January 2, 2017
Once again the New Orleans Saints have finished with a 7-9 record and are out of the playoffs.
The team has missed the postseason four of the last five seasons and hasn’t been able to recapture the magic of the Super Bowl season in 2009. It hasn’t been able to finish with a winning record since 2013.
As soon as the season ended, New Orleans Head Coach http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/18392530/sean-payton-meets-new-orleans-saints-gm-mickey-loomis-regarding-future">Sean Payton spoke with General Manager Mickey Loomis after the team’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Loomis and Payton will continue to meet this week following the end of the season.
Rumors began to swirl that the Saints would be open to trading Payton to another team if the right offer came its way. This is the http://www.espn.com/blog/new-orleans-saints/post/_/id/25181/sean-paytons-departure-would-be-buzzkill-for-optimistic-saints">second offseason that rumors of the Saints looking to shop Payton have started.
After the end of last season, New Orleans and Payton came to an agreement on a five-year contract extension worth $9 million per year. The Saints also worked a deal with quarterback Drew Brees that has him signed for next season.
Even after a disappointing year, there is hope in New Orleans. The defense suffered injury after injury and still rallied to become better as the season progressed.
Rookie defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins and rookie wide receiver Michael Thomas ended up playing well in their first seasons. The offense is still one of the best in the NFL, and Brees, who turns 38 this month, is still one of the quarterbacks in the league.
New Orleans has plenty of offensive weapons but needs to get cap room and use draft picks to continue to work on the defense. http://overthecap.com/calculator/new-orleans-saints/">Over the Cap says that the Saints have more than $30 million to spend in cap space this offense.
The team has to make a big decision: Will it continue to chase a title with Payton and Brees, or will it begin to rebuild?
If the team can carve out more cap space and use that money judiciously, the defense can be improved quickly. A pass rusher should be the No. 1 offseason need the team should address.
The NFL is a passing league, and getting pressure on opposing quarterbacks is part of winning games. Teams that can’t get pressure normally struggle during the season.
New Orleans http://www.espn.com/nfl/statistics/team/_/stat/defense/sort/sacks">finished 27th in sacks this season with 30, but to be fair, the Oakland Raiders finished last in the league in sacks with 25 and still made the playoffs. Most of the http://www.espn.com/nfl/statistics/team/_/stat/defense/sort/sacks">teams in the postseason finished from near the top to the middle of the league in sacks.
Brees could play until he is 40 or beyond, and if he will work with the team on salary, it could help the Saints make one or two more championship runs. But will the future Hall of Fame quarterback cut the team a hometown discount? Who knows at this point.
The Saints are going to have to make these decisions and quickly. New Orleans must put together a plan for the next five years and stick to that plan barring a major injury.
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