New Orleans Saints: Brandon Coleman should have a place

Every offseason, the New Orleans Saints have some shuffling at the wide receiver position, and one notable casualty could be Brandon Coleman, who ended his 2015 season on a high note with five catches for 81 yards in a win over the rival Atlanta Falcons.

An undrafted free agent out of Rutgers, Brandon Coleman was on the draft radar due to his combination of size and speed. He ran a 4.56 forty at 6’6″, 225 pounds, so some thought he could carve a role in the NFL as a situational deep threat.

Unfortunately, Coleman never saw the field with any team as a rookie, but it wasn’t long before he started to receive hype in New Orleans Saints offseason practices as a potential surprise starter. That breakout contributor would end up being the much more consistent- and effective- Willie Snead, who was a capable possession receiver who allowed Brandin Cooks to take the lid off of defenses.

But you know who else took the lid off of defenses when he saw the field? Coleman. The 24-year-old only had 30 receptions for 454 yards and two touchdowns, but he averaged 15.1 yards per catch with two noteworthy displays against division rivals.

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Coleman has talent and made some noise before ultimately finishing with a ho-hum rookie season, but there’s a chance he won’t finish training camp on the Saints roster.

ESPN NFL Nation’s Mike Triplett wrote up a 53-man roster projection, and while he had Coleman on the final roster, he had this to say about the young wideout:

"“Coleman will need a strong preseason to secure his roster spot because the Saints drafted a similar type of receiver in Thomas.”"

I’ve been as high on Michael Thomas as anybody out there, and I do not see how these two are similar receivers. Yes, both are outside weapons, but Coleman is the type of player who is restricted to a deep threat role as a No. 4 receiver. He’s good at winning vertically, but size, speed, and strength are his areas of value. Coleman doesn’t show that he has quickness, nor does he consistently separate on routes that require more precision.

Oct 4, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints tight end Josh Hill (89) celebrates with teammate Brandon Coleman (16) after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter against the Dallas Cowboys at Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports /

Thomas does. He’s quick, he’s explosive, he’s smart, he makes things happen after the catch, and he was a better intermediate option than a pure deep threat at Ohio State. Even though he’s a rookie, he already profiles as a more complete receiver than Coleman, and he’s more suited to take over the Marques Colston role in the offense than to make Coleman obsolete. Thomas isn’t really similar to anyone who suited up for the Saints last year, but he can be the peg that fits in the hole vacated by Colston.

Thomas is also strong, showed off similar speed with a 4.57 forty at the Combine, and is also tall at 6’3″. However, he isn’t as tall as Coleman, and, again, he’s easily the better receiver; restricting a second-round pick to a situational deep threat gig wouldn’t make sense.

And this is why I think Coleman has a place on the roster. Sure, I’ve panned him as a limited player, but the limited ways he wins are still valuable. I mean, think about how many deep threats the Saints have rostered recently, from the great (Kenny Stills) to the not-so-great (Joe Morgan).

Coleman is no Stills, but he already looks better than Morgan. Nearly 500 receiving yards from the sixth-most targeted player in the offense isn’t awful, and it is important to remember that Coleman led the team in YPR last year. Cooks is the Saints deep threat, but if the team wants multiple players who can stretch the field, then having Coleman as a backup option is nice.

With 9.26 yards per target, Coleman was efficient in his role, because a 61.2% catch rate from a 15+ YPR is a solid return, even considering the fact that he has one of the NFL’s most accurate passers, Drew Brees, hooking him up.

Extremely little personnel moves in this league are shocking, but I would be surprised if the Saints wanted to axe Coleman. He’d have to drop the ball in embarrassing fashion this August in order to lose his spot, because I can’t name anyone on the roster who can take over his gig as the No. 4 guy. Someone could emerge, but Coleman’s efficiency in his first career season is worth keeping in mind when discussing his value as the Saints No. 4 receiver.

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