I have to hand it to Ralph Malbrough who's been predicting this since the beginning of the offseason, pretty much. Robert Meachem has returned to the Saints with a one year contract. Meachem was a total bust in San Diego after getting a huge contract. Despite the high numbers of injuries at the receiver position AND the $5 million cap hit he carried, the Chargers still elected to cut Meachem before finalizing their 53 man roster. That should tell you just how far he has fallen. Meachem has a lot to prove at this point in his career after a disasterous stint like that.
But this is a nice situation for Meachem to fall into.
The Saints have five healthy-ish receivers they like in Marques Colston, Lance Moore, Nick Toon, Kenny Stills and Andy Tanner. Meachem is the sixth guy and he can sit on the bench inactive for a few weeks while he learns the playbook. If someone were to get hurt, it would be an opportunity to come in fresh and make an impact with an offense he's very comfortable in and has had previous success with.
It's also a very low risk situation for the Saints. Jonathan Vilma isn't healthy enough to play right now, so the move to short term IR (which makes him eligible to return in week 7) opens up a roster spot. The Saints signed Meachem for likely the minimum amount, and if he continues to struggle they can easily part ways with no cap ramnifications. If, however, he can give them something similar to what he gave the team in the past, then they've gotten a productive player for a bargain. So before you blast this deal, consider the investment. Meachem has cost no one their job (except maybe Preston Parker, indirectly) and he's probably not taking part in week 1's game plan. His value, if there is any, will come later in the season. But the Saints are making moves now to set themselves up for later in the season. For this reason I love it.
Welcome back #17!
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