out and the best of the franchise will be in the rearview…