By John Sigler | Saintswire
The New Orleans Saints ran away from the pack in ESPN’s all-decade team for the NFC South, with nine players making the cut and coach Sean Payton recognized as the best among his peers — with quarterback Drew Brees named Saints player of the decade, too boot.
Sure, the Carolina Panthers made it close with eight of their own players named to the all-decade list. But the rest of the NFC South didn’t fare nearly as well, with the Atlanta Falcons (four players) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (three) barely making a blip on the radar. It’s been a two-team race in the division for quite some time now.
Intriguingly, three of the nine Saints players on ESPN’s all-NFC South team only entered the NFL in the second half of the decade: wide receiver Michael Thomas, right tackle Ryan Ramczyk, and cornerback Marshon Lattimore. If the Saints can hammer out long-term extensions with each of them (Thomas signed on for the long haul last summer), that suggests the team will be well set up to succeed once Brees rides off into the sunset, joining other teammates on the list like right guard Jahri Evans and safety Roman Harper. ...
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