New Orleans Saints: 3 Players to avoid in 2020 NFL free agency

1. Shaquil Barrett, EDGE

The New Orleans Saints defense performed quite well and has plenty of firepower off of the edge with Cameron Jordan and Marcus Davenport. However, there is a need for depth and consistency outside of Jordan at defensive end.

With big names like Arik Armstead and Jadeveon Clowney out there, there are plenty of teams who are willing to pay those guys big bucks. While the Saints should avoid those two players as well, they should also avoid Shaquil Barrett. Barrett had a breakout season in 2019 with Tampa Bay but there are a handful of reasons why he isn’t a good fit for the Saints.

Barrett is a player who is going to expect big money and the Saints likely aren’t willing to shell that out for him. Considering that last year was his breakout season, we don’t know if he’ll flourish in the same way with the New Orleans defense. That’s always a risk and one that the Saints shouldn’t be willing to stay.

While Barrett led the league in sacks, it was the first year of his career with that type of production. Furthermore, the Saints have some big financial decisions to make moving forward.

Barrett could end up being a good investment for an NFL team — but just not for the Saints. Rather, the Saints have found success drafting their defensive players. There’s no reason why they should change that formula heading into this 2020 season.

Instead, they should stay with their philosophy of finding free agents at a bargain and making them into studs as they did with Demario Davis and Latavius Murray. Considering how impressive those two have been, the Saints have no reason to make a big splash in free agency.