Official 2013 New Orleans Saints Offseason Thread

[FLOODx]

I have no worries about RT. I think we could draft a starter at RT in round 3. LT worries me. Bushrod was terrible this year, but unfortunately, I think he'll be back.
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Ramster on the sig
NFL- Saints
NBA- Pelicans/LeBron
NCAAF- LSU

[thesolution]

Have any of you guys heard of Margus Hunt?
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My Second Sig

[wow_junky]

Margus Hunt looks like more of a development project than many of the DEs available, but if he is there in round 3 when we pick I would gladly take him, even if we draft a DE in round 1. Rounds 4-7 can then cover offensive tackle & defensive depth

[thesolution]

[Canadian Saint]

So we need a D overhaul this offseason. No more 'yeah but he was an integral part of the 09 championship winning team' or any of that garbage. If they sucked this season, they are gone.

Unfortunately reality is the organization can't and won't do that. So next best thing is limit the damage they can cause.

Let go:

Ellis (7.34M)
Shanle (2.25M)

Cut:
Smith (5.7M)

Those ones are the ones that have to be done. Ellis was awful the last 2 seasons, Shanle just sucks and Smith is useless. We can't be giving out money like that.

Restructure:
Harper(6.35-->3.5M)
Vilma(2.8-->2.3M)

As much as we'd like to cut the above two, the Saints love the leadership these two bring. So we do the next best thing. Make them cost less for that said leadership.

Total savings: 18.64M

From there it becomes a case of how do we fill our DE void? Free agency or draft?

I'm going to try do one through FA.

FA:

1.) DE Osi Umenyiora (2yrs 17M 8.5M/yr)
I question how big his market will be given his age, but I'm hoping he is fine with a 2 year deal giving him a 2.5M/yr raise on his current salary. He probably doesn't deserve it, but we need the talent at DE. Spags gets a DE he has worked with and that has worked for him, we get a DE that has worked in a Spags D before. It's a risk, as he might be more broken down, but we need the talent. He sucks at the run D, but at least he gives us a pass rush. Or hopefully gives us a pass rush.

2.) CB Derek Cox (3yrs, 14M 4.67M/yr)
While the Jags might want to retain him, if he does come available, I'd like to take a shot. He's an OK #2. He's not super special but he can cover pretty well. He also competes with Robinson and gives us better depth. Little overpaid but to get him we might need to overpay.


UDFA:

TE Ben Cotton, Nebraska
A one-dimensional blocking TE. Something we very much need on the roster. He's a good blocker.

Draft:

Round 1: DT Sheldon Richardson, Missouri
With Ellis gone we need a replacement. A guy like Richardson could be important for us. His ability to not only be a force against the run but also pass the rusher, he could be a force for us. Between Richardson, Hicks, Bunkley and Johnson, our options at DT might be enough to produce strong ability in the middle. Richardson boasts a non-stop motor, great athleticism, decent array of pass rush moves and he's more polished than some of the other options available at DE at this position.

Round 2(assuming we get it back): LB Chase Thomas, Stanford.
With Vilma declining in ability, Hawthorne being a bit beat up, Wilson not really finding a home, and Casillas' limitations, we need an answer at OLB beside Lofton. Thomas also gives us another potential pass rusher off the edge.

Round 3: OT Oday Aboushi, Virginia.
He gives us another big athlete for a potential LT to develop. With Bushrod slowing down, Brown not being able to stay healthy, Jones being a project, we need another body in there. Streif also sucks and should be let go. Aboushi is very solid in all aspects of the game and has great athleticism. Needs a few years to polish everything else up.

Round 4: S DJ Swearinger, South Carolina.
A sleeper S prospect who has been solid in all aspects for South Carolina. He was helped by a good D, for sure, but he's produced some nice plays in where he's shown good instincts and gritty play. We need a guy who could rise above and take either Harper's or Jenkins' spots through being a good player.

Round 5: WR Aaron Dobson, Marshall.
Big guy, fast, good hands and can run good routes. Underrated but I think would be worth a pick. We could use some more fresh blood in the WR corps.

Team:

QB: Brees, Daniel
RB: Ivory, PT, Ingram, Sproles
FB: Collins
TE: Graham, Thomas, Cotton
OT: Bushrod, Brown
OG: Grubbs
OC: DLP
OG: Evans, Olsen
OT: Aboushi, Jones
WR: Colston, Moore, Toon, Henderson, Morgan, Dobson

DE: Osi, Junior
DT: Richardson, Bunkley
DT: Hicks, Johnson
DE Jordan, Wilson
OLB: Hawthorne, Vilma
MLB: Lofton, Chamberlain
OLB: Thomas, Vilma
CB: Greer, Mack, White
CB: Cox, Robinson
FS: Jenkins, Swearinger
SS: Harper, Bush
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^^^ Props to SHSTE92

NFL: New Orleans Saints
NHL: Edmonton Oilers
MLB: Minnesota Twins/ Toronto Blue Jays
NBA: Phoenix Suns/Toronto Raptors

[Raves]

Smith is actually on the books for 10 million this year.
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2011 Stats:
Malcolm Jenkins - 78 Tackles, 1 Sack, 1 FF, 9 PD, 1 FRTD
Jimmy Graham - 99 catches, 1310 yards, 11 TD

[tylerdouglass]

[IDOG_det]

2 questions. Is Junior Galette a FA? If so, how likely is it that he walks?
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Travi$ Scott is better than you

^^^^Kempes on the sig^^^^

"The original Ezekiel Ansah fan"

[Canadian Saint]

[IDOG_det]

[Canadian Saint]

A better guide to cap stuff from Canal St.:

http://www.canalstreetchronicles.com/2013/1/2/3812788/cap-talk

I'll post the relevant info:

DE Will Smith - $14.5M caphit next season, cutting him would cost us only $3M.

LB Jonathan Vilma - $8.6M caphit next season, cutting him would cost us only $2.6M.

SS Roman Harper - $7.1M caphit next season, cutting him would cost us only 2M.

Honestly, the way they've outlined it, cutting the above 3 saves us $22.6M in cap space. That is alot.

It gives us the ability to re-sign Bushrod, all our RFA's, give Graham a new contract and get some new bodies in on the D. Then add in other guys we let go(Ellis and his $7M+ salary) and then we have enough money to really revamp the D.

Loomis needs to be a hardass and really cut or restructure bad deals. The 3 outlined above and Ellis don't earn anywhere near their cap figures. We can't be paying for past production.

Hell we could maybe even take a run at Michael Johnson if he hits the market and we have enough money.
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^^^ Props to SHSTE92

NFL: New Orleans Saints
NHL: Edmonton Oilers
MLB: Minnesota Twins/ Toronto Blue Jays
NBA: Phoenix Suns/Toronto Raptors

[sammymvpknight]

[tylerdouglass]

[Spartan300]

How has Mark Ingram been?

[Canadian Saint]

Here is a question, what would we think of a complete youth movement on D?

Cut:

Will Smith - $11.5M saved.
Vilma - $6M saved.
Harper - $5M saved.

Let go:

Ellis - $7.57M saved


Total savings: 30.07.

Re-sign:

Bushrod(we have no one else) = 1.5M raise --> 8M/yr.
Graham = 8/64 = 8M/yr.
Other RFAs = lets say 5M total

8 + 1.5 + 5M = 14.5M

Cap left = 15.5M.

Draft:

Round 1: DT Sheldon Richardson: Great against the run, good pass rusher from the DT spot, incredible motor and a good character. Should fit in quite well.

Round 2: S Tony Jefferson: Can he play safety? A phrase we have used in NOLA for too long. Great safety prospect. A little short, but plays zone coverage quite well, can move around, good hitter, and is fantastic at coverage. Moves Jenkins down to SS where he should be more effective too.

Round 3: DE Brandon Jenkins: This is a risk. Absolutely. The thing is, it's one that could work out. If Jenkins was healthy, we'd be talking about a round 1 DE. He had alot of what you want in a pass rushing DE. OK size (6'3 260 lbs), a variety of pass rush moves, good hand usage, good motor and pretty athleticism. The problem was he did get injured and was out for the whole year. If his health checks out, drafting him would give us a DE with great pass rush skills and athleticism.

Round 4: OLB Jake Knott: Good OLB prospect that is good in run support and in coverage. Really high motor too. Good leader also.

Round 5: WR Aaron Dobson: Good size and speed. Can run good routes and has safe hands. Another weapon for Brees to utilize.

Round 6: OT Justin Pugh: OT prospect who could develop into a LT with some work. Unfortunately with our emphasis on D, this needed to drop down the rounds, but we still get a guy who has the skills.

Round 7: TE Ben Cotton: Good blocking TE which we desperately need.

2013-2014 New Orleans Saints:

QB: Brees, Daniel
RB: PT, Ingram, Sproles, Ivory
FB: Collins
TE: Graham, Thomas, Cotton
OT: Bushrod, Pugh
OG: Grubbs, Olsen
C: DLP
OG: Evans
OT: Brown, Jones
WR: Colston, Moore, Toon, Morgan, Dobson, Roby

DE: Jordan, Wilson
DT: Richardson, Bunkley
DT: Hicks, Johnson
DE: Jenkins, Galette

OLB: Hawthorne, Chamberlain
MLB: Lofton, Chamberlain
OLB: Knott, Casillas

CB: Greer, White
CB: Robinson, Mack
SS: Jenkins, Bush
FS: Jefferson, Abdul-Quddus


Thoughts? Watching the Wild card games, so many teams have multiple rookies having an impact, the question is, why can't we?

I think Jenkins at SS might serve him better. His coverage skills and his ability to make plays around the LOS might be best utilized as an SS. I think he fits a Spags SS really well too. Jefferson should do well as a FS. Knott is a bit of a risk at OLB, but we need guys to be hungry and step up. Hopefully it's him. With Jenkins and Richardson, we're hoping our D-line can produce a consistent pass rush.

It's a risk, but I think we need to move to a more hungry and young D and away from a complacent and aging D.

Thoughts?
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^^^ Props to SHSTE92

NFL: New Orleans Saints
NHL: Edmonton Oilers
MLB: Minnesota Twins/ Toronto Blue Jays
NBA: Phoenix Suns/Toronto Raptors