The New Orleans Saints have a number of questions to ask themselves this offseason, many of them surrounding starters headed for free agency either this March or next year. Most of those starters play defense, including names like cornerback Eli Apple, safety Vonn Bell, defensive tackle David Onyemata, and linebacker A.J. Klein.
While the defense came up short in the playoffs, it’s arguably been a more consistent unit than the lauded Saints offense the last few years, especially in the postseason. But should the Saints look to maintain consistency on that side of the ball or instead pursue upgrades?
To help find out, we’ve ranked each defensive position group, taking stock of where they stand going into the offseason:
Cornerbacks
The Saints have just three corners under contract right now: Marshon Lattimore, Janoris Jenkins, and Patrick Robinson. Lattimore is one of the best (if somewhat high-variance) young cover corners in the league, and the decision to pick up his fifth-year option for 2021 is a no-brainer. But it’s less clear whether the Saints should keep veterans like Jenkins and Robinson around on their bloated salaries. And the lack of depth behind them doesn’t add any clarity. This is a position the Saints must invest in, whether it means retaining mainstays like Apple and P.J. Williams or bringing in new faces.
Linebackers
Most of the linebackers the Saints project to start ended the year on injured reserve. Alex Anzalone, the expected starting middle linebacker, went down before the season-opener with a shoulder injury. A torn ACL laid low Kiko Alonso, who should start on the strong side. Both of those players should compete to start in 2020, but the Saints can’t count on either of them. Veteran backup Craig Robertson is best suited for special teams, and promising rookie draft pick Kaden Elliss (also returning from an ACL injury) round out the group. At least first-team All-Pro weakside linebacker Demario Davis is in the fold, but his contract expires next year.
Defensive ends
Cameron Jordan turned in one of the best seasons of his career, highlighting a personal-best 15.5 sacks with four takedowns of Matt Ryan against the Atlanta Falcons on Thanksgiving night. But who’s starting opposite him in 2020? Trey Hendrickson made great improvements and is headed for a contract year. Marcus Davenport also visibly improved as the year wore on, but a troubling Lisfranc injury threatens his long-term projection. Behind those three, second-year pro Carl Granderson (who needs to work on his dance moves) and Mario Edwards (a potential salary cap casualty) will look to earn more playing-time.
Safeties
Bell finally hit his stride and is probably headed out the door, with his replacement (standout rookie C.J. Gardner-Johnson) already in the building. But you have to think the Saints have some internal remorse over letting Bell leave so easily when the decision to oust Malcolm Jenkins for Jairus Byrd, which arguably set the franchise back a few years, is still so fresh in everyone’s memory. Marcus Williams catches flak from fans — understandably upset — over his gaffes in big moments, but he was the only Saints player with multiple interceptions last year. He’s not going anywhere any time soon.
Defensive tackles
Onyemata is the big free agent to watch here, but much like Bell, the Saints may already have his replacement waiting in the wings. Shy Tuttle made a big splash as an undrafted rookie out of Tennessee, filling in at the three-technique spot when Sheldon Rankins was on the mend, and deserves more snaps. While his place in Saints lore is etched with his magnificent stiff-arm of Ryan on Thanksgiving, Tuttle really was an impactful player throughout the year, and projects well moving forwards. Expect him to start next to nose tackle Malcom Brown (a huge get in free agency, as it turned out) while Rankins continues to recover from another lower-leg injury. Behind them, Taylor Stallworth is an experienced backup, but it wouldn’t be a big shock if the Saints added more bodies here.
