Saints Insider, May 3: What’s next for Saints offseason?

After the NFL Draft, the New Orleans Saints have seven new players — and still several holes on their roster. So what’s next for the team? Where are the biggest needs, and how will they get filled? Could Marshon Lattimore be traded next month?
Our Saints Insider crew of Jeff Duncan, Rod Walker, Matthew Paras and host Zach Ewing give their answers to those questions and more as the unofficial second half of the offseason begins.

0:00 Introduction
1:20 Next wave of free agency
3:46 What are the biggest holes left for the Saints?
6:50 Younger players who could step into bigger roles
8:47 Chances of Andrus Peat coming back
14:21 The Marshon Lattimore question
19:09 Depth question at wide receiver
26:08 OTAs/minicamp dates

#saints #nfldraft #nfloffseason

[Music] the draft is over the long slog of the off season has begun I’m Zach Ying this is the Saints Insider podcast here’s Rod Walker Matthew Paris and Jeff Duncan it is Friday May the 3 and we’re going to talk today about what is next for the New Orleans Saints after their NFL draft uh of last weekend we talked uh you guys recap that one on Wednesday we might avoid Jeff Duncan’s College exploits today I don’t know if that’ll be a part of the show or not it’s a separate podcast but yeah yeah probably so that that one’s got to go on needs the E next to it um on the podcast feed uh okay so guys you talked at length about the Saints draft on Wednesday I think we all agree a very good draft if not a great draft simply they didn’t have a lot of capital to get everything they needed and so now we’re we’re in this spot where the Saints still have needs and they don’t have a ton of resources to get them Raod they don’t obviously have any more draft picks they’ve got a little less than 8 million I think under the cap um what what what’s next well I think this is especially for the science it’s an important part of the draft you look back what two years ago three years ago whenever it was when they got Ty and Matthew you it was this part of the draft I mean so you can still you know improve your roster this time of the year so I know a lot of people sort of stop thinking about the roster after the draft but this is a chance for them to you know maybe go out and feel some of those holes that they didn’t get to feel in the draft yeah it’s kind of kind of the second wave of free agency obviously the bigname guys are going to sign in March but other names are going to wait until after the draft teams will save some money for after the draft mat and see what they need to uh to to still do and in in the Saints case they’ve already signed a couple of linemen this week you know more depth pieces I think than than anything else but but still some more work to do yeah and they also added a defensive back Will Harris from the Detroit Lions they’ve been pretty busy and these guys are cheap they’ll probably be depth pieces if they even make the roster but it does like I don’t think the positions they filled right after the draft were an an accident you know they didn’t draft a guard so they went out and grabbed a garden and another tackle they still kind of have a question mark at slot corner so they went and grabbed one those I mean there are some big names still out there you know Odell Beckham signed today with the or is expected to sign with the dolphins he’s off the board but like Justin Simmons since being released from the Broncos he hasn’t signed anywhere I’m fascinated to see what happens with him and um you know they they do they do go about that second wave of free agency as Rod mentioned but now also I think you start pivoting toward you really start ramping up OTAs here trying to get that offense installed and you know for for the Saints having a new offense that’s going to be I think the the number one priority for them to get that nailed down yeah I think at this point other than say like Simmons or Odell belham Jr those guys are kind of in a different boat they’re sure picky about where they wantan to go at this stage of their careers so there’s still some guys out there like that Mike Thomas a good example going to pick a spot but for the most part these players are signing now are all kind of dep pieces there’s not a lot of Big Time free agents out there just because most teams now sh out most of their money too there not a lot of salary cap room to get anybody so I think these would all be just plug in some roster holes and uh yeah I think the earlier though they can get them in obviously with you know the installs that are going to start happening here especially on offense uh the better what what are the biggest holes on this roster left is it still offensive line yeah I mean you guys don’t know where to start well I do think I think left tackle is a question if um fu has to play on the right side you know if you know do they go back to Trevor Penning do they feel comfortable with him there I’m just Pete is still out there we’ll talk about him later I imagine but um I guess that would maybe be an option but he hasn’t signed anywhere and it doesn’t seem like a reunion you’re already paying the thing with Pete D is you’re already paying him so much in dead money like you would have to effectively pay him twice right and they couldn’t um agreed to terms before uh his money started you know his contract expired so I don’t know if he’s a realistic option even though he makes sense for them um but yeah left tackle would be the one for me that I just don’t know what they would do they also signed Ali Udo all the way back in March but that that’s the one spot that I have a question mark If fuaga has to play the right because of ramch yeah I think interior defensive tackle still a little weak you know I mean now Brian Bree takes a step forward which you would expect in his second year uh but I still think they’re they could add a veteran there there’s that much depth there and they don’t I know they’ve got a lot of linebackers on the roster and it’s I think it’s going to be interesting to see kind of going off track here but like I’m interested to see how they handle the new kickoff return uh people I’ve talked to about it say it’s going to be different the the players used on special teams in that are going to be different than what you’re used to seeing they’re going to be bigger players and you saw like the uh Steelers word came out this week that they might look at Justin field is returner uh it in other words bigger return men are what they’re talking about because of the way the way it’s going to be set up so I’m interested to see if maybe the Saints have more linebackers on their special teams as opposed to like defensive backs I think for me I I agree with both of those positions but I’m still a little concerned about the receiver room I mean me too Chris is good rashid’s good but I mean do you really have a who’s who’s your third who’s your third guy I mean a at Perry came along late in the season but still don’t really know enough about him and I think they need to go get some veteran guy I don’t know who it’ll be um was it Tyler boy from Bengals yeah Hunter rro I mean a guy like that I think I think they just use a veteran presence in that room I mean I think losing Michael Thomas I mean he did have a veteran president you know you could count on him but without him I just I don’t know I just don’t I’m not really comfortable with the receivers room right and they they signed sty Morgan and cedri Wilson they drafted what two or three receivers Bob means after um guy from the Yale I mean they got some receivers but they added Equus St Brown as well you need somebody to take that step forward we we actually have a a segment on receivers later so we won’t go too deep into it it’s no it’s a good good preview not look at the slides or but but let’s um let’s talk before we get into free agents the other thing I think that can fill holes we talk about like jiah ayum needing a red shirt year maybe some of these receivers need a quote unquote red shirt year with the guys who you said that about last year you know your at Perry maybe he’s ready your your um uh Nick salivary could he be ready Trevor Penning is the obvious one like that is another way to Phil hols in we we don’t know and the coaches may not even know until they get through OTAs um whether any of those guys are are actually ready to step forward and maybe maybe play a more significant role you mentioned salivar that’s actually another spot that I think is a question mark is left guard or you know if salivary he makes sense for to maybe plug there but if he’s not ready Maybe you uh put Udo there he played on the right side but maybe he could play left guard but that’s another spot where if they wanted to add a veteran I wouldn’t be surprised but um yeah it’s that spot in particular is I think also a question mark backup quarterback seems like a question to me and have like a million what you I know but I’m just saying but are any of them any good that’s and also feel like punters a huge I mean they got two punters but I don’t know if either one of them was any good Lou Headley was underwhelming last year I mean he was he had his moments but he’s like not probably not even average among NFL punters and so he needs something there okay so the those most obvious ways to fill holes at this point would be free agency and again we mentioned the Saints have about I think it’s like 7.6 million left according to under the cap Matt correct me if I’m wrong I think that’s that sounds right right right about correct and we’ll dig into that first want to let you know uh Saints on.com YouTube Channel Growing every day we want you to subscribe and hit the like button so join us you get you can sign up for notifications and uh you get a little little alert every time that we have a new video every time we go live and of course as we get closer to training camp we’ll have a lot more of that have a schedule reveal coming up all that kind of stuff so uh all sorts of fun stuff coming up okay free agency um you mentioned him Jeff andr Pete is is probably the name out there that everyone thinks of first is Andre Pete coming back they have a they have a hole on the line he hasn’t signed anywhere yet he’s not going to be super expensive seems natural starting to feel like if they were going to do it they’d have they’d have done it already yeah but you know they do have a history of bringing guys back like this you know so they like players they’re familiar with now I would say obviously it’s a different scheme different coaching staff we don’t know how they feel about unde whole different line you know different line coach but it does make a lot of sense I mean like Matt said I mean the left side of the line’s a complete question mark If you were to bring him back whatever the price tag is I think that’s the uh you’d at least have maybe one of those answered maybe not as adequately as you’d like but I would I would definitely think that’s still a possibility but the longer it goes the more I start to wonder and and Matt you pointed out like even maybe it was you R Who pointed out something as simple as the jersey number tal fanga took 75 that was Andre Pete’s number that stuff can change it can be figured out Andre Pete maybe doesn’t care he comes in and picks a different number maybe fonga doesn’t carry that much maybe one of them buys the other one a piece of jewelry or something and that it gets taken care of like that that can get taken care of but it’s just sort of another sign that maybe Andress Pete is is moving on yeah and just generally speaking the left tackle Market is rough right now in terms of who else is out there there’s David bakari but he’s been as injured as you know Michael Thomas has been in terms of actually seeing the field um the former Tampa Donovan Smith yeah Donovan Smith he’s out there I mean good luck um Charles Leno from Washington pe’s I don’t know I heard there’s some concern about his hip does that count as our commander reference ding sure I mean anyway the streak lives the streak lives but um I’ll make it more obvious later okay so um no that it’s just there’s not really like a lot of guys right now that like that’s that’s why like you really needed to hit on Trevor Penning I mean just that he’s not ready and maybe maybe he shows enough growth and they feel comfortable and he improves in this scheme and um you know he’d be an actual option for them at left tackle but it’s hard to bank on that that’s the thing when we were talking about like the receiver room for instance like it’s it’s not that at Perry can’t do it it’s just the reason it’s still a question mark is because can you really trust a sixth round pick to fill that spot um and be okay at wide receiver can you trust a guy who’s been up and down uh like Trevor Penning has his first two seasons to be okay at left tackle there’s just a lot of question marks because of the way this Roser has been built go ahead I say with for me with Pete I don’t to me he didn’t come across and I’m not buddies with Pete so I don’t know like what he’s thinking but he didn’t really come across as a guy who’s just you know out there trying to break the bank with a new contract I think he’s kind of comfortable here he’s been here a long time and I think if they can work something I think he’d be more than happy to come back because they just he’s just such a laidback guy like I don’t even know if he want to pack up and move and go somewhere like hey I I don’t know but I mean he’s you know he’s from the West Coast maybe he wants to get closer to home I don’t know but I could see them working out something with him yeah and Andre Pete has this like he was the guy at fault when Drew Brees got hurt in La he was at fault for one of the car injuries last year like people he’s had these moments where people go oh the guy’s so terrible but but by and large like Andre Pete’s been a very serviceable piece for this offensive line he’s somebody you can mostly count on when he’s healthy uh he’s somebody who can play multiple positions he’s really kind of what they need yeah but I mean I can’t believe we spent this much time talking about hre Pete that’s that’s where we’re at I guess we got four months to go to the season that’s where I guess we’re at we’re at with this team but uh you know I think he obviously would fit in well it’s just like I said we don’t know what this coaching staff thinks of him right I mean he he definitely was better last year I thought uh I didn’t notice myself when I watched tape of him uh having his many Miss assignments and maybe he felt more comfortable out left tackle you know that’s what he played at Stanford but the fact that you know they they don’t have any answers there at least that’s one that you you know what you’re getting for the most part strengths and weaknesses you know what you get with Pete but I feel like they’ve gone this long uh you know at some point they turn they’re going to turn the page so I think the longer he goes the more I’m I’m doubtful that he’s going to be back yeah so that’s the offensive line story we’re going to get to wide receiver in a minute outside of those two spots Matt where are the Saints likely to spend their money to to Target free agency where do you think they could go yeah I think guard like I mentioned safety is another spot that if you wanted to add another body there I mean they kind of did that with Will Harris he’s had experience playing safety tight end maybe I mean the um the undrafted kid from Colorado state that they have Don Hulker um he’s pretty interesting but I don’t know if again can you count on a a drafted free agent it they’re those are the main spots I mean we’ve hit on the obvious ones yeah okay so moving on to to uh the wide receiver situation Rod you you kind of teased this I don’t I I thought going into the draft that that was really an obvious spot for that second round pick um you know actually before we get to receivers I’m I don’t want to mess Norm up so let’s let’s discuss this you mentioned the defense backfield they draft at Kool-Aid mckin Street a big storyline for the rest of this off season I’m I’m sorry to Pivot we will get to receivers is the marsh on Latimore question do they trade Marsh on Latimore it wouldn’t be until after June 1st but we’re we’re actually coming up on June 1st now it’s less than a month away um and and if so what what could they get for him yeah um I mean I think the mckinstry pick makes it more likely or at least tips their hand that they’re willing to there just so many signs that they’re willing to part ways they redid the contract drafted a cornerback in the second round they traded up for that corner they’ve been kind of wishy-washy on whether they actually want him or not in terms of um whether they expect him back or whether they want him back but what can they get for him and what’s actually out there I mean I don’t you know you hear the third round pick comparison um that’s kind of what Jaylen Ramsey fetched some other trades lerus Sneed when he went to Tennessee he fetched a third but I don’t know I mean I just don’t know what team is clamoring for Martian l he’s a very good player I think there would be a market for him a team like the Jacksonville Jaguars um but you know once you get to that June range our team’s really looking to make an aggressive swing like that I think he’s affordable because the Saints you know will have paid most of his money through bonuses and such so I don’t think his cap hit for the team who wants to acquire him is as bad but still I just I think it’s likely I think they’ve tipped their hand of what maybe they want to but I don’t know I just I want to find the team and the suor that’s kind of what I’m wondering at this point and I think it you know it comes down to what some might be willing to offer too you know like what kind of package they would get but I do think like there’s a possibility say you get in a camp an injury or some and a contending team with a hole Corner might say look we we’re one player away this is a very good player like a Cowboys type team that feels like they’re right there this is their window and they can make a deal I could see something like that happening uh I think the the key here is a couple things one uh early on in the offseason conditioning program I haven’t checked recently but I mean he he wasn’t here I know that early they said that after the draft that he had been he had checked in with the trainer and the trainer had sent him some stuff like that he asked for he’s been working on on his own right so he he’s not has not been here that’s that’s good to know and then uh the other thing is look there’s some Fray relations between the team and him now they may have repaired that I don’t know for a fact where that stands but at after the season there was there was a little bit of they were at loggerheads and I think that’s probably why they reworked that deal they may have patched everything up and they may be fine but at one time it was a little Frosty between both sides and I think that that has to be pointed out I mean there’s you know marshan lar agreed to rework the deal he didn’t have to so there was I think that’s indicative of somebody that might have wanted to change the scenery as well I mean he’s played on some great teams here same thing with Mike Thomas you know these guys were part of winning at the highest level at the NFL and they’ve been winning and their careers are kind of getting toward the end I can see where there’d be some frustration uh you know on their side now how you handle it is one thing but uh I can see maybe a player like Latimore thinking I’ve got three four more years left you know I want to be on a contender I don’t want to go through a transition he’s still a guy who can help you win Ro and even with Kool-Aid I mean the more the more guys you have in that secondary if if all of a sudden elante Taylor gets pushed to the bench because you have Kool-Aid and adbo and Latimore and I mean that that’s a good thing for the Saints chances this year yeah every I mean every season I’ve covered a team I think at least one of the corners have gone down at some point and you got to have somebody to plug in so I mean I think and Dennis Allen talked about it after they drafted Kool-Aid you know that’s one of those positions that you just you never can have enough good players at so um but I do think if they can if they get something really good I mean I think they will they I w’t say will I think could actually make a move yeah you see some fantasy football style trades out there lore for DK metf or L more for Debo or what which team says no and you’re well given the salary cap implications the Saints may not want to do that the other team may not want to do I mean like there’s there’s all these uh these ramifications for for stuff like that um don’t don’t think it’ll probably be that big of a splash no I mean not again like day three pick or day two like third round pick that the could get a second for him great but I just yeah and maybe that is what it comes down to would be shocked if they got a second if you could get a second maybe they make the deal if not maybe they they stand Pat and keep him okay we tease it like three times now we’ll talk about the receivers um Raj you mentioned this they Chris olave is a very good player Rasheed Shahed appears to be on his way to being a very good player if he’s not already he he made some huge plays last year but without Michael Thomas man the NFL there there not many times you only have two receivers on the field anymore they just don’t have anybody else to throw out there that you can trust right now yeah I mean even I me I mentioned the guys they signed with Cedric Wilson and U and Stanley Morgan I mean aquanus yeah I keep forgetting him plus I don’t want to have to try to say his name but EQ yeah him uh yeah I just don’t know if if those are enough weapons for for Derek Carr and what what kubak wants to do so I just think I think it’s pretty important I think they would have maybe got one in the second round but all those receivers kind of you know were draft and taken off the board and so if I don’t know if they were interested in like a Keon Coleman or you know any of those guys but they were gone by the time the Saints time came around so they jumped up and got Kool-Aid so it’s to me it’s still a position they need to feel tell you what man watching all those Keon Coleman videos from Buffalo I wish he was here because that dude’s a lot of fun yeah he’s great man he’s a lot of fun um at Perry doesn’t strike me what what the Saints really need Matt is sort of that guy on third down who’s going to make a catch in traffic it’s third and seven he’s going to put his body on the line and has the hands to come up with an eight- yard catch on at Perry didn’t strike me as that guy maybe Cedric Wilson could be but they’re they’re missing that yes but Crystal Al is a pretty good player I mean if it’s third and seven third and eight get the ball to your best receiver like he’s still going to be the number one option I think he’s a number one type of guy he’s had backto back 1,00 yard you know receptions I I do think they kind kind of need that X possession receiver that you know yes third and seven third and eight someone you can throw to but like and more to the point somebody who’s going to be covered by a linebacker or a safety and olav is going to get the top corner so maybe he gets blanket you know or double teamed I mean I think at Perry had showed flashes last year I I don’t think that’s the worst option in the world Cedric Wilson you know he wasn’t that productive in Miami but he had a nice season with the Cowboys before he went to Miami two seasons ago so I don’t know maybe they have it but there are going to be weak spots roster wise on a like on an NFL roster the way the salary cap is constructed there’s only so many guys you can have and if this isn’t the best receiver room in the world I I think that’s okay but I think they have enough there to to peace meal and I think they’ll be okay honestly I think every team that plays this things this year is going to try and take Crystal Lobby out of the game I mean if I’m playing the Saints I would double team him or let some else try and beat you so I do think there’s a little concern there but I totally agree with Matt I mean you can’t have great players at every position you know you’re always in the salary cap area you’re always going to have some holes but I do think this receiving core is probably at best mid pack in the NFL maybe maybe theot yeah toward the botom when you start looking around the league I mean as good as Rasheed stepped up he’s still you know got a long way to go before I consider him like a top receiver in this league he made some big plays but uh it’s a former undrafted free agent and he’s kind of like a little bit of a one- trick pony in My Mind this is before I got here but you think it’s as dire as what was it 21 where it was like trycon Smith and Marquez Callaway and it’s a little better than that but I mean there’s still I just you look around even the division I would say Atlanta’s got a better receiving Corp Tampa’s got a better receiving core probably not Carolina but like you know they’re probably third third in the division I mean there’s a lot of teams out there that have guys like rased Shahid you know I mean if you just rank just rank wide receiver ones where does Chris olve Rank maybe he’s mid pack I mean I don’t think he’s a top 10 receiver yet he’s probably somewhere mid pack wide receiver number two is where does rased Shahed rank probably not any better than mid pack among wide receiver 2os and then after that it probably drops off even more so after that I think you drop yeah you’re you’re talking about probably less than average um the guy who’s been rumored for a long time because he has a previous relationship with Cari seems to fit what the Saints want I mentioned his name earlier is Hunter Renfro can the Saints afford him again it’s kind of like Pete it feels like if it was going to happen it would have happened by now yes but also I mean I can’t remember the deadline off the top of my head but there is a date where you know it they don’t sign certain signings don’t factor into comp dates so you do see veterans go off the board later especially like that where I I don’t think the money to sign him would be a lot lot I mean I know he had a thousand yard rece uh a thousand yard year with Derek Carr but go look at his stats the last couple years they aren’t he fell off I mean part of that may be a scheme change under Josh McDaniels maybe he wasn’t a right fit for that offense but it’s not like he’s coming he would not be A Savior by any means I don’t think I mean I think he’d be a nice player for them but again we’re talking depth pieces this time of year not difference makers yeah I don’t think he’s the kind of player that is going to move the needle with the existing receivers they have they need more like would still be in middle of the pack right yeah but at least then you have a little more experience a little more you know he he probably fits in comfortably as that wide receiver three um not a great one but but at least maybe better than what you have yeah but he he’s very much like a slot receiver yeah you know intermediate routes short r i mean you know that’s that’s what they they have a lot of that I think in a lot of ways they don’t have a big you know Mike Thomas contested catch guy really at least proven right now yeah you might need Jawan or somebody I mean I know he’s a tight end but I mean you got you may have to find it at another position and you know maybe it’s Jaan or what’s my guy’s name that we just talked about I’m really big on him by the way I want to just make it on the record ever since you stay up till 2 in the morning watching watch was incredible he’s going to be the camp beast of the year I can already tell he’s the undrafted Camp Beast I I think and you read all about him on nola.com throughout yeah Matt wrote a story about him through throughout the summer we’ll we’ll go through like position by position we’ll kind of get in in deep who could surprise and Camp you know who who’s ready to take the next step if his at Perry is but you know Bub means is he is he ready to he he kind of feels like the blocking type receiver who doesn’t get a lot of balls but does the Dirty Work and is out there more often than you realize he is so you know they’ve got bodies the question is do they have enough enough Talent there and Carr as a quarterback who we saw last year he likes to spread the ball around um he when he’s going good he’ll throw the ball to seven eight n different receivers in the same in the same game so to me still kind of a question mark maybe something they fill out as as we move forward in the offseason um speaking of the offseason next next steps we have rookie mini camp is next weekend May 10th 11th 12th um obviously I mentioned we’ll get the schedule at some point and then after that three straight weekends of OTAs they are what May 21st through the 23rd 28th through the 30th and then June 3 through 5 and then uh mini camp mandatory mini camp will be June 11th through the 13th and then they kind of go into the hibernation until training camp starts uh I think number one storyline guys has got to be installing Clint kubiak’s offense at this point in the spring at least getting it started yeah I think that’s what everybody’s going to be watching you know we know what they’re what they are on defense I’m curious to see I mean Derek Carr told us at the golf tournament last week it’s going to look different it feels different so I’m eager to see what what what that’s like on the field in person anything else you guys are kind of looking looking at in these OTAs we’ll be watching that left tackle position just like we were last summer you know was Trevor and was it James HSE yeah who was about yeah so yeah we’ll definitely be seeing who’s over there and who’s gonna win that job so will Derek Carr yeah he’ll be looking over his shoulder yeah I was gonna say he actually won’t be looking at it but he he will be wondering Matt anything else you’re you’re going to keep an eye on over the next month here I mean it’s hard to tell in OTAs because some of the guys aren’t even there but I’m curious to see how the injured guys are coming along whether they’re there like a guy like Chase young right is he actually off to the side field doing you know sled work or or you know what can he do this time of year as he’s recovering from neck injury or these guy you know they talk so much about that culture of wanting guys to build in and sometimes I think otaa attendance can be a little bit overblown um with that but you still do want to see that commitment that buy in and we don’t have much to go this time of year so you know we we’ll talk to guys and see if they feel anything is different that and I think like it’s more important obviously for the offensive players you know if you’re Alvin CRA you probably need to be here just because it’s a new offensive system as opposed to you know marshan Latimore he knows exactly what he’s doing he probably doesn’t have to show up till a week before the season and be fine but with this new system going in I think it’s going to be important to have some attendance on that side of the ball all right we kind of roll into the second half of the offseason here we will be with you every step of the way on Saints Insider uh be back next week uh like I said we’ll get a schedule at some point and kind of react to that and um maybe we’ll preview that next week but I think just real brief important for the Saints to get off to a good start next year it is every year but it seems especially important this year you you got to kind of quiet things down and let people know maybe everything’s going to be okay is this your way of telling me you want me to do a mock schedule if you want to do a mock I I wasn’t going to put that on you but if you would like to do a mock schedule um why not the Saints do play yeah the Saints do play the Chiefs who who will have the opening night game in Kansas City Commander week one there we go I’ve already set that I I don’t think the Saints will be the Thursday night opening game um considering the the Chiefs have home games I think against the Ravens and Bengals those seem like really really Prime candidates to be in that slot so we’ll see um but we’ll have that and then we’ll we’ll kind of launch into more OTA talk installing the offense positional previews and and we’ll we’ll get through the summer together so for Jeff Duncan Matthew Paris rodw Walker I’m Zach Ying Norman Bell behind the glass thanks for watching and we’ll see you next time on Saints Insider