Now the initial 53-man roster is set (for now) and the practice squad has been compiled. This felt like a good time to see where the team is at not just looking at the starters but also the depth behind them. Injuries are of course going to happen with certain groups more at risk of those. Looking at both the active roster and the practice squad to see where the Saints are strong and where they should still look to add.

        These rankings will be based on previous performance and some projection of how I think those players will perform this year.

Note- I will be leaving suspended players on my lists as this is more of a projection for the year rather than just for week 1 etc.

1- Running Back

Active roster- Alvin Kamara, Jamaal Williams, Kendre Miller, Kirk Merritt, and Adam Prentice.

Practice squad- Tony Jones Jr. and Jordan Mims

        Taking the top spot for me is RB, which is quite something considering if I had done this exercise before free agency I'd have probably ranked RB if not last very close to it. The Saints have done a good job of adding to the room behind Alvin Kamara. Williams should be the lead back whilst Kamara is suspended and although he’s billed as more of a power back Williams can still be practical catching passes and crucially is a really good pass blocker. 

        All of RBs the registered a pass-blocking snap last season. Jamaal Williams ranked:

Tied for 13th in pass blocking snaps with 58.

Of the 24 RBs with over 50 pass-blocking snaps, Williams graded out 5th best in PFF’s pass-blocking score and allowed the joint fewest number of pressures with 2 (1 sack and 1 hurry).

        Being a good pass blocker is crucial in the Saints offense and was part of the reason we saw Alvin Kamara taken off the field at times on third down last year.

        The nagging injuries that Kendre Miller has sustained throughout the off-season gives me pause but I’m trying to not let my pessimism get the better of me after Miller has looked so explosive when he has been on the field this off-season.

        I’ve also included FB Adam Prentice in the RB room and he’s worth mentioning due to his excellent run blocking. I think he’s going to be more of a factor in the passing game this year too. Also, I haven’t included him in the list but Taysom Hill does add to the depth of this group as he is expected to feature heavily again in the running game this year.

2-Safety

Active roster- Tyrann Mathieu, Marcus Maye, Jordan Howden, J.T. Gray, Lonnie Johnson Jr and Ugo Amadi 

Practice squad- Jonathan Abram

        Coming up just behind is the Safeties, this is a little more of a projection than it is based on proven play.  I think we see a drastic improvement from the starting pair of Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye. Both had disrupted off-seasons and Maye missed a lot of time last year due to injury. This year both have played every possible snap in camp apart from vet rest days. I’m banking on this extended play time together boosts their on-field chemistry and thus boosts their play, I think both Mathieu and Maye are going to greatly improve compared to last year and be real playmakers for the team. This theory is why I have this group as high as I do.

        Behind them, the Saints have a lot of versatile players with upside. Particularly 5th round rookie Jordan Howden who has impressed coaches in camp, he’s played both safety spots in camp and he also has a tonne of experience covering the slot with 1257 snaps there in college, which shows he has the coverage skills required to be a good matchup player for the Saints to use in a range of different ways. The same logic applies to veteran safety/CB Ugo Amadi who may start in the slot for the Saints whilst Alontae Taylor gets up to speed or at the very least be the primary backup.

        Versatility continues to be the theme of the day in the safety room with Lonnie Johnson Jr. who in his NFL career has played snaps at outside CB, Slot CB, and both safety spots. The group is rounded out by special teams ace J.T. Gray who has also shown improvements each year on defense and could be a solid enough starter if called upon. The depth is so strong at the position that the Saints have former first-round pick Jonathan Abrams on the practice squad.

3-Quarterback

Active roster- Derek Carr, Jameis Winston, and Jake Haener 

        This is a strange concept to put QB here as in theory we hope to never see the quality depth used to start any meaningful games, however, that doesn’t mean the depth doesn’t still exist. Of course, the hope is Carr continues his Iron Man-like career (he’s only missed 2 regular season games in his 9-year NFL career). If not, the Saints have one of the best backup options in the league, last year’s starting QB Jameis Winston.

        Behind them, the Saints have 4th round rookie Jake Haener who had an up-and-down preseason but thoroughly impressed in training camp touch wood, Haener should never have to see the field (unless the Saints are resting starters after securing the number 1 seed in the NFC) but if that did have to happen I think Haener could be solid enough for the Saints to be able to survive a few games without their top 2 options here.

4- Tight End 

Active roster- Juwan Johnson, Foster Moreau, Jimmy Graham and Taysom Hill

        Similarly, to RB If I’d done this exercise prior to free agency I'd have put this group towards the bottom. However, behind future star TE Juwan Johnson (yes, I said star) they have added a solid group who can all contribute in different ways.

        First, the Saints added Foster Moreau after the draft, who gives you the more traditional inline TE with solid blocking skills, he should feature heavily in 12 personnel this season. He is more than just a blocker though and should provide ample threat in the passing game to keep defenses guessing whilst he’s on the field, he’s shown great chemistry with QB Derek Carr from their time as teammates on the Raiders.

        Then the Saints shocked the NFL by bringing back former standout TE Jimmy Graham. Graham should have a very specific role on this team tailored to his 6ft7 frame; contested catch situations, red zone, and obvious pass downs. All roles which he’s proven to still be more than effective at.

        Finally, you have Taysom Hill who will still feature in the QB/RB rushing game, but the Saints have made it clear that they also want to feature him more as a pass catcher, which Taysom has shown promise at in the past. He’s also a solid blocker when called upon so should provide the Saints some play-call flexibility when he is on the field. My only slight concern with this group is they do feel a little light in the blocking department unless Johnson has continued to make big strides in this area as he did last year.

5- Wide Receiver

Active roster - Chris Olave, Michael Thomas, Rashid Shaheed, Tre’Quan Smith, Keith Kirkwood and A.T. Perry

Practice squad- Shaq Davis, Lynn Bowden Jr., and Jontre Kirklin 

        If you guarantee me 17 games of Chris Olave, Michael Thomas, and Rashid Shaheed then this group is probably number 1, however, you can’t guarantee that for any WR room in the league let alone a group where 2 of the top 3 have prevalent injury histories. I would also be more confident here if Thomas had been his dominant self throughout camp, but it has been a slow built-up for him, now Am I counting him out? God no, he’s one of the most competitive and hard-working players in the league. 

        Behind the top 3 is where I have my concerns, it’s already been reported that Tre’Quan isn’t going to be healthy for week 1 and has a proven track record of not being available. Keith Kirkwood has been excellent in camp but has struggled to produce when the lights get turned up in the regular season, Don’t forget he was on this team last year and didn’t produce much.

        I'll lump off-season standouts A.T. Perry and Shaq Davis in the same category here, the ‘prove it’ category. Both hope to turn out to be excellent NFL WRs but we’ve seen too many before not replicate their off-season success in regular-season action (look no further than now former Saints WR Marquez Callaway). This group has true boom potential but there is a path here (I hope desperately this isn’t the case) where this group is surviving on star second-year WR Chris Olave in a similar way they had to last season. I’d certainly feel a lot better if they had one more proven player here i.e., a trade for Hunter Renfrow or alike. 

6- Cornerback

Active roster- Marshon Lattimore, Paulson Adebo, Alontae Taylor and Isaac Yiadom

Practice Squad- Anthony Johnson

        A group that plummeted because of one move, the release of Bradley Roby, it may seem extreme to rate a unit with a CB who on his day is the best in the league in Marshon Lattimore and 2 ascending young CBs in Paulson Adebo and Alontae Taylor this low because of the release of a 31-year-old slot CB but Roby was the perfect safety blanket for the depth of this group. He could be an above average/ average starter in the slot and on the outside. 

        Now the Saints are likely to start Alontae Taylor there who if you’re starting him on the outside, I have no concerns about but in the slot? This off-season gives you plenty to be concerned about with Taylor playing that role. He has 86 total snaps in the slot in his NFL and in college (including this preseason) and hasn’t looked the same caliber of player as he did when he played at an extremely high level outside his rookie season (2022).

        The release of Roby also leaves your depth very thin, one injury on the outside likely means Taylor moves back outside or you are playing Amadi there who may turn out fine or could play like Justin Evans did in the slot last season (hint not well). Outside of the top three, you have Isaac Yiadom who made the team for his excellent special teams play. Not his play on defense, although he has shown improvement in that area I would not feel good if he was starting games at CB this season, and rookie UDFA Anthony Johnson who has impressed coaches and media this offseason in camp but is still an unproven player at this stage.

7- Defensive line 

Active roster- Cam Jordan, Carl Granderson, Payton Turner, Tanoh Kpassagnon, Isiah Foskey, Bryan Bresee, Nathan Shepherd, Khalen Saunders and Malcolm Roach

Practice squad- Jack Heflin, Kyle Phillps, and Niko Lalos

        This is the biggest boom or bust group for me, Cam Jordan is entering his 13th NFL season and his now 34, Yes, he still averaging 10.5 sacks over his last 2 seasons but there is evidence that he needs a lot more help to achieve that now than he did in his prime years. If you told me by the end of this year this was the best d-line the Saints have had in several years I wouldn’t be surprised, if you told me they struggled and could not generate consistent pressure I also wouldn’t be surprised. 

        Although I’m very encouraged by the off-seasons Carl Granderson and Payton Turner have had I can’t comfortably say it is definitely going to translate to regular-season dominance, I’m in wait-and-see mode with both players. I’m higher on Tanoh Kpassagnon than most (I actually predicted he would be a breakout player this time last year) and given the suitable usage (more rushes from the interior) I think he could be a plus starter for this team but again, I can’t bank on a player who since joining the Saints has 6 sacks in 23 games. I’m expecting nearly nothing from second-round pick Isiah Foskey at this stage and I'd expect him to be a healthy inactive a fair amount this year whilst he adjusts to the NFL game.

        The defensive interior is the part of the D-line that I’m most confident about I think Khalen Saunders will be a force in the run game and Bryan Bresee will be a real force in his rookie season, especially as a pass rusher. With Malcolm Roach (who Cam Jordan called the best interior D-lineman in Saints camp) and Nathan Shepherd providing a really strong rotation. I’m even quite high on practice squad DT Jack Heflin, I think he would be a solid player to add to the rotation if injuries were to strike. This was the group I found the hardest to place and the ranking I may be the most wrong on come the end of the season and I hope that’s the case.

8- Linebacker

Active roster- Demario Davis, Pete Werner, Zack Baun, D'Marco Jackson and Nephi Sewell

Practice Squad- Jaylon Smith and Anfernee Orji

        Despite being 8th I’m not that concerned about this group and that’s because of the Jaylon Smith signing, I’ll admit I wasn’t that high on the signing when it happened, but Smith impressed me with his range and coverage skills in the preseason and impressed Saints media constantly in camp. The reason this signing alleviates my concerns for this group is now the Saints have an answer to the at both MIKE and WILL LB should there be an injury to Demario Davis or Pete Werner (with the latter’s injury history that’s important) 

        The depth behind those three isn’t necessarily bad but unproven, both Jackson and Sewell had a chance to grab the primary backup LB spot with both hands and not let go and neither did hence the signing of Smith, with both now expected to be much bigger factors on special teams than on defense. 

        Finally, that leaves me with Zack Baun, could Baun succeed as a pass rusher from the LB spot absolutely in fact this is of course (as a converted college DE) his best trait but his switch to off-ball LB still hasn’t progressed in a crucial area his coverage skills, which in my opinion still drastically limits his effectiveness.

9- Offensive line 

Active roster- Trevor Penning, James Hurst, Erik McCoy, Cesar Ruiz, Ryan Ramczyk, Andrus Peat, Nick Saldiveri, Landon Young and Max Garcia

Practice Squad- Mark Evans III, Tommy Kraemer and Storm Norton

        This was the group in which health played the biggest factor. Trevor Penning and Cesar Ruiz are both coming off season-ending foot injuries that required surgery, both have participated fully in training camp (baring one day for Penning) but it is still a concern and Penning is still very raw we know he’s going to be excellent as a run blocker but he is still raw in pass protection (has made strides here this off-season).

        Ramczyk has a knee injury that media have reported he will have to play through for the rest of his career, so health is always a question mark for him, and he has not looked like the player who was on a hall-of-fame trajectory before suffering that knee injury in 2021. 

        That leaves new starting LG James Hurst and Erik McCoy. McCoy is a top Center in the league, and someone to have little concern about. Hurst was the team’s starter at LT last season and has now taken the starting job LG spot from incumbent starter Andrus Peat. He’s reliable and the player I’m least concerned with being available based on his injury history, however, he is the weakest link on the line, especially from an athletic perspective a trait that the Saints value for their screen and run games.

        Behind them, the depth is shaky (as it is pretty much around the whole league) but because of the injuries that have plagued this team on the O-line the last 2 years that depth is more prevalent to be looking at. Andrus Peat has had one of his worst off-seasons as a Saint and that’s saying something! Landon Young has struggled in limited game action since the Saints drafted him in the 6th round in 2021 and despite that, the team seemed to have high hopes for him this year but that has been de-railed a bit after missing the last several weeks with an MCL injury. The team also has high hopes for 4th round rookie Nick Saldiveri, his play in the preseason was mixed so I don’t think we can expect too much from him this year after making the lofty transition from Old Dominion to the NFL. If possible, this is a group that the Saints could do with adding to but so could the rest of the NFL.

        That was a much harder exercise to do than I anticipated and I expect a lot of Saints fans would see this list differently so let me know your thoughts!

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