By now you’ve heard the bomb that Mike Garafolo dropped on us all:
Sources tell me and @RossJonesFOX Saints LB Junior Galette suffered a pec injury, could be out a while: http://t.co/IHVcGNM1LD
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) June 4, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Speaking of which, he seems to be leaking an awful lot of Saints news in recent days. Galette is said to be weighing the possibility of surgery which suggests a tear of some grade. And if you know anything about torn pectoral muscles, it typically means the end of a season. Whether Galette decides to play through pain or attempt to come back after surgery at some point this season remains to be seen. For the time being, though, it’s safe to assume he’s out for a while. Potentially a very long while. So where does that leave the Saints?
The Galette injury is a devastating blow to the Saints pass rush. Regardless of how you feel about his worth being on the field on 1st and 10, it’s undeniable that he’s a categorical need to the Saints on 3rd and 6. Now last year, as bad as the defense was throughout the season, I would have said the absence of Galette would mean a dip to Spagnuolo levels in terms of performance. Now? The Saints may be able to absorb it better. But it won’t be easy. You don’t just replace 22 sacks over two seasons with the “next man up”.
That said, Hau’oli Kikaha, Anthony Spencer and Kasim Edebali in no specific order will have to combine to produce. On paper, Spencer is the player that starts in the base – at least for now. He has the most experience, he’s coming off a decent season, and he knows the defense. Spencer has the ability to rush the passer and he’s excellent against the run, making him a 4 down capable player. If anything, he may offer a little more versatility than Galette in the short term, though his best assets don’t touch what Galette can do.
Edebali seems to have terrific hustle, build and toughness – he’s a very good prospect that could surprise many. I felt he was massively underrated last year as a developmental player. But he’s inexperienced, will make mistakes and doesn’t have Galette’s explosiveness. He can give you quality hustle snaps as a rotational guy, but he’s probably not ready to step in for Galette and reproduce anywhere near that level.
Kikaha is probably the most suited to replace Galette in the pass rush specific role. He was already penciled in as a pass rushing specialist, but the need for him to produce in his rookie season just increased significantly. Hopefully he’s up to the task. Davis Tull is a wildcard, but I sense it will take a while for him to catch up to the enormous increase in competition.
The good news is the Saints do have some options here thanks to free agency and the draft. And with Edebali returning the Saints have the potential patch together productivity at this position while Galette is out. The margin of error just got much smaller, though, and with a defense previously in shambles trying to pick up the pieces this was the last thing they needed.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
