The New Orleans Saints have now officially started a new era. It began following the retirement of long-time quarterback Drew Brees ahead of the 2021 season.
Despite boasting an 9-8 record this past year and remaining in playoff contention until Week 18, the Saints didn’t look like a championship contender. A lot of that had to do with the team starting four quarterbacks.
The backdrop here was the shocking resignation of head coach Sean Payton after 16 uber-successful seasons in the Bayou.
To say things are going to look different for general manager Mickey Loomis and Co. next season would be an understatement. Still boasting a ton of talent on both sides of the ball, a sense of continuity will be key. Perhaps, this will also play a role in New Orleans’ decision on a new head coach to replace Payton.
Below, we look at three moves the Saints must make during the offseason in order to return to postseason contention after missing out on the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Related: New Orleans Saints head coach candidates
New Orleans Saints promote Dennis Allen to head coach
There’s going to be talk of the Saints’ brass going big-game hunting for a head coach to replace Payton. That would be utterly foolish. Sure the likes of Jim Harbaugh are bigger names than New Orleans’ current defensive coordinator. But a change of culture is not needed here.
Allen, 49, took over for Rob Ryan as the Saints’ defensive coordinator midway through the 2015 season. He’s turned this unit into one of the best in the game since then. In six seasons under his watch, the Saints’ defense has finished in the top 10 in scoring three times and the top-10 in yards allowed each of the past two years.
Some will focus on Allen’s less-than-stellar two-plus year run as the then-Oakland Raiders head coach (2012-14), but it must be noted that the Raiders’ organization was a complete dumpster fire then. We’ve seen no issues with Allen in New Orleans. He’s much more mature. Heading a unit that includes stud standouts such as Cameron Jordan, Demario Davis, Marshon Lattimore and Marcus Williams, he’s acted the part of a leader. There’s no reason to believe that wouldn’t extend to the entire Saints’ roster moving forward.
Continuity needs to be key here with Allen promoted to head coach and Pete Carmichael remaining offensive coordinator.
Related: Ranking NFL salary cap situations for 2022
New Orleans Saints must handle salary cap situation
As of right now, the Saints are expected to be $76.5 million over the estimated 2022 NFL salary cap. That’s about as ugly as it gets, especially given the fact that they don’t even have a franchise quarterback to call their own. Some of these 2022 cap figures are simply outrageous.
- Marshon Lattimore: $27.4 million
- Michael Thomas: $24.7 million
- Ryan Ramczyk: $23 million
- Cameron Jordan: $22.88 million
- Andrus Peat: $15.45 million
- Alvin Kamara: $14.5 million
The issue here is dead money. Lattimore, Thomas and Ramczyk all have more dead cash left on their deals than their 2022 cap hits are calling for.
It’s also going to be impossible to field a competitive team by simply moving off these star-caliber players, Lattimore, Jordan and Kamara included.
So, what might Loomis have up his sleeve? It’s called salary cap gymnastics, something that’s come to define the general manager’s 22-year run in New Orleans.
Per Over the Cap’s projections, the Saints could simply save $51-plus million by restructuring the contracts of Thomas, Jordan, Taysom Hill, Demario Davis, Peat and Ramczyk. They can also simply release Hill by saving $9 million against said cap.
This wouldn’t be enough to make New Orleans a player in free agency. But when we’re talking about the team’s dwindling hopes of championship contention, finding a way to be solvent has to be in the cards here. It’s not about 2022. It’s about the future.
Related: Sportsnaut’s updated 2022 NFL mock draft
New Orleans Saints find that quarterback of the future
It’s not Taysom Hill. It’s not Jameis Winston. There’s very little options on the NFL free-agent market to look at here. Instead, New Orleans must either hit the trade market or find that quarterback of the future in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Looking at it realistically, the Saints are slated to pick 18th overall come April. In a class that’s void of top-end quarterback talent, they might be able to find a potential starter at that point rather than trading up. Sam Howell (North Carolina) and Matt Corral (Mississippi) are two options who could make sense.
The other avenue would be a blockbuster trade for someone like Houston Texans star Deshaun Watson or Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks. Given New Orleans’ current cap mess, this seems unlikely.
Rather, it would be all about finding a stopgap option over the short-term and adding a rookie quarterback to the mix. Jimmy Garoppolo, Derek Carr and Kirk Cousins could all fit into that category.
Either way, quarterback will end up being the New Orleans Saints’ primary focus once they find a head coach to replace Mr. Payton.