Rebuild or Reload

Reloading made sense once. Even after Drew and SP left, if you squinted hard enough you could see a contender type of roster. It was delusional to think that Winston and Dennis Allen were going to contend for anything but the front office (and many fans) felt like the roster was too talented to blow it up and start over. They had a window to rebuild when Drew and SP left but I fear that window is closed for now. To rebuild you need to be able to part ways with expensive vets. The Saints don't have the ability to blow it up and start over. They'll be forced to keep using the same cap tricks with the same players just to reach cap compliance.

The front office needs to do everything they can to clean this up and focus on the future. No more all in. No more yolo trading up. Take it on the chin for a few years and focus on acquiring young talent. Find a QB. Build up the trenches. That will take time. Hire a coach with that goal in mind. Building a contending roster is hard. Long time Saints fans know exactly how hard it is. Even with Drew Brees we saw how hard it was to build up the roster during those 7-9 seasons. A few great drafts turned it around though.

For some of us the Saints being not great is a return to normalcy. We can be patient during this much needed rebuild. We're in it for the long haul. But for the folks who grew up watching the Saints during this Golden Era, this is going to be rough. I fear we haven't even hit rock bottom yet.