A year ago, the New Orleans Saints missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Can the team get back on the postseason track? A 5-2 start a season ago morphed into a 9-8 showing. And as it turned out, it proved to be the final season for Sean Payton as head coach of the New Orleans Saints.
But that doesn’t mean that this organization could be destined for some tough times. There is still plenty of talent on this roster on both sides of the football. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has been promoted to head coach and he has spent considerable with this franchise (2 different tenures) for more than 10 years.
Likewise offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael. A year ago, he and the Saints had to adjust to life without Drew Brees on the roster.
This offseason, the team added some veteran talent as well as five players in the draft – including a pair of first-round selections. And the following three performers figure to make their share of plays this upcoming season. The Saints’ 2022 season kicks off Sunday at Atlanta.
New Orleans Saints top offseason pickup no. 3: WR Chris Olave (Ohio State)
It’s not as if the organization hasn’t hit the jackpot in the past with a wideout from Ohio State. And the Saints are hoping history repeats itself. Back in 2016, the club used a second-round selection on Buckeyes’ standout Michael Thomas.
This year, New Orleans’ general manager Mickey Loomis used the 11th overall pick in April on highly-regarded Chris Olave. He caught a somewhat modest 175 passes in four seasons with the school. But in those 38 games, he scored an impressive 35 touchdowns – 13 of those trips to the end zone. And Olave wasn’t the only newcomer to the Saints’ receiving corps this offseason.
New Orleans Saints top offseason pickup no. 2: WR Jarvis Landry (Released by Cleveland Browns)
Back in 2019, Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas set a new NFL record for catches in a season. That year, he was targeted 185 times and hauled in 149 passes for 1,725 yards and nine scores. It was the third consecutive season that the former Ohio State standout reached the century mark in terms of receptions. He totaled 104 grabs in 2017 and an NFL-best 125 catches a year later.
But injuries have put a crimp in his career the past two seasons. Thomas played in only seven games in 2020, catching 40 passes for 438 yards and zero touchdowns. This past year, he never saw the field. But this week, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network believes Thomas will be ready for the team’s Week 1 clash with the Falcons (via John Sigler of Saints Wire).
Meanwhile, the team’s wide receiving corps was not only boosted by the drafting of Chris Olave in the first round but the free-agent addition of five-time Pro Bowler Jarvis Landry. In eight NFL seasons – four each with the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns – the former LSU standout has totaled 688 catches for 7,598 yards and 37 scores.
It’s worth noting that Landry’s best season in terms of touchdowns came in 2017 (9) with the Dolphins. Don’t be shocked if he sets a new career high in terms of visits to the end zone.
New Orleans Saints top offseason pickup: S Tyrann Mathieu (Kansas City Chiefs)
He’s one of the headiest defensive players in the league. And he and the teams he has played with have enjoyed their share of success with him in the lineup.
The Arizona Cardinals made LSU defensive back Tyrann Mathieu a third-round selection back in 2013. He spent five seasons with the organization and was part of two playoff teams in 2014 and ’15. That latter year saw Big Red set a franchise record for wins in a season and the club reach the NFC title game.
In 2018, Mathieu was a member of the AFC South champion Houston Texans. He was a 16-game starter and finished the season with 89 tackles, three sacks, two interceptions, and a fumble recovery.
A year later, it was off to Kansas City to join Andy Reid’s team. He spent three years with the Chiefs, earned a Super Bowl ring in 2019 (LIV) and the club returned to the “Big Game” the following season.
Mathieu’s nine-year resume with three organizations has seen him named to three Pro Bowls while earning All-Pro honors three times. There have been 26 interceptions, three returned for scores. He’s also totaled 10 sacks and six fumble recoveries. He joins an already-opportunistic club that finished with 25 takeaways in 2021.