The Saints need to hit on more draft picks, and get more out of their young talent.
We make a lot out of the NFL draft every year, and for good reason — the easiest way to build a Super Bowl contender is by stocking your roster with star athletes playing on affordable contracts, and the best way to acquire them is by hitting on your draft picks every year. But some teams have had more success on that front than others. And if the list of the top 25 players under 25 years of age from Pro Football Focus is anything to go off of, the New Orleans Saints have some work to do.
Bryan Bresee falls into the same category, and Philadelphia Eagles star Jalen Carter was the sole defensive tackle on PFF’s list, so it’s not like many guys were put clearly above him. Bresee has more sacks (12) than Carter (10.5) to this point in their careers, but Carter has an edge in solo tackles (45 to 29), tackles for loss (20 to 14), and quarterback hits (25 to 23), plus forced fumbles (4 to 1). Bresee has deflected 9 passes to Carter’s 6. PFF tracking has credited Bresee with 69 combined quarterback pressures through his first two years, but Carter has 125 of them. So it’s tough to make a compelling argument that Bresee should rank ahead of him.
Hopefully the Saints can have some representatives on this list next year. You’d like to think rookie draft picks like Kelvin Banks Jr. can make the cut (second-round quarterback Tyler Shough will be 26 this season and won’t qualify even if he plays really well), but look out for other young pros. Kool-Aid McKinstry and Kendre Miller are two of the youngest players on the team despite being in their second and third seasons, respectively. If they can excel in new systems on each side of the ball, the Saints’ fortunes could turn around in a hurry.
