Ask Mike - December 11, 2006

Mike D. said

It will be real tough to keep every free agent this football team has, even the ones they really want to keep. The hardest off-season signee will be DE Charles Grant....
I know that the Saints have talked money to Jon Stinchcomb and Hollis Thomas, but no deals have been worked out with those guys either. ...
You can bet the bank this team will make a lot of changes in the off-season, especially to add critical depth and starters on defense at defensive tackle, cornerback and linebacker. I also believe they will try and upgrade their wide receiver and tight end positions...

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Charles Grant should be priority #1 this offseason. He is most definitely a "core" player, and we need to keep him around. I really think deals will get done with Stinch and Hollis, but if we HAVE to lose one of them, I'd say let Hollis go. I know he's been great for us, but he's getting older and before this year, his play was really on the decline. Plus, Stinch is young, and our O-line is playing as a unit.

I thought it was interesting that Mike D. mentioned that he thinks the Saints will try to upgrade the WR position this offseason.?. Could this mean that he thinks the Saints could possibly let Joe Horn go? Horn's contract has got to be getting into the "fat" years, and he's started to show his age a little the past 2 seasons, as well as being slowed by nagging injuries. I'd hate to see it happen, because Joe's the best WR the Saints have EVER had, but I think it could happen.