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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

What is the biggest draft need for the New Orleans Saints? Objectively speaking, probably wide receiver. Michael Thomas led the group with 149 receptions; Ted Ginn Jr. placed second-best, with just 30 catches. After those two, second-year pro Tre’Quan Smith was the only receiver to catch at least 18 passes. Thomas put the team on his back and made NFL history, but he can’t be expected to do it his entire career. The Saints must get him some help.

But for now, Saints general manager Mickey Loomis is focused on talking up the players still in the room: behind Thomas, that means names such as Smith, Keith Kirkwood, and Deonte Harris. Backups like Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Emmanuel Butler, Krishawn Hogan, Tim White, and Maurice Harris are also around. Ginn and slot specialist Austin Carr are each pending free agents.

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By Marty Fenn | Clutch Points

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees will be a free agent this offseason, but he has no intention of leaving The Big Easy.

Brees spoke with Jane Slater of NFL Network about his contract as he worked out with NFC Pro Bowl teammates, saying it is “not a matter of ‘if’ it gets done, but ‘when.'” Here’s what he had to say:


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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

What are the New Orleans Saints going to do with Taysom Hill? As a pending restricted free agent, they have plenty of options. The Saints can either re-sign Hill to a long-term contract extension, let him walk away uncontested, or issue one of three different one-year tenders, each worth slightly more than the ones beneath it and fully-guaranteed against the salary cap. With five different restricted free agents to consider, the Saints must act quickly.

The lowest-level contract tender is estimated to cost about $2.1 million, and would give the Saints the right to match any contract offers Hill gets from other teams. The middle-tier tender is expected to be worth roughly $3.2 million, and would recoup a second-round draft pick for the Saints should they not match an offer sheet. The top-level tender will be somewhere around $4.6 million in value and brings back a first-round pick if Hill leaves.

That makes the second-round tender the smart choice. One of several things would happen:

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By John Sigler | Saints Wire

The New Orleans Saints will probably be on the lookout for a new quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft. All three incumbents — Drew Brees, Teddy Bridgewater, and Taysom Hill — are pending free agents, and it’s no sure thing that each of them will return next season. Beyond the short-term need to fill out the roster, there’s long-term concerns about who could inherit the starting quarterback job from Brees once he rides off into the sunset. Bridgewater could be courted by other teams in free agency, and Hill plays his best football when he isn’t asked to drop back and pass.

One draft prospect who could be the new heir-apparent might be Utah State quarterback Jordan Love. Love has a reputation as a gambling gunslinger (he’s thrown 60 touchdown passes in his career against 29 interceptions, with just 20 scores against 17 of those turnovers in his last year) but his arm talent can’t be denied. He’s done a good job in practice with the South Team at Senior Bowl practice, impressing Draft Wire’s...

By John Sigler | Saints Wire

The festivities and practice sessions running up to the 2020 Senior Bowl are in full swing, and the New Orleans Saints are in attendance. This is the first opportunity many coaches and front office personnel will have to scout the prospects in this year’s NFL Draft, so it’s important for these rookies-to-be to make a strong first impression.

Walter Football’s Charlie Campbell reported that the Saints were active in meeting with players from both the North Team and South Team, but we shouldn’t look too deeply into these brief conversations. Often it’s just an opportunity to touch base with a player and maybe get their phone number to schedule a more in-depth interview later on. Eventually, every team meets with just about every prospect.

QB Shea Patterson, Michigan

Patterson, 6-foot-1 and 204 pounds, appeared in just 10 games at Ole Miss during his first two years before transferring to Michigan, where he completed more passes (424) than he attempted in his first stop (392). In his career, Patterson went 662-of-1,098 (60.3%) for 8,800 passing yards, scoring 68 touchdowns against 27 interceptions. He’s been an inconsistent asset on the ground, never averaging better than 4.1 yards per carry or running more than 87 times in a season. He’s very much a pocket...

By John Sigler | Saints Wire

The New Orleans Saints’ title-clinching victory over the Indianapolis Colts 10 years ago was ranked the 17th-best games in Super Bowl history by USA TODAY. It remains the most memorable game in Saints history, thanks to huge plays ranging from Pierre Thomas’s crafty running on a screen pass touchdown, to Thomas Morstead’s “Ambush” onside kick, to Lance Moore’s just-in two-point conversion and Tracy Porter’s famous interception returned for a touchdown. The writeup from USA TODAY’s Nate Davis summed it up well:

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By Joseph Zucker | Bleacher Report

As he approaches free agency this offseason, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees is in no rush to decide on his next move.

Brees discussed his future during an appearance on NFL Live on Wednesday.

"I wanted to give it at least a few weeks, months, postseason," he said. "Just to take a deep breath and decompress a little bit and get some time with the family and then just reassess."

The 13-time Pro Bowler added that spending time with his family and getting their input will be among the most important factors he'll consider before he makes a final choice.

Brees was limited to 11 games in 2019 after tearing a ligament in his right thumb. He still threw for 2,979 yards with 27 touchdowns and four interceptions.

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